Monday, March 9, 2009

Rose-colored Glasses

I remember taking my mother to a country concert in the mid 80s in my hometown of Asheville, NC. We went to see Randy Travis, one of my all time favorite country singers, and Conway Twitty, my mom's favorite. The concert was at the coliseum.

As I looked around that evening, I noticed we seemed to be the only two black people in the audience. For some people that may be a little uncomfortable, but not for us. We had our rose-colored glasses on that night, the ones we never left home without, and it seemed to us that everyone around us did as well and we were completely accepted. In a state where there is still a good amount of racism, this was a great thing.

My mother taught us to never see color. She gave us that pair of glasses when we were young, and I have never taken them off.
Now why, you may ask did I bring this experience up. Well, I think we should apply this to the people in our lives. We are have our quirks and faults and we want to be accepted for what is in us and we should be willing to do the same. Carrying that pair of rose-colored glasses with us and pulling them out when we need them can help. That's not to say we should be oblivious, but if we could only look past the small stuff, we would be okay.

After all, we are supposed to do all we can to love those around us. So if you're ever around others and you need to take out that pair of imaginary glasses, do it. Even be a little crazy and make the actions of pulling them out of your pocket and slipping them on. Sure, those around you might think you're a couple of sandwiches short of a picnic, but so what. To you, everything will be beautiful!

Suggested Reading

Book: The Looking Glass
Author: Richard Paul Evans


The Book
Popular author Evans has written yet another sentimental, action-filled, and crowd-pleasing love story. This time around, he takes a trip back to the Wild West, choosing 1850s Utah at the height of the gold rush for his setting. Hunter Bell is a former minister running from the emotional pain of his past. He has forsaken God after his wife died in childbirth, and he is now seeking to make a fortune in Utah's rough-and-tumble mining towns as a card shark, hoping to send money back east for the care of his young daughter. He wins a large pot playing poker but is forced to flee into the wilderness to stay one step ahead of the vigilantes who want his winnings. He ends up in Indian Territory, where he discovers a huge vein of gold. Word of his find spreads far and wide, and an entire town is hastily erected around his claim. Enter Quaye and her extremely abusive husband, Jack Morse, who is tempted by the lure of gold and easy money. Quaye was sold to Jack during the potato famine to get her out of Ireland and has consequently accepted her husband's humiliations and beatings as her lot in life. But the grip of her stoicism and self-effacement are gradually loosened once Hunter rescues her from a raging blizzard and brings her into his cabin to recover. They begin to heal each other.

No matter how many times I read this book, I get teary:o)
Get your copy of The Looking Glass today.

2 comments:

Kersten said...

I love your blog! Great job!

JoAnn Arnold said...

I loved you blog, as well, and the way you expressed your feelings and those of your mother.

Also I think I'm going to have to read Richard Evan's book. Sounds very intriguing.