..people have always been kind to me.
I was sitting in my office toward the end of a full but productive work day when my colleague stopped in. She asked how my day was going and how I was liking my new position, a reference to a recent title shift within my organization. Because the role is new to me, I told her I was learning a lot. She told me about how she had started in a different department before moving into what she works on now. Then she told me that she would be there if I needed help and not just in the way you toss an offhand “let me know if you need anything” behind you out of assumed obligation. No, my coworker made a point to not just tell me but to show me and explain that she was willing to help with anything I might need from advice to mentorship and all that falls in between.
Our conversation lasted maybe five minutes over a period in which I thanked her about seventeen times. I sat back in my chair after she’d continued down the hall and all I could think about was how kind people are to me. I sat back and wondered what on earth I did to deserve it.
I’ve written about the idea before – the goodness of humanity tends to be a recurring theme in my life – but something about the exchange this afternoon really stuck with me. But maybe that’s because it isn’t the first of it’s kind.
More and more, lately, it’s been drawn to my attention how incredibly fortunate I am, in general.
In general.. I am healthy. I may have had some fluctuations in the world of well-being but in general, I am healthy.
In general, I have the freedom to determine the course of my life. There are some obvious things of note – I need a job to pay rent – but in general, I am in control of my future.
In general, I don’t have to worry about basic needs. I might dramatically tumble home from work with the impression of “if I don’t eat pasta right now my stomach will eat itself” but that’s just the result of a poorly planned desk lunch and in general, my basic needs are met.
All of this, of course, brings me to my most important point:
In general, people have always been kind to me. Of course, there’s no clean track record. If I really want to think about it, I can remember many occasions where people have been less than kind either in word or in action or in both. But in general, people have always been kind to me – even, in some cases, when I didn’t deserve it.
It would be easy to dwell on small injustices here or there. But I’d rather see their love. And I’ll continue to believe that I am the luckiest person in the world, all because people have been kind to me.
Love always,
Liz
