Unexpected blessings…..
As I was walking out the door yesterday to go to work, I
noticed that three of my four goldfish (check out my blog if you haven’t read
about the silly goldfish: https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=2153682382084506011#editor/target=post;postID=8931700330814565075;onPublishedMenu=allposts;onClosedMenu=allposts;postNum=16;src=postname)
that I had brought in
from my garden pond had died and were floating on the top of my aquarium. They
were fine the night before when I fed them and had been flourishing for a
couple of weeks now in the aquarium on the kitchen counter. I have no idea what
happened or why one made it and the others didn’t. I must admit that my heart
sank when I saw them and I felt like a sad 5-year-old as I flushed them down
the stool. It was not the way I had not expected this day to begin and I drove
to work feeling a bit defeated…..all over a few silly goldfish.
Although the day started off a bit gloomy, I had several
completely unexpected “blessings” happen to me throughout the day. About an
hour into my day, a student worker came into my office and handed me an
envelope that someone had dropped off for me at the front desk. I asked who
left it but the student did not know. There was no name on the envelope but it
had my name and a message on it. I opened it up and inside was a gift
certificate to a local salon for a manicure and a couple of pages of ideas/recipes
about watermelon. WHAT? Who would be so
kind? I’m 51 years old and I have never
had a professional manicure before. What
a wonderful surprise…..a generous gift from a stranger….. and a blessing to me
on a day when I was feeling blue about some dead goldfish. I couldn’t wipe the smile off my face as I
thought about the new experience that was ahead for me; one that likely most of
you ladies have had many times or take for granted. Oh…what color nail polish
will I choose?????? Even my young nieces
have had a manicure….but not this girl….YET! This will be so cool…..such a
little thing for many….but a really big deal for me! Thank you….to whomever left that gift….not
just for giving me a new experience….but for the kind words on the envelope and
the warm fuzzy that it brought on an otherwise melancholy day.
A few minutes later when I was headed up to teach my class, I
was stopped by an administrator. I was standing there holding the large box
that had my supplies for class when a student came up, took the box from my
hands, and said, “Where does this need to go, Theresa?” I immediately thanked him for his kindness
and he said, “It’s no big deal” and off he went to my classroom on the 2nd
floor. What a kind, thoughtful gesture on his part.
At lunchtime I was greeted by a student/friend, Bambi, who
had another unexpected surprise/gift for me. She had hand embroidered two
beautiful pillowcases for me. They are lovely with four bluebirds on a branch
and a special message that reads, “Smile with the power of God always.” What a lovely gift….hand made by her….and
once again, given on a day when I needed it.
I didn’t know what to say or how to respond to the kindness, but once
again, God smiled on me and sent me a bit of encouragement to keep on keeping
on. Only a few minutes after that, my friend Marcia gave me a new microwavable
bowl with a lid to heat up my soup each day at lunch. It will be a daily
reminder of the blessing of friends and the wonderful people God sends us to
share our journey.
Late in the afternoon I received a phone call from my
friend. He told me to go home first after voting before stopping to his house
after work. I was puzzled, but he proceeded to tell me that he had went over to
my place and ‘winterized’ my house by
shutting off the water to the outdoor pipes, draining the hoses, shutting off
the faucets in the well, and attaching the insulating board to the outside of
the house. This was another unexpected surprise/blessing and just added to the
‘hugs” from God that I received all day long. We have snow and cold
temperatures in the forecast and the winterization is one of those projects
that was on my ‘to-do list” of things to deal with and one that I can’t quite
do by myself. I smiled to think that he
had thought of me and did that kind gesture….without even being asked. Another unexpected blessing on a day when God
knew I needed it.
I am, by no means, a woman who has ever
needed/desired/received expensive gifts, fancy vehicles, flashy jewelry, or luxury
vacations. I’m a rather ordinary, down-to-earth, quirky kind of girl that lives
on a dirt road, drives a 15-year-old car (with duct tape on my broken headlight
at the moment), shops at thrift stores, and leads a rather simple life. These
gestures of kindness meant more to me than I can really say…..mostly because
they were given with a sentiment of love, care, and concern.
