Have you ever felt like a pincushion that everyone but you had the pleasure and even sinister delight of using? That is me ... today. Courtesy of the mad eastside drivers, the man with the baby at Costco that ran over my foot and glared at me as if it was all my fault, the checker at the same who announced, after I had all of my items on the conveyor belt, that she was now closing and to move my things back to my cart. Oh ... I could go on, but why? You get the picture.
When I returned home a sweeping glance reminded me of all the work in the kitchen yet to be done with lingering breakfast pans stacked haphazardly in the sink. A tentative yet weary smile at the reminder that my 11-year-old son had decided, all of a sudden, that he was old enough to begin cooking his and my breakfast -- beginning with fried eggs. He was proud ... and I was wary, but fortunately nothing untoward happened and he whistled his way to school.
While self pity is definitely not a virtue, sometimes one can't help but indulge a little when the pinpricks of the day still sting ... just a little. I can't indulge in chocolate, as would be my wish, because while making lunch this morning, I popped a chocolate chip cookie in my mouth and I still feel the effects of that. And I absolutely refuse to calculate how many extra minutes on the treadmill it would cost to even the score.
So my indulgence today. Leave the breakfast dishes, for a while, and search for dead ancestors. I know it sounds weird to those of you who haven't been bitten by the genealogy bug but thanks for my Mom, I can't help it. Believe me, after a little research ... the sting will be gone and I can go through the house like a whirlwind and make magic happen. As tonight is Friday, great fun is in store and I'll be ready ... then.
I got to thinking about indulgences. Merriam-Webster defines the word indulge as follows: "Indulge: to give free rein to, to take unrestrained pleasure in." I don't like the word unrestrained pleasure, so I'll use the word indulgence -- it has a much better definition: "Indulgence: an act of kind assistance, something adding to pleasure or comfort but not absolutely necessary."
So today ... I will give myself a short "indulgence," along with my steaming cup of coffee, and the world will become beautiful again, at least in theory.
If you gave yourself permission for a short indulgence ... what would you do?
