Go Ahead....make my day...

I approached the customer service desk with some trepidation.

Why, you ask? Well, I'll tell you. And because you're my friends, I'm going to tell you the truth and admit something about myself.

I don't like dealing with customer service desks. I really don't. I mean, nine times out of ten I don't have the right receipt (it was the one I accidentally stuck my chewed gum into), or the item I want to return cannot possibly ever be returned (on a particular 'bad Mommy' day, I spent 27 minutes trying to get the gal at Best Mart to take my temper tantrum throwing three year old off my hands), or there's no one actually at the customer service desk (seriously, it was like a ghost town! I think, at one point, I even saw a tumbleweed go by!).

At any rate, those are the reasons I generally dread going to the desk. However, today I was going to try something different. Because, you see, it's my understanding that insanity is doing the same things over and over and expecting different results. So today...I'd try something new. I formulated a plan. It wasn't very complicated. It was a simple, easy to do plan. This time, as I approached the desk, I was going to do something I hadn't done before.

I was going to smile.

That was my plan. A big ol' grin.

So, as I was saying, I slowly approached the desk, smiling. The gal behind the counter was taking care of a customer when another person stepped up to her and demanded attention from the clerk. She (the clerk) was amazing! She smiled and said in a friendly voice, "I'll be right with you. I'm taking care of this customer right now."

Well, the other gal was having none of that, and continued speaking...at which point the customer service clerk politely asked the other customer to wait a moment and handled the 'squeaky wheel'. She got her out of there quickly and took care of the first customer. I patiently waited. (After all, I was just relieved that there WAS actually someone behind the counter.) And I still smiled.

As the first customer moved away and I stepped forward, the gal behind the desk began muttering as she tidied up her area. It sounded a little like this:

"Tell me that you need--garbled mumbling--mezzarazza something--why don't you--something something--growling--that's the last time I--ragafraggle--"

She saw me standing there at the counter then.

"Oh," she said mechanically, "Welcome to Best Mart. How can I help you?"

My jaw beginning to ache a little from the smile, I say, "Well, you see-" and I hand her the receipt that I managed to keep my chewing gum out of this time.

"Can you believe some people?" she says, interrupting. "I mean, what do they expect? Am I just supposed to drop everything for them? Just create stuff out of thin air for them? It's like, you know, they want me to wave some sort of magic wand and POOF! There's their stuff! I mean, what has happened to common courtesy, I ask you?"

"Well, I - " I began, my smile faltering a little. Just then the store phone rang.

"Excuse me." she said. And she answered the phone. And I continued to wait...patiently. I found myself pushing up at the corners of my mouth a bit. It looked less like a smile and more like I had a severe denture issue.

Still, I attempted the grin. And marveled as I watched the clerk manage to talk on the phone and take my item at the same time. With ruthless efficiency I see her print out a new receipt, staple one to the other, ask me to sign on the dotted line, and hand me back my cash while hanging up the phone.

Without missing a beat, she continues our conversation.

"People just don't know how to treat people nicely anymore. I don't understand it. It's like there ought to be a class on courtesy! But you know what? I'll bet no one would show up!"

I stand there, receipt in hand, slightly smiling. I look down at my purse on the counter.

"Well, thank you!" I manage to say, taking two steps back.

"SEE? No one says that anymore! Thank you! You made my day!" she says. "And go Cards!"

"What?" I ask, confused. And then I look down and see that I'm wearing my Cardinals tee shirt.

"Yes," I respond weakly. "Go Cards! Well, you have a good day."

"You too! Thanks for being such a great customer!"

As I sat in the car, I pondered over what had just occurred. I hadn't done anything truly remarkable. All I had done was smile.

And I think that smile made a difference.

My friends, consider smiling at just one person today. Just one. See what happens. You might make someone's day!

The MOREL of the Story

First of all, I think he was lying about the gunshot scaring them into showing themselves.

I think he was.

I think...

Still to this day, I'm not positive. I mean, I wanted to believe him. Because I trusted his judgement on so many things, I wanted to trust it on this. After all, he'd been doing it for years. He must know what he's talking about, right? So, it kinda made sense, in a way.

