I had lunch just now with three of my good friends. We try to have lunch on the first Friday of each month. We often have to reschedule and occasionally cancel, but we have actually been doing pretty good at making the time to get together.
While having our lunch today, a young man came up to us and gave us each a heart shaped cookie that I had seen for sale up by the cash register. We had a fun conversation about what kind of “trouble” we were up to and one of my friends said we were there planning “trouble.”
As the lighthearted conversation continued I started wondering why this guy brought us cookies. I assumed he was the restaurant manager and was being nice, but I wondered why he picked our table. The place was fairly full and we were the only ones to which he brought cookies.
I first thought that maybe we were just cute. Maybe we looked fun loving as we laughed together. Maybe we reminded him of his mom or wait. . . maybe his grandmother!?
The conversation came to an end and the young man walked off. As it turned out, two of my friends knew him from our church. They talked about what a nice guy he was. They said he did not work at this place, it was just like him to do something thoughtful. He had bought us each a cookie even though he didn’t even know two of us. He spent a few minutes chatting with our group of ladies just to be nice.
I am not going to lie. I have not been in a great frame of mind lately. I am nervous about a trip I am supposed to take and the evening news has me on edge almost constantly. I am a bit frightened of the world right now. I say little in face to face conversations and stay home as much as possible. I know I have to get past this, but I am just telling you the truth.
Before our lunch, one of my friends gave me a small wrapped gift. It was a “new year’s” present. I had missed the January lunch due to a mix up and she had remembered to bring this for me.
I opened it when I got home and inside was a beautiful guided gratitude journal. When I texted her to tell her thank you and how much I loved it, she told me that she thought we could each keep one and then at our monthly lunches, share something from it with each other. I loved that idea! Although I try daily to think of all of the good things in my life, writing them down and sharing them will make them even stronger in my mind and heart.
As we finished our lunch, one of my friends ate her Valentine cookie, although we had gotten small cookies with our meals. The rest of us put our heart cookies in our purses for later.
When I got home after running some errands and going to the grocery store, I pulled my cookie out of my bag and looked at it. I figured I would put it out and let whichever of my guys wanted it have at it. And then I changed my mind.
I pulled off my shoes, sat in a cozy chair bathed in the warmth of sunlight pouring through the window and I slowly ate the whole cookie. I did not think about the sugar, the calories, the fact that I have a “one dessert a day” rule and I had already eaten another cookie. I thought about the kindness of that young man. I thought about my friends who I had just prayed with, eaten with, laughed with and cried with, all during a one hour lunch. I thought about the fact that I had a new gratitude journal and so much to put in it like my friends, the sun, my comfy chair and a young man who thought I deserved a treat.
I am still nervous and sad and all that I was before, but for that short time I forgot it all. And for that moment I knew that there is so much to be thankful for.
