Hide and Go Peek
Recently I was talking to my roommate about a time when I was a young girl and wanted my dad to buy me this pretty pink wrap around dress for Christmas. He indicated he would consider it, as he pointed out a pair of jeans I wasn’t interested in while we window shopped. As Christmas grew closer, I decided I would take a “peek” at whether I received the pink dress I so desperately wanted. I peered inside the package, but once I spied the dress in the box, I wanted a closer look. The anticipation of how it would look when I tried it on, enticed me to pull it out of the box. After it was on I felt so empowered that I decided to sneak and wear it so I could show all my friends. They oohed and ahhed and told me how spectacular I looked. Then, when I arrived home, I folded the dress up, placed it back in the package, and repaired the wrapping, placing it carefully under the tree.
Even though I was able to carry out my evil plan and no one was the wiser, I knew the true price of what I had done. I cheated myself of the process, of the enjoyment, and of the expectation of what I was about to receive. And although I enjoyed unwrapping my present on Christmas day, peeking had sullied the true joy of the experience. Not only had I traded the innocence of Christmas morning, but I betrayed the trust of the person giving the gift, my dad. He was counting on my patience to open what he bought me, and wanted to share the experience with me. He envisioned the joy on my face when I unwrapped it, and desired to participate in the happiness I felt when I received exactly what I asked for.
Many times the enjoyment of the journey isn’t appreciated like the final result. There is no pleasure in experiencing the process, and each victory won while becoming an improved version of yourself. All of us have something in our lives that needs a little tweaking, a little adjusting, and a little more effort. For some of us it may be working on writing a book and making sure it’s proofread and checked for errors. Some of us may need to work on our resume and tweak it until it’s just right, so we can land that job we honestly want. For me, it’s a journey of balance. I want to be healthy spiritually, physically, emotionally, mentally, socially. In every way that I can, I want to be the best version of who I am called to be. If I only focus on the final result and not the process, I will rob myself of the enjoyment of becoming my best self. I can cheat those in my path along the way of celebrating each milestone I reach. I need to appreciate my growth as my life begins to transform. Then when I reach the goal line, I will truly be thankful for the time I have invested in myself to allow myself to be who I was created to be. Not for my purpose, and not for my enjoyment, but for His.