Joy Dare: October 14, 2021 - 3 GIFTS SAID

Earlier this year I was in an online group with Zoro, a world-renowned musician, master storyteller, and motivational speaker. (I borrowed that line from Amazon, but it's perfectly said.) I would add that he's a phenomenal person, a beautiful Christian example, a powerful encourager, and one amazing drummer! He was guiding us through his book, Soar, about unlocking our potential and pursuing our dreams. We'd been talking about our dreams being from God and if we believed that, then we needed to take action. I sat through most weeks feeling too intimidated to speak up but one night he had some time for questions and I went for it. Being one of the older participants, and only just beginning to dream again, I asked him if he had any advice for those of us starting later in life. His response was gentle and encouraging, while also boldly honest. He looked straight into the Zoom screen and told me (and the others) to, "Get over yourself and do it for God." I'm so grateful he said those words. I have them written out on a whiteboard next to my computer and also on my vision board. I hope to have a long lunch with him someday, just to learn more from him. (Hint, hint - in case he ever reads this!)

This week I had someone say something to me that caught me off-guard. These friends had sent an e-mail to check in and say hello. It was a simple, "How are you?" Normally I would have chosen to respond in writing and catch them up. But, I have missed this couple so much I decided to call instead. We caught up on all of the life stuff back and forth, good and bad. We were just about to sign off when he said, "I'm proud of you." I actually had two other people say something along those lines in the same week but it took this third one for me to really absorb it and accept it from all of them. I am thankful he said that at that particular moment in time. It was a perfect gift.

I love to laugh. I don't do it as often as I used to, but that needs to change. One of my favorite memories in my marriage is something I said at a time when my husband was quite sick with a sore throat. I was on the loveseat, directly opposite the entertainment center. He was to my left, sitting in a rocking chair that angled towards the television and we'd been watching together. He would not stop talking, even though his throat was hurting. I turned to him and in my best caring wife's voice, said, "You should stop talking now." He did. But out of the corner of my eye, I could see his arms were folded across his chest and he had a pouting posture and was no longer rocking. We watched for a bit before I asked him in my not-so-caring wife's voice, "What's wrong with you?" He had taken my comment as a version of telling him to shut up while I was simply trying to get him to rest his voice so he would feel better. The gift said by each of us that night is one of my most laughable miscommunication moments and we still quote that in playful banter..."You should stop talking now."

NOTE: This is the link to my first post on this topic, in case you're curious what this is about and why my blog posts look different right now.

https://thatresonates.blogspot.com/2021/10/joy-dare-trial-run-october-1-2-2021.html

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