Rapid Refund

     Ok, so today I had a great workout.  I tell you guys this because it was one of those days where I knew I wasn't feeling 100% about what I needed to get done.  But I also knew that I had to trick myself into doing what it takes to get where I've never been (you know what I'm talking about right?...that saying... To get where you've never been, you've got to do what you've never done).  Well anyway, knowing that it was going to be beautiful and sunny out, at least until the late afternoon, I packed my humble lunch (veggie bologna and fat free cheese on whole wheat w/ pickles and lettuce and a little sprinkle of oregano to give it that hint of a hoagie-ness) and told myself that if I put in a good effort and got through the whole workout without slacking, I could go sit by the water and enjoy lunch.  Perhaps even read a little of the book I'm on now.  You know, the one from yesterday that I began reading while trudging out an hour on the hamster wheel...I mean, treadmill (which surprisingly made the time seem to fly by).
      Though I go for walks in the open air often,  it had been a while since I'd actually touched the earth with any bare part of my body...probably since last summer when I finally got over my life long loathing of sand and became one with the beach.  But, I digress (yet again, b/c apparently my middle name is digress lol)  Back to the park: It felt really good to take my shoes off and sit with my toes in the grass as the impending storm caused a nice warm breeze to blow. Ahhh...super relaxed and so thankful for the singing birds and the buzzing bee beside me.  I decided that I should say my thank-you's for these environmental gifts prayerfully.  And thus, having just finished "leg day" at the gym, I folded my legs Indian style to enjoy a delicious stretch and I commenced with the session.  My thoughts meandered through a myriad of topics, praises and requests.  One of them being something like, "God please use me to do your will here, in any way that you see fit".  Immediately after that, I thought to myself..."You've done it now! Do you know what you've just begun?"  And of course I knew.  I foresaw this request as being the impetus of an avalanche of new responsibilities soon to come.  I saw opportunities, one after the other, where I'd be faced with making the more loving choice in a difficult situation.  Things like confronting racism or homophobia and having to contain my rage in the midst of blessing some idiot. LOL  I don't know...there are millions of things that could come my way to test how truly faithful I'd be.  But... I truly do want my life to be a full one so, with the tiniest bit of fear that was left in me, I took a chance and affirmed that I was ready for whatever came my way. Why? Because I know HE won't let me down. 

It's truly amazing how many thoughts can go through the human mind in a matter of just seconds!

George Miller, in his book "The Psychology of Communication" estimated
that humans have thoughts at a rate of 7 +/- 2 per second.

Crazy! Right?  All these thoughts flowed through my head in such a short period of time that there was plenty of time for other thoughts to creep in.  My mind began to wander...like, I got to that point where you're kinda just at a loss for what more to say...who more to pray for in that moment.  Kinda like the awkward end of a conversation with someone you haven't seen in a long time.  But not someone you care to see often...just someone who you once knew but were never really close to... and then you happen to meet up and pretend to be better acquainted than you really are.  As if that weren't awkward enough, now you've gotta find some sort of tactful/appropriate way to disconnect from the person without offending them. LOL  Not that God is an awkward somebody who you don't enjoy talking to...but sometimes, when you've been away from regular conversation with HIM/HER you kinda feel like a dunce when you run out of fuel for the conversation lol  Welp, at any rate, I wrapped it up and said, "That's all... for now," leaving the door open for the conversation to continue at any point in the future. Because, ya know, who ever wants to cut God off, right? 

     So after this I busted out my scrumdiddleyumptuous sandwich fixin's and neatly placed them all into one beautiful looking piece of art.  I then produced a carefully measured beverage and precisely weighed chips (yup, hard core dieting here, people) and I was ready to GIT IT ON!   When from my left came a voice, and for the just a split second I thought it was God (ha ha ha).   "Excuse me...(I looked up)...you wouldn't happen to have a wire hanger in your car?"  I kid you not, I had to swallow my saliva before I could answer this dude b/c I was soooo ready for this sandwich, right.  Sadly  I told him  that I didn't have one.  He walked away with his head hung a little low.  I turned back to bight my sandwich and that lil' voice in my head said talk to him.  So I asked if he needed to make a phone call.  He said he had locked his phone in the car.  I offered my cell phone but he said he couldn't even remember the number because he always uses the speed dial.  I responded with an "Ohhh, yeahhh" in the way you would if you were trying to let someone know that you understand exactly what they're talking about and that you felt really bad for them.  I thought, that really sucks... But then...right back to my sandwich I went.  Unsurprisingly, the voice was there again (well, hold on, let me explain. The voice I'm speaking of is more like just a guiding thought...The Spirit, if you will, that nudges you in the right direction. Not an actual voice).  So feeling compelled, I turned and asked him if he needed a ride somewhere.  I was hoping he didn't think I was crazy.  And I was also hoping that he wasn't crazy b/c I didn't have time to be fighting some grown man for my life.  I had to get home and start dinner in a little bit. LOL  He was reluctant to tell me where he lived but he told me the street and I told him I'd take him.  After all, it was right on my way home.  And so, without even taking a single bight of my perfect sandwich, I packed it back up and gathered my things. He gathered up his things and I cleared him a spot on the front seat.  I asked if he had a way to get back to his car and he looked confused.  He eventually said no and asked "Why? Were you coming back here?"  I told him that I cooouullldd  (meaning, if he needed me to) b/c I had nothing else to do.  Ha! Nothing else to do.  I had quite a few things to do.  But nothing I had to do was as important as keeping this appointment with my purpose and fulfilling this divine assignment.  

