lessons learned, and they sure run deep...

THIS is what i asked for...

it's not what i got...it is not what i got, at ALL. i've been hacked to a "bob" basically.

hair grows back.

hair grows back.

hair grows back.

.

...oh ya know, just a little therapy to get me through...

on a more uplifting note...i saw something truly inspirational this weekend [pre dreadful haircut thankfully. otherwise, i may not have been in tune]. anyway, i stood in line (as most do) at our local wal mart. waiting.waiting.more waiting. i started tapping my foot and acting most annoyed at my plight. then i started paying attention to just what it was that was hitchin' my giddy-up. i observed a woman, in an automatic chair stationed with a grocery basket and in it were all her little finds. as i watched her i concluded by the gray streaking her hair and the wrinkles that lined her mouth -she was mid-fifties. and judging by the impaired right side of her body and inability to speak, that she had suffered a stroke at some point in her life [now, i realize i could be mistaken, but my great-grandmother suffered a stroke and symptoms were much the same]. i recognized that she was unable to speak when she wiggled and flailed excitedly in her chair to get the cashier's attention (whom was native american, and wearing the most beautiful native american jewelry) . she was vigorously patting and stroking her neck, grinning with the most genuine enthusiasm i've seen from an adult in the longest time. all of this in an attempt to tell the cashier that her necklace was beautiful. all to give a compliment. [now, how easy is it for me to dish out a compliment and how often do i miss out on the opportunity to give it in my haste to go about life? too often, and i can speak]. as i continued to observe this miraculous woman, [the Lord was feeding this to me and my negative little self, i just know it] i saw the things she placed on the counter. turkey decorated place mats. napkin rings. fun kid t-shirts and bracelets (undoubtedly for the best little grandchildren ever) oatmeal, ice cream and some smell-good for her house. this woman was going to have company. thanksgiving company. and she wore a mile-wide grin wheeling herself back and forth back and forth, to ring up and pay for her groceries. compliment the cashier. smile. think of others. radiate appreciation for life it's self. and make me feel about two inches tall. i teared-up right then and there. i received a few bizarre looks as a result too, but i didn't care. i felt humbled. amazed. grateful to my Father in Heaven for allowing me to witness such a beautiful appreciation for life. all-to-often i complain of my inability to "get it all done" and muse over the things i ought to be able to do. i've been "down and out", "in the dumps" and just plain ol' grumpy when i don't get the things on my "to do" list accomplished. and here was this woman [whom i shall never forget, for my heart grew three sizes that day] that shone the light. unable to speak and giving a HUGELY earnest effort to dish out a compliment. so determined to live this life on her own and bring joy and love into the lives of others in the process. she struggles, no doubt in my mind about that. but she, unlike me alot of the time, smiles through it and finds joy in it. i learned a powerful lesson this weekend. one i hope to never ever forget. one that once again, words can do no justice in explaining. my testimony has been strengthen and hopefully i will rise zestfully each morning and remember my blessings. pray more fervently and smile more often. dish out compliments, and truly find joy in my journey.

ps hair DOES grow back...