Show no love

So I got my jury summons in November and am scheduled for duty January 23 - February 3. And the court didn't need me to go in yesterday, so I went to work instead. Then the hotline told me to report today, so this morning I trek downtown, pretty happy because I was actually looking forward to this. I intentionally park 6 blocks away from the courthouse because it's sunny and warm, and I love a pleasant stroll.

UNTIL my heel gets caught on something in the middle of State Street and I go falling flat on my face! Yes, in the street. So I'm laying there, and does anyone stop? No!!! There was at least 1 person and 2 cars who I know witnessed the whole thing, with nary an "are you okay?" concern from any of them. I manage to get myself up, feeling blood running down my leg, and I collect my assorted crap from the road then hobble to the sidewalk to assess my situation. My shoes are ruined. My favorite pair of pants (from scoring a killer deal at Banana Republic) are ripped beyond repair. I have 30 minutes to be in court and am four blocks away. *Sigh* I hobbled the remaining four blocks and up three floors to check in, and then the clerk tells me she doesn't need me for duty! What?!?

As I sit here nursing my throbbing knee, I reflect on the events of the morning. First of all, are all courts always so disorganized? I WAS actually enthusiastic about serving on a jury, but now I'm starting to understand why people hate being summoned. For the next two weeks, my schedule is at the mercy of these people who can't make up their minds about what they're doing! If every business was run like our government, our economy would collapse.

I can't help thinking, too, about "diffusion of responsibility". I learned of it in college. It's when something happens in public when someone needs help, and everyone assumes someone else will step in, so no one actually does anything. Apparently the fewer people who are around, the more likely the person is to receive help. Unfortunately that didn't occur for me, because there were only a few people around and I was ignored by all of them. And I really could've used somebody to help me stop the bleeding or to give me a ride or something. Even when I finally made it to a bathroom to clean myself up, I was sitting in the floor tending to my bloody leg and trying not to pass out, and the cleaning lady was mopping around me!

I guess you could say that today I lost a bit of faith in humanity. It makes me all the more thankful for God. He's always right there loving me even when other people couldn't care less, and I got a nice reminder today that the only one I can truly depend on is Him. How many more times will I fall on my face (although perhaps not literally)? Who will be there?

In my element

Things are quiet here. Floating along, one day at a time, paying bills, experimenting in the kitchen, visiting with friends, going to church, reading books, and hanging out with the hubby. I know, it doesn't lend to exciting blogging, but it does make for a peaceful and happy writer.

Christ's example

Today at the store I had a most unpleasant encounter, AGAIN, with a most unpleasant customer. This man, I'll refer to him as Mr. Charles, insists on picking a fight every single time I speak to him. He is one of those master manipulators who is so confrontational that any explanation you try to give him is never good enough and he will twist your words to where they have no resemblance to their intended meaning. Unbelievable! Today, I realized that I had been handling him all wrong by trying to reason with him, so I decided to just kill him with kindness, agree with him, and give him whatever he wants to send him on his merry way. Because of this, from him I merited the title of "being huffy", then he apologizes, steps away from me, then pulls a coworker aside to tell her what an attitude problem I had and how hateful I am. Huffy? Hateful? Because I decided not to play his mind games? I've been called a lot of things, but "hateful" isn't one of them!

What's really sad to me is that Mr. Charles is a retired minister. Even before today's incident, I had thought about him and how miserable it would be for anyone to work with him or learn from him. He has a strong reputation in our store for being demanding and difficult, and I can only imagine how confusing it must have been to be a new Christian in his church and to witness that behavior coming from the pastor.

I have been thinking on this all day, of how I should handle him the next time, and if there's anything I would've said or done differently. It has always been tempting for me to worry myself to death when I know someone is upset with me. I TRY not to take it personally, and in this case, it's pretty obvious who has the attitude. My responsibility is to reflect Christ in my actions, and Mr. Charles is accountable to God for his own actions. Thankfully, what he does and how he chooses to act are not things that I need to concern myself with.

Obedience. Something that has been on my mind more and more lately. I know that today's incident is meant to draw me closer to Him. Will I follow Christ's example and respond in LOVE? It is easy for me not to be rude to people in most circumstances, but I have had more trouble taking that extra step toward showing love when faced with people like Mr. Charles. I think sometimes I have just skated by feeling like I was doing more than enough by simply biting my tongue. Like if I didn't say anything nasty then I was technically OK because I wasn't overtly sinning.

"You have heard that it was said, "Love your neighbor and hate your enemy. But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that?" - Matthew 5:43-47

"Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me." - John 14:21

"Love each other as I have loved you." - John 15:12

Good times

It's been a good weekend, even though it's midnight on Sunday night and this is my first moment to myself! Joy passed through town again so last night I got to bond with her over Krispy Kreme donuts (mmmmmmm), and then today I shared a long afternoon at Panera Bread with Tamara, just catching up and looking at pictures from our recent trips. Between seeing them, spending 5 hours at church today, and working all day yesterday, all I've done is run this weekend. But it's all been worth it!

I have to hand it to my husband, though... he ignores my clutter and dirty dishes, and sends me off to have fun instead. I LOVE that man!!

Proclaiming my newfound nerdness

I am happy to have recently regained my appreciation for curling up with a good book. During college and the several years following, I was always too busy to sit still long enough to actually read (and finish) a book. But I think I've knocked out more books in the past 3 months than in the past 5 years combined, and I'm loving it! Been reading a lot of Karen Kingsbury lately, and my dad gave me a set of 3 historical fiction novels that I'm looking forward to delving into. I'll probably take those with me when I have to show up for jury duty in a few weeks! It doesn't hurt any that I am in a bookstore almost every day and can take whatever I want to read on my lunch break.

I'm actually looking forward to serving on a jury. It'll be a new experience for me, and it should be interesting since I've always been curious about law. I get to serve on criminal court... woo-hoo! I hope I get some crazy cases!

New Year's Eve was a dud. Our new neighbors (across the street and 2 houses down) were playing their music SO loud that I could hear the bass over our TV! I was somewhat irritated, but being New Year's Eve, I'll forgive them... this time! Don and I both fell asleep on the couch during the 11:00 news, and we missed the ball drop. This is the first year in about 20 that I've missed the festivities. Ehhhhhh, oh well, I'm getting old!