It began with a simple “Thank you”
An online friend, Bea Vanni, was kind enough to leave a lovely message thanking me for sharing an article she enjoyed. “Oh Elizabeth, goddess of a perfect share! Need I say thanks since I've elevated you to goddess status,” she wrote. It made me laugh and made my day, and I told her so.
Her response was quite thought-provoking: “I'm glad I could make your day, Elizabeth. Sometimes we toil but never know who we touch.”
Sometimes we toil but never know who we touch
Pow! Right between the eyes…
It's true, isn't it? We all know how much those tiny acts of kindness mean when others do them for us:
- That food friends brought when my father died
- That thermos of coffee a friend showed up with when our electricity had been out for 24 hours
- That handwritten note of encouragement when I was at a low point
- That phone call to check on me when I'd been sick
- That hug or pat on the back for a job well done
- That email supporting a big decision I'd made
You have more influence than you realize
While it's clearly important to let someone know when they've touched your life in a good way, that's not what's on my heart right now. I simply want to remind you of this very, very important truth:
You matter and you make a difference.
Just because many of the things you do for others don't get acknowledged doesn't mean they don't matter.
We bloggers know this better than anyone. While many may read our posts—as evidenced by random comments from time to time or the numbers from Google Analytics—very few actually take the time to leave a comment. I do the same thing. I don't always leave a comment after articles I find meaningful or helpful, even though they might have touched me profoundly (though I try to).
Whether you know it or not, you are touching others all the time—with your love, your words, your deeds, and even your smile. Your acts of kindness—large or small—make a difference.
They uplift.
They strengthen.
They comfort.
They inspire.
And because they uplift, strengthen, comfort, and inspire, you are making your mark in the world. I am grateful for you.
Sometimes those tiny kindnesses mean the most at times we aren’t able to say thank you. Our plates are just too full or our energies are being sapped by decisions we’re wrestling with and we don’t have whatever it takes to stop and say thank you.
I think that’s a sign to both the receiver and the giver: to the receiver, it means keep working to get through that rough patch so you have the energy to re-engage and to the giver, it means keep giving because somebody needs what you are offering.
So true, Esther! Both pieces of this are so important. I’ve always reminded folks that the transaction of giving requires both a giver and a receiver, and we weren’t willing to receive from time to time, there would be a world of frustrated potential givers!
Such a great reminder that every interaction we have with others influences them for better or worse.
Thanks so much for reading and commenting, Katherine! It is daunting to realize how much influence we really have, and we can only strive to make as much of it as possible for the good.