The main
entrance to my apartment building remains locked and tenants must use a key to
enter. Fairly common, I suppose. The other day I was walking with a heavy
backpack, another satchel with my laptop, a bag of goodies from the drug store,
and a bag of fresh fruit. As I rounded
the corner in front of the apartment building a lady was there wearing a huge
smile on her face, holding the door for me.
Oh boy…so I mustered up every bit of strength my body would muster and I
quickened my pace to a light jog so’s not to seem ungrateful for her act of
random kindness. Once I got inside it
was all I could do not to just plop me and my stuff right on the floor and sit
a spell. Shoot! I was tired. I just talked about the baggage we’ve
all carried around at one time or another and there I was forced to dog’on near
sprint with all arms and hands loaded. I
got a phone call just as I was unlocking my apartment door and the caller was
asking why I was breathing like I’d just run a marathon. I shared with him what just happened, we
laughed a little and then it got us to thinking… That’s what I want to share with you
today. Check this out.
First off,
let’s go back so that I can analyze (I’m probably due to write a post on being
over-analytical at some point, but just humor me for now) what just happened to
me:
1. I was
carrying a heavy load; managing, but it was definitely a struggle.
2. Rounding
that corner put my “finish line” (the apartment building) in plain view.
3. The kind
neighbor holding the door for me was actually a blessing. It kept me from having to drop all my things,
dig for my keys, unlock the door, and reload my bags.
4.
Caveat: In order to receive this
blessing, I needed to quicken my pace.
In essence I had to “run” to it.
Let’s put it
all together: often times someone will
hold the key to the very blessing you need, but in order to receive said
blessing, heavy bags and all, you’ve got to run. Anybody getting this?
Right there
at the moment when you feel like you want to just stop for a minute and take a
break… At those moments when you are
most tired... most worn out… After you’ve traveled so far already… After your back is tired and your legs are
weak… During the moments when you feel
your grip slipping and it would be so easy to let it all go… Right when you
feel like you have had all you can take… then you get a glimpse of the finish
line. It’s still in the distance, but
all of a sudden it’s within sight and you say a silent prayer that you’ve got
enough wherewithal to keep it together just a bit longer. This is it.
Home stretch. And the self-talk
begins. “Come on, girl. You’ve got this. Don’t give up just yet. You’re almost there.” And as you whisper to yourself, weak and
tired, an unknown angel appears just to lend you a helping hand. But – and here’s where it gets tricky – YOU
have to go to THEM and they will only wait so long for you to get there. Well damn.
“Don’t they
know how tired I am?”
“Don’t they
know how far I’ve traveled so far?”
“Don’t they
know what I’ve had to go through just to make it here?”
“If they’re
gonna bother to help me, why won’t they come to ME?”
“If I’ve
gotta run, I don’t even want their help.”
“They can
keep their stank blessing if it’s gotta be like this.”
“I didn’t ask
for his/her help anyway.”
“I’ve always
managed before without any help. I’ll be
fine.”
"Jasmynne, I
don’t know what you’re talking about.
Give me an example." OK – will
do. The same friend that called me as I
was unlocking the door to my apartment shared this with me not too long
ago. I’ll spare you the details and just
give you a couple of notes from Cliff (whoever he is).
A single
mother is literally dirt poor. She’s
working at a fast food counter, doing the best she can to feed her young
daughter. And when I say dirt poor I’m
talking down to her last few hundred dollars in the bank. She had it worked out that after bills and
rent she had something around $200 left to live off. She’s at work one day when a guy comes in,
notices her hair, and gives her his business card. After speaking with this perfect stranger,
she learns that he owns a beauty salon, and is offering her a station in his
salon. He dropped her initial booth
rental fee down to $200. If she could
come up with the money, he had a spot for her.
Mind you, the same $200 that he’s asking her for is her only money to
her name at this point. That’s it. The blessing was that this was a massive
discount off of the standard booth rental fee.
So there he was…a perfect stranger…holding the door for another
stranger. It left her faced with a
choice. Run through this open door
that he was holding, or ignore his kindness altogether and keep doing what
she’s been doing. Well, I’m sure you’ve
guessed it. She took a chance and
sprinted to the offer she’d been given, and she made over $2,000 her first week
on the job. It paid off. It more than paid off.
So again I
say: keep your eyes open. Blessings come in all shapes and sizes and
they can be delivered to us by virtually anyone. It’s your job to recognize them when they
appear; and up to you to run like the wind to get to them. Every open door closes at some point. Just make sure you’re on the right side when
it does.
My name is
Jasmynne Shaye, and this is me STEPPING ON A FEW TOES.
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