A Prayer

I greeted folks in their cars as they lined up for the Mobile Food Pantry. An older couple, the man in the passenger seat, unshaven and gaunt, he reached out his hand and said to me, “My wife …” He trailed off. She spoke softly, “They diagnosed me with cancer, just this afternoon. We …” She fell silent. They in their car, I standing the curb, the three of us quiet for a small eternity. A minute passed. I drew my breath and the words came … words I do not recall. What were those words? Were they a prayer? They surely were.