A new breed of compliments.

            Last month I wrote a blog called Compliments. That was about the odd compliments I would get about losing weigh; kinda like the compliments that sting. Lately I’ve noticed that the compliments are evolving. Don’t get me wrong, I’m glad the compliments are evolving for the better.

            The other day a former co-worker walked into work. She was talking to another teacher and was commenting about how she didn’t know anyone in there. I finally walked up to her and I was like, “Well hey there! How are you?” Now, she’s really tall and I’m really short, so when she turned and looked startled I thought it was because she looked right over my head. I was wrong; she did see me, but she didn’t recognize me at first.

            There was a look of confusion before she recognized me. Then she said, “Oh hey! How are…boy you are losing weight.” I knew then it must be really, really noticeable when someone can’t even finish a thought before blurting things out about how I look.

            I gave the typical thank you and then she said, “No..really, I can tell. It’s really noticeable.” Then she asked if I was at the outing we had for work a few weeks ago. I told her that I was, and that I saw her, but we didn’t speak. She apologized for not talking to me, but then I realized she didn’t talk to me because she didn’t recognize me. That realization made me super happy. I made sure to tell her it was really not big deal that we didn’t talk. We both had other people to talk to, but I really wanted to tell her was that it was ok she didn’t talk to me because our lack of conversation was due to her not even recognizing me!

            I also recently had to go to an open house event. There were a lot of people there that I don’t see too often. I kept making eye contact with an old friend that I hadn’t seen in a few months, but there was no recognition in his face. He walked past like 5 times. I finally grabbed his arm and said, “Hey! I’ve been trying to get your attention.” I also thought that he was startled because I’m so short and he was looking right over my head, but he also was so startled because he just didn’t recognize me. I think not recognizing me is a wonderful compliment.

            Another compliment I received recently came from one of my absolute best friends in the entire world. He lives out of state so I only see him about 3 times a year. He was here recently and he was so surprised at how I looked. I know this because he kept telling me. We were having lunch and he looked across the booth at me and said, “I just can’t believe it’s you I’m sitting across from.” That meant a lot.

            I’ve lost almost 80 pounds. I’ll actually have to weigh myself later today, so I’ll know for sure how much I’ve lost. I still have a long way to go, but it is so awesome to get these compliments now. Don’t get me wrong though, I still get a little shy when someone makes a comment around people I don’t know. All of the above mentioned compliments were very private, so they were the best kind of compliments; just for me, the other person, and now all of you. I handle that better. Like I’ve said before, I love to be the center of attention, but only when I know everyone in the room.

            Anyway, I’ve realized that the compliments are helpful too. I see myself everyday so I don’t notice the changes all the time and since my clothes sizes don’t change everyday; I need the compliments. The compliments from people let me know I’m still making progress!