Do you have family gatherings where one story is shared more often than others? Possibly, an embarrassing one at the moment but eventually remembered as a funny one?
Our family has our share of funny and embarrassing tales. Two, in particular, are similar but yet different.
When my niece was about a year old, my parents were visiting my sister out in California. They were on a shopping trip to Target to purchase a few things. My sister pushed my niece in a stroller while my parents moved the shopping cart through the aisles. After they filled a cart full of items, they proceeded to the cashier. My niece grew antsy and tired after all the shopping, so my sister went ahead to the car with my slumberous niece while my parents finished up at the register. With hands full of shopping bags, my dad walked in the direction of where he remembered the car to be. He found the same make and model and colored van as my sister's, and without thinking twice, he entered the vehicle. With full hands, my dad gingerly jumped in with his bags, not noticing anything different. As soon as he sat down, he released the bags near his feet and immediately discovered something wasn't right. Coincidentally, the make, the model, and the car's color were the same as my sister's. Even the color of the inside of the vehicle was the same. However, the woman sitting in the driver's seat was not his daughter. It was a stranger. My sister moved her car from the original parking spot and drove around the parking lot to help my sleepy-eyed niece fall asleep while looking out for my parents to exit the store. However, my parents did not notice my sister's car and went straight for the car that looked like hers. After my dad came to the embarrassing awareness, he apologized and leaped out of the vehicle faster than when he hopped in.
Another time my dad was picking up my mom at the Metro after her day of work. It was dark and raining, so it was hard to see. My dad didn't see my mom coming, so he stayed in the car, ready to step out with an umbrella, when she emerged from the subway station. Unexpectedly, during his wait, another woman approached his vehicle and maneuvered herself into my dad's car. Without even looking at my dad, she closed her umbrella and greeted my dad, "Hello, Sweetie." My dad responded with a smile, "Wrong, Sweetie." Shocked to hear another man's voice, she grabbed her umbrella and belongings and sprinted out as soon as she could.
Thankfully, we can reflect and laugh at these two experiences. But at the time, I'm sure it was pretty uncomfortable and embarrassing for everyone involved—possibly even scary.
Has that ever happened to you before? We can be honest. Regretfully, I have tried to open up someone else's car thinking it was mine. I would look at my key fob and look at the car a couple of times before realizing I was mistaken. Thankfully, the door never opened, so I never went in. It may have looked the same, and it may have felt the same, but it wasn't the same.
Unlike automobiles, we are one of a kind! There is no make or model like you. There is absolutely no way we can manufacture someone to be like you. You are an original! God created you to be you, so there is no mistaken identity.
"BE YOURSELF! EVERYONE ELSE IS ALREADY TAKEN."
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