I love a good cliché as long as I’m not it. I often use Southern sayings, figurative language, or a good story to inspire my students and my own kids. Here’s a personal favorite- to put your foot in your mouth. It’s a meaningful expression to me as I am extraordinarily proficient in this art, especially around people who have a bit of celebrity status. I was 15 when I met Lewis Grizzard as he was preparing for his famous tour of Russia. My aunt was happily processing the group’s passport and visa applications. My ONE job was to write each customer’s name on a form that had been prepared in advance. L.G. stepped in front of me with that iconic grin. I said sweetly, Your name please? Lewis. I proceeded to write Louis. He was amused as he corrected my error. I smiled sweetly, Last name? His grin froze as he sighed and continued. Grizzard. Lewis Grizzard. To be on the safe side, I asked him to spell that as well. The list goes on to include Chuck Mangione, Pat Dye, an Alabama governor, as well as the cast of Broadway’s Beauty and the Beast as they celebrated a birthday in a restaurant near the Fox. And Herschel Walker. I am not even going to write about it here as I still feel the mind-numbing embarrassment. I will forever taste a hint of those high heel shoes I wore when I attended a reception for one of his assemblies where he encouraged America’s youth. With this wobbly history of my stupid mouth in mind, I traveled with Laura Bauer last summer to Rockville, Maryland, to meet Jeni Stepanek. When the moment came for me to impress, I kept it simple, honest, and polite. But Jeni wasn’t done with me. The next day, I found myself in her home helping prepare for one of her famous porch parties. Jeni asked me to slice veggies. You know - those things I buy already packaged and prepared. I was given a large, impressive, professional knife-a really, really sharp knife. As I nervously evaluated how to proceed, Jeni decided to get to know me. My focus was on the job before me, especially what this kitchen scene might become if I missed a chop. When she asked me to tell her about myself, I answered carefully. I don’t really know what to say about me. What I can do is talk all day about my students, my family, my mission trips, or God. She looked at me intently and said, So JoAnna, tell me about God. So, I did. I began a conversation with a woman who knows more about faith than I can imagine. I was on solid ground because she invited God into the moment. Jeni genuinely wanted to learn about what matters to me. With her open attitude and simple action, Jeni taught me that the key is to listen for the heart of the person in front of me, to find the heartsong. Jeni’s son Mattie described a heartsong as something deep inside of us. It’s our sense of why we are here and how we can keep going. It is like a purpose. He said that if we completely lose our purpose, we can share someone else’s heartsong until we are able to reawaken or recreate our own. When I listen to Jeni’s heartsong, I learn about what matters to her- the desire to continue Mattie’s legacy of peace in the name of all her children including Katie, Stevie, and Jamie who all died before age four. Mattie lived longer than his siblings. He accepted his physical condition, painful neuromuscular dystrophy, and chose a perspective that in his words was the only choice he could make. Mattie did not allow his condition or fear of his condition to consume him. A child, he heard God’s call to the deepest place in his soul to be courageous. To change the world. Mattie’s perspective of a glass half full meant that he chose to do as much as he could as long as he could. He chose hope. Here’s the thing about hope I didn’t realize until Mattie explained it. He said, If I look at my glass as half empty, it may as well be empty all the way. With no hope at all. That perspective shifts my entire understanding of hope. It brings what is important into focus, allowing me to find joy in moments that are seemingly empty of it. I must also choose to look at what’s in my glass. Mattie chose each day to be Christlike. He chose to be fearless in his faith. Because he chose to do everything from a place of love, Mattie didn’t judge others by their race, religion, age, identity, accomplishments or failures. He embraced his heartsong to build a pathway of peace and to play after every storm. As a Christian, I am called to hope. I am called to peace. To love. Thanks to Jeni and her encouragement, I’m having the time of my life. Laughter is the best medicine! Here’s to all the best clichés life can offer. God, Grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change Courage to change the things I can and Wisdom to know the difference. Living one day at a time Enjoying one moment at a time Accepting hardships as a pathway to peace Taking, as Jesus did, this world as it is Not as I would have it. Trusting that You will make all things right If I surrender to Your will. -Reinhold Niebuhr
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JoAnna Arnold
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