Back in the real world. I hit the ground running, immediately fighting everything the world could throw at me…
My flight got in around 7 on Sunday night and being on Georgia time I was ready for bed at like 9. Bright and early (and I mean early), I was up and working out at the gym. Having spent the past week with some amazing people whom I love dearly, it was hard to think of the next 7 weeks. Trying to get in a routine seemed almost pointless, when all i can think is how ready I am to be on the race and not have to worry about the mundane things I am doing right now. On Mondays and Tuesdays I usually go to my internship for 3 to 4 hours and then have the rest of the day to myself. But due to being gone for a week, I had to go make up time at my full time job after my internship. No worries…it makes for a long day, but I could do it. So there I was, having gotten up at 5:30 (due to being on Georgia time still…thank you AIM) I was feeling good. My workout was good, God was good, everything was good. So I pulled all my dress clothes out for my internship, including my shoes, and go to the dressing room, leaving my shoes behind on the bench while I changed. When I came out, everything was as it seemed, so I grabbed my make-up bag and went to a mirror 10 feet away from my locker. When I had finished, I returned to where my locker was and went to put on my shoes only to find them missing. I looked under the bench, in my locker, and asked the locker room attendant who was vacuuming in that section. There was only one other person changing in there with me, whom I noted left rather hastily. Surely she wouldn’t have stolen my shoes?!!!! But that is the only conclusion I can come up with..unless my shoes grew feet and they walked off together. If it was someone in need, I probably would have been a little more gracious in departing with them…although…I can’t imagine someone in need wanting a pair of dress shoes over comfortable tennis shoes..but I know this woman wasn’t in need…she works out at Lifetime Fitness. I pay dues there…I know what you have to budget to go there. It was simply a mind set that she liked my shoes, so much so, that she decided she was going to take them. I resigned to driving back to my house to get another pair of shoes, not necessarily grieving the loss of my shoes…they hurt my feet…but grieving the mind set of our society. How did this kind of behavior become acceptable? And then God showed up.
“How are you going to respond? Are you going to fume, and be angry with this woman because she treated you and your property with no respect? Or are you going to show grace and see the brokeness here in the lies?”
Huh….how often do we make things about ourselves and get wrapped up in how we have been hurt? 
How often do we fail to see other peoples brokeness? And how often do we dwell on all of that and ignore the blessings God gives us?
How often do we fail to see other peoples brokeness? And how often do we dwell on all of that and ignore the blessings God gives us?
Since this incident, I have broken up with my boyfriend, will have worked 7 full days in a row…which typically involves getting yelled at by customers (you’d be surprise how protective people are of their pictures), and have faced general disappointments from friends and family. And you know what…? Maybe its because I’m still on a spiritual high….or maybe because I’m too idealistic to know when something poopy has happened….but i am doing just as good today as I was when I left Georgia. The only answer I can give is that God has been so faithful in the past month and I can’t deny what he is doing in my life. For the first time in 5 years, my life makes sense. My skills, heart, and desires all have a direction and purpose and it is all for God. He has truly blessed me with room mates who are fun and awesome, a team that is supportive and encouraging (with impeccable timing, John and Marisa 😉 ) and a spirit that is so joy filled. In the midst of a broken world there is hope. God. This first week back has been hard, and tiring, but rather than dwelling on the pains, I chose to focus on the joy of God. He has turned my mourning into dancing.
