Choose Joy

Leaving Target yesterday afternoon, I passed a woman getting into an electric wheelchair. You know the ones the larger stores provide for those with difficulty walking? Anyway, this woman used a cane and was visibly ill. Her face was puffy and moon-shaped, a face I know all too well as a side effect from steroids. She looked exhausted and disgusted to be sitting in this chair. A Target worker was explaining how to use the chair and the two women with her I assumed were her sisters by their similarities.

As I walked past, I clearly heard, "Stop and share with her." I almost laughed out loud and said,"No way!" to myself. "Absolutely not," and kept walking. As I exited Target I found myself immediately heading once again for the entrance.

"No way, God! This is just too embarrassing. I can't start a conversation with a total stranger!" Next thing I know I'm standing in front of this total stranger, my mouth flies open and out comes these words...

"I have to share something with you. I read a story online recently about a woman who had been homebound for several months with chronic illness. She was finally able to make a trip to Wal Mart, only if she used an electric wheelchair to get around the store. She awkwardly maneuvered this bulky chair up and down the aisles running into end caps, knocking over product and even hitting a few other shoppers! She was embarrassed at first and then she began to think about all the time she'd spent unable to leave the house. She was thrilled to be out and made a conscious choice to be joyful and leave embarrassment behind. She was going to enjoy the moment regardless of how many shelves or shoppers she ran into. Instead of getting flustered when she crashed, she started yelling, "Woo hoo!" and having a total blast!

"So," I told my new Target friend , "Enjoy this moment riding on your new wheels and when you hit something yell 'Woo hoo!'instead of being embarrassed."

She looked at me with big tears in her eyes and said a weak "Woo hoo!" and whispered "Thank you."

As I left Target, I could hear three voices yelling "Woo hoo!" and laughing as the woman ran into the end of an aisle.

Today, I choose joy. "Woo hoo!" How about you?

Joyfully,
Kristen