Revelations - March 19, 2006

I'm missing an interesting episode of Smallville to write this, so you know it must be important.

(If anyone knows me, we know that this is ridiculous- I don't really watch tv, much-less Smallville, but this one is actually somewhat interesting. I'll have to ask Alan, the biggest Smallville fan I know, for some backstory later...)

Levi has changed my life in many ways, one being the way I view certain situations. For example, he once bought a bike but no chain to lock it up on purpose. He said if anyone stole it, he knew that they must have needed it more than he did.

Sage advice, right?

Wrong.

Well, at least at first, I thought this was ridiculous.

I mean, why would you just give your stuff away like that?

But eventually, I got it, and now after my own theft, I really get it.

The next day, after much soul searching (and phantom-purse searching... it's like I kept forgetting it was gone and kinda kept looking for it thoughout the day) I tried to imagine the thief. It was most certainly a girl, since we were in the ladies dressing room.

I tried to imagine how she must have needed it more than I did, since I can afford to replace it and everything inside of it. I tried to imagine her being happy to find such nice things, like my Coach wallet and rings and watch. I thought maybe she had a daughter she could give the purse to, or a friend who would recieve the watch. I imagined her happy with my former items, and her needing them more than I did.

And I felt so much better.

So, instead of lamenting my loss, I'm now kind of glad it happened. Everything happens for a reason- why did I take my phone out at the last moment? Why did I not slip my iPod into it this morning like I usually do? Why did I take out my FAVORITE necklace from Barbados moments before leaving that morning? Because my purse was meant to be stolen. And so, I knew the faster I made peace with that fact, the happier I would be.

And I was right!

Now, I kind of see it as an inadvertant act of charity on my part. No, I would not have given away my entire purse if asked, but the situation didn't ask me, so by releasing myself from the worry and anxiety of being a 'victim,' I kind of am 'giving it away.'

So, to the thief who took my purse, while I would like my planner and ID's back, since I'm a little lost without them, I sincerely hope you enjoy the purse as much as I did. I hope that you give the little trinkets away to other people who it would bring joy to, and I hope that you take good care of 'my' things. You really must have needed them more than I did.

~ ~ ~

Another theory of mine is that bad things happen so good things can happen. (Kind of the whole "you don't know light until you know dark," thing)

Well, the good news is that my physical therapist said I could go back on the ship next week if I wanted to. That I've built up muscles that weren't holding my back together to a strong enough point that I can go home.

And so I will, the 27th.

~ ~ ~

And another inadvertant reward from my purse being stolen: I get to spend at least two weeks at home with Levi and my family while I order another one!

~ ~ ~

One last twist:

We went to a club on Friday, and I got in on a photocopy of my passport. (Amazingly...) But what is interesting is that the bouncer pointed out that my passport expired a few days earlier... meaning that if I had still been on the ship, uninjured, I probably wouldn't have noticed this until I had to show it to a port agent... who would have thrown me off the ship wherever I was at the time.

So that's why I had to get hurt, to get sent home, to come to therapy to get strong, to go to the club, to find out that my passport was expired.

See?

A reason for everything...