When I go to the movies I normally have to use the restroom at some point.
And when I walk out of the restroom there is normally a gaggle of guys lined up along the opposing wall waiting for their women to exit the restroom.
I find that gaggle quite sweet and look forward to the day when I have a man who will wait for me with the other guys who are waiting on their woman too.
It’s 6:25pm…I am at work watching the sunset from my classroom window. I’ve agreed to help at the homecoming halftime show at tonight’s football game so I figured I would stick around campus until kickoff and get caught up on grading and lesson planning.
My classroom faces the parking lot and though the windows are a deep, dark tint, when it’s dark outside and the lights are on in the room, you can see everything that’s going on inside. So as hundreds of people flood into the football stadium they’re getting a pre-game glimpse of pathetic Ms. Carson at her computer at 6:28 on a Friday night.
One of my colleagues just stopped in to say hello…he stayed late for the game as well. As we were chatting he noticed the fresh flowers on my desk and inquired about who sent them to me.
“I actually bought them myself to brighten up my room.” I casually replied.
“Oh, no!” he said with a bit of concern in his voice. “You bought yourself flowers?!?! That’s sad…next you’ll be buying a cat.” he added with a laugh.
Thanks, thanks a lot for making me feel real good about myself.
“Oh, come on…it’s not that bad!” I replied.
“You are still here on a Friday night.” he responded.
Give up dude…you win…my confidence is crushed.
We laughed and he left telling me he’d see me out on the football field.
So then, at 6:38 I opened a candy bar I keep hidden in my desk for emergencies such as this, turned off all the lights in my room and decided to write this post. Here I am in the pitch dark, hiding from the hundreds flooding into the game, squinting at my keyboard barely lit from the din of my computer screen with my mouth full of Snickers announcing to the world that I am still at work on a Friday night at 6:44pm.
My misery needs some company and so I reach out to my virtual friends. Oh, boy. I am pathetic!
My friend Elizabeth sent me this link to a great article in the Boston Globe.
It reminds me to pay less attention to a man’s humor or golf handicap and more attention to his heart.
http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/magazine/articles/2009/10/04/will_he_hold_your_purse/
Being single causes you to learn how to do things on your own. Things that would be much easier with the help of someone else. Things that I will willing ask assistance with once I am in a relationship and eventually married.
Taking out the trash, hanging a mirror, pulling weeds in the yard.
And…zipping and unzipping zippers.
To be more specific, zippers on the back of clothing items.
The dilemma is that I can’t reach them. My arms are not go-go-gadget equipped. I don’t have the wingspan of an NBA player. I’ve had to put dresses on backwards and then shimmy and shift them around so that things are where they belong and the front is in the front and the back is in the back. And sometimes I try so hard to get my arms to reach back and grab that damn zipper pull that it hurts.
I understand the need for help with a zipper.
So Sunday when I was at a swim meet cheering on my friend Cassandra and I was approached by a man in a full onsie-esque swimsuit and he asked “Would you be willing to zip me up?” I did not miss a beat.
He turned around, I zipped him up and said, “There you go!”
“Thanks” he said.
I walked away laughing to myself and smiling. It was a really odd encounter but I completely understood this man’s pain and was happy to help.
Too bad I was not in a position for him to return the favor. Oh well…
I know we’ve all heard this before: “If you’d just stop looking for The One, you’ll find them!”
Every time I hear someone say this I want to roll my eyes. Actually, I do roll my eyes. (Hopefully they don’t notice). The eye roll is not communicating that I don’t believe them, because I do. I think it’s absolutely true that for some people they find their mate when they stop looking. The eye roll in effect says, “How in the world do you stop looking?” Honestly, tell me, because I just don’t know how to do it. When you’re single and a committed relationship is your hearts desire, it’s quite difficult to just stop looking for, thinking of, and praying about that very thing. Essentially, it’s always on your radar.
So, I’ve given up on trying to give up the looking. (Got that?) Since I can’t seem to stop looking (or refuse to stop looking), I’ve decided what I can do is stop longing. I can be content. I can trust God and his timing. I can embrace where I am and live in the moment. I can still be open to meeting all kinds of new people. I can still think about when and where and who, but I won’t let my desire to be in a relationship prevent me from staying focused on God and loving whatever stage of life I am in, I will gladly give up the longing, but the looking…that’s another story.
AMEN! RT: I LOVE how God chooses to do things. His timing, His ways, His path, His mercy, and His love...all perfect. (via @tljones91) When the Pope converts. RT: Jake Pavelka is sure he'll be friends with Vienna someday. What do you think? http://ow.ly/2szZH @peoplemag) Join the club, Kim! RT: Kim Kardashian says she hates dating -- but she's not done trying: http://ow.ly/2su1S (via @peoplemag)
