Quest for Mitts...

If you’ve been paying attention during the last couple months, you will have noticed that it is almost impossible to walk down the street without seeing someone wearing a red pair of Olympic mittens. Now I’m usually not one for bandwagons, but I can actually see no down side to hopping on this one. Red is a nice color, you’re showing support for our country’s Olympic team, they’re affordable, you’ve got an Olympic souvenir, and your hands are kept nice and toasty! So this week I went on a quest to find a pair of Olympic mittens. It proved MUCH more difficult than expected.

There are three places you can go to buy such a pair of mittens in Canada. The Bay, Zellers, and Home Outfitters. So my first stop was The Bay. I stepped up to the counter and asked the lady if there were any more in stock. She looked at me and gave a sad little chuckle and then said “Honey. We’re all out. We’ve been all out for weeks. There aren’t any mittens left at any Bay in this city.” To which I said… “Will you be getting any more in?” She shook her head sadly. Strike one.

Next it was off to Home Outfitters. I didn’t even get through the door. Posted outside the store was a sign that said “ATTENTION SHOPPERS All HBC stores across Winnipeg are currently sold out of Red Olympic Mittens. Sorry for the inconvenience. –Management” I refused to be discouraged. It was off to Zellers.

I stepped in a Zellers and asked if they had any Olympic mittens. I was met with a sad shake of the head. “All sold out. Have been for a while.” I was beginning to potentially begin to think about accepting defeat. That was when I heard a voice behind me. “Are you looking for Olympic mittens?” I turned around and saw a young mother pushing her son in a stroller. She continued, “My mother in law was at the Zellers on Henderson Highway yesterday, and she said they got a huge unexpected shipment in yesterday afternoon. I bet if you hurry there would still be some there.” I thanked her and immediately headed to the Zellers on Henderson Highway. And they had some! The search was over!

What did I learn from this? “Never, never, never, never give up.” – Winston Churchill

Reading makes me think about other things...

God strips himself bare and comes as a man with no possessions, no reputation, no 'wow factor.' Why? Because we humans love a good show. We love celebrities for their style. We love politicians for their policies. We love athletes for their ability to perform. And there's nothing wrong with that. But God didn't want to be perceived by his creation, by his people, as yet another public figure. Love reduced to appeal of the eye and the mind was not the kind of love he was looking for. He wanted us to fall in love with HIM. Just HIM. Nothing else. Not the package, not the presentation. Simply who he was. So he stripped himself down. He stripped himself of his glory because he knew people couldn't handle it. He didn't want people to fall in love with the 'wow.' He didn't want us to fall in love with yet another show. I love the most basic God who ever offered himself to man kind and live according to a very basic truth. I love my father and the father loves me. No show here.