by Mary Lou Quinlan
Published April 10, 2012 in Friendship, Health

Do you believe that things happen for a reason? I do. Yesterday I started the day in overdrive. The book is one week from its official launch date and my head was spinning with undone “to do’s.” Did I finish revisions to my play script in time for my mid-day rehearsal? Did I remember to send advance books to friends? Did I write my Monday post for theGodBoxproject.com? No, no and no.
And the big question, did I have a pair of sparkly shoes that would save me from hemming my new dress that I planned to wear to the kickoff at the Coaches Vs Cancer Gala in Philadelphia this coming Saturday? No time. Shoe store closed till 10am. How to fill the precious seconds?
Every Monday, Union Square Park, right near our apartment, becomes a wonderful farmers’ market—flowers, fruits, vegetables. With the book in full bloom, I hadn’t visited it for a while, so I thought I’d walk around and sniff the goodness till DSW opened. That’s when I met Etta.
I had stopped at the wheatgrass stand. I don’t have a cat. I can’t believe people drink the stuff. I buy it as ‘grass decoration.’ (Don’t laugh, it’s only $3 a patch.) But this lovely older woman chatting with the wheatgrass guy, and she looked at me and said, “You have beautiful eyes.” Huh? Only my Mom would have said that to me. “Do you have a juicer?” she asked. “No, I don’t drink this,” I said. She was appalled when I said that I only bought it for its looks. “Give her a shot,” she said to the vendor. “This is Stewart, I am Etta.” And she handed me a plastic shot cup of green liquid. “This tastes like grass,” was the best I could offer. “Gets rid of toxins, swirl it around and it’s good for your gums, good energy!” she grinned.
Etta and I left together, talking and laughing. A new friend. She kept turning to smile and wave as she walked off. Me, too. And I walked back to the shoe store and bought these even though I was already happily walking a foot off the ground. Was it Etta? The wheatgrass chaser? Or…Mom?
Tags: Daughters, health, Love, Mary Lou Quinlan, mom, Mothers, Positive thinking, Relationships, Self-Help, shopping, the God Box, the God Box project, Women
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