(I should note that the title of this post is roughly a line from a Mennonite (?) camp song that was running through my head as I wrote this...and now it won't stop!)
You know that look, that sparkle you see in someone's eyes when they're comfortable in their own skin, when they're doing the thing that makes them most alive, when they're being truly who they were created to be? Have you seen that look? It's a look of absolute rightness, of pure congruence. I adore seeing that look in peoples' eyes. It's the look that says, "I'm home."
For many people, this doesn't happen very often. And frequently we don't notice it when the look is on our own faces. I know I sure didn't. I remember some of the first times when Alicia and others like Mandy, Sheila, and Linda began to smile and even laugh while watching me talk. I was confused, I wasn't saying anything funny. And then they pointed out that I was glowing.
I was glowing.
Having friends point out when I begin to glow has been one of the greatest gifts I could ever receive. I can't see myself in the mirror all the time (and I probably wouldn't respond the same way when talking to a mirror!). I don't always notice when I'm truly joyful, or truly convicted, or truly at peace. But sometimes people who know me notice. They watch me talk about ministry, about finding resources, about storytelling, about fiction, about baking bread and they see me begin to glow and they know that I am home.
Having received this gift from my friends and mentors, I find myself looking for it in others. I hope and pray that each time I see that look, I will be mindful of it. I will cherish it, and I will name it.
I will name it.
It was life-changing for me, maybe it will be for them as well.
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