Do you know what you did for me... that day? Do you know what your friendly smile did for me...that day? Do you know what you did for me when you walked just a little ways out of your way and called me by name, asking "How's your day going my friend?"
No....I don't think you did. I know that you didn't. I know because we were strangers really. We had only meant one afternoon when you were eating your lunch at Morrison House where you stayed while your friend was in the hospital. I happened to be volunteering that afternoon.
As you ate along with two other families, you shared your friends story with us. The other families shared their stories, and a friendship must of evolved between us. A friendship that caused you to reach out to me when my world was tumbling down around me.
"That day" I was working in the surgery family room. I was secretly having a stressful afternoon. My heart was aching and I was feeling a bit on edge. I was smiling, but inside I was hurting. Sometimes life does that to us, you know.
Close to closing time you must of saw me there. You were walking down the hall on your way to rest after spending the day with your friend. You saw me there, and took the time to walk over to me, mention my name and ask "How's your day going my friend?" You will never know the value of those words. You will never know the value of those few extra steps, those few extra minutes, you spent for my sake.
Ever since "that day" I have questioned myself.
How often do I stand beside a stranger on the street or in a crowd who is heart broken, and I don't say a word?
How often does my grocery cart pass a strangers cart and they look at me and silently ask "Do I mean anything to you or anybody?" And I don't even smile at them.
How many times do I sit beside someone on a bench in the park who is sitting there alone, because their world has fallen apart. We sit there together and they are wishing they could pour their hurting, aching heart out to me, but I get up and walk away?
A few years ago, at the school I worked at, we had a very special assembly. At this assembly a father was remembering his teenage daughter who had lost her life in a terrible school shooting. He was remembering her selflessness, her reaching out to underprivileged students, her kindness to classmates, and how she was not afraid to bend down and help a boy pick up his books that had been rudely knocked out of his hands. That father told us how his daughter would invite a lone boy or girl to come sit with her and her friends at the lunch table.
I remember how that theater became so quiet that you could hear a pin drop, when that father cleared his throat, looked out into the crowd of students and said these words....
"After my daughters death, that same young boy who's books she bent to pick up, came to me. He told me that it was that day that he had completely cleaned out his locker and was on his final walk home. Life meant nothing to him anymore. But your daughter bent to help me pick up my books and then she smiled at me and asked if she could help with my things. That day your daughter saved my life."
So you know, my stranger friend....that day....when you walked out of your way to call me by name, I learned that we never know who needs a kind word. We never know who's world is falling down around them.
I learned....that day....that a smile is never wasted. I learned the value of a kind word, a hug, a few extra steps. a listening ear. I learned....that day...the true meaning of life.
And yes, do we realize that someday it could become our privilege to "bend down and reach out a helping hand" and... save a life...a precious life?
So, thank you, my stranger friend. I will always remember your face and what you did for my heart "that day".
No....I don't think you did. I know that you didn't. I know because we were strangers really. We had only meant one afternoon when you were eating your lunch at Morrison House where you stayed while your friend was in the hospital. I happened to be volunteering that afternoon.
As you ate along with two other families, you shared your friends story with us. The other families shared their stories, and a friendship must of evolved between us. A friendship that caused you to reach out to me when my world was tumbling down around me.
"That day" I was working in the surgery family room. I was secretly having a stressful afternoon. My heart was aching and I was feeling a bit on edge. I was smiling, but inside I was hurting. Sometimes life does that to us, you know.
Close to closing time you must of saw me there. You were walking down the hall on your way to rest after spending the day with your friend. You saw me there, and took the time to walk over to me, mention my name and ask "How's your day going my friend?" You will never know the value of those words. You will never know the value of those few extra steps, those few extra minutes, you spent for my sake.
Ever since "that day" I have questioned myself.
How often do I stand beside a stranger on the street or in a crowd who is heart broken, and I don't say a word?
How often does my grocery cart pass a strangers cart and they look at me and silently ask "Do I mean anything to you or anybody?" And I don't even smile at them.
How many times do I sit beside someone on a bench in the park who is sitting there alone, because their world has fallen apart. We sit there together and they are wishing they could pour their hurting, aching heart out to me, but I get up and walk away?
A few years ago, at the school I worked at, we had a very special assembly. At this assembly a father was remembering his teenage daughter who had lost her life in a terrible school shooting. He was remembering her selflessness, her reaching out to underprivileged students, her kindness to classmates, and how she was not afraid to bend down and help a boy pick up his books that had been rudely knocked out of his hands. That father told us how his daughter would invite a lone boy or girl to come sit with her and her friends at the lunch table.
I remember how that theater became so quiet that you could hear a pin drop, when that father cleared his throat, looked out into the crowd of students and said these words....
"After my daughters death, that same young boy who's books she bent to pick up, came to me. He told me that it was that day that he had completely cleaned out his locker and was on his final walk home. Life meant nothing to him anymore. But your daughter bent to help me pick up my books and then she smiled at me and asked if she could help with my things. That day your daughter saved my life."
So you know, my stranger friend....that day....when you walked out of your way to call me by name, I learned that we never know who needs a kind word. We never know who's world is falling down around them.
I learned....that day....that a smile is never wasted. I learned the value of a kind word, a hug, a few extra steps. a listening ear. I learned....that day...the true meaning of life.
And yes, do we realize that someday it could become our privilege to "bend down and reach out a helping hand" and... save a life...a precious life?
So, thank you, my stranger friend. I will always remember your face and what you did for my heart "that day".
Awe sweet cousin you put love in all your words ❤️
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