Gratitude for Doing the Right Thing

My mother spied us from the rear view mirror and noticed something was up when she heard us giggling. My sister and I were in grade school back then and we were mischievous. We had been at a florist's and slipped out with some plastic grapes. A dare, no doubt.

When my mother heard about our doings she marched us right back into the florists to tell our crime.

Today when I was at the grocery store I thought about that awkward confession when I realized my predicament. I looked in my cart and noticed one item inadvertently hadn't been paid for.

I said to myself, do you suppose God would understand if I didn't run in and pay because I'm on a bit of a deadline today? Then I saw it. My mother's eyes staring at me from the rear view mirror and I had to laugh. I went back into the store, paid for the item and realized it was worth being late over.

My yoga teacher is full of goodness talk, ironically while she is mercilessly bending us into pretzels. But recently she made an impression on me when she said this: It's when you deviate from your integrity that you break from yourself -- from who you really are.

That yogi makes good sense. Keeping integrity in check, even in the smallest ways, really matters.