Rushing with A Side of Russian

“Winter Storm Fern” brought much of Philadelphia to a standstill and the Philly International Airport to the brink of chaos. There were cancellations, shifting gates and crews, and passengers running through the terminals like one of those apocalyptic movies where aliens invade.

I was on hour four of what would turn out to be seven hours of waiting when I decided I might as well get some lunch. As I ordered, I heard a loud voice behind me declare: “Hey everyone, just getting a salad!” Confused, I turned to see a frazzled business traveler holding a laptop while also trying to hold her earbuds. I placed my order as quickly as possible and moved down the counter to wait…and to watch.

As she tried to begin a Zoom call that she was clearly supposed to lead, she was also trying to mouth her order to the unimpressed cashier and trying to figure out how to reach for her credit card with a nonexistent third arm. “Thanks for making the time - Russian! I said Russian dressing,” the woman exclaimed to her Zoom and to the person making her salad…at the same time.

I was mesmerized and quickly commenced judgment. What’s the priority here? Was it the Zoom, the mediocre salad, not dropping the laptop, or the fact that her flight was definitely delayed? I wanted to yell, “Forget the dressing, lady! Focus!”

The longer I watched, the more I realized that while my fellow passenger’s outward manifestation of multitasking gone horribly wrong was extreme, if I were honest, there have been more than a few times in my own life and leadership when I was serving too many masters and, in reality, was really serving none. I wondered where else I was trying to carry too many things and, in the process, caused confusion and frustration for others? What does it say to others when I can’t focus on being present at a meeting I convene? What does it say to me when it’s not enough to just enjoy a salad — with or without dressing — and have that simply be enough? Am I present to the Lord in my prayer life only while I’m doing something else? When my best laid plans to meet everyone’s needs fall apart, will I try to grasp all the pieces, or will I intentionally choose the next and best thing to do in the moment?

My friend left her carry-on bag at the table as she threw her half-eaten salad out while still on the Zoom call. Thankfully for her, someone else was present in the moment. As the world spins around us this week, let’s be sure to pray for the prudence to be present to whatever moment He calls us to and to His presence in all of them.