Little Gestures, Major Differences

This morning as I was in a rush to grab a few things at our local Aldi, my two-year-old and I spotted a couple who had finished with their cart.  You have to deposit a quarter to get a cart.  I only had three dimes so was I hopeful that someone would give me their cart for the extra nickel.  Well, the kind woman wouldn't take my change.  I tried twice to give her the money she would have gotten from returning the cart.  She insisted, "Just take the cart!"

I thanked her several times and encouraged her to have a wonderful day.  Her smile is still shining bright in my mind.  After completing our shopping trip, I was determined to pay it forward.  There was a woman just getting out of her car, so we raced over to her with the cart.  She scrambled to try to find her quarter.  I told her just to take it, that someone had offered it to me and I was paying it forward.

Such a little thing ... a quarter.  But, what a major difference it made in my day.  By doing small acts and by noticing small joys, life does not seem so daunting or over-whelming.  I was running late to pick up my five-year-old, but instead of panicking, I thought of the kind woman's smile.  I turned on the music and just told myself, "It's going to be okay."  I was able to remind myself that I would be no good to anyone if I wrecked the van trying to hurry so I wouldn't be late.  A few minutes wouldn't be that big of deal.

Because I was a little late to pick up my five-year-old, I was going to be a little late to pick up my older two.  I was speeding a little down the winding dirt road when out jumped the most beautiful doe.  Now, my heart was racing and I started to beat myself up for the loss of calmness I had just ten minutes prior.  But, my attitude changed quickly when I was able to think about the beauty of the deer that I just encountered.  My two daughters in the car saw the deer race up a hill and leap over a bush.  It was quite amazing.  Again, kind of a small event, but it had a major impact on reminding me to slow down and appreciate the life around me.

Yesterday I blogged about the 'funk' my family has been in the last few weeks.  It is still long gone today.  Life is so much sweeter when I take time to appreciate the little things in life.  I'm not quite as irritable or hard on my children.  I'm more apt to chuckle with them than tell them to be quiet.  I'm more likely to jump in a game rather than getting upset when someone doesn't play by the rules and ruin the game.  I'm a better me when I slow down, watch and listen for the gifts that are right in front of me.  It's up to me to stop and notice them:)

Happy hump day!  Here's to wishing you have a little gesture today that makes a major difference in the way your day turns out.  And, if you don't, that you do a small gesture for someone else to make a major difference in how their day turns out.

Enjoy the journey you have been blessed with, love the people in your life, smile :) and remember, 'It's Okay'.

Visit www.itsokaybooks.com to learn more!

Don't want to miss a blog? Sign up to receive e-mail notification.