Strangers and Friends

What makes life bearable is the random acts of kindness from strangers and the steady flow of love from friends. Today I experienced both. The stranger that went more than the extra mile to help my dog and the friends who offered the kindness of words and more than that. Knowing that a friend truly understands how you feel doesn't really require words. It's just the comfort of knowing someone understands.

Surrounding yourself with people with great character is so important for your sanity and for your growth. Instilling these values in our children is one of life's greatest challenges and rewards. Teaching them to treat a stranger with the respect and care of a friend is so important. Yet I clearly remember the first time I taught my toddler to be a bit leery of strangers. I felt so sad to have to do it-to change her perception of the world. What a world we live in. You have to teach them to be street smart without letting them turn cold, hard, and cynical.

Our fourteen month old grandson is cheering us up today the way only the explosive laughter of a child can. Who knew bubble wrap was so hilarious. I love to see his impact on my daughter who said good-bye to her canine companion today. When we are most powerless we realize the power of love, kindness, helpfulness, and generosity. Thus motivated to pay it forward, we look at the next guy with a little more sympathy, tolerance, and love. This is all because someone else offered these things to us and we're grateful. Little Daniel's face brightens with each person he meets. Oh, to have a fraction of that energy giving response to people.

Today I met a man named Jason who skidded to a stop on the highway when he saw another car hit my dog. He hoped to help him but he had been killed instantly. He gently moved him from the road and called my vet from the number on the collar. Later he made a special trip on a Saturday to bring me that collar. He would have helped me pick up his body. It takes time to help a stranger and he was willing to do that. I thought I'd have the ability to lift the dog myself but I couldn't. I felt so helpless and oh so sad. Since I work with guys who work out every day and have hearts of gold I knew who to call. A personal trainer, Scott, came and carefully lifted Lance's broken body into my car. That's not a job anyone wants and one I wanted to spare my sons. I'll always be grateful for Scott's availability and kindness.

Earlier that morning I was scheduled to teach two cycle classes. I found a sub for one but not for the other. I randomly pulled out a CD hoping to just get through the class without crying. At the beginning of the CD I had put a little sound bite from Forrest Gump. You know the one: "Life
is like a box of chocolates. You never know what you're going to get." It's my attempt at humor, the class never knows what kind of cycle challenge they are going to get that day.

On this difficult day when I heard those words it made me think how universal loss and struggle is. Some experience things more devastating than we can comprehend. How easy it would be to be depressed and hopeless. But it is at these times the universal experience is what draws us close to each other and motivates us to give what we can. Jason told me how hard it was to watch his daughter's grief when she learned her cat, Angel, had passed.

To be an energy giver and not an energy taker is the way we hope to live. So we take our "box of chocolates" and forge ahead with tempered hope and calm resolve to try a little harder to look out for the other guy.