Moments When God Shines Through

I passed a cop directing traffic around a dead deer on the opposite side of the highway and was sure in that moment that this would be the morning that either I would finally get pulled over for speeding after just talking about that with a friend the night before OR that I would be late for work.  Thankfully, neither happened; luck was on my side.  OR, better yet, perhaps God was keeping a closer eye on me today.

Don't worry, right?  Be happy.

But, this morning at work started out rough.  First, I woke up nearly a quarter after four a.m; that's late for me.  I typically leave the house twenty-five after, so I did a bit of rushing around.  Once at work, which was on time, I was fairly "out of it" for the first half hour.  I was still productive by cleaning out old information in our communications folder, making copies of our new client forms that were low, organizing the desk and office without actually white-gloving the place, and attempting my best to still greet everyone with at least a "good morning" and a smile as the rush came in.  Lucky for me, with my lack of rest the night before, I am a pro at my job and can make it through any challenge.

Better yet, I've learned how to be persistent with the members, both old and new, and typically get a wave or "good morning Sara" before I even wipe the smile off my face in order to speak out some words of good morning myself.  [I am absolutely a people person, and I don't know what I'll do if I ever find myself employed away from large numbers of people.]  But today, I struck it rich with one of the members who is rather new to my morning regulars.  I got worried he was going to challenge me with a great question as he approached my desk, having turned around once he was nearly halfway out of the club already.  I was in my ready stance, huge smile on my face knowing I had already spoke a good morning to him once and made eye contact with a smile a couple times during the morning as well.  With a kind smile on his face he complimented me on my smile, and it made my day as I introduced myself to this new regular and felt confident that I just made another boost in member retention.  [Yes, he turned around and added the extra handfuls of steps to his day to pay me a very nice compliment!]  I love my morning regulars!

There is one in particular that I struggle with though.  Almost every morning is challenged with this one attention-demanding person.  But, I have my good days and my okay days in keeping my annoyed thoughts in the back seat.  Today was an especially great day though.  I don't know what it was, because I know I didn't have any shot glass full of instant and extreme courage, confidence, and humility on the way to work.  But, this member and I shared hysterical laughs, sensitive personal life details, and had a blast of fun in only a handful of minutes.  I only wish that there was an instant gait and posture fix for this member, which would bring this short story a perfectionist's touch.

Another moment of my day, however, did surprise me with a perfect few words, that any normal person would have thought was the cherry to top it all off.  Out of nowhere a member popped up in front of me while I was working at the desk and began with the words "I want to brag a moment."  Those words at the gym make my biggest smile shine!  The member continued to tell about a great weight loss with great discipline and hard work.  But, the best couple of words to touch my heart was the indirect thank you as the member spoke about the slight changes in diet that were made "as [I] suggested."  Bingo!  This is another reason why I love my work; I influence lives for the better even when I least expect to.  "As you suggested" never sounded so good!

My "normal" day didn't end there though.  [Insert instant big, fat grin here!]  I had sweet text messages on my phone from extremely early in my morning that continued smiles across the face of a coworker at the office.  Sharing jokes with dear Rex on my way out from visiting the office space added some laughter to my day.  And an almost postponed trip to the auto repair shop would have caused me to miss out on sharing some great conversation and laughs, as well as three hugs, with a jolly old man.  [I also would have missed my few mile walk to the park and back to the shop that I took while repairs were being made.]  But, I may have to update this bit about the jolly man, who overheard my email address as I gave it to the sales guy to get my bonus deal for the auto shop.  If I get an email, let's say his memory is that good, then I will have to add to this story another day.  But for today, as short as the day felt with shorter than ten hours of daylight, some of the best moments occurred when I least expected them.

So, don't worry.  Just be happy.  Let that smile shine.  Like Leo Buscaglia once said: perhaps this life is your gift from God, and what you do with it is your gift to God.  Make the most of it!

"If you see someone without a smile, give them one of yours."  I'll see you soon...

With a smile,

Sara