The Very, Very Lucky Girl (a fable)
45.364 – Love Is All Around You by nikilynn
Let me tell ya a story about a very, very lucky girl.
Once upon a time (OK, currently) there was a lucky, lucky girl. A few weeks ago, this very, very lucky girl decided to have a contest. She asked the whole kingdom to enter, & told them she would pick one winner, although everyone would get parting gifts that were way better than the home version of “Jeopardy!”
Well, just yesterday, it was time for this very, very lucky girl to announce to the kingdom who won the contest. This very, very lucky girl was very, very nervous. Even though she knew that she was going to make one person very, very happy, she was very, very nervous that she was going to make 153 people very, very sad. Then she remembered how she heard that there are monsters in the kingdom who like to say mean things when they can hide behind their monster masks. She thought & she thought & she thought about all of the bad things that might be said to her, & how the sad people might turn into mad people quickly. When she told the kingdom about her decision, she was shaking like a leaf!
“Why am I shaking so?”, the very, very lucky girl said. “I already know who won!…..It must be because I know how very, very sad I’ll be if anyone tells them that I made them very, very sad or very, very mad. I hope that doesn’t happen & tomatoes aren’t thrown at me the next time I’m in the kingdom!”
As it turns out, the kingdom didn’t throw tomatoes, & nobody got very, very sad or very, very mad (at least not that she knows of). As it turns out, many of the applicants went out of their way to send this very, very lucky girl words of support & kudos & encouragement for having the contest, & even said the contest by itself helped them! So many kingdomites came out with these words, in fact, that it left the very, very lucky girl smiling from ear to ear all the whole day long, and for the next day, too. The very, very lucky girl was also the very, very happy girl, thinking of how many very, very kind & awesometastic people were in her kingdom. She is never, ever going to leave.
The End
(Spoiler Alert: The very, very lucky girl is me! And you are all the kind & awesometastic people. Thanks for your emails, tweets & comments since the announcement. It means the world to me. And yes, I’m crying writing this. I’m a very, very lucky girl after all)
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May 13th, 2010 at 12:33 pm
i guess it's true what they say – 'give and you shall receive' . i think we know how you would react now if you won the miss america pagent – bring on the ugly cry
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May 13th, 2010 at 3:50 pm
I felt like a lucky girl to get to see your video yesterday and to know that you will work with every one who responded to your scholarship. I am excited for you that you got a great response and that you are able to live your dream!
May 13th, 2010 at 4:54 pm
That does it. Favorite When I Grow Up post yet. Ain't nobody like you. All of us readers are very, very lucky that you're here doing your thing.
May 14th, 2010 at 3:41 pm
All of this is amazing karma – you gave generously, and even though you were nervous, I believe your generosity and authenticity in the video just spoke to us. How could we possibly be mad?!?! Your authenticity is the very same reason why we like you so much!
May 15th, 2010 at 9:22 pm
This is wonderful Michelle- by taking a leap of faith and following your dream, you are helping SO many others do the same! You're a rockstar!
May 16th, 2010 at 3:33 am
You know … I've been taught something about "luck" recently. What we let other people blame on that magical word isn't being fair to ourselves. "Oh! He's such a great catch! You're so lucky to be dating him!!" when it takes a lot of work (by both parties) to create and maintain a healthy relationship. "You're so lucky to have a fabu job that gives you enough money to live where you do!" Again, not luck, but a lot of hard work and hassle and headache that you have to live through to succeed in a very competitive business environment. "You look great! You're so lucky to be able to lose weight so you can wear those cute clothes!" Neither luck nor lost – you didn't find the Magical Fat Shedder, and you sure as heck didn't just misplace all that weight somewhere. You spent many hours to learn your bad habits and overcome them, and you stayed diligent when you had the I Don't Wanna's, and you worked and worked to reach your health goal.
Not luck. And neither is this. You gave us something wonderful. Something from your heart, something that gave us an opportunity to look seriously at our own lives and say "can I really do better?" You gave some of us a reason to believe and to want to reach for our own goals again. And then you broadened that original offering, taking even more work on yourself in the hope of bringing benefit to others! Anyone who would turn around and disrespect such a herculean task is just not getting the very generous spirit of what you're trying to do for all of us.
You're an amazing woman, Michelle, and we're all very lucky to know you.
May 18th, 2010 at 8:30 am
You have the biggest heart. I'm a lucky girl to know you.
May 19th, 2010 at 5:03 am
@Cindy – Thankfully I was never into pageants, but yes – a big ugly cry would be involved. I actually had a big ugly cry the first time I taped the video announcing the scholarship winner. You're welcome for sparing you all
@Erin – Thanks, & yes – I am living the dream! But as I say, I didn't win the lottery or have a trust fund kick in or get sprinkled with fairy dust. I figured out what I wanted to be when I grew up & worked my butt off to get there. You can do it, too!
@Kylie – Favorite Favorite? Wow, that's huge. I promise to write stories more often! I had fun doing it.
@Kiki – Your comment just lights me up. Thank you to the nth degree!
@Deirdre – Takes one to know one, chica bonita! Miss you.
@Sharon – I'm so glad that you brought up the "luck" thing. I don't believe in luck either – it's hard work & positivity that has gotten me all the "lucky" things I have. I actually used to consider myself an unlucky person – always waiting for the other shoe to drop, & because I was looking/waiting, it usually did. I recently made the conscious decision to not think that way any longer, & it's absolutely changed my outlook. The funny thing is that I didn't realize that I named myself the "very very lucky girl" until you brought it to my attention, if that makes any sense. Now I wish I used another word, but honestly, that's how I felt. Maybe because, this time, I was waiting for the other shoe to drop, & it didn't. So, I felt lucky. Instead I need to be the very, very appreciate girl or the very, very touched girl or the very, very thankful girl. Thank you for reminding me of that. I'm very lucky/appreciate/thankful to know you, too!