I am thankful

 I am thankful

Monday afternoon, I was running around Ann Arbor, trying to get a bunch of errands done before my husband got home from work. I had to drop off a load of treats at The Pet Emporium, mail some packages at the post office, cash in some coupons at Meijer, and restock on crafting supplies at Joann Fabrics. I was in a bit of a tizzy (is that a word?), because I was running out of time quickly. It also seemed like everyone else in Ann Arbor decided that Monday would be the day that they too, would run all their errands. I was tired, a little irritated with the crowds, and anxious to get home. I was at the cash register at my last stop, when I realized my worst enemy was standing in front of me: A NEW HIRE. She wasn’t sure how to use the scanner gun, she didn’t know how to delete an item scanned twice, she had never seen an e-coupon before, and she had no clue how to check to see if an item was on sale or not. Worse yet…she wouldn’t ask for any help! After a good 20 minutes of standing at the register, watching her repeat error after error, a manager finally stepped in and took over the transaction. The cashier was a little embarassed, and tried to laugh it off, but neither myself nor the manager were laughing. After the manager left, she told me how much they expected of her in so little time. My guess was that the “throw you to the wolves” training program was in full effect due to the upcoming holidays. The cashier started repeating under her breath the proper steps she should take if she gets caught in the same situation again. She apologized to me, and said she wished she could have made my checkout perfect. My response: “If you don’t make mistakes, you will never have the opportunity to learn”. Even though I was pretty crabby that day, I was able to think of the times when the roles were reversed. Nothing is worse than a snippy customer who huffs and puffs while you are still learning. I made the decision to take a deep breath and allow the experience to be as good as it could be for her, and an exercise of patience for me. Even though she wanted so desperately to be give me the “perfect” checkout, it wasn’t, and that’s okay too.

This Thanksgiving I want to appreciate both patience AND imperfection.

I watched Evan Almighty for the first time with my sister Autumn the other day (Morgan Freeman plays an awesome God in that movie, by the way). There was a scene where the main character’s wife was having a hard time being patient while her crazy husband decided to build an Ark, and dress like Noah. Morgan Freeman came in and said “If one prays for patience, do you think God gives them patience? Or does he give them the opportunity to be patient? If they pray for courage, does God give them courage, or does he give them opportunities to be courageous? If one prayed for their family to be closer, you think God zaps them with warm, fuzzy feelings? Or does he give them opportunities to love each other? Well, I got to run. A lot of people to serve. Enjoy”. This little quote has stuck with me ever since.

So I’ll end this blog entry on a few imperfect things I love, and am thankful for. Here goes: My dog’s cute little crooked teeth, my big Dumbo ears, my Dad always adding an “f” to the word “between” (he says it “betwfeen”), my husband’s inability to iron, my late Grandmother’s lack of hair on her head combined with very bushy eyebrows, my sister always saying “tread meal” instead of “treadmill”, our poor cow Wallis…who can’t seem to hold his head up straight, and my friend Missy’s nails that are always only half-painted. I hope you enjoy your Thanksgiving as much as I will be enjoying mine. Don’t forget to be thankful for the imperfections in your life too