Acts of Kindness

When I lived here only a few months, I went to lunch one day with several sweet ladies from my ward. I was having a really hard day and probably shouldn't have gone, but went anyway. I ended up sitting by a cute lady named Courtney, whom I had never met. I was feeling really overwhelmed, surrounded by women I wanted to love, but didn't know. Courtney ended up talking to me the whole time, and I could tell that she really cared. It kind of caught me off guard. I was feeling really closed off that day and didn't really care to try and get to know anyone. Her genuine smile and desire to know me melted my heart. I ended up leaving lunch early and the second I left the restaurant I started to cry. I ended up crying for the next hour. I was homesick. I was also really touched by this sweet new friend.

Anyway, Courtney has bought several pieces of furniture from me (I'm talking like 8 pieces). I kept telling her I already liked her and that she didn't need to buy anymore from me! Before Christmas I bought a mirror and decided I wanted to paint it to match one of the dressers she'd bought, and give it to her as a gift. We ended up leaving 4 days earlier than planned though, and I wasn't able to paint the mirror before Christmas.
Well, remember last week when I had my full on meltdown? Yeah, we all remember. In the middle of my meltdown I decided I needed to do something nice for someone else to take my mind off myself. I knew exactly what I wanted to do too, paint Courtney's mirror and take it over to her. Originally I just planned on sharing these pics with you, but after today I decided to share the whole story.
I painted the mirror and it took me a couple days to actually take it over to her. I left it on her porch and sent her a text saying "don't you dare try to pay me." I should have known better!!

She KNEW I wouldn't take money for the mirror, so guess what she did? And trust me when I say that I didn't want her to do ANYTHING!! She showed up at my house today with flowers, a box of chocolates, and 3 make-up bags! WHAT???? She melted my heart, AGAIN.

I told her there was no way I could accept all of this! You think she listened? ha ha. Courtney is incredible. I barely know her, but what I do know about her I LOVE. She's a mother to five kids, one of which has an immune disorder (I can't remember the name and I don't want to describe it wrong.). She has to take him into the hospital regularly to make sure he's taken care of and healthy. Even with all of this going on, she still manages to do nice things for others. She's someone I look up to and respect. I would be thrilled to be like her someday. ;) Courtney, you made my day! THANK YOU!!!!

PS, I finished painting one of the bookshelves today! I'll post pics tomorrow. ;)