The weekend before the last, my friend “Jamie” reached out to me on Facebook and said:
“David, I know you’re going through a tough time. You may not recognize it yourself, or maybe you think other’s aren’t, but I do. Amazing job! Keep up the good work!”
While even alone, I was and am extremely grateful, it was his next line that made me the most content:
“Don’t worry about responding. I just want you to know you have complete support.”
You see, I never told “Jamie” what I was going through. I can only assume it came to his attention via my previous blog post or by way of a mutual friend or another reader. Regardless, what he said could not have come at a better time. So, I couldn’t help but thank him. I told him he had no idea how much it meant to me. Last weekend, I reached back out to him and asked how could I thank him and if there’s anything I could help him with. He said:
“Don’t worry about me. If you’re really thankful, pay it forward. Pay it forward to your friends whom you think need it the most.”
I did. And my friends reacted similarly.
While the goal isn’t to get any responses, reach out to some of the people in your life that may be going through some tough times. Let them know you’re there for them. Let them know that you appreciate them. And let them know what they’re doing means something.
Photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash
#unfiltered is a series where I share my raw thoughts and unfiltered commentary about anything and everything. It’s not designed to go down smoothly like the best cup of cappuccino you’ve ever had (although here‘s where I found mine), more like the lonely coffee bean still struggling to find its identity (which also may one day find its way into a more thesis-driven blogpost). Who knows? The possibilities are endless.
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