Lessons.
(taken from The Open Mind (with Dana Bowles) on Facebook)
bloodteethandflame
A life in threes
Tag: lessons
July 3, 2015
Month for Loki, Day 3: Pretty
Today I did something that I haven’t done in over 15 years.
I went and got a manicure.
And then, I did something that I’ve never done.
I got myself a pedicure as well.
(I’d never done so because I’ve always felt sort of guilty. I’ve always been a service-oriented person. While I’ve given myself pedicures, and I have given others pedicures, somehow I’ve never gotten around to getting one myself.)
Technically, it wasn’t just a pedicure.
Much to my surprise, this encompassed a little more than simply someone else painting my nails. This particular salon offered their clients their pedicures in some swanky shiatsu massage chairs from Brookstone, and I got a 30 minute foot massage and my choice of over a dozen genres of music to listen to through headphones that were provided while I was getting said massage.
(And again, I’ve given many a foot massage, but I’ve never been on the receiving end of a foot massage myself, let alone one while sitting in such a comfortable leather chair listening to soothing music.)
I’m telling you, it was pretty swank…and a very welcome treat.
And I had a good hearty laugh when a woman sitting next to me – who was also getting a pedicure – leaned over and demanded to know why I was getting ‘special treatment.’
When the technicians asked her what she was talking about, she pointed to me and blurted out:
“Why does her chair have a vibrator and mine doesn’t?”
The technicians just looked at each other, and deadpanned, “Ma’m, we’re sorry but this is not that kind of salon.”
It seemed to take a moment for the woman to realize the meaning of their response, but I could not help myself and I burst out laughing. Then the technicians started laughing too, because I don’t think that they could help themselves anymore either.
It was rather funny, and I couldn’t help but think to myself that this was truly a superb moment of trolling worthy of Loki Himself.
I left the salon feeling relaxed, pampered and oh so…pretty thusly:
And in regards to Loki, I know that He would have been pleased to note that I engaged in some self-pampering today, as I see Him as a Deity Who – along with Freyja- teaches lessons involving reciprocity and recognizing our own self-worth.
He knows that it pushes me out of my comfort zone to receive attention and service from others at times, and Loki was there to remind me that I deserve to receive just as much as I give and I am worthy of the attention and service that I received from others today.
And I left the salon feeling pampered and pretty and most of all, worthy of the joy that I felt in receiving.
Hail Loki ❤
~~~
March 31, 2015
*looks up*
Another emotional weekend.
Another chain of days wherein I am left contemplating the line between being compassionate and being naive.
~~~
And here. Here is a foolish thing.
This morning while I was out walking my dog, I noticed at least a dozen black vultures perched upon the streetlights lining the parkway that runs along a significant portion of my daily route. Even though vultures usually don’t roost in my neighborhood very often, I figured that there must have been some fresh roadkill somewhere. (I didn’t — and I still don’t — want to assume that their presence has any at all to do with the fact that that I’ve also been dreaming of vultures a lot lately. I comfort myself to think that there has to be some other mundane reason.)
So, as I was walking toward quite a large cluster of them, I realized much to my dismay, that, with the way in which the road was laid out, I was going to have to walk past several streetlights in the row.
And I was going to have to pass beneath quite a number of them where they were perched.
(Yes, I’ll admit that I feared being…hissed at and shat upon.)
As I got closer, I began to walk more briskly, all the while telling myself that I am going to be OK, I’m just passing through…this is not something that I can avoid. These are just…vultures. A lot of black vultures.
And looking back on it, you know, I can’t explain why I started to feel anxious, but I did….
and so, next thing I know, I had started running….
And because I was so busy feeling anxious
and not really looking where I was going
I promptly fell hard into a hole that I could not have seen
and I twisted my ankle.
I laid there for a good minute or two, feeling mortified, embarrassed and hurting.
Upon looking up, I see them – three vultures — calmly looking down at me, from their perches atop the streetlight.
They did not move. They did not hiss. And they did not shit on me.
They just looked at me.
(They were just like this – except for looking downward. I didn’t take this picture. ^Phil Thach did.)
Evidently, black vultures like to perch on street lights
…and eat ‘horrible things for tea.’
(I guess that ‘ and eat roadkill when necessary’ doesn’t have the same ring to it, though it has the same amount of syllables.)
Not making fun. Just trying to adapt.
~~~
Mr. L is wondering why I am avoiding again.
Asking why I am struggling to embrace my spirit animal.
Because, sometimes…vultures frighten me.
*sigh*
bloodteethandflame 