I talked to our yard guy the other day about mowing the grass, and ended the conversation with:
Yard guy: So, I’ll be there tomorrow to mow.
Me: Sounds good.
Yard guy: Take care.
Me: Will do. Love you.
As my finger hit the end button, I dropped my head. Did I just tell my yard guy that I loved him?
I shared that little faux pas on Facebook and tons of empathizers jumped on board with their experiences.
One woman shared that her husband said “I love you” to the plumber.
Another shared that she had accidentally said it to her pastor.
As I age, I’m finding that precise words come to me less frequently . . .
My left brain has gotten lazy, and rather than searching words and putting them in an appropriate, linear fashion, it just dives into the grab bag of words and chooses words willy-nilly.
The other day, my son was walking behind me and told me to hurry up. I replied, “Hey, I’m 55 years old, lady.”
I have no idea where “lady” came from, and I’m learning not to care. I blame the fact that my left brain has decided to plop down into a recliner and watch HGTV.
Instead of saying, “I’m going to the grocery store,” I’ll say, “I’m going to the closet place.”
Or instead of asking my husband “Can you get me a ginger ale?” I’ll say, “Can you read me a drink?”
Random words. Maybe I’m aging beyond the point of needing them. Perhaps my days of telepathy and eternity are coming faster than I originally thought.
But “I love you” to my yard guy brings up a whole different issue . . .
Here’s my question – is saying “I love you” ever a bad thing? Because I think everybody needs to hear those words.
Perhaps, when we’re inadvertently saying them to a colleague or a plumber or our minister, we’re channeling love from another source. Perhaps their angel is giving them a message.
Maybe a soul that has left this earth knows they need a verbal hug.
A minister might appreciate hearing “I love you“rather than “Your sermon on Sunday offended me.” I learned this as a preacher’s kid.
So, to my yard guy, remember that every time you leave our yard a little more beautiful, the universe whispers “I love you.”
I just happened to be the channel.
4 comments. Leave new
I cracked up when I read your Facebook post about this, but thought “Well, maybe, in some weird way Donna knew that guy needed to hear that very thing at that very moment.” Maybe, I thought, it wasn’t such a bad thing. Embarrassing? Sure, but bad? Nope.
I love you and the way that you tell a story, by the way. Just putting it out there, in case you needed to hear that today.
Jackie – that is EXACTLY what I needed to hear today. Thank you!!
I’ve done this more than once. I guess it’s okay. Maybe he needed some love that day but also
maybe we all need to not let such words become automatic! Thanks for sharing.
It’s better than saying something negative, right? Thanks for your comment, Beth!