Funny, isn't it? How balloons can turn even the grimmest day ... into a party.
Two days in a row, I showed up with the balloons.
A couple dozen or so tied with brightly colored ribbons. Orange, green, pink, yellow ... spring colors ... guaranteed to catch your attention ... and to make you smile.
They floated gently to the ceiling of the tiny little space as we tied them into bouquets of two or three ... there was a lot of laughter ... as we anchored them around outside ... and left them to blow in the wind.
On the second day, the balloons were different than the first. Some were bigger ... some were smaller ... and a random array of colors ... balloons that we found in the bottom of a box under the counter.
Once again, tied with brightly colored ribbons. And once again, filling up the tiny little space.
It was the day before ... the first day ... of what is coming next. It was a day that simply had to be ... lived through ... as best as possible.
So the balloons were a nice touch. It was fitting somehow.
As I was tying them into the bouquets ... on the second day ... to once again spread around outside ... the cranky man appeared.
He really wasn't happy ... about much of anything. And he seemed to think that it was his mission in life to spread his own brand of cranky around ... everywhere he went.
So he planted himself in a chair ... fully intending to wait. I told him that was fine ... but that I intended to continue wandering in and out with the balloons.
He was fascinated with the balloons. And it amused me greatly when he finally asked me if that was "what I did" ... if it was "my job" ... going around on Saturday mornings ... dressing up drab concrete & chain link fences ... with balloons ...
Later we laughed about that ... after the cranky man had come and gone ... and returned again even crankier than on the first visit.
Actually .. it was a great idea ... sad, though, that he didn't see the joy in it.
When I decided to finish up ... what was being finished up ... with the balloon bouquets ... I had no idea where to get the balloons blown up ... with helium. A friend of mine gently slapped my hand ... because, duh?!?! She blows up balloons every single day!
Haven't seen her in a while ... so the two early morning ballooning sessions ... were a bonus!
We chatted about life since last we had caught up ... about our children ... about business ... and relationships ... and healing. The stories were personal ... the feelings real and genuine ... and we wondered aloud how it was even possible to go through life ... facing the struggles ... celebrating the victories ... in a partnership that didn't involve honesty, respect & a willingness to face the whatevers of life head-on ... together.
It was reassuring to me ... to have her remind me of the difference between "partnering" ... and "partnerships". She blessed me immensely ... with her wisdom ... and encouragement. And I bet she had no idea!
The first batch of balloons came from her inventory ... the second batch were left over from some previous events and reflected corporate colors.
There was one black one in the bunch. As it inflated, she asked me if I REALLY wanted that one. I said, Yep. It's the lucky one!
Later in the day, I was asked if there was a reason why I put the black balloon ... and it's bouquet ... in such a prominent spot. And again I replied, Yep. It's the lucky one!
The day ended ... pretty much as expected. The balloons didn't really make any difference in the outcome. One would un-tether from time to time ... and drift off on the breeze ... high above us ... dancing brightly ...
Reminding us that there's no way to discover what's coming next ... until we loosen the strings ... that are holding us down ...
Just now ... the whisper came ... Come on, MJ ... sing along ... "I got no strings ..."
And once again ... I am writing here ... heading to the predetermined punchline ...
only to be blindsided ...
Pinocchio. One of my favorites ... how did I miss something so obvious ...
Floating test balloons ... waiting on Pinocchio ...
www.lifelessons-mj.blogspot.com
(c) April 2012
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