When I was a fairly new student of Christian Science, I was employed as an engineer-inspector in a midwestern highway department. In one of the state's larger cities, I was assigned to inspect and supervise the construction of a pedestrian accessway that would be of major convenience to the people. The contractor and his superintendent studied the plans carefully with me, but we had difficulty interpreting details for the lower end of the structure. We could find nothing that showed how the foundations for the wing walls should be formed.
Finally the workmen completed the forms and set the reinforcing steel as well as they could. The superintendent decided to start construction, hoping that what we had done was sufficient to serve. Nevertheless, I became increasingly convinced that the forms for those wing wall foundations weren't correct. I appealed to the superintendent, who exploded with impatience. His crew was assembled and the work must go on. If those forms weren't correct, he said briskly, it was the designer's fault, not his.
I knew that excuses for error were no substitute for truth. But I felt a need to recognize the God-directed truth by putting my newfound understanding of Science into practice. I walked a short distance from the construction site and, in silent prayer, sought the answer to this problem. I realized that I and my fellowmen were truly God's children, embraced in His plan. I felt that the project was helpful to the community, and that the motives of those involved were conscientious. And I saw the workers as reflecting their God-given abilities. I also turned resolutely to Mrs. Eddy's familiar and inspiring assurance (Science and Health, p. 494), "Divine Love always has met and always will meet every human need."
