I am in my closet trying to decide on a pair of tennis shoes. I notice my black patent leather ones and I have a heartwarming flashback of the day I bought them three years ago.

After choosing a different pair, I know I want to share my story with you. It is a keeper and I think you will feel as I do after you finish reading it. I am excited to sit down at my computer and share.

This story took place over three years ago, but I remember it as though it were yesterday…

“My poor foot,” I think to myself as I walk to Neiman Marcus on a sunny, spring day to buy a pair of walking shoes. I used to race up the Neiman Marcus escalator to the shoe department with anticipation because I loved buying shoes!

That was before I broke my ankle. I am happy to say the bone healed properly, but my ankle and foot are slightly swollen. Now I ride up the same escalator with trepidation.

As I continue the short walk over to the store, I make myself switch moods and smile. Gary, my shoe salesman, who knows my feet better than I, will figure out how to help me.

As I enter the shoe department, a saleswoman who I have never laid eyes on approaches me. She is in her late fifties or sixties.

“Hi, my name is Susie. May I help you?”

“Thank you, but I am looking for my salesman Gary,” I replied.

“He just left for a late lunch break.”

I feel my heart sink!

I gained my composure, smiled and said, “Well, you are a Susie and I am a Susan, so we should be a good fit!”

She laughs.

I explain my story, adding, “It is not going to be an easy task as I cannot fit into any of my shoes.”

I Believe Nothing Happens by Accident

Meeting Susie was no accident! I don’t question why we have these incidents, darlings, but I am glad we do. Susie was meant to enter my life!

I didn’t need a shoe salesman who was a brand specialist. Rather, I needed a shoe saleswoman who had compassion and resilience.

It took over an hour to fit my foot! She never stopped trying and she always smiled. And throughout the entire encounter, she was encouraging and caring. She finally brought out a shoe that had panache! I loved it. Now she just had to make the left shoe feel comfortable on my swollen foot!

She continued taking the shoe into the back room to the stretching machine. I cannot count the number of times!

During this time, we did not stop chattering. We laughed and we talked about our lives. She asked if I had a career. I told her I owned a website called HoneyGood.com. She signed up right in front of me!

She told me she was a single woman who always worked. We were two mature women, over 50, who bonded over a pair of walking shoes! How lucky was I?

She said to me, “You are a woman with an independent spirit.”

I said to her, “You are a kind and wise woman with a resilient spirit.”

When I said that to her, she looked right into my eyes and said, “Thank you for the compliment,” and added, “Would you like me to tell you why I am resilient?”

“Yes, of course,” I replied.

And so Susie continued, “I have a very important project that always starts my day.”

“On my nightstand, I keep a pen and a pad of paper. When I awake each morning before I get out of bed, I write down THREE REASONS I AM THANKFUL. I start every day of my life on a positive note.

I am a resilient woman because I get out of my bed each morning realizing I am very fortunate!”

“Susie, that’s a great suggestion! Do you mind if I write about our time together? I would love to pass on your insightful message to my darlings!”

“I would be flattered and look forward to reading the story,” she said with a big smile.

We said our goodbyes and both knew we would see one another again.

As I walked to the escalator thinking about her message, I physically felt my gait lighten up!  “I have magic walking shoes,” I said to myself.

We all get caught up in the trials and tribulations of our lives. Susie’s message of writing down our positive thoughts each morning gives us the ability to put our lives in perspective and become grateful.

On my way home, I took a detour and stopped in at Papyrus. I purchased a beautiful journal with whimsical French women painted on the cover and a small jeweled pen.

Taking five minutes to write down my positive thoughts each morning has become my new ritual, darlings. Why not make it yours?

As I write this story more than three years later, I still use a pink jeweled pen to record why I am grateful.

Susie no longer works at Neimans’. The next time I was in the store, I went up to the shoe department to say hello and chat, and of course mention what an impression she left on me the day she fitted my healing swollen foot, but she was gone and I had no way of finding her.

I left saying to myself, “My loss.”

Pass on the Positivity!

Do something GOOD today… buy a pretty jeweled pen and a small feminine notebook and keep a journal of your good thoughts. You will feel grateful and start your day with a smile. Not to mention, a pen and journal would make the perfect gift for your children and grands.

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