Flustered

Yesterday I was at the bank for what I thought would he a simple 2 minute errand. However, when I tried depositing money in the bank machine, it kept spitting the bills back to me. So I went in to the bank to deposit the money with the teller. Of course when I got to the counter, I couldn’t find my bank card! I looked everywhere, went back to the machine but it wasn’t there, not in my pockets, not my purse, like it vanished into thin air! I honestly thought I was losing my mind.

The teller, who was very kind, said he could issue a new card. But then, looking at my accounts, he discovered that my old card was tied to an estate account. Mikael’s of course. Even though the account was closed a year ago, it created a complication with the type of card I had which meant I would not only have to get a new card, but set up online banking all over again. The mention of the estate account really threw me off and the idea of redoing all of my online banking left me feeling panicked. I had forgotten how easily I can still be thrown off by unforeseen circumstances. Sometimes things that just seem like a nuisance to others can be overwhelming to me. I hadn’t expected to be dealing with Mikael’s estate account or that I would be standing in front of a bank teller close to tears.

Thankfully, the bank manager came along and helped us out. It turned out my bank card was in the bank machine after all, it was just inside the machine where I wouldn’t have seen it. She was able to retrieve it and I was able to sign a form dealing with the closed estate account. The manager and teller were both so kind and understanding. I am so thankful for people like that who make it easier to get through these moments when I am floundering.

Grief is a funny thing! We never know when it will percolate up inside us. We simply hope that when it catches us unawares, we are with understanding and kind people. Yesterday, that was the case.