No __cancy

So Joe pulls into the parking lot of the fifth motel of the day. His wife Em is great with child, and the shocks on the car aren’t what they used to be, and he knows if they hit one more pothole the baby will pop out right there, no questions asked.

The ancient Buick pulls alongside the awning over the door into the front desk. The “No Vacancy” sign is lit up, but the “v” and “a” are both dark so the sign reads, “No cancy.” Joe sounds it out: “No can see.” He says it out loud a few times, still under his breath, and begins to chuckle. 

By then Joe’s at the front desk and the help there might be the owner, but you’d never know it by looking at him. The poor guy behind the desk is making his pitch that there’s no room at this inn and Joe’s still chuckling over “no can see,” and he holds up one finger and shakes it and says, “Wait. Before you say anything else, I want you to come and look at my wife. Just see what’s going on. It’ll just take a minute, I promise.”

So the help (maybe the owner) checks the hip holster under his light jacket to make sure the gun’s still there and follows Joe to the Buick. It’s colder outside than he expected, but just looking at the woman on the passenger’s side makes him whistle in amazement. “You sure you don’t want an ambulance, lady?”

Em manages a smile and suddenly sucks in her breath like she wants to create a vacuum that will suck in the Buick around her. She manages another smile that turns into a grimace. “No time…NO TIME.”

Joe turns pale. “Em?” But she’s already turning herself sideways and telling Joe to get everything ready to catch the baby, because she’s gonna push and there’s not a thing he can do to stop her.  On his way to giving his wife the attention she needed, Joe looks at the help and says, “Please call the police or the fire station or someone who can actually help her. I’ll be worthless!”

The help (maybe the owner) says, “Anyone can see you two need help. I’ll make the call right now!” and runs into the motel lobby behind the counter and dials 911. Joe is in wonder at the difference it makes for people to actually see what’s going on so they understand what kind of help someone needs while he’s arranging their sleeping bags and coats like he’s seen it done in at least a dozen movies. Some of them were comedies, some of them were dramas and it fits because he’s laughing and crying at the same time while Em who usually watches her tongue lets out a blue streak that would make most of the guys at the shop blush, and then he’s laughing and crying at the same time because his wife’s scream is fading and the wail announcing his first and only son has arrived is building and the red lights from the paramedic fire truck are getting closer.

Joe’s jacket catches the baby and he hopes the paramedics hurry to help him figure out the mess. Em says “Let me see,” and Joe scrunches the jacket around the baby a bit more tightly and thinks he will ask the first paramedic who can actually see what’s going on to cut the cord. Em’s voice is still surprisingly strong.

Then a paramedic shows up and asks, “Everything all right?” and Joe says, “Please, take a look for yourself,” and waits while the paramedic does whatever it is he’s doing and wishes he could see and understand but there’s no room and once again Joe wonders why “no can see” is the theme of the night. 

The paramedic says, “Here’s your son. We’re going to take you all to the hospital to clean up and make sure everyone’s OK. Looks good from here, but let’s make sure.”

Joe nods and is grateful to see into the eyes of his miracle and wonders if he’s looking into the eyes of Jesus for a moment and feels like he could look through the eyes of Jesus at everyone around him—Em, his new boy, the owner (maybe the help) at the motel, the paramedics who are guiding him and his son into the back of the ambulance where Em is already, the homeless guys and gals from the park across the street who checked out the commotion and are headed to the underpass five blocks away to huddle together for warmth while they sleep.

They’re all so beautiful, Joe realizes. Who knew?

We just don’t see.