Realizing Our Self Worth

 

“Ninety percent of the world’s woe comes from people not

knowing themselves, their abilities, their frailties, and

even their real virtues. Most of us go almost all the way

through life as complete strangers to ourselves.”

Sydney Harris 

Positive feelings of self-worth represent a healthy way in which we view ourselves as valuable individuals. Humility is considered an asset, while being confident is often viewed as a fault.  What we believe about ourselves and our abilities serves as a self-fulfilling prophecy. If we continue to tell ourselves we are worthless, our actions will follow suit. By raising our opinion of ourselves, we will accomplish so much more. We will end up contributing more to our communities and households and experience more life satisfaction. The Native American people were beaten down so much for centuries by acts of genocide, assimilation, discrimination, and acculturation that our self-worth is often residing in the very depths of our souls. Many of us will need a crowbar to unlock that treasure. What did the history of our parents and grandparents do to our feelings of self-worth? We can obtain feelings of positive self-worth when we honor ourselves with self-love. If we love ourselves for who we are with all our gifts, faults and other nuances, we will tap into our valuable self-worth.   

            If we are experiencing feelings of low self-worth we may:

• Come from a troubled and dysfunctional family.
• Blame ourselves for everything.
• Fear rejection.
• Have a lot of “shoulds.”
• Feel ashamed of who we are.
• Think we are not good enough.
• Feel as if we are different from the rest of the world.
• Reject compliments or praise.
• Feel depressed because of a lack of praise and compliments.
• Take things personally.
• Have been victims of sexual, emotional or physical abuse, neglect, abandonment, or substance abuse.
• Pick on ourselves constantly about the way we think, look, feel and act. 
• Tell ourselves we can’t do anything right.
• Be afraid of making mistakes.
• Expect ourselves to do everything perfectly.
• Feel a lot of guilt.
• Feel guilty when we spend money on ourselves or do fun things for ourselves.                      Conversely, how do we know if we love ourselves?  The following represent signs of self-love: 
• We start making time for ourselves.
• We set up boundaries to protect ourselves.
• We forgive ourselves, not just for trivial mistakes, but for larger mistakes.
• We let go of unrealistic expectations of ourselves and feel good about what we have already accomplished.
• We find one thing to do every day that makes us happy even if it is brief such as smelling a flower.
• We take a moment to breathe deeply and pay attention to our breath.
• When we hear ourselves thinking something demeaning about ourselves, we practice thought stopping, and develop thoughts which are more compassionate.  

It is difficult to love thy neighbor when we don’t love ourselves. We need to tell ourselves daily that we love ourselves and practice thinking kind thoughts on a regular basis to build our love for ourselves. It is not narcissistic to love ourselves and place importance on ourselves. Self-love is a necessary component to maintaining healthy relationships with anyone including ourselves.

We need to take a good look at ourselves in the bathroom mirror and say one of the following things to ourselves daily: 

• “I’m strong and attractive and I like what I see.”
• “I deserve to have a great life.”
• “I enjoy being me.”
• “I am confident in myself and my abilities.”

           We need to focus on our strengths instead of focusing on our faults and shortcomings.  Paying attention to the latter can destroy any amount of joy we may have in our lives. Our strengths are the very qualities which could make us look our best, yet we try to describe our strengths by making them sound like they are deficits in our character. For example we may say something like this “my weakness is that I care too much.”  We do so, to put a positive spin on whom we are and get the validation we are seeking by presenting ourselves to the outside world in a humble manner, humility is the key to being accepted by others. Our strengths are defined by what we actually do and need to be considered when we are trying to enhance our feelings of self-worth. They are the things we do on a regular basis. To discover our strengths use the following guidelines consisting of these basic ingredients:

• Explore our talents, such as empathy, assertiveness, or competitiveness. Since we often take our talents for granted, step back and put a label on our talents. These talents are things we were born with and they stayed with us. 
• Examine our skills which are things we developed during our lives and are not innate.  They were learned abilities.
• Discover our personal knowledge which is learned and developed through experience, formal learning activities, reading and learning from others.  