I know that for myself though, if someone fired a pistol around me, I'd want to hide. Not show myself.

But he assured me that it would work. The gunshot would scare them into showing themselves.

So he fired the pistol...
and later that night, while we ate, I wondered at his practices...but enjoyed the result.

I learned a lot that day, in the woods.

And mushroom hunting has never been the same...

You see, my friends, several years ago my father-in-law Gordon took me mushroom hunting for the first time. In fact, the whole family went along. The more folks, the merrier! The more folks, the more mushrooms!

Do you like mushrooms? I like mushrooms. But they're not an "in between" food, are they? I mean, you either like them...or you don't.

And as I said, I like them. So the idea of hunting for them was intriguing. I'd never done it before. How hard could it be, right?

We headed out one fine morning in April to this patch of trees that belonged to a friend of Gordon's. He'd let him hunt on the property. I don't know if Gordon paid his friend back in mushrooms or what, but this had been going on for a while, because Gordon was very familiar with the land.

However, it was not easy to get to the land of 'shrooms. We had to hike along a fenceline for what felt like 12.7 miles. It wasn't like there was a sidewalk there; it was work to get over those big ol' dirt clods! And those big ol' dirtclods were really more like mud...so I was hot and a little sweaty before we even started to actually hunt. I began to wish I had some sort of native guide...or a pack mule or something...

Eventually we entered the woods. It was like another world. Dark, quiet. Gordon gave me some tips on hunting.

"Kick the logs first. Then step over them." Gordon directed.

"Does that help with finding mushrooms?" I asked.

"Scares the snakes!"

Great.

I'm not going to find mushrooms now. I'm going to find some snake neighborhood! Um, maybe mushroom hunting is not for me after all.

"Once you find the first one," Gordon continued. "You'll see 'em all over the place!"

SNAKES? Once I find my first SNAKE? EEEEEK!

But he was talking about the mushrooms.

"And be careful. Some mushrooms look like Morels, but they're poisonous."

Great. As if I wasn't worried enough about the snakes...now there are 'bad' mushrooms to be on the look out for!

I can't really explain the joy and excitement I felt when I found my first Morel. It wasn't very big. And I could've sworn that I'd looked in that same spot about 27 times...but there it was!
"Is this one?" I asked, gingerly holding it up.

"Yep!" Gordon clapped me on the shoulder. "You found one! Now let's scare the rest of 'em out of the ground!"

And he fired his pistol into the air.

And I about wet myself.

It was almost too much excitement for one person to experience.

I'll never forget that day in the woods. You know what? We found enough mushrooms to make one meal. Just one. It was a lot of work and effort for what seemed like very little payoff...but they were SO delicious!

There's something, my friends, to be said for working hard towards a goal. There's a delicious reward at the end of the day. What we have the hard time with, however...is the job itself. Because the job can be muddy, lengthy, and possibly full of snakes and gun shots. It can make us weary, and we can discourage easily...because sometimes all of our hard work doesn't look like much.

Stay strong, though. Here, have a Morel. I just picked it.

The Easy Button

There are few things I'm scared to talk about with folks. I love swapping a good grandchild story, or sharing really bad jokes...sometimes I even enjoy a rousing discussion of an economics class syllabus, or a healthy back-and-forth about the subtle differences in brands of house paint.

Still, I realize that there are some things that you're NOT supposed to talk about. Ever.

Like politics...or religion...or The Donald's hair.

People have very strong feelings on these things. Whether they want to or not. Countries have been known to war over these very issues.

And there is a topic that everyone has an opinion about...good or bad...right or wrong...and it is WEIGHT.

I hate to talk about it. I would much rather have to endure Chinese water torture or a Barbra Streisand concert....than talk about weight. Loss or gain. Diets, plans, food guides, point systems...these things can, within seconds, reduce me (no pun intended!) to tears.

My desire is not to just see the outside of someone. To judge their abilities based on the way they look....because I know....I KNOW...that we don't look the same forever...we are constantly changing.

Just like the information on weight constantly changes. And do you know why?

I think it's because we want an Easy Button.

