Who here is comfortable trying out beds in the middle of a department store in front of random strangers? Lying down, clasping your handbag across your chest, trying to blend in while dying a little on the inside? And then when the suggestion is made that you curl up on your side in a fetal position to make it more “natural”? Oh please! I might be blonde, but Goldilocks I am not!
After 28 years of marriage, Lyndon and I discovered we are incompatible. Who knew? No us, that’s for sure…until the bed guy told us. It was time for a new mattress—Lyndon’s back has been giving him grief and we put it down to a too-soft bed. The bed guy pointed out that I am a side-sleeper and Lyndon is a front-sleeper (after observing our awkwardness in the store), which is far from ideal. I’ve never had a problem with sleeping 🙂 and insisted that unlike Goldilocks, I could sleep on a tightrope if necessary and I really didn’t mind what the mattress was like. I was SOOO selfless. Ever the martyr.
Until the new mattress arrived.
Oh. My. Word. It was like sleeping on concrete. A super-firm mattress is truly not good for side-sleepers, apparently. Lyndon is happy as a clam with no kinks in his spine, while I have turned into the Hunchback of Notre Dame. But my martyrdom shone through as I persisted and persevered until I started dreading bedtime… needless to say the new, super-duper comfy-top-for-me-yet-firm-underneath-for-him version arrives next week. (30-day comfort guarantee—I love you!) If only I had actually been a bit more like Goldilocks and tried a few more mattresses out for size…
On reflection, how did that whip of a girl do it? Waltzing into a strange house and feeling pompous and privileged enough to try out all the porridge, chairs, and beds until one felt “just right”? I was thrilled to discover I had the story in my very own Treasury of Fairy Tales from 1971. Yep, feeling ancient about now. According to my book, young Goldilocks was “feeling adventurous and a little bit naughty”. More like feeling obnoxious and a little bit entitled!
Goldilocks isn’t the only entitled one though, is she? In our real-life world, we are a generation where entitlement is the norm and it’s thrown at us from every angle… “Just do it” and “Because you’re worth it” seep into our me-first culture, and even our spiritual lives are affected. I know a hefty chunk of my prayers are me-centered when they should be He-centered. Are we laying our dreams and desires before Him or demanding a bigger platform and a better ministry? God owes us nothing, yet He gave everything. Is His grace not amazing? Seriously—are we still finding it AMAZING or are starting to feel a little entitled?
It’s easy for us to become navel gazers like Goldilocks, picking and choosing what is right for us, not caring about the ripple effect, or whose porridge we’ve eaten. We are so incredibly blessed with the privilege of living in a peaceful country, having food in our bellies, and REALLY comfortable beds to sleep in!
“What separates privilege from entitlement is gratitude.” Brené Brown
Friend, when you lay your head on your pillow tonight, how grateful will you be?
Working on my Goldilocks issues and gratitude attitude…
Linking up with some fabulous encouragers! Check them out:
