The Best Connections We Can Facilitate

For week twenty-three in our fifty week challenge, we were asked to share connections we had made with the calligraphy classes we had taken online in the past year. I found myself a little lost on this one as I have not taken any, so what to do? I had an idea and worked on it, over worked it, tried to fix it which just made it worse. So I started again, took a deep breath, simplified and this piece was the end result. I like it because it shows in a simple way all the different things about connections and their possibilities.

And then the word “connections” hit me again this morning. I was driving into the city for a client meeting and there was a snarling, bad traffic jam in three different locations along my path. And one poor soul had their car die on the merge lane for a major connection between interstates…ugh! Poor thing, a real Monday morning bummer! And it hit me that every car I passed was on it’s way somewhere, making connections in traffic, getting to the place where they made connections at work, and even multiple people in the car making morning conversations and connections. I had my own version of learning – even if it was not in an art class – about how we are making connections all the time.

Connections are a gift, something to cherish and protect. In a single moment our life can change because of a connection we made that was or was not planned. Meeting a new person, helping someone with a flat tire, yielding the last open gas pump to a car filled with people going to work, or even in a meeting where the client brings in their newest team member. Each of those moments is a chance for us to bring value, kindness and even a piece of ourselves to the situation. We have NO IDEA what that others person has already experienced, the good the bad or the ugly parts of life, so we must embrace the opportunity to be a positive influence in some small way. Be it a smile, being prepared, being kind, funny or even just listening as they share their story. Everyone we meet deserves the best connection we are able to facilitate.

So this week as you get ready to leave your living space, think about the connections your days will bring. Make them better by bringing your best self and be ware of what those other people may need that only you can bring to the situation. You never know who you will meet and how that connection will have an impact on both your lives.