I don’t know who gave
me the manicure, but likely if I had the opportunity to say THANK YOU, my words
would have been met with, “It’s really no big deal, Theresa”….but to me….It IS
a VERY BIG deal because it will provide me with a new experience (and an
opportunity to push myself beyond my comfort zone as I allow a stronger to get
close enough to touch my hands) and the words written on the envelope… “You are
an inspiration to many….” encouraged me to keep doing what I can to help others. When I was expressing my gratitude to Bambi
about the pillowcases, she kept saying, “It’s not a big deal; it’s just what I
do to keep busy (or something like that)”
To her, it might be just something that she does to fill her time…but to
me…it was a wonderful thing and means a great deal. I will put those special
pillowcases on a pillow on my lazy boy where I write. They will bring me encouragement when I need
to feel like I what I do matters. When I
was trying to convey my appreciation to my friend about the water pipes, he
kept saying, “Well, it had to be done and you don’t have time to do it. It
wasn’t that big of a deal.” To him;
perhaps it wasn’t a big deal, but to me, it was a very big deal because it was
something that I needed to take care of and couldn’t do by myself.
Whenever I speak to a group where the focus is not
specifically about weight loss, I often talk about the 5 or 6 ‘random”
conversations that I had with people that led up to my decision to begin this
journey. The dentist that said to me, “Theresa, you really shouldn’t drink so
much soda; you need to drink water”….words that I just “blew off” for a couple
of weeks, the eccentric hairdresser who looked at me in the mirror (at 428
pounds) and said, “Theresa, just because you are sick; in pain; sad;
miserable…etc…doesn’t mean that you are not worth the effort to take care of
yourself…let me cut your hair.”….words that literally made me go, “Hmmm……I
guess I really don’t care….whether I live or die, and finally, my
rheumatologist who replied to my comment that I just couldn’t live like that
much longer, “Theresa, I’d be more concerned about just living….period”….words
that made me understand for the first time that I was a ticking time bomb and I
had better do something NOW if I wasn’t ready to die, all played a role in my
decision to change my life. These
conversations were really, “No big deal” to any of those individuals…likely
conversations they have with others countless times a week…...and yet…..they
literally changed my life and were a REALLY BIG DEAL to me. My point??
We just do not ever know how what we say; the kindness we show; the “no
big deal things” that we do can positively impact the lives of another and can
turn someone’s bad day into one of joy.
Each day we are given an opportunity to change not only our
own lives, but also the lives of those around us. The potential to turn
someone’s day around; to bring a smile to those who are hurting; to show love
to those who are lonely; and to bring light into someone’s darkness is a
blessing that is given to EACH OF US…..regardless of the circumstances of our
life. We don’t have to be thin; rich; perfect; etc….to love...to make a
difference in someone’s life…..but getting our own “ducks in a row”;
eliminating the negativity and unhealthy habits in our life; and allowing God
to transform our hearts and minds to be more like Him….will make it much easier
to be a light to others because when we feel good about ourselves, in control
of our lives, and have a grateful, peaceful spirit, we naturally want to share
that with others.
Those “acts of kindness” yesterday turned my day around and inspired
me to do look for opportunities to do the same. Today….as I go about my daily
grind…..I ask God to open my eyes, first to recognize the many ways HE sends
encouragement and reveals His presence to me, and then, to help me recognize
opportunities to show someone a bit of ‘no big deal kindness” and to inspire,
heal, love, and/or help someone in need. A smile costs nothing….but can make all
the difference in the world….and it doesn’t have ANYTHING whatsoever to do with
the number on the scale!!!
I encourage you today to continue to focus on your journey;
continue to work towards those goals that you have identified; continue to try
make good choices that will change your life…….but also….to look for
opportunities to make a positive difference for someone else. You might think,
‘It’s no big deal” but very likely……it is!
What can you do today……to make someone smile?
I hope you have a
really good day today!
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