Purple Toes and Jesus

I think that as far as feet go, mine are really fairly normal. They aren't overly long, or overly skinny. My toes aren't terribly odd shaped (although I do have tiny baby toenails that some people laugh at!) My arches are high, but that's about the most noticeable thing about my feet. As far as I know, my feet don't send anyone screeching in horror.

I do have a few friends who have some, shall we say "unique" qualities to their feet. I have a friend with webbed toes. I have a friend who is missing a toenail on her big toe (like permanently doesn't grow . . . don't know why . . . never explored it with her) but for the most part, even my friends' feet are normal. So I don't think that I have ever really given great consideration to how awful it would be to be a pedicurist (don't know if that's a word).

Until yesterday. I was sitting at the nail salon, breathing fumes and reading all about Brad and Angie's marriage (they thought after 3+ kids together they should get married), getting my toenails done when I happened to look over at the person sitting two chairs down. Her feet were purple. I mean PURPLE. From the tips of her toes to as far up her leg as I could see, PURPLE. And her toes were all curly. Not her toe "nails," her toes. Curly. Or as Meredith Gray would say, "dark and twisty." And they were HUGE. Purple and curly and huge. And so I looked up to the woman who was attending to these feet. Her face didn't look twisted in horror at the feet she was washing. Truthfully, she looked happy. Honestly. She looked happy. And she just carried on the nicest conversation with the woman with the purple feet.

I must say, I was intrigued. Though I kept staring at the purple, curly-toed feet, I was way more intrigued by the nail technician and her happiness. I saw no judgment on her face. I saw no disdain. She actually seemed to enjoy the moment she was in and the person she was with. And I thought to myself, I wish I was like her. I wish I could look beyond what I can see and just truly love the people that God brings into my life.

All that to say, I saw the love of Christ lived out yesterday. But I saw it in a buddhist, vietnamese nail technician.