The light of her smile dispelled the encroaching daily darkness in my mind as I looked at Carolyn across the table at the local diner. So striking she was, a 50 plus woman who has the soul, body and mind of a "young-un" as we say here in the South. Her bright blue eyes sparkled and spoke of promises kept, love and loyalty, not necessarily because it was given to her, but because she had chosen it for herself. Early on, she said, she had decided to see HER cup half-full, instead of half-empty like those around her. Giving defines her character, generosity and kindness sums her up. I am her exercise instructor, but oh- Carolyn is much more to me than that. She is a life-instructor. She has the unique and rare gift of making all that meet her thankful for the encounter. Physical strength has graced her, but much to her credit of a daily schedule of two straight hours of aerobics and strength conditioning at the local gym. Spawned by her husband's daily running routine exhibited some twenty years ago, she felt like she could do the same. Giving God the thanks for her physical prowess, she commented, "I thank Him everyday for the strength" to go do it again!
Thankful to be in her company, we dispensed with the ordering of the food and began the women-folk ritual of peeling the layers. What started off as a business lunch, quickly evolved into girl-chatting and sharing and she actually listened more than she spoke, even though I had planned to get to know HER better. There again, was her giving spirit for to listen is TO GIVE, to give of yourself, your time,and your energy to focus on someone else for a while. And Carolyn gave me my time, today in a small corner of our Southern world, in the small local diner.
