The U - Turn

Have you ever been walking toward someone and you say to yourself "(four-letter word) there's so and so!  I don't feel like being bothered.  I don't have time for no sad singing and flower bringing."  You were probably in a good mood and then suddenly, upon seeing that person your happy-go-lucky smile vanished into a tight-lipped grimace.  To make it worse, you pray that the person didn't see you.  You then do one of the following things; make an immediate u-turn, pull out your mobile, or blackberry and send an imaginery text, or you take a non-incoming phone call.  Go ahead and laugh at yourself, because I've done all of the above.

I often tell myself that I never want to be the person, when people look up and see me coming, they immediately say oh (four-letter word)!  There's Karsten, and I don't feel like being bothered with him today.  First of all, I am a big fan of laughter.  You burn more calories laughing than you do looking as if you've had a glass of haterade mixed with sour limeade.  I really want people to feel better about themselves and their situations when I leave, even if only for a few seconds.  One thing's for sure, they will remember that they got a good laugh, sometimes at my personal expense.

But the world is full of Debbie Downers, Negative Nancys and Jaded Judys.  Often times when we see them coming, we immediately begin to think of an excuse as to what we have to do and why we can't stay where we are to hear from them.  However, did you ever stop to think that you could be an instrument of peace to speak and bring order out of a chaotic situation that they may be in?  We never know what someone is going through.  Paul Lawrence Dunbar said it best, "We wear the mask that grins and lies, it hides our cheeks and shades our eyes."  People are hurting and they are walking around in a masquerade as if eveything is A-Okay!  Trust me I know.  I have a great masquerade facade.  As the opportunity presents itself, don't do the U-turn, tap into your gifts, and repair the broken hearted.  Edify your brother or sister.  Live.  Laugh.  Love.  Someone may have to do it for you one day, and it may be the very person that you made an earlier impartation into.

Peace,
Karsten