A Small Way to Change the World

I went into a store today and while checking out the woman waiting on me raved about my short hair, my colorful jeans and gushed over “it all”. I was a bit taken back, then relished in the attention of this warm and friendly stranger. As I walked out of the store my spirits were lifted, even if I never see that woman again she made me feel good about being me.

We forget that everyone needs to be praised for who they are no matter how long they are in our sphere of influence. One moment of honest and sincere praise has the power to change someone’s day, which may change their life forever. I know that sounds mushy, yet I know it to be true. One comment plants a seed, which grows into either a memory that helps us thrive or injects poison which make us wither and die. Words have great power. A short, interaction has long lasting impact which gives hope and confidence long after the comment was made. These are the moments that haunt us, either for good for for evil depending upon the words that were spoken.

Later in the day I went into another store and paid the joy I felt forward. There was a woman who obviously was having a bad day. She was well dressed and obviously thought long and hard before she left her house. The situation she was in did not reflect the beauty of who she was. I paid her a simple compliment on her outfit, she stopped dead in her tracks. She leaned over and took a very deep breath, then lifted her head and tears filled her eyes. She thanked me sincerely for the compliment and walked away with a refreshed spring in her step. I hoped that she would remember kindness instead of the tangled web of trouble she was experiencing.

We all belong to this human race, and some days that race wears us to the bone. Being able to put that aside and give joy to those we encounter allows us to be our true self. We don’t have to change who we are, we simply need to give the gifts we have to others in order to make this life better. Taking the time to notice people even if we may never see them again makes a big difference. We all need that sometimes, just to be noticed and appreciated for who we are. Being noticed, being complimented, being praised has the power to change the world.