We want things to change easily...without much effort on our part. We don't like the situation we're in...we hate our boss, or our couch, or our size...and we wish these irritable items would just 'go away'...like Kevin in Home Alone...sometimes we want to make our family just....disappear.

It is frustrating, though...when things do not happen overnight. When we wake up the next morning and it's the SAME! And sometimes, we scream inside. Because the Easy Button didn't work this time...

About two weeks ago, I decided that I need to do something (besides slapping an Easy Button) about my weight. And I've been keeping track of the good choices I've made...in an effort to encourage myself to keep going. To stay on track. I even had someone on Sunday ask if I'd been losing weight! I was feeling pretty good about the way things were going...feeling good about myself...

and last night I visited a nursing friend of mine who informed me that she too, is trying to lose weight and she'd just purchased a new scale...would I like to use it?

Since I felt pretty confident about myself...I thought, "no big deal"...and I assuredly stepped over to the scale and weighed in.

And in the blink of an eye...in one small second of time...everything changed.

When I saw the number on the scale...and really considered the task at hand...I got very frightened.

All of the encouraging thoughts I'd had went right out the window just then.

Because I realized...that this will NOT be an easy thing to do. It WILL require work. Diligence. Determination. Effort. Sacrifice.

So...what to do? Give up? Grit my teeth and dig in? Ignore what truth I saw there on the scale and pretend that everything is 'okay'? Listen to the lies that tell me that even the small things I've done don't matter...because that number is SO big?

My friends, what do you do?

Sometimes, the truth can hurt us. Especially when it means changing something...without an Easy Button. It is not pleasant. It is not...easy.

Politics, though they seem to be ever-changing...are basically the same as they ever were.

Religion, while one is in the spotlight more than the other at times...doesn't really change.

The Donald's hair...sadly...will never change. I promise you that.

But you, my friend, CAN change. You can.

You just can't do it all on your own.

Lucky for you, there's Someone who can help...

Everyone Needs a Kennel to Call Their Very Own

I hate to say it, but yes...it's true.

I yelled at the kids the other day.

Oh....don't judge me. I had my reasons...all perfectly reasonable ones.

It was Spring Break. They were being what the French refer to as TRES' annoying. And I wanted quiet.

So I hollered.

(and yes, I see the irony. Thanks for pointing that out!)

Speedy, our dog, took his big ol' dog be-hind off the couch and quickly trotted it into our bedroom.

Into his kennel.

That's where he goes when he wants to feel safe. Loud noises generally make him move in that direction...or he'll go there when he wants to protect something. Like his Chewie.

It got me to thinking.

Do you have a kennel?

Not necessarily for your dog...altho I highly recommend one.

Where do you go when you feel threatened? Do you have a safe place to lie down in?

See, sometimes...sometimes we need to get away from the loud voices. Sometimes we need to go where we can breathe easier. Or regroup. Sometimes we need to go to a place where the worries, the pressures, the stresses of the world don't seem so pressing.

For some of us, this place is called Hawaii.

:)

For the rest of us poorer slobs, well....we need to locate somewhere closer...

and you know, I'm not necessarily talking about an actual place...so much as I am about boundaries. About keeping things balanced, maybe.

We are hit with a lot of stuff in the course of a day. A lot of 'mom's hollering at the kids in the house'.

What do you do then? Do you join in the yelling? Do you run out of the house?

Do you go to your kennel?

The more I think about it, perhaps this isn't the best analogy I could come up with. But what I do see when I watch Speedy is kind of interesting. He doesn't stay in the kennel for very long during those times. And he seems to be pretty well behaved for the most part. Perhaps he recognizes when a 'fight' isn't something he needs to be involved in...

I dunno...it's just making me think today...

Simply Put...

It's a day until the official start of Spring here.

Do you want to know how I know that?

No...it's not the arrival of robins. Or the daffodils blooming.

It's not the grass getting greener or the temperature rising.

I can tell that Spring is almost here because everywhere I look...I see...

farmers.

Yep. It's true! They're everywhere!

Getting their fields ready for planting.

In fact, I had to pull over the other day so that a tractor that's got more square feet than my house could get across a bridge. The farmer waved at me as he passed. I waved back.
It took 30 seconds out of my day to do that. To pull over and let him go first.

