"One of those people"

I never thought I'd be "one of those people…." Last week I was feeling pretty pasty. With the nice weather, I knew I was bound to have to give up my full-length pants & ¾ length sleeves eventually. With no time to lie around in a tanning bed, I figured I'd do it the quick and dirty way. I saw a commercial for one of those gradual tanning lotions, that vowed to not give you the "streaky" look. This particular brand even promised firming! So, one night I stopped into CVS on my way home and stood in the lotion aisle in front of all the self tanning goo available to me. I settled on one and took it to the counter. The young man behind the counter probably could have cared less what I was purchasing, but I felt the need to explain myself by saying, "I never thought I'd be 'on of these people.'" He said "What? To use a CVS card?" as he swiped the little key fob. "Oh, no," I replied, "One of these self-tanning lotion people." And then I felt the need to launch into a tirade about how I just couldn't "possibly be THE pasty white girl on the cruise ship, right?" He smiled amiably and said "Oh, I'm sure you'll look really nice." What a guy…some woman taught him right! After I left, I was thinking, "Now why did that perfect stranger need to hear my silly excuses for purchasing self tanning lotion? Jeez…I never thought I'd BE one of those people…

This weekend, Jake & I took a motorcycle ride out to Camp Loud Thunder in Andalusia to visit some friends who were camping. We stopped to get some marshmallows and were on our way on a gorgeous night for a ride. As we rode across the bridge and along the long stretches of barren, rural roads my mind got to wandering, and again, I was thinking "I never thought I'd BE one of those people who would ride (on the back of) a motorcycle." I'm not a brave or daring person by any means, and I like to minimize my risk of injury or death, thus I always swear by helmets no matter if I'm on a bike or a bike. Now that I know what it's like to ride, I LOVE it. I love being the passenger…being able to look up at the night sky and all it's stars poking through the vast darkness, staring at the glowing moon as we ride over the river, getting wafts of all the wonderful smells of a night ride…a campfire, the budding spring blossoms on an unseen tree, tasty burgers being grilled. I love the fresh air, the wind, the enjoyment of getting to a destination, and not just being there. And it's quality time spent with Jake when we can do something we both love to do together, and we don't even have to say anything. We just enjoy the peace of the open road and all it's possibilities. I NEVER thought I'd be one of those people.

Additionally, there are experiences in our lives that we have no control over. Again, those are times when I'm thinking "I never thought I'd be one of those people." Being the wife of a police officer and a soldier, experiencing the hardships and heartaches of a deployment, and becoming a "war bride" were not in my life plan! Trying for a baby after being together for over eight years, and learning that the word "infertility" looms over you like a monster you can't escape is another of these instances. I never thought we'd be "those people" experiencing something so painful, so inescapable as not being able to conceive a child on our own.

But no one plans for these things. No one says "I'm going to BE one of those people," especially when it's a group you wish you weren't part of. I guess through all of these life experiences I'm learning that whether I'm in a category of people because I choose to be or just by what appears to be pure chance, NOTHING is a coincidence. Everything happens for a reason. Perhaps to teach us things we might not have ever known, to help us grow into wiser, stronger people, to take something we've learned from the experiences and help others through difficult times. Life is both confusing and amazing all at one wondrous moment. I'm learning, growing, changing every day…I'm becoming "one of those people."