When we put these ingredients together we can gain an understanding about our

strengths. Let’s say we are an advocate for people who have been diagnosed with a disability.  Our assertiveness allows us to be able to secure services for our clients, our communication skills permit us to convey what our client’s needs are, and our knowledge of what services are available permits us to make decisions that are in the best interest of our client. 

            Another example may be talents consisting of our ability to be empathetic if we work as a day care provider for young children. Our empathetic abilities give us the capability of understanding what the children under our care need. Because of our skills we are able to provide activities which will enhance the engagement of the children in play time activities and our knowledge of child development will enhance their learning experiences and provide them with a safe environment.

            When we begin to describe our strengths, examine activities we have felt most successful accomplishing. Defining the ingredients in this manner demonstrates what comes naturally and what is learnable. To capture a full understanding of our strengths, we are going to have to go beyond the generic labels and explore how the actual activities make us feel by the use of four signs: success; instincts; growth; and needs. We will need to take the following steps by paying close attention to our feelings before, during, and after our weekly activities. When did we feel successful at accomplishing our goals? To examine our instincts, we need to explore what we find ourselves looking forward to doing. What activities create the most positive growth for us?  The instinct sign refers to how we feel before we did the activity; growth refers to how we felt during the activity, conversely the need sign refers to how we felt right after we have done the activity. We may really feel good after doing the activity and we want to experience that feeling again. 

A person lacking internal feelings of self-worth feels a need for continuous validation,  the greater the lack of self-worth, the greater the need for validation. If we have confidence in ourselves, we will gain respect from others. It is so necessary that we demonstrate this confidence for the sake of our children and grandchildren. They need for us to believe in ourselves so that we can guide them to the right paths to take and so they will take us seriously. Confidence is a way of behaving that doesn’t happen automatically. It occurs because we have learned how to nurture ourselves with self-talk that promotes confidence. It exists when we have learned to speak from belief rather than doubt, from uniqueness rather than conformity. We need to examine our self-talk and ask is it full of doubt?  Remember our self-talk influences our behaviors and the outcome of any given situation. If we want to take on a leadership role, we need to have a higher level of confidence and feelings of self-worth. We can do so by thinking about all the things we can do right. Start small and think about how well we make our bed in the morning or how well we cook eggs. Then move onto the bigger things such as our job related skills. 

Even if some of us work at McDonalds, praise ourselves on how well we do our jobs.  There was a segment on television covering the complexities of working at McDonalds in which television icons demonstrated how difficult it was to work at McDonalds.  Don’t discount anything we do in life. If we survived abuse during our childhoods, consider the strength we possessed to endure such hardships. Really focus on our strengths. It’s a Wonderful Life, the movie our family watches each Christmas, reminds me of how much of an impact we make in this world and a lot of it is positive.  If I wasn’t born, my daughters and grandchildren would not exist. 

             A truly honorable person can bestow honor on others and understand that showing honor to someone else does not diminish their honor. A person who suffers from a low level of self-worth will feel as if they will lose something if they give honor to others. Test those waters and see how comfortable you are with complimenting others. Does it come naturally or is it a struggle for you to do so. The compliment must come from the heart and not be superficial. We need to rehearse truly complimenting others before trying it out on actual people if it is not a common practice for us. Others can sense when we are not being genuine and that will damage our credibility. 

            I know this will be a hard road to travel because we have been told we need to get beyond ourselves and think of others. I am also aware of some people who think mostly about themselves. Do they do so in a loving way? No. They do so because they are overly concerned about their own personal comfort. It is strictly an act of avoidance of anything that may place them in an uncomfortable situation. If we are one of those people who work very hard at avoiding being uncomfortable and instead of facing things, we may handle possible uncomfortable situations by being passive aggressive, work on this problem because we will end up causing harm to ourselves and others. For example, if we tell people what they want to hear; but we don’t follow through, we are going to get the reputation that we don’t do what we say we are going to do, our credibility will be damaged. This will damage our feelings of self-worth.

