Before I begin, I have to announce how excited I am! My last blog entry was viewed 209 times on the day I posted it ~ a thousand times during the following week! So excited! For someone who cowers at the thought of self-promotion and who longs to be discovered, it is actually nice to have a few readers.
For twenty years, I have written for myself and my children. Whenever I wrote something, I read it to my three kids. Then, I began reading a few stories to classes or co-workers. After a boat-load of encouragement, I started sending my manuscripts to editors and agents. That's when the entire process got murky. I had to ask myself ~ pretty much every time I sat down to write ~ Now, who is this for? At that point, I made the decision to just do what I do for myself and my kids. If anyone notices, fine; if not, that's fine, too. I am writing a children's story right now, which is totally different from writing a post. I have worked on it for months, and I will rewrite it a dozen times before it's finished. The story is the result of a true Tomorrow Trunk moment that happened over the summer. While the moment has passed, the story is alive and well. Hopefully, I will post it before the end of the year.
But that story is not today's big story. Something so strange happened this past Wednesday at the Chinese buffet that has found its way into the Tomorrow Trunk. My mom and I always eat lunch before her doctor's appointment, and we usually prefer the Chinese buffet near the hospital. One of our favorite parts of the lunch is reading and comparing our fortune cookies. I have taped and dated every single fortune in my discovery journal. I can't wait to see if any of those horoscopes come to pass. At the end of this lunch, dated November 6, 2013, my fortune cookie read, You will reach a level of intelligence that you cannot imagine.
Hmm...I'll take that fortune for sure. Then we opened Mom's cookie and read her fortune: It is not in your character to give.
Huh? Boy, did the fortune tellers get that one wrong! I asked Mom to hand me that tiny piece of paper, and I re-read it. It is not in your character to give...up. It is not in your character to give up. What a difference a two-letter word makes! That little word up was sitting pretty on the second line of the sentence, and Mom just missed it.
After the doctor's appointment, we drove to the local Wal-mart for paving stones, prescriptions, and dog food. I noticed the new Five for Fighting album entitled BOOKMARKS. I was so excited about my long-anticipated purchase, I could hardly wait for the drive home! I am absolutely obsessed over the first two tracks! LOVE, LOVE FEST!
However...track 9 is the one that grabbed my attention. The title of the track is YOU'LL NEVER CHANGE. I listened to the song once, and then I quickly replayed it a second time. The lyrics to the chorus are as follows: You'll never change, you'll never change, you'll never change...me.
Wow. Once again, what a difference a two-letter word makes. The first time I listened to the song, all I got was the powerful emphasis on You'll never change! Then, when I tuned in more closely, I heard a soft, convincing me...right there at the end, quite possibly on the second line of the sentence.
Five for Fighting is the stage name for John Ondrasik, who sits at the very top of my all-time favorite list of American singer-songwriters. I love everything about his style of music and his depth of lyrics. This song is an entire post unto itself...how we have our measuring sticks ready and our plans for transformation in place ~ usually for someone else, not ourselves. I love how that little two-letter word me changes everything about the song!
Open the Tomorrow Trunk and tuck away something important from this day! I have always known the power of one notable two-letter word: no. Leave it out ~ I have no life becomes I have life. Put it in ~ I have hope changes to I have no hope. I can't tell you how many times Katie has called me and asked, "Was no meant to be in that sentence or did you leave no out of that sentence by mistake?"
Sometimes we omit a two-letter word, and the sentence just doesn't make sense...to, by, of, on; however, sometimes the omission or inclusion changes everything! YOU'LL NEVER CHANGE...me. IT IS NOT IN YOUR CHARACTER TO GIVE...up. So amazing! I wish I had a thousand more examples, but two was all I needed for today's big story.
My mom's face said it all when she read that fortune cookie the first time. My mom is such a giving person ~ a true example of charity, kindness, hospitality, and unselfishness. She was completely rocked by the words on a little white piece of paper. She said, almost immediately, "I'm throwing that one in the garbage; makes me wish we hadn't eaten here today."
Always ready to come to her defense, I grabbed the paper in disbelief. Up, Mom...you missed up. It is not in your character to give up. She took the fortune cookie out of my hands and tucked it into her jacket pocket. "Now, that's just like me. I'm keeping that one!"
Haha! If only our life sentences could be altered so easily by two-letter words...if we could go from not giving to not giving up just that fast. Or finally recognizing that when we are screaming to the top of our lungs You'll never change!, what we are really saying is You'll never change me.
My is another one of those words that changes everything. In this big, wide universe, you are one person. In this big, wide universe, you are My one person. It's amazing how our entire existence can be completely transformed by the significance of a two-letter word.
Dianne ; )
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