Being in the throes of menopause as well as dealing with a week of overcast skies; yesterday was a bit gloomy. I went to my favorite Thai Palace restaurant for lunch. The owners Lily and Xay are always friendly and accommodating as well as their servers Heli, Pen, and Mai. I feel like a Queen while dining there. So, having a gloomy day – what a surprise it was when Lily brought my lunch special with a side of rice in the shape of a Heart! It put an instant smile on my face, and I let her know it was appreciated!

Another friend sent me an e-mail the other day about going through life and not saying ‘I love you’ to the people you cherish. I had to laugh, because that phrase wasn’t mentioned in my household. I’m not saying there wasn’t caring and concern, just not the verbal mention. Hence, I don’t relate much to the phrase. I feel actions speak louder than words.

I remember tagging along with my mom to my grandparent’s house when I was 4 or 5. My grandfather would sit at the kitchen table; a stocky, dark haired-bald in front, dark brown eyed man with glasses. As a child, I was afraid of him. I was afraid of a lot of people that were taller and bigger than me. I remember my mother telling me to go say ‘Hello’ to Grand Pop and he would hold out a quarter for me.

It didn’t relieve my fear; and shortly after – he passed on of a heart attack while sleeping, around age 62.

Growing up in a household with challenges of alcohol, prescription drugs, and brain damage (amongst family members), I am grateful I had a roof over my head, meals and got my High School diploma. I realized later on, one of my mom’s ways of expressing her love was to give money to her kids.
Initially, as a teenager and young adult, it angered me; because I felt I was being bought. As I got older, I realized it was her way of expressing her love.

So, when I entered 12-Step programs for Adult Children of Alcoholics and Overeaters Anonymous, I sent my sponsor a card one day. I wrote inside: ‘I feel you are worth the money I spent on the card and the stamp!’ She laughed when I told her that was worth all the gold in the world coming from me, with my strong budget-mindedness! Ha ha, she let me know she would cherish it.

When my friend sent me the e-mail the other day, I let her know some of the above information and responded with: AND HERE’S SOME CASH FOR YOU, TOO! I mean it, from the bottom of my heart!
I forwarded the e-mail to another friend that would understand, and sent her an e-mail with VIRTUAL CASH, from the bottom of my heart! She wrote back, ‘I LOVE you, too!’ *smile

When I got the Rice Heart the other day; I could accept it as a gift of LOVE from a local restaurant owner, along with her husband. Xay makes sure to prepare my food ‘just the way I like it!’ Even if Xay says he has to wash his hands to get all the hot pepper off after he makes it! I like my food No. 10, Thai Hot!

So, to all my friends reading this out there; here is some virtual cash, and I mean it, from the bottom of my heart!

Highlighted Ha Ha Helen of LAFOLOT
…have a virtual quarter and a Rice Heart to go along with it! I’m feeling generous!
Feel the LOVE!

Addendum: The GIFT of GIVING keeps on giving and giving and giving!

When I went to dine at Thai Palace for lunch, I let the owner and staff know I had written about them on my blog, due to their kindness. When I was done eating lunch, I passed two diners in a booth. The woman mentioned that her male friend admired that I was sitting in the booth with all the sunlight. He noted that I was glowing in the light. I said, WOW, I just wrote a blog on this very thing! I told her, ‘You made my day!’ I said: ‘I’ve been a bit down, because of the overcast weather, and you’ve given me a gift with that compliment!’ She smiled and thanked me. The, she noted that she knew me from a Summer event where I had my LAFOLOT table set up. She gave me ANOTHER gift by sharing that she still had my ‘Live Life! Laugh Often!’ bumper display on her vehicle! I was thrilled, and told her so. I told her I was feeling down that my message wasn’t getting out there, and she just assured me that it was!

So, when you give the gift of a compliment and noting how people have impacted your life in a positive way; it comes back to you ten times over!

Feel the love… in a compliment and sharing of a kind word!
[This blog can also be seen at Vibrant Nation, a website for women over 50. It's full of wonderful information and sharing.]