I used to commute an hour a day into the city of New Orleans, so I like reading the messages on billboards and I’m a big believer in looking for signs. Thankfully, I no longer have such a long commute, but I still look for messages and go out of my way to read one sign in particular. Several times a day I pass by a chiropractor’s office near my house. His office is located near a residential area and it feels like an inviting and healing place to visit instead of a typical medical building. In front of his office is a lush green garden that has been clearly nurtured and tended to over the years
I enjoy the beauty of this garden but what I like the most about it is the fabulous sign that is nestled within it. I can’t wait to read the quotes and inspirational messages that this Chiropractor takes the time to post in the middle of his garden. In fact, when we were thinking about moving to the Orlando area, I was looking for some sign that this would be a good place for us to live. We had decided to move to Florida a week before the 2004 hurricane season began, and then four hurricanes blew through the state in a period of six weeks. As a result, I was having some doubts about our decision to move to the area.
We spent weeks looking at property and when we didn’t find anything we wanted to buy, I was beginning to think that this was not the right place for us. At the end of a very long day, I was feeling discouraged and kept wishing that we would come across some sign that would help us to know what direction to take. I mentioned my wish to my boyfriend who is a bit more skeptical than I am about such goings on. He responded by saying what he usually does in this kind of situation, I’ll believe it when I see it. I was so tired from our fruitless efforts that I didn’t even bother to protest his lack of faith in signs, and just sat staring out the window as we headed home. This was the first time I had ever driven by this chiropractor’s sign and I burst out laughing when I saw what it said. Triumphant in my success, I smugly read aloud what it said. Looking for a sign? Sometimes you have to believe it, before you can see it. Well that gave me the answer I needed because l did feel drawn to living in this area. We ended up buying a house about five blocks from this chiropractor’s office, and now I get to drive by and read his sign several times a day.
One day I had a new idea my business. Even though I felt confident that I could do it, I also knew it would appear to the outside world as unconventional or perhaps unrealistic. As I was deciding about how to proceed, I drove by the chiropractor’s office, and once again his sign caught my eye. It read, “Sometimes you have to turn your back on the crowd in order to lead the orchestra.” That seemed like great advice to me, and I decided to do what I wanted to do regardless of what anyone might think or say about it.
There have been many days when the message on this Chiropractor’s sign has been a direct answer to a prayer. This past week was no exception. I was very tired from all of the new challenges that moving and starting your life over brings. As I drove by the sign, one side of it said, “Be a fountain not a drain” and once again I laughed at its timely message. Feeling far from a fountain and much closer to a drain, I elected not to call a friend, and instead went home and took a nap. I awoke feeling more refreshed and decided to go down the street to have a cup of tea at Panera Bread, which is my favorite place to write. As I was driving I was feeling some twinges of guilt about all of the money we were spending renovating our house. This time when I passed the sign, I was driving in the opposite direction. So, once again, the back of it had another message for me. This time it aptly read Worry often will cast a big shadow on a small problem and I thought to myself how true that is.
You may be wondering why I find these quotes posted on a sign so inspiring. But I think it is more than the simple words themselves. I just appreciate the person who takes the time to change that sign once or twice each week. He truly cares about offering a bit of hope or inspiration to anyone who might be seeking it and I love that!! Isn’t that amazing that a person I don’t know and have never met, has the ability to uplift me, inspire me and make me feel appreciative, simply by living his life the way he wants to? Unbeknownst to him, I have had many moments of relief and inspiration as a result of him living his life and doing what he wants to do.
I am inspired that this man makes this effort every week. He wants to help make the world a better place – even if it is moment by moment. He may not appear to be doing much, but his efforts are creating a positive effect and that counts for something. It certainly has a far bigger impact on my life, than the fear and negativity that the media broadcasts every day. I know that there are far more individuals in the world like this chiropractor than all of the terrorists that so many people have been taught to live in fear of. This man actually can and does impact my life in a much more positive and powerful way.
It doesn’t matter if the signs you are looking for are metaphorical or tangible and concrete. They are out there, and I am certain that you will find them if you keep looking. Just remember what that one message said, Sometimes you have to believe it before you can see it.
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