A Beautiful Day

 

To get to here sometimes, I am amazed at how many twists and turns the week made. No wonder sometimes I feel like I slide in sideways. All of the things I worry about just don't happen. The storm that was supposed to hit my daughter and her family, was a big non event, as she said. The truck was fixed and was no big deal. The air conditioner quietly hums away for the first time ever. Today we finally have cooler weather. It will only last for two days, but it is better than nothing.

 

I was listening to a man talk about choices and attitudes the other day. He said that things we say and do and even post on Face Book can affect the world around us. He was a man who does statistics and what he found was that we can affect up to four people or more with positive or negative comments. I think why it jumped out at me, was earlier that morning I had to take the truck into the shop, I also needed to go to the grocery store, I needed to be back home before the car shuffle began. I was in such a hurry. It was so early at the store there was only one checker. I noticed that everyone behind me had one item. I had a basket. I let three people go ahead of me. Not a single one made eye contact. Not a single person said thank you.

 

It was early. I know everyone was tired. I was in a hurry too, but I decided that I was going to pay close attention I was going to have a teaching moment. Standing behind me were two more people with one item.
There was a girl directly behind me and she was counting change, dimes and nickels. I asked her if she wanted to go ahead. She kept her eyes down on the palm of her hand, and said, No.
There was another lady and I asked her and she went ahead. Finally the girl with the change looked up. What I saw was the extreme exhaustion. She was so tired my heart jumped. I told her to go ahead.

 

 She handed the checker her change, and the checker began counting it. The checker said, " You are twenty cents short." The girl said, " Oh, no, I can't be, that is all I have, I need two dollars, so I can catch my bus." The terror on the girls face, just broke my heart, without thinking I said, " Oh, goodness, I will give her twenty cents, just a minute." so I grabbed my wallet. (I take my change out of my wallet normally and put it in a change can) but I had exactly twenty cents in pennies, nickels and dimes.

 

The girl took her two dollars. She never looked back, she just went on out the door, she still had that slump in her shoulders. I know how far she had to walk to the bus stop. If I could have found her, I would have taken her where ever she was going but she was gone by the time I was finished. There was such a look of brokenness on her face.

The checker who saw this, had been rather grumpy. But then she became all smiles. She told me thank you, because I had made her day.
It wasn't something I even thought about, but then I listened to that man talk about attitude and choice. I thought to myself, that no matter what I am going to continue to be nice, I will let people go ahead of me.   Because you know why? Because of that nice man who fixed my air conditioner. Doing the right thing really matters and in doing so, it restores my hope in life. So what goes around, does come around. I even tell you this because I felt I learned a powerful thing in my life that day.

I finally finished up a little counted cross stitch. I don't know if I am just getting slower but this thing took me so long, but it was very fun This one is called  Gardener Goode Witch by Country Stitches

 

It helps me get in the mood for fall which begins next Tuesday. So glad this hot dry summer will be put to bed, well here maybe by December.

Have a lovely day,
~Kim~

 

" Lord deliver me from the urge to open my mouth when I should shut it. Give me wisdom to keep silence where silence is wise.
Remind me that not everything needs to be said and that there are very few things that need to be said by me.
(Elisabeth Elliot---A Lamp for my feet, pg 42)
My constant prayer.