Not a big deal.

Or is it?

So often in our busy days we get caught up in our stuff and can easily negate the 30 second rule.

What's the 30 second rule, you ask?

Something I just made up, actually. Thanks for asking! And it doesn't have anything to do with eating dropped m and m's...

My friends, take a moment (we'll call it...oh, I don't know....30 seconds!) to time out 30 seconds.

It's okay. I'll wait. I've got time.

(whistles the "Jeopardy" tune to herself)

Did you see how LONG 30 seconds really is? It's a nice bit of time.

Now think about how often you may say during the course of your day "I don't have time for that!"

The truth is: we all have been given the same amount of time in our day. And more truth is: we usually waste a lot of it on what we consider to be 'important' things. Like criticism. Or complaining. Or justifying. Or ranting.

But enough about me....let's talk about you!!

Do something nice for someone today that takes just 30 seconds. Send a nice email message...or give someone a hug. Let that farmer get around you with that big disk thing...

You'll feel better. And so will someone else!

And the best thing is: you'll never miss that 30 seconds of complaint!

A Long Way from Depressed

When I look back on it...the signs were there. I just was too optimistic, I guess.

I should've known it would cause pain.

I should've known that sacrifices would have to be made.

I should've known that I would be taken advantage of by their smooth words and innocent eyes.

I should've known.

But, as I mentioned, I was too optimistic. I thought that this time...this time it would be different!

This time I would be able to do it!

This time...this one small moment in my existence...I would be free to enjoy it as I wished. No judgement. No one to answer to...just me and my Hershey Bar.

I was going to eat the entire bar. And like it!

But, sadly, I'm here today my friends, to tell you that that was not the case. It simply was not meant to be, I guess.

You see, chocolate is a big deal at our house.

A very.big.deal.

And I gotta say that it wouldn't matter if my children had just eaten a fourteen course meal (with double desserts no less!!)...they will still sit there and demand that I share my Hershey Bar with them.

Who knew that those little squares of milk chocolate would have so much power?

Because, my friends, I don't like to share my Hershey Bars!

Not.at.all.

You know, the financial news these days is so depressing. I can't hardly listen or watch any economic news whatsoever. I get so glum and find myself sighing heavily and wanting to just run and hide under my bed for a few months. Money is tight right now, (not that we were ever swimming in it in the first place!)and disciplining ourselves about spending is a daily...sometimes hourly exercise of will.

There are so many things I feel I'm doing without. I can't buy the things I want for my kids...for myself...for my husband. I am tired of casseroles, of store brand toilet paper, of counting every penny. I was never very good with numbers anyways!!

I am tired. I am depressed. I am frustrated. I am scared. I am quietly screaming inside at times...and yet....

And yet....I am encouraged. I am hopeful. I am looking for joy in the small things.

And I'm sharing my Hershey Bars.

Here's why:

There is a book I read a few years ago called "A Long Way from Chicago" by Richard Peck. It takes place during the Depression in Central Illinois. Two children are sent from their home in Chicago to their Grandma Dowdel's home right here in our area. The actual location is never really mentioned, but Piatt County is...so it's close to home.

Grandma Dowdel is an amazing woman. She uses all the items she has at her disposal (which isn't much!) to help others out...even if they don't seem to 'deserve' help. She feeds some bums, for example...when the Sheriff just wants them to move on. She helps a neighbor who's losing their home and belongings. And one of my favorite moments of the book is when she takes the kids to Aunt Puss's house.


Here's an exerpt:
Aunt Puss was by many years the oldest person we'd ever seen up till then. Bald as an egg, but she needed a shave. And not a tooth in her head.

"Who's them chilrun with you?" she demanded of Grandma.

"Just kids I found along the crick bank," Grandma said, to our surprise. "They was fishing."

"I'm hongry, girl." Aunt Puss pulled her shawl around her, "You hightailed it out of here after breakfast, and I ain't seen hide nor hoof of you since."

"She ain't seen me for a week." Grandma muttered,"But she forgets." Then she called out to Aunt Puss: "Catfish and fried potatoes and onions, vinegar slaw, and a pickled peach apiece. And more of the same for your supper."

"I suppose it beats starving," Aunt Puss snapped. "Hop to it, girl."

I thought I might faint. No one spoke to Grandma like that. And lived.

"Grandma,is that nasty old lady your aunt?" I asked in the kitchen.

"Naw, I was hired girl to her before I got married."

"What did she pay you for that, Grandma?"

"Pay? She didn't pay me a plug nickel. But she fed me."

I thought about that.

"And now you feed her," I said, but Grandma didn't reply. "You take her food every week, don't you Grandma?"

"Generally a good big roast chicken. She can gum on that for days. It keeps her out of the poor farm, and it gives me a quiet day in the country. That's a fair swap." Then her jaw clenched in its way. "But it's just private business between her and me. And I don't tell my private business."

My friends, when it is dark, share some light. When you think you that you have little to spare...think of the ones with nothing at all. Because there is something really satisfying about sharing. Oh, it can hurt a little, I guess...if you choose to dwell on what you're missing. If you choose to look at your selfishness.

But if you take a look at what you're giving...well, it can be almost better than having an entire Hershey Bar to yourself. And if you keep it your 'private business'...it will make you feel even better!

Share with someone today. Share your time...or your money...or your seat...or your Hershey Bar.

Here, I'll start. Have a piece of mine...

I can't get no...or can I?

Satisfaction.

I can't seem to get any of it. And like the Stones so aptly sang, "...I'm on a losing streak."

I CAN'T GET NO.....NO NO NO!!!!!
At least it feels that way.

There is so much on my mind right now. Money, cars, kids, money, illnesses, jobs, money, government, church, money...the list goes on. Feel free to insert your own stuff in there.

My brain is full. There's a lot of hurt out there. And inside myself. It can be overwhelming. Lately, it seems that nothing I'm doing makes much of a difference. I feel I have very little control...and mostly what I'm left with is this deep feeling of dis-satisfaction.

Both with myself and others. With life in general.

So what do you do with that?
What did I do with that?
I'll tell you....

I went where I always go when I want questions answered.

Wikipedia?

Nope. Although I venture there repeatedly...

A therapist?

Huh uh. Not that there's anything wrong with them...

I went to my magic 8 ball. Yeah, that's right. I went to my magic 8 ball and I asked, "Will I ever be satisfied?"

And I shook it....turned it over....looked...

and it said, "It is decidedly so."
Cool, I thought. Excellent.

But...seven and 1/2 minutes passed and I did NOT feel decidedly satisfied. Stupid, cheapo 8 ball isn't that magic at all...I'm not sure I trust that information.

So I went to my other source.

My Bible.

We've been studying the book of Matthew at church recently. So I went there first. And this is what I read in my sidenotes of Matthew 5:

"Jesus promises that satisfaction will come to those who seek the good things of God. He says that they will be filled - not with the material goods of this world, not with an easy way of life, not with something of limited value that can be taken away from them...but with the joy and contentment that comes from doing God's will."

Matthew 5:6 says: Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.

Hmmm....I think about what God's will is...what that looks like for me right this minute...I mull that over in my head...then turned to another section in my Bible. I have a devotional Bible that I have been reading in lately. And when I turned to Wednesday's (todays) reading, I read this:

"What does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God." Micah 6:8

I raise an eyebrow. If you do not believe that God can speak to you with His Word...then you are missing out on a wonderful conversational opportunity.

Have I been humble lately? No, not really. If I had, I don't think my dis-satisfaction would be so evident. I obviously feel that I am somehow 'DUE' to have these things I want so badly...and even if they aren't 'bad' things...they are still things that I'm trying to control somehow...in all my 'human greatness'.

Woo.Hoo. Like I can somehow Do God's Job.

I can't do that. I cannot do God's job for Him.

But....

I can do His Will...I can act justly, and walk humbly...and love.

Three things that cover the Ten Commandments, the Golden Rule...and the Sermon on the Mount.

Wow.

And what do you think will happen then? Will I find that satisfaction?

It is decidedly so...

and God told me that. Not the 8 ball! :)

I'm praying that you will find Satisfaction in Him today...