     I introduced myself and we began to chat a bit.  His name was James.  I asked him if he had an extra key at the house. "No, A hanger," he said very matter-of-factly, "I do it all the time, I'm used to it."   So I drove him to his house.  One of the cookie cutter shacks that lines my usual route home.  One of the houses I used to playfully tease must've been slave or share cropper homes b/c they are so tiny and dilapidated and all identical.   About a good 20-30 houses on both sides of Washington Street.  It's rather depressing to see but it reminds me everyday of how blessed I am.   I've never stopped on that section of street or turned further into the neighbor hood to explore and here I was, sitting up close, face to face with real poverty.  In that moment I was slightly ashamed of my jokes because honestly, there's nothing funny about people who can't afford to make a better way for their families in this frickin' country...but let me not even get into that right now. 
     We arrived and James said "The hanger's right over there on the ground."  He jumped out, went into the backyard of an abandoned looking, boarded up house and grabbed a coat hanger.  I prayed that this was not his home and that he had actually stepped slightly into the next yard, where the home actually looked inhabitable.   He hopped back in the car and we continued to talk on our way back to the park.  I dropped him off and watched as he worked the hanger into the door and maneuvered it around the pull up lock.  Man how I miss those kind of locks. You know, the ones that kind look like golf tees or even like little plastic microphones or something.  Something to grab hold up...unconfusing in an emergency...no guess work as to whether up or down or left or right will lock or unlock the window, door, or trunk...UGGGHH!!! 
     James looped the skillfully crafted loop at the end of the hanger around his door lock and gave it a tug. up it popped and as he opened the door the annoying alarm sounded.  Except, in this instance, it wasn't so annoying.  It was actually more like the sweet sound of triumph!!!   We exchanged numbers and though I still had to eat my lunch, my soul was unsettled and I couldn't just sit back down in the grass as if I hadn't been profoundly affected by our encounter. 

     I'm sure some of you will simply see this as just a normal interaction.   A nice person doing what any nice person would/should do.  I just so happened to be there while he happened to be in need.   But being a believer, I don't think coincidences truly exist.  Timing is often the key to so many great opportunities.  That being said, I'm glad that early this morning I made the conscious decision to make the most of this day before I ever considered leaving the house.  Because in doing so, I believe I put myself in the right place at the right time to do the right thing and that was so much more gratifying than my perfect little sandwich :O)

Love you guys, Thanks for stopping by!

Welcome To My Brain

Hey there folks,

Blogging is definitely something very new to me but hopefully I'll get the hang of it pretty soon.  I don't know yet how often I'll be blogging but I can tell you that I will blog about almost any and everything that crosses my mind.  I'm an inquisitive soul with a thirst for knowledge and moreover, a desire for wisdom.  I love to share to the betterment of mankind and hope you'll visit often to get what I've got to give. From recipes to random reflections to poetic outbursts.  Anything's game, except for disrespect and negativity.  I prefer truth and honesty with a healthy dose of respect and a bit of mutual admiration.  Please don't expect perfect spelling or grammar.  I do my best to make it right sometimes, but other times...I care more about the message than the packaging.  I will admit to being the unnecessary comma queen and to having lots of pauses in my thoughts that I display visually with those trusty ol' three little dots "..." If this annoys you, you should probably stop reading now.

So, I've been thinking of doing this for a while now but a thought crossed my mind today that forced me to take action and begin recording the things that happen in my head (which, if left unsaid, would otherwise be dead):

   

Thoughts from my simple life: In my humble opinion, there aren't many things more disheartening in this world than a woman who grossly underestimates the power of her smile, the sound of her voice and the simple touch of her hand...it truly is tragic ~T.Bates

 This thought first materialized as a FB status but then lead me to feel like...The world (or at least everyone in my little world) really needs to see this without having to scroll through a days worth of other more visually appealing posts.  Posts that might bar them from stumbling across this opportunity to ponder the considerable impact of such a seemingly insignificant interaction.

Though the statement is specific in nature, it can surely be generalized into saying We all need to realize our worth and share it with those who could benefit, not just from our presence but from us actually BEING PRESENT in their lives.  When someone loves you...when someone cares about you...or even when someone considers a thought of you...NOTHING YOU DO IS EVER INSIGNIFICANT.  And if we all tell someone how significant they are, perhaps that sentiment will make its way around this world...and more people will act with a sense of urgent responsibility.   Not meaning that any of us are responsible for how other people "feel"...but meaning that we could all probably be a little more aware of how our actions affect the environment in which others live.  Whether that environment is a real space, like the break room at work or a simple mental construct, like the prison of low self-esteem some are unfortunately trapped in, we are all responsible for what we release out into the world. 

I like how a former co-worker put it to me: "We can either choose to use our words to build people up or to tear them down."   Now, I know you might say there is a middle ground here.  Like, if you do like our mothers said and "say nothing at all".   But think about it my friends.  There is a force out there in the world whose only mission is to tear people down. To weigh down their dreams, to strangle their hope, to dampen their light...And if we simply take the middle ground...we are failing to counteract that process.  And how can you be a citizen of the world and not want to do the little bit that you can to make it an easier place to endure?  Especially if you are someone who's found a method for holding on to your own joy? Right?  Welp, at least that My Simple take on Life...