A lot of people believe that since their self-worth was based on their early years concerning how their parents, teachers, and friends treated them, they can do little to change their feelings of self-worth. It is true that our feelings of self-worth were determined by our pasts. This can be changed. How we judge ourselves is what really counts. It really doesn’t matter what others may think about us. Low feelings of self-worth are based on mistaken ideas and we all have the ability to change these notions if we choose. When looking back at negative experiences think about how we would have dealt with those situations if we would have had a positive, confident attitude.  Don’t look back with regret. Rewriting our past history will have a powerful effect on our future. 

Every person is obligated to be aware of their valuable self-worth. Everybody is unique, born at a specific time to a particular family and living in a certain geological area. This uniqueness in itself gives us great importance. From this point of view we do not have to feel inferior to anyone else. When the Europeans came to this country, the Native American people were referred to as half human by the Europeans, undeserving of respect. The color of their skin was looked upon as inferior. Also wealth was and continues to be a determining factor of how much a person is worth. Famous athletes or actors are deemed as being worth more than others. It is unnecessary to be burdened with feelings of low self-worth when we can easily create specific criteria in which we would be considered a success. No one has a perfect life including those who have achieved fame. Examine all the things we can do and consider our strengths.

Our feelings of self-worth are very important and diminished feelings of self-worth can definitely make a negative impact on our sense of happiness. We need to feel as if we are valuable individuals with exceptional strengths. We are unique with talents and gifts others do not possess. We are not just an employee at McDonalds or any other place of employment; we are people with abilities that enable us to handle a job at McDonalds. We do make a difference. Say positive self affirmations daily such as “I am a worthy person.”  Native American people throughout history have been told otherwise and we can fix that damage. Rewrite history and make us and our ancestors the victors. We are still here, aren’t we?  Develop a list of things we can do, even if we have to start small such as making our beds properly.  Develop our own criteria of why we are great and don’t let others do that for us. We need to nurture our self-worth as if it is a newborn baby needing our care. 

Brunner, S. (2016). Beyond the Shadows. Michigan: Freedom Eagles Press.

Can Cats and Dogs Get Along?

By Jennifer Martin

 

You’ve heard heart-warming stories:  Dog meets cat. Cat loves dog. They bond and are best buds forever. But the real world is a different story, animal behaviorists say. Whether you’re introducing a new cat to a dog, or vice versa, it’s worth remembering that cats are from Mars, dogs are from Venus.

There’s a reason there are no cat parks,” says Pam Johnson-Bennett, animal behaviorist and author of eight books, including Think Like a Cat.  “Cats don’t run up to a strange cat and say, ‘Hey! Let’s play.’” Most cats are essentially solitary and territorial, a phenomenon rooted in their wild ancestry.  Felines lay claim to their turf, and will fight invaders fiercely; they need “home” to be a predictable, safe place.

What does this mean when it comes to introducing dogs and cats?  Following are a few suggestions that can make the meet-up more successful.

Take it slowly. “If I’m a cat, and a new dog is coming through the door, I’m thinking, ‘invasion!’” Johnson-Bennett says. “The cat doesn’t know if the dog is a friend or foe.”  Restrain the dog on a leash and always provide the cat with an escape route. “Cats need to [be able to] get away,” say animal behaviorist Sarah Wilson, author of the blog My Smart Puppy. “It helps to use baby gates, just to give the cat a safe place to run to.” A sturdy, well-installed cat tree will give the cat a vertical escape route, which many prefer.

If you’re bringing a new cat home from the shelter, do not let your dog rush up to the cat carrier.  Instead, take the cat to his own safe room, if possible, and let him hide as long as he needs to. “I’ve had cats who stayed in the linen closet for months,” Wilson notes. “They came out at night and scoped the territory while the dog stayed in the bedroom with the door closed.  And that was fine.”

Animal behaviorist Chris Shaughness, author of Puppy Mill Dogs SPEAK!, recommends rubbing a washcloth or towel over your dog, then letting your cat sniff the cloth.  “If the cat hisses, never scold,” she says.  “Just talk very calmly and happily: ‘This is your new friend. Don’t be scared.’”

