Unexpected Little Pleasures

I just love it when we find ourselves placed in a situation that we originally felt uncomfortable with only to be shown something far greater than our original plan. This can be a simple a having to take a detour home from work and seeing a beautiful country road that you would never have otherwise traveled, or more complex as having to meet with the CFO of the company to present an idea rather than your good college friend. No matter the situation, I believe that God places us in these situations for a reason. We need to take something away from them. It could just be that moment that we slow down and take a little mini break from the hectic life to thank Him for the beauty of the country road He put us on. Or His purpose could be much greater in that He is leading us to someone or something that is going to impact our lives. While in the moment, we may get frustrated, frightened or even angry at these little detours, we need to try and see them for what they actually are. Opportunities to follow His will rather than our own.

I want to share a specific account of a little "detour" that I recently had. Now, for any of my followers that know me, I am a planner. I like to have everything written down. Where I am going, who I am meeting, times and everything else that completes an appointment. So recently, a friend reached out to me to see if I could help her friend who was having some issues with her sweet puppy dog. Now, being a dog lover myself, I of course replied immediately to get the details of what was going on with the pup and investigated what I could do to help. It turns out, the pup had some "hot spots" from scratching and was pretty miserable over them. So, I told the pup's mom I could meet her to deliver some lavender essential oil, correct x ointment and some healing salve the next morning for her pup. We agreed on the meeting place and time and I wrote everything down in my planner. Made up her goodies and was ready to go. So the next morning comes and I am on my way to met the pup's mom. She texts me and asks if we can meet in a different place. "What"? Somewhere not in my norm? This is not what I had written down... So I said sure, because you know, I needed to be cool. It turns out that there was a coffeehouse near her work so we decided to meet up there. Now, this was a little out of my comfort zone. I had never been to this coffeehouse before. It was not a "chain" coffeehouse but a mom and pop type place. But, I talk myself through it and head that way. When I arrived, I was very pleasantly surprised! It was like taking a step back in time. The shop had all the modern amenities but what really caught my attention was the service. The owner/manager was absolutely amazing. She was genuinely interested in each of her customers and actually took the time to look them in the eye and have an actual conversation. I ordered my large Mocha, which was amazing by the way, and waited for the pup's mom to arrive. Again, the atmosphere of this cafe was great. It was open, not stuffy and everyone was just buzzing with positive vibes. So I talked to the puppy mom, gave her the goodies and had an amazing chat with her. Afterwards, I decided to stay a while and work from the coffee-shop. I chatted with the owner about multiple topics and just watched her interact with all the patrons coming in and out. You could tell who the regulars were and how much they enjoyed coming to the shop to have coffee and hang out. Overall, I have to say it was probably the best coffeehouse experience I have ever had. I know that I will be going back and if you are ever in the area, I recommend that you stop by as well.

This was just one of my little detours that God put me on. I met some amazing people and I was given the opportunity to blog about it to all of you amazing people. So don't be afraid to take those detours when God offers them, you never know where you might end up and who you might meet.

Blessings!