52 Weeks of Making an Impact

Since it has been five years since I blogged on this page, I am assuming that no one checks it any more. But even if you do happen to check in on me, nothing is a secret. Actually I am hoping it is not even close to a secret by this time next year. This is my way of holding myself accountable AND keeping a record in order to see if I see a difference. Not only in me, but in the world around me. Can one person truly ignite a change? My friend thinks so, and her book has inspired me. "Screw the BS and Ignite Your Impact" by Erin M Addesso.
click here

I started reading this when I was traveling to visit my mom for Thanksgiving break. I didn't want to put the book down. I always say that there is a positive and negative to everything in life, and Erin believes so too. When you can choose to find the good, it makes a change in you and you can spread that change to others. She talks about how if you choose to go out of your way, even with just a smile, you never know how it will impact their day and perhaps you may inspire them to impact someone else.

When I was headed home from the visit, I had my first opportunity to make a change. I was driving in a rental car on the state highways of Pennsylvania. These roads are two lanes and travel through the beautiful hillside showing the Amish farms and quiet life of rural Pennsylvania. I stopped at a light and then was rear ended by a younger girl in her mom's car. She was so upset and ashamed. She couldn't even look at me. After making sure everyone else was OK, I turned to her again and asked her if she was OK. She just kept saying "I am so sorry." I put my hand on her shoulder and said, "I'm not mad at you. Accidents happen."

"What if you miss your flight?"
"Then I miss my flight. It's not that big of a deal."

I left there after the police finished and sure enough, I had missed my flight. My daughter and I spent the night in the Philly airport. I was never upset about it and just rolled with the punches. We made the first flight to Denver in the morning and were tired, but no worse for the delay. The nicest part? Not getting upset over something that could have been very nerve-wreaking actually helped me and Avery turn it into an adventure instead. I hope that the girl found some comfort in my reaction, but I will never know.

Today I had another chance. During Thanksgiving break, my son always has a hockey tournament. Five full days of hockey with at least one and sometimes two games a day. This morning they were playing Team Wyoming. There was a cute little boy, maybe 4 years old, near me. He was trying to keep busy playing with a pen. He was pretending it was a car, then a plane, etc. just buzzing his time away while his sibling played hockey. I remembered that I had two Lego people in my purse. I thought about giving them to the boy to play with, but hesitated for some reason. Then he looked up at me and said with the bluest eyes and dimpled smile, "I play hockey."

"And I bet you are really good, too." I replied.

"Yep." Then he went to play behind me. A few minutes later he was searching through his mom's purse for something else to do. I leaned over and said, "Do you know what I have?"

"What?"

"I have these guys and they want to play. Would you like to play with them?"

His eyes lit up and he nodded. He walked back over to his sister and mom and both were visibly upset. "Where did you get those?"

I smiled and said, "From me. I keep them in my purse."

The boy and his sister went on to play with them for the rest of the game. He kept coming over to me and asking me questions about them- some things I understand and others I didn't. But it didn't matter, his smile and play said enough to me. At the end of the game I told him that he could keep them. It was totally worth it to make his day and probably his mom's day too."