Catnip and treats will help, especially in the beginning.  “I reward the dog every time he focuses on me and relaxes,” Johnson-Bennett says. “The dog understands that he’s going to work with me; he’s not going to go chasing after the cat.”

While over time, most cats and dogs come to accept one another, sometimes they never fully warm up to the idea of co-habitation. “There are some households where the dogs and cats are separate,” Shaughness says.  “Again, that’s Okay.  Animals have their preferences just like we do.  We just need to make sure they’re having positive experiences.

 

More Tricks and Tips:

1.     Kittens are not as territorial as grown cats, but they still need gradual, safe introduction to dogs, behaviorists say.  Never leave a kitten alone with a dog, even a dog who seems non-threatening.

2.     Puppies are likely to be particularly exuberant around cats; a leash and consistent training are even more important for them.

3.     When selecting a puppy, go for a breed with a low prey drive. Or, even better, adopt an adult dog who demonstrates good cat manners; many rescue groups evaluate their dogs on cat-tolerant behavior.

4.     When selecting a cat, avoid high-strung, nervous types, or those who have had bad experiences with dogs.  Instead choose one who is confident, mellow and friendly.  He’ll be more likely to warm up to your pooch.

5.     Have a ferocious feline? “There are cats who terrorize dogs,” Wilson says.  It absolutely can go both ways.” Keep a water-filled spray bottle handy and spritz the cat when he jumps the dog.  Don’t scold, yell or even speak to the cat, which will only teach him to attack the dog when you’re not looking.  “You want them to associate attacking the dog with water from the sky,” Wilson says.  “Also, a crate where the dog can hide can be  a great salvation.” 

 

A Dog's Best Friend

Earl woke up one morning and scratched his head. He’d been following old Doc’s orders. He cleaned his house from top to bottom. Talking to himself he said “I even cleaned da dust bunnies under the bed. God only knows how many generations I killed. The plants are gone. What else can a man do to stop sneezing and coughing and stop his eyes from running like leaky faucets.” He went back to Doc who told him “It must be that mangy mutt of yers then.”

            “Gosh, Bucky sleeps at the foot of da bed and keeps my feet warm in da winter. He keeps me company at night when I’m watching the tube. I can’t get rid of my best friend!”

            Old Doc suggested that he better take some shots to help him get immune to the dog’s allergens.

            Earl agreed to do this but asked if he could have the doses doubled or tripled. Doc reluctantly agreed just to appease Earl.

            His old friend Bernie thought taking the shots was a good idea. “After all, a man’s dog is one of his best friends,” Bernie said as he fondly day dreamed about his trusted friend, Rex, who had put up with him longer than his two ex wives.

            At first, Bernie saw no benefits to these shots Earl had to get 2-3 times a week. “Geez, Earl, yer nose is still swollen up as big as an apple! Are ya sure those shots Doc gave ya are workin’?”

            “A little patience, my friend. Has Doc ever steered us wrong? Ok, forget about the time he thought you was pregnant. Everyone makes mistakes once in a while.”

            Pretty soon the shots began working. Earl was only sneezing a couple of times a day. But then something peculiar started happening.

            Bernie sat down at his favorite bar stool at the Bear Butt Inn. “Where’s man’s best friend?” Ralph Ruskin jeered at Bernie.

            “I seen him chasin’ two pickups and a Honda down da street da other day!” another bar mate chimed in.

            Bernie just looked down into his suds and thought to himself “Earl has been actin’ a little odd lately. Like when I took him ta meet my cousin and he licked his hand. But he’s been under a lot of stress these past few weeks, what with da threat of losin’ old Bucky and all.” Just as Bernie was about to come to his friend’s defense, Earl walked into the bar.

            “Hey fellas. How’s it goin’?” Earl sat down and ordered a draft. He lapped the beer up with his tongue. Then he reached up with his foot and scratched behind his ear. Everyone stared in disbelief as Earl stood up and started to sniff Irv’s behind. “Glad to know you’re healthy, Irv.”

            Irv jumped up from his bar stool and drew his arm back to hit Earl. But Bernie grabbed his friend by the scruff of his neck and dragged him off the stool. Earl began to howl.

            “Come on Earl, let’s get outta here before ya get us kicked out!” Bernie threw some money on the bar and pulled Earl through the door. “I don’t care how late it is. We’re goin’ ta see Doc!” Earl just barked in reply.

            Well, old Doc reduced Earl’s shots to a lower dosage and pretty soon Earl was back to normal (for Earl that is). Eventually his allergies disappeared completely and he was able to keep Bucky in his life.

            “Ya know one thing I’ve learned from all of this, Bernie?” Earl said as they were walking through the woods in search of squirrels.

            “What’s dat old buddy?”

            “It’s a dog’s life fer sure!”

           

 Brunner, S. (2016). Lake Superior in the Moonlight. Michigan: Freedom Eagles Press.

 

Active Dreams

Briana tossed and turned on the powder blue satin sheets of her large four poster bed as she drifted off to a deep slumber.  There was a full moon and the moonlight illuminated the bedroom casting shadows on the walls as the light breeze moved tree branches outside the window. Briana walked from room to room as if she was trying to locate something she lost.  The back door of her home was opened and she walked into the back yard.  The leaves made a crunching sound as her bare feet walked upon them.  Her eyes were open wide as she stared at the path leading her further and further into the woods. She heard a sound behind her and she turned to look for the cause of the sound.  Terror struck her and she began running as fast as she could.   An embankment took her by surprise and she tumbled down the hill and landed by a large boulder.   

Rays of moonlight streamed down through the tall pine trees in the woods. She was struggling against the ropes binding her wrists, waist and ankles. Wolves were circling looking hungrily at her.  The alpha male was getting closer and closer as he circled the tree.  Screams were emanating silently in her head as she tried desperately to appear threatening to the predators.

She succumbed to the possibility of her impending death and was hoping for a quick death void of as much pain as possible. The alpha wolf was getting closer and closer. Drool could be seen at the corner of his mouth as he made a huffing sound and started pawing the ground in front of Briana. The other wolves growled loudly awaiting their turn.

            Suddenly Briana heard the galloping of a horse off in the distance. The wolves turned their heads toward the intrusion.  She began screaming at the top of her lungs. A rifle was fired and a man’s voice was heard shouting reassurances to her.  A horse with its rider appeared in the clearing where she was held captive. The man aimed his rifle towards the wolves and fired.  One of the wolves was hit and fell to the ground. The other wolves ran off into the woods. He jumped off his horse and ran to her. His black hair, bronze skin, blue eyes and dazzling smile mesmerized Briana.  His black vest strained against his muscular chest.

            Her rescuer bent down and cut the ropes binding her to the tree. Being tied to the tree in the sitting position without food and water, along with the fear Briana faced washed over her.  She collapsed on the ground in a heap at the stranger’s feet.

            The horse was pawing at the ground and whinnied nervously. The wolves hungrily approached the horse.  Her rescuer aimed his rifle and shot towards the wolves, only missing the largest wolf by inches.  The wolves ran off into the woods. 

            Briana was startled by the gun fire.  She sprang to her feet shakily and planted her feet firmly on the ground to maintain her balance. 

            “Who are you? Where did you come from,” asked Briana as she placed her hands on her hips trying to hide her fear while looking intently into the stranger’s eyes.

            “My name is Brandon,” responded the man as he smiled at her in his attempt to provide further comfort. 

            The image of the wolves devouring her defenseless body overtook her and she looked at her rescuer with fearful eyes.

            “Don't worry, you're safe now,” said Brandon as he cradled her in his arms tightly. 

            Briana melted in his embrace.

            Brandon started licking her cheek.

            She woke to her Scottish Terrier, Buddy, licking her cheek.

            She examined her nightgown.  It was tattered and dirty.  Her feet were caked with dirt and her long thick auburn hair was strewn wildly about her head. 

            How did I get so dirty?  Was I actually tied to that tree with those wolves circling me?  Was that man or anything else in my dream real?

            Briana quivered and pulled the covers up to her chin watching the shadows dancing across the ceiling as the trees swayed in the wind outside her bedroom window.

 

            Briana heard wolves howling off in the distance.  The air was chilly for a fall day. Briana quickly jumped out of bed and slammed the windows shut and locked them.  The window frames rattled as she did so.  Briana stood shaking fiercely.  She hugged herself and found a large sweater to cover her shoulders. Alone and afraid except for the company of Buddy, she tiptoed out of her bedroom.  Even though daylight was breaking through the clouds she clicked on the lights as she walked from room to room.  Buddy tagged closely by her side.  She felt even more disturbed when she discovered the kitchen door to her back yard was wide open. When she looked down at the floor she discovered muddy foot prints that led from the open door to the living room and into her bedroom.

            Briana stood alongside the footprint and placed her foot aside one of the traces of evidence of the evening’s escapades. The footprint matched the shape and size of her foot.  Shivers ran down her spine as she realized she did not spend the entire night in her bed.

            Where was I?  I can't believe I'm here right now looking at my own muddy footprints.  Look at the shape I'm in.  What's happening to me thought Briana as she hugged herself again to provide what little comfort afforded her.

            Briana collapsed on one of her kitchen chairs and placed her head in her hands and began crying. The details from her dream were running through her mind. She remembered running from something or someone and being tied to the tree.  She couldn’t remember who the culprit was.  Briana scratched her head trying to remember. She was thankful she was saved just in time. Briana realized her dream may have been a reality and the wolves definitely posed a threat. Her thoughts quickly switched to the man who saved her.

That man was so handsome.  Am I lonely?  Is that my problem? Am I so busy during the day that I'm subconsciously seeking out a partner in my dreams?  I have to provide some insurance that I stay in my home tonight and not go wandering in the woods again.  I think I will put extra locks up high or maybe my friend Sally can stay with me.  I will have to ensure my safety, from what, I wish I knew. What monster tied me to that tree? 

She decided to put the events of the past evening behind her and get on with her day.

            I have to get ready for work.  It's French and German cuisine, the cuisines of choice for this week.  Yes, I am in charge of my life she told herself reassuringly.  I can’t wait to see the expressions on my customers’ faces. The grand opening of Briana's international cafe' was going to be held in only a few hours.

            She took a leisurely shower and dressed in a French mai-tre d’ costume which included a black tux complete with tails. Her crisp white shirt was topped off with a black bowtie. The black, pointed toe, leather shoes with a two inch heel completed the ensemble.  Briana pulled her hair into a bun on the top of her head.  Her oval face and large almond shaped eyes added to the ambience of her attire.  She put on a splash of brown eye shadow on her eye lids  and then looked in the mirror to make sure she was ready to greet the day. Briana turned around to look at the tux she was wearing in her full length mirror.  She approved of the way she looked. 

            The day was laced with rays of sunshine peeping through the clouds and the dew was slowly drying on the grass.  Mrs. Harvel waved at Briana while she was picking up the newspaper that was thrown by her front porch. 

            I hope Mrs. Harvel shows up at my open house today.  She said she would.  I wonder when Mr. Harvel is going to come back from his fishing trip with his cousin Morrie.  Mrs. Harvel seems a little lonely without her husband.

            “When’s that husband of yours coming home,” asked Briana.

            “Not until Friday,” replied Mrs. Harvel.

            Part of Briana’s training when she was a child was to refer to people who were older then her by their salutation and last name.  Her parents managed a retirement home for elders and when she was a child she spent a lot of time with the elders at the center. 

            Briana returned her attention to the newspaper laid out in front of her on the kitchen table.  She noticed there was a woman found dead in the woods and it appeared she was attacked by wild animals. The name of the woman was Savannah Smolinski. 

********

            Briana arrived at the café.  She eased her car into the small parking space behind the café and proceeded to the back door.  The door was unlocked she discovered as she turned the knob.  She walked in the back entrance and discovered Desiree, one of the cooks, kneading dough on a floured surface of one of the counters.  Rock music was playing quietly in the background.

            Briana got to work with the rest of the staff to prepare for the day. Everything was in order.  The tables were set with deep crimson vinyl table cloths and black paper napkins were wrapped around silverware and set on each table.  Deep green ceramic tiles covered the floors and the tiles were sparkling clean. The surfaces of the counters and glass were sparkling. The dining area was warm and welcoming with various themes illustrating the different ethnic foods that were going to be featured at the café hung on the walls.

            Before the doors to the café were opened for business, all of the staff gathered in a circle with Briana as part of the circle.  She decided to treat her staff like a team and asked them to put their fists in a circle with her hand on top of their hands and she said “let’s go team.” Everybody was beaming with excitement and trepidation, which was usually a part of the first day jitters for any business.  Briana could feel her enthusiasm rising as she walked to the front door and turned the closed sign to open.  Customers were already leaving their cars and approaching the café. 

            I am so glad I hired the Blue Point Advertising Agency to help me promote the grand opening of my new cafe.  I saw ads on television and heard them on the radio.  When I read the paper this morning I saw the big spread in the paper.  Nice work Briana.  I think this business of mine is going to be a success.

            The first two customers to enter the café were the Harvels.  Clarence Harvel decided to come home early to join his wife Henrietta when she came to the restaurant today.  Henrietta was beaming as she held her husband’s arm as he escorted her through the door and pulled out her chair for her to sit down.  He was dressed in his fishing attire. Briana smiled and brought them menus.

            “I see you decided to cut your trip short Mr. Harvel and by the look on Mrs. Harvel’s face, she is glad you decided to come home early,” said Briana as she smiled widely at the couple.

            “Yes, the fishing wasn’t going well and I would rather be in this lady’s company instead of Morrie’s any day,” replied Mr. Harvel as he smiled at his wife.

            “I tried to talk this beautiful wife of mine into coming with me this year and she told me that she wasn’t going to miss your grand opening.”

            Briana sheepishly responded by saying, “I am so glad to have you as my neighbors.”

            Briana decided that the hours the café was going to be opened for business each day was from 11:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., six days a week and closed on Sundays.  When her parents ran the home for the elderly they had to work seven days a week and she felt everybody could use a day off each week to recharge their batteries. She stood by the front door of the café for most of the day and greeted customers as they entered.  Each customer was given a chance to sign up for a drawing.  One of the businesses she partnered with provided her at a reduced cost a flat screen television and two desk lamps for the drawing.

The crepes, soufflés and German sausages were a success.  The rich French and German desserts displayed in the showcase were almost gone.  The steady traffic kept all the staff busy but not overwhelmed.   

            Dusk was falling on the horizon.  Briana turned to her staff and thanked them for such a great day of team work.  She was impressed with herself for ordering enough food for the first day of business and about her food choices to serve to the customers. Many of the customers gave her many compliments regarding the delicious food and wonderful service. She was so glad to have the first day go so well.

            “I am so proud of all of you.  The food and service was wonderful.  Do you have any recommendations concerning any changes you would like to see us make?” asked Briana.

            The staff did not have any recommendations.

            “I am going to get out of this monkey suit and help with cleaning,” said Briana. Briana packed jeans and a sweatshirt so she could clean in comfort. She entered the storage room to change her clothes.  She patted herself on the back for a job well done.

            All the staff and Briana began cleaning and putting things away. Much was needed to be done before calling it a day.

A large red truck pulled up in front of the café.  A man stepped out of the truck.  From a distance he appeared to be tall and strikingly handsome. The staff and Briana were staring at the stranger as he neared the door of the café.  As he opened the door Briana suddenly realized she knew this man from somewhere.       Briana extended her hand to the stranger to welcome him as she introduced herself and told the man the café was closed for the evening.

            He turned slowly to face Briana and gazed into to her eyes and said, “My name is Brandon.”  He smiled broadly at Briana.

            Suddenly Briana realized this was the man who rescued her in her dream the previous evening.  She began swaying from the uneasiness she was feeling. She collapsed in Brandon’s arms. 

            Briana gazed into Brandon’s blue eyes with awe as he returned her stare with a reassuring smile.
Note: A short story written by Sharon Brunner