I LOVE a great story. You can never share enough of the ‘good stuff’ that puts a little positive perspective out there. I hope you enjoy this story as much as I did.
If you missed the May Oprah magazine, you missed a great story I want to share by Elizabeth Gilbert (Eat Pray Love). Enjoy.
Some years ago, I was stuck on a crosstown bus in New York City during rush hour. Traffic was barely moving. The bus was filled with cold, tired people who were deeply irritated–with one another; with the rainy, sleety weather; with the world itself. Two men barked at each other about a shove that might or might not have been intentional. A pregnant woman got on, and nobody offered her a seat. Rage was in the air; no mercy would be found here.
But as the bus approached Seventh Avenue, the driver got on the intercom. “Folks,” he said, “I know you’ve had a rough day and you’re frustrated. I can’t do anything about the weather or traffic, but here’s what I can do. As each one of you gets off the bus. I will reach out my hand to you. As you walk by, drop your troubles into the palm of my hand, okay? Don’t take your problems home to your families tonight–just leave ’em with me. My route goes right by the Hudson River, and when I drive by there later, I’ll open the window and throw your troubles in the water. Sound good?”
It was as if a spell had lifted. Everyone burst out laughing. Faces gleamed with surprised delight. People who’d been pretending for the past hour not to notice each other’s existence were suddenly grinning at each other like, is this guy serious?
Oh, he was serious.
At the next stop–just as promised–the driver reached out his had, palm up and waited. One by one, all the exiting commuters placed their hand just above his and mimed the gesture of dropping something into his palm. Some people laughed as they did this, some teared up–but everyone did it. The driver repeated the same lovely ritual at the next stop too. And the next. All the way to the river.
We live in a hard world, my friends. Sometimes it’s extra difficult to be a human being. SOmetimes you have a bad day. SOmetimes you have a bad day theta lasts for several years. You struggle and fall. You lose jobs, money, friends, faith and love. You witness horrible events unfolding in the news, and you become fearful and withdrawn. There are times when everything seems cloaked in darkness. You long for the light but don’t know where to find it.
But what if you are the light? What if you’re the very agent of illumination that a dark situation begs for?
That’s what this bus driver taught me–that anyone can be the light, at any moment. This guy wasn’t some big power player. He wasn’t a spiritual leader. He wasn’t some media-savvy leader. He was a bus driver–one of society’s most invisible workers. But he possessed real power, and he used it beautifully for our benefit.
When life feels especially grim, or when I feel particularly powerless in the face of the world’s troubles, I think of this man and ask myself, What can I do, right now, to be the light? Of course, I can’t personally end all wars, or solve global warming, or transform vexing people into entirely different creatures. I definitely can’t control traffic. But I do have some influence on everyone I brush up against, even if we never speak or learn each other’s name. How we behave matters because within human society everything is contagious–sadness and anger, yes, but also patience and generosity. Which means we all have more influence than we realize.
No matter who you are, or where you are, or how mundane or tough your situation may seem, I believe you can illuminate your world. In fact, I believe this is the only way the world will ever be illuminated–one bright act of grace at a time, all the way to the river.
-taken from Oprah, May 2016 by Elizabeth Gilbert
This weekend my daughter and I headed to Moab to watch my Dad experience skydiving for the first time. The entire family (5 kids and all their kids–13 grand kids–minus my brother) met in Moab to see the event live in honor of his 70th birthday! It was such a grand occasion we had to be escorted to the airplane hanger because our group was, “the biggest they had ever had.” The kids had bubble wands to entertain them while they were waiting for the big jump, so we looked like we were having a party. There was a group of four other people waiting to watch their friends jump & they literally asked us if we were on a field trip or something. We all laughed out loud and explained the big party.
Life is too short and my Dad had wanted to jump his entire life, so we all pitched in to make it a weekend he would never forget. Truly, a weekend none of us will ever forget. Life is about occasions, those special events that make the memories that stay with us forever. None of us will ever forget watching the kids making bubbles that were covering the airplane runway and flying wildly into onlookers. It was magical and lol funny. The adults laughed as we watched our children list off the items they would get if Papa didn’t make it. Yikes!! They were yelling, “his arrowhead collection, his cheese, his car…” they were laughing and being so silly. They made up a special bubble wand salute they gave him as Papa landed and joined the group. A memory all of them will remember. We all screamed and yelled and cheered as we watched their parachutes come in for the incredible landing. One of my sisters almost had a panic attack, a kind stranger was getting the whole group on video, and we all stood there in awe of their safe arrival and then laughed as our Papa was thrown to the ground by his chute and just laid there, almost as if he were so glad to touch the ground. My brother jumped with him, so the most priceless moment for me was seeing them embrace after their jump.
GET GRATEFUL: This morning I shared with them a video clip of a girl who got cancer when she was nine & had to have her leg amputated, but what they did with part of her leg was inspired. Check it out. 
EVERYONE HAS A CHOICE: Life Lesson–You don’t have to do anything…you don’t have to be happy, you don’t have to be sad. It is a beautiful freedom to feel, be, do, say and become anything we want. We have a choice every day to decide the direction we want to go in–positive or negative. We decide how we react to any situation and we decide what we learn from every situation. We have a choice every single moment of our lives.
Thomas Edison’s laboratory was virtually destroyed by a fire in December, 1914. Although the damage exceeded $2 million, the buildings were insured for only $238,000 because they were made of concrete and thought to be fireproof. Much of Edison’s life’s work went up in spectacular flames that December night. At the height of the fire, Edison’s 24-year-old son, Charles, frantically searched for his father among the smoke and debris. He finally found him, calmly watching the scene, his face glowing in the reflection, his white hair blowing in the wind.
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