"We most likely will never meet again," he told me.
"Yes, but I'll see you in my prayers." I said.
It takes so very little to create great feelings of joy and happiness in
someone's life. Sometimes it is a simple act. More often it lies within the
words that we say.
You don't have to be a professional speaker to say just the right thing.
I meet many wonderful people in my work. Some I have the privilege to meet face
to face. Many I see in person but only as I scan the audience I am speaking
with.
Then there's you. You are one of those I call "friends I've never met."
I am overwhelmed with the thought that I get to touch the lives of so many. But
I am telling you that you have the same opportunity everyday.
Jack was an average looking man sitting in the middle of the portrait of faces I
saw that day as I walked across the stage sharing my soul.
But, after the talk I was blessed with the chance to meet and greet many who
wanted to share a word with me. Frankly, it is both the most exciting part for
me and the most embarrassing. I love meeting people, but find myself very
uncomfortable with the extremely generous comments they share.
Everyone I meet instantly becomes a part of who I am and through either a form
of osmosis or evolution, I become more than I was before.
Jack had that look on his face that told me well in advance that he had some
major challenges in his life. As I spoke with others I could see him advancing
in the line. In my mind I predicted that he would be what I call a "hello and
run" person. They want to speak, perhaps share what's in their heart, but find
the crowded situation uncomfortable.
"I just wanted to say, I really needed to hear this today and you spoke directly
to me," he said.
"So you were the one?" I replied.
Confused, he stood looking at me still shaking my hand.
"I believe we were supposed to meet, my friend. I always speak with just one
person in mind. You were the one."
Still standing there, still shaking my hand, he looked as though I had confirmed
what he just said.
"You have some major challenges in your life. Whatever they are, you will not
only rise above them, but you will become more because of it all. Just as I have
become more because I met you."
"We most likely will never meet again," he told me.
"Yes, but I'll see you in my prayers." I said.
That was the first time I ever said those words. It was the gift he gave me that
day. Because, had he not taken the time to say "hello" I would not have created
the idea of "seeing someone in my prayers."
I have remembered someone, said a prayer for someone, but to say "I'll see you
in my prayers," became a powerful tool for me.
It said to him "I will not forget you!" And he believed it.
My words chosen carefully made a difference and we both benefited from it.
A few months later Jack wrote to tell me that at the time we met, he had just
finalized his divorce, lost his home, his family moved away and he was told he
had cancer.
The last time I heard from him, he found his "soul mate," finished cancer
treatment and moved to where his children lived.
"Life is good for me again, " he wrote in that email to me. "I hope to see you
again someday."
"Tonight," I replied. "I'll see you in my prayers."
Bob Perks [email protected]
The Illustrator: This daily newsletter is dedicated to encouraging
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