Two women are walking towards each other on a crowed sidewalk – one in Fabletics workout gear, one in the one outfit she could find this morning that didn’t make her feel awful. One was up early, did a quick meditation, had a protein-packed breakfast, made a list of what she needed to accomplish today, and is sipping her coffee with a huge smile – literally vibrating she is so ready for this day. The other woke up after pressing snooze 3 times, too late for breakfast, dreading the dishes piling up, dreading the people she would need to talk to, dreading the job she would soon be at, and dreading the muffin and vanilla cappuccino she’s picked up.
One looks up at the sky and gratitude fills her heart. The other.. looks at the first woman, her jealousy coming out as a harsh judgement about who this first woman is. That she is vain, conceited, selfish – and that her bouncy, light nature is simply annoying.
As they pass each other, they both seem to get knocked towards the other, and they collide just enough to get thrown off balance. One woman drops her coffee and reaches out to brace the other. The next clasps desperately to her muffin and cappuccino.. not wanting to loose the breakfast she stood in a grumpy line for. From the ground, one woman laughs as she checks her bag for tissue to wipe away the coffee.. The other sits in disbelief, the only shirt she had for today covered in cappuccino, and a muffin tucked right beneath her butt.
The first woman gives up finding a tissue and turns her face to the next woman, giving in to the moment and helping her dislodge the muffin. The next woman laughs from embarrassment first.. from awkwardness second, and finally gets caught up in the contagiousness of the first woman’s joy. She reaches into her purse and pulls out the tissues the first woman needs. And they laugh as they help each other wipe away the remnants of this chance encounter.
The muffin drops into the garbage, the second woman looks up and notices for the first time in a while, the beauty of the sky reflected in a store window. She takes a moment to check herself out in the pane of glass, but can’t seem to see past the first woman. She raises her hands up to dust the muffin off her shirt, but only sees the first woman’s arms reflecting back. She sees the first woman’s smile, the gratitude in her eyes, the joy that surrounds her. And as she steps closer, she sees that the first woman is her.
It takes nothing but a moment of altering your perspective to alter your reflection. And she continues her walk down the sidewalk.. literally vibrating she is so ready for this day.
