The Tale of Jonah
It was the last leg of my trip home. I had spoken at a retreat and due to the preparation for the speaking engagement and a busy week ahead; I was looking forward to some quiet time on the plane. Occupying the window seat I thought I might be safe from having to make small talk since the lady in the aisle seat had immediately pulled out her magazine. Maybe I could just be to myself, but God had other plans in store for my afternoon when a man asked if he could sit in the middle seat. You could tell he was a hard working man, a bit rough around the edges, with fresh growth on his cheeks and calloused hands. That part was fine, but as he eased into the seat next to mine I caught a whiff of the awful reeking smell of too much alcohol from the previous night that seemed to be emanating from his pores. He wanted to chat and so I asked where he had been and he told me he was on a quick turnaround trip just for the day to take his four year old daughter back to her mother. He lived a...