Small Victories: Spotting Improbable Moments of Grace

Small Victories: Spotting Improbable Moments of Grace by Anne Lamott            Audio Book:5 hours, 30 minutes    Hardback Book:  304 pages       

Another winner by Anne LaMott.   She talks a lot about hardships in life and cites many examples from her own life and those of friends and family.    She discusses how people she knows deal with facing their mortality – several friends and friends of friends and family are going through cancer but facing it with aplumb.    She admires that and attributes it to the grace of God allowing them to stay strong and take the fatal news with assurance of where they are going and that what they suffer here is just the steeping stone to eternity in heaven.   One gal who was in the very last stages of cancer had always loved skiing so though Anne had never talked to her, didn’t know her nor had she ever layed eyes on her, Anne knew of her from her sister-in-law and when an opportunity came up that Anne was going to go to Colorado she asked her sister-in-law for the gal’s telephone number, called her and took her with her so that she could ski one last time.   An awesome time was had by all the lady was delighted and made it down the mountain as if there was nothing at all wrong with her.   The joy of the moment carried her through and lifted her spirits so high she told Anne she felt fine that day and seemed to.   Another time, Anne was having a crummy day which just so happened to be her birthday.   She went to the cinema alone to treat herself not eating all day so she could enjoy her favorite meal – buttered popcorn and a chocolate and salted caramel bar.   While there she was taunted a bully making remarks about her being an author, kinda calling her out as a diva, which she is not, just to get an audience for her hurtful remarks.   (Even authors have their bullies in life.)  It ruined the joy Anne was looking forward to, for no reason.   Anne prayed for help.   She asked God to take away her urge to retaliate, to snatch the evil woman up by her rusty blonde hair and run her head into a wall.   Hey, she is Christian but she is also very honest, very real and cusses quite often to express herself.  She kept praying for help to get through her anger, her rage because the woman kept on pushing her buttons and people were starting to laugh which also embarrassed Anne, who couldn’t figure out where all the venom was coming from – she hadn’t said a word to the woman nor did she reply to all the sneering looks, stink eye, actually.    Anne did her best to turn the other cheek but it was extremely hard for her.    She prayed about it all during the show then went looking for the woman afterward to find out what grievance this woman really had with her and to apologize if she was responsible for some misunderstanding.   She prayed and prayed for an answer as she went by the grocery store on the way home.   When she got up to the cash register to pay, the cashier told her, “Congratulations you just won a ham!”  It was laughable.   Anne told God, “I wanted an answer not a ham!  Or is this the ham of God…?”    She decided if God was sending her a ham, she had better pay attention.   Anne thought what am I going to do with this big pink eraser - she doesn’t eat a lot of pork and thought she might just play nice, accept it with thanks and gratitude, then go toss it in a dumpster somewhere on her way home.    When she got it after having to wait ten minutes for it (adding to her agitation) it was as big as a cat!     She dumped it in her cart and as she pushed it across the lot to her car lost in thought as to where she could dump it, she ran her cart into a car that came up slowly.    The car was a hooptie, rusty and beat up looking she looked at the driver and immediately recognized the lady driving as a woman she had gone through rehab with.   They greeted each other and after asking how are you what’s going on in your life?  The driver teared up and cried as she told Anne how hard life was right then and that she couldn’t  pay her bills and she never asked anyone for anything but she asked Anne if by any chance she could borrow a few dollars to get some groceries to feed her kids.   Anne had an AHA moment.   She looked in her purse and pulled out all the money she had and gave it to the woman.   The lady said she didn’t want it and to keep her money she just wanted enough to get a few groceries to feed her family she wasn’t meaning to ask her for more than that.   Anne insisted she take it.  The lady asked why, and Anne told her because it is my birthday and giving you this as a present will make me happy.   She also asked the woman if she and her kids liked ham?   The lady said they all loved ham and would eat it at every meal if they could.    Anne said, “Good!  Take this!”   and handed her the armload of ham she had won.    The lady said she couldn’t take it and Anne said no, that she wanted to give it to her because it was her birthday.   The lady thanked her as she wiped her tears.   Small victories when people try to steal your joy God makes a way.   It may not come like you want it to, or expect it to, but you will know it when it happens.   The lady at the grocery store, the lady with cancer skiing,  there are lots more stories like this that have happened in Anne’s life that she shares and teaches us in her witty, funny, charming way to appreciate the joy however it comes and see the grace of God at work in all situations.   Never cease to pray even when things look bleak and God seems to be taking the long road to providing answers.    Enjoy all the small victories you are blessed with and give thanks in all things, some are opportunities to do good and feel good.