30 Letters in 30 days - Day 6: A Stranger

Dear Wal-Mart Cashier I met tonight,

I delayed writing this letter for a long time, not because I was busy or forgot but because I couldn't figure out who I wanted to write to.  I meet new people every day and maybe I'm just hard to impress but none of them inspired me.  I didn't want to waste a letter so I put off writing this until I had something to say.

You probably don't even realize what an impact you had on me.  I firmly people that random people pop in and out of our lives for a purpose.  Now, I'm not a religious person - call it fate or what have you - but I truly believe there was a reason I chose your checkout line tonight.  Our conversation was brief but it gave me some much needed encouragement when I was just having one of those days.

What you said was "Wow.  If I ate like you maybe I could lose some of this weight."  What I heard you say was "Don't stop what you are doing.  You are doing the right thing and making positive changes in your life.  Your efforts are not in vain."  I needed to hear that today.  Today I was frustrated with the scale.  I was tired and sore and just spent.  I was questioning if all this working out, label reading, and denying myself of foods I love was really worth it.  I wanted to have a Big Mac.  You're simple words, which really weren't much at all,   served as the affirmation I needed, so thank you.

My weight issues didn't start a year or two ago.  I have spent the last eleven years ruining my body with processed and fast foods, unaware of the damage I was really doing.  I'm at the point of no return.  I'm either going to make life changes to be healthy or I am going to die of some terrible disease related to obesity.  That's just the truth.  It's hard to read and even harder to write.  No one wants to be called obese, certainly not me. I'm not making these changes to look better.  I need to feel better.  I need to not be sick anymore.  I lost sight of that today and you helped bring me back to where I need to be, mentally.  I hope I was able to give you a few tips that seem to be working for me.  I wish you the very best of luck and encourage you not to give up.  It is not worth the suffering of being unhealthy to have that cheeseburger, that chocolate bar, that lasagna.  Keep your chin up.

- Charity