Giving

"Everything you want is out there waiting for you to ask.

Everything you want also wants you.

But you have to take action to get it."

Today is my lucky day! I received a blog award and got "pinked." Both gifts came out of the blue from the same blogging friend - Mandy, aka Fyrebird. Remember all that whining I did about never getting an award? What I didn't realize then, was that I just had to wait for the right ones to come along.

I also learned that sitting around waiting is never very fun or easy. It's like the difference between adults and children when waiting for Christmas morning to arrive. Adults scurry around wishing for one more week. Kids, on the other hand, dance around a twinkling tree and beg to shake a box or two.

In the case of the blog award I made a decision not to wait passively. I took some action by putting my own "You Rock" award out there. I have had great fun sending it to people - some bloggers, some not - I, "Queen of the Universe" deem worthy. I think I have enjoyed the giving way more than the getting.

On Saturday last, Sweetie and I had to do our errands under a time constraint. If you know anything about Walmart shopping on a Saturday (before school starts) then you can well imagine that even running in for just one item was going to take awhile. The line at the Customer Service desk was long, but not so long that I didn't think we could get in and out and still make it home in time for my sister to get to her appointment. Of course, just having that thought did something to the atmosphere and everything slowed to a snail's pace.

I'd recently read an article about how to teach your kids patience. One suggestion was to be positive and sunny while waiting in a line instead of getting grumpy. The man in front of me and the kids behind me actually needed this message more than I. I put myself in "la la la" mode and waited. When Sweetie came up to wait with me, I tried to explain to him the value of a sunny disposition and the benefits of an ice cold coca cola while waiting. He took the box to be returned and I ran to MacDonald's to refresh my soda.

The line behind us grew longer, while the line in front barely moved. However, as one person left the register a space opened up so that I could see a suggestion box. What, pray tell, could someone suggest other than having more people on duty, computers that worked, and giving out cash prizes to those who had to wait more than 10 minutes? Sweetie tried to hurry the process by invading the personal space of the grumpy man in front of us. He gave me a scrunched up pouty face when I pulled him back into the 3x3' square that I had designated as our allotted space.

I pointed to the suggestion box and suggested that we leave a note. "What would we say on this note?" my remarkable sweetheart asked as if I had finally totally lost my mind.

"Maybe something like ... thanks for doing such a great job. Or Have a great day," I answered.

Again the "huh????" look crossed Sweetie's face. The little girl behind us cried louder. Her grandmother scowled meaner and the grip around the little one's wrist tightened.

"Maybe we should use one of my business cards," Sweetie said as if he was trying to humor a person with little or no IQ. I thought this a perfectly brilliant idea as his business cards actually say, "attitude is contagious... is your's worth catching." Imagine how the person reading this card is going to feel? A thank you, a reminder of the power of a good attitude, the phone number of a life coach. Why it would be like winning the lottery! You have to admit this is not your run of the mill suggestion for better, faster service.


As we got to the head of the line I did it. I put that card in the suggestion box and smiled at the lady behind the cash register who watched defensively as I dropped it. Sweetie shook his head. In disbelief or wonder? I didn't know and didn't really care. I was doing the happy dance. Our transaction took all of three and one-half minutes. We were out of the store and on our way home. The whole time I was thinking of ways to turn my "You Rock" award into a card that I can hand out to people. Every day people who go about their business thinking nobody notices or cares. I could be like Johnny Appleseed, except instead of planting fruit trees all over the country, I plant smiles. Perhaps from smiles happy hearts grow. And from happy hearts peace and good will. (I realize this could be misinterpreted as delusions of grandeur but still it's a noble idea!)

All that happened and today, in a reversal of fortunes, Mandy sends me an award. Woohoo! I feel like I've just learned one of the secrets of the universe. Give and you will receive I think it says in the Bible. I hope it doesn't sound like blasphemy, plagiarism or both, but I think suggest you try it.

Give what you want away and it will come back to you on angel's wings,
Merry ME