By Christine Price
Columnist
Amidst all the stress, anxiety, craziness and bad news, my goal is to spotlight and share the good news in our community.
I was sitting in the family room yesterday, working on a spreadsheet, when a little hunger crept in.
I wandered to the pantry and began to explore.
I searched through the boxes of pasta, the jars of pickles and cans of tuna, when suddenly my heart skipped a beat!
There it was, leaning casually next to a box of raisin bran: my beloved Keebler E.L. Fudge Cookies.
I love these cookies. I love them all year long, but there’s something especially magical about them at Christmas, when they show up as those irresistible little elves.
In fact, my sister gave me a box last Christmas as a gift, and let’s just say those enchanting elves were gone in a blink of an eye.
I try not to keep treats like this in the house, so I stood there wondering, “How on earth did these get here?”
I had no idea where they came from and, just like that, the first lie slipped in.
The more I thought about it, I did vaguely remember inviting them into my shopping cart during a moment of weakness.
I quickly opened the package and took a little elf back to the family room.
I’ll only have one: there it was again.
If you don’t know, these little elves are sandwich cookies, so naturally I dismantled it.
The buttery shortbread top – delicious.
The fudge filling – gone in a flash.
The bottom cookie – equally satisfying.
These little elves do not disappoint.
I swear I could hear someone calling my name (perhaps yet another little lie). “Christine… Christine…”
I hurried back to the pantry and rescued two more elves.
After that, things get a bit hazy.
When all was said and done, eight elves had mysteriously vanished.
Feeling more than satisfied, I told myself, “I’ll start my diet tomorrow.”
Another classic.
Back to my spreadsheet. I needed to finish it.
This will only take five minutes. Yes, another lie.
Forty-five minutes later, I was still moving columns around.
By then I was a little keyed up, maybe from the chocolate, maybe from too much screentime.
When my husband walked in and asked how I was doing, I smiled and said, “Fine.”
And there it was again.
Because when you really think about it, our days are filled with these tiny, harmless little lies.
Not the big, life-altering kind – just the small ones that slip in quietly.
I’ll only have one. I don’t need directions – I know where I am going. I’m just going to rest my eyes for a second. I’ll just scroll for a minute. These jeans must have shrunk in the dryer.
They’re not meant to fool anyone else – they’re just the stories we tell ourselves to get through the moment.
By the end of the day, I had told myself at least a dozen little lies – and believed every single one of them.
But if we’re being truthful, some lies are easier to spot than others. like “just one cookie” or “I’ll start tomorrow” or my personal favorite “I don’t even know how those got there.”
Because let’s be honest. I knew exactly how they got there.
When you see good news, and you will, please let me know. I would love to share it. Please include your name, phone number, city you live in and email.
