My Bad Day

Going back in time today to post something I wrote several years ago.  The reason?  I have a tendency (actually tendency may be putting it mildly) toward negativity.  Sometimes it is good for me to remind myself that even if things are not going well, there is usually something to be gained by being positive.  I'm not having a bad day, today.  So far, it's been pretty good.  Austin just came in and showed me that he can walk normally on his hurt foot.  So, that's a very good thing.  But, for some reason, I thought of this today, and decided to share it.  Maybe it will help someone who IS having A BAD DAY...

Originally written June 22, 2007 ... 

I had the worst day yesterday, but at least it had a good ending. My son, Austin & I went to Wal-Mart to get a few things, and then we went over to the post office to mail a couple of packages. Austin likes to take the packages in, so while he was gone, I reached over to grab my purse, and it wasn't there. I looked in the back seat, and it wasn't there. I thought, "I must have thrown it in the back with the groceries," so I got out and looked in the back, but it wasn't there. Then I started panicking. I knew I must have left it in the shopping cart in the parking lot at Wal-Mart!

By this time, Austin was coming out of the post office, so I told him what happened, and we went back to Wal-Mart. I drove up and down all the rows in the area where we had been parked, and we looked left & right at all the buggies. My purse is quite large, so we could have easily spotted it, if it had been there. Anyway, we didn't see it, so I parked the van and we went in to the service desk. Nobody had turned in my purse, but the clerk told me to check with the greeter at the door. I asked the greeter, who said to check with the guy who gathers the carts, and she pointed him out to me. I asked him, but he hadn't seen it. Then, Austin & I went out to the parking lot and walked all around, looking in all the buggies. It was about 90 degrees outside and we exhausted ourselves, and still no purse. By this time, I was starting to panic. I started thinking about identity theft and all the places I would need to call...which made me think about my cell phone. My husband, Eric, had just gotten a new camera phone for me, just two days earlier. I kept thinking how upset he would be and by this time, I was fighting back tears. I went back in to the service desk again to use the phone. I tried calling Eric, but couldn't get him. I knew the area where he was working, and that he probably didn't have good service there, so I decided to drive out there. I didn't know what to do.

When I got out to where Eric was working, I sent Austin out to get him. I didn't want the other guys working there to see me crying. Eric came to the van and we tried to call the cell phone company, but it rang 20 or so times, and nobody answered, so we decided that I should just go home and try to call from there. I left there crying and my sweet son said, "Don't worry, Mom, I just know someone will turn it in." I kept telling him how in the past that would probably be true, but in this day and age, there are too many dishonest people in the world and that my identity would probably be stolen. I rambled on about that all the way home.

When we got home, Austin got the bags out of the van so I could go in and start making the phone calls. The message light on my phone was blinking, so I checked the messages. The first one was a hang-up, but the second one, I couldn't believe it...someone had found my purse. It turned out that a hair stylist, a man named Jon Blalock, had found my purse in the buggy next to his truck. He had taken it inside to his station, and given me a call to let me know he had it, and that everything was still inside! I tried to call him back, but the line was busy. I was so exhausted that I asked my mother if she would go by and pick up my purse on her way home. I finally got in touch with Mr. Blalock. We chatted for a little bit and I told him my mom would be picking up my purse. I gave him her name, and he said he would ask for her ID. I told mom to give him some money from my purse as a reward. Then Austin called Eric to let him know the purse had been found. Eric was preparing to come home to help me make the calls, but Austin caught him just in time, so he could stay and finish his work.

Well, my mom went by, showed her ID, and got my purse. She gave Mr. Blalock a small reward, and he seemed happy. I was so grateful to get back my purse and with everything in it, no less! I apologized to my son for being so negative earlier and I can't tell you how relieved and happy I was!