Impact

Today has been an emotionally exhausting day...mainly because I have been analyzing my life all day (for a paper...so its ok). I am writing self-reflective paper for my Human Development and Counseling Theories class. Twenty-five pages all about me and my problems...basically. Looking into my past and evaluating why I have turned out how I am now is emotionally exhausting. I like it though. When I am finished with this paper I will be one step closer to figuring myself out.

Another reason this day was emotional is becuase I went to The Crossing this evening for a going away party for myself and a few others that are leaving. I interned/worked at The Crossing for almost a year and really grew to love the people there, especially the kids. I officially stopped working there about 3 or 4 weeks ago and tonight was my first time back since then. All the kids ran up to me and hugged me as if I had never been gone. It melted my heart.

I love the innocence of a child. They have such a huge capacity to love. Most of these kids have been through more in their 5 or 6 years than I have in my whole life, yet they still are able to love. Several of the kids ran up to me and wanted me to hold them. I love holding children. As I was holding one little girl she was playing with my hair and tracing her fingers along my face. She was absolutely beautiful. While I was holding her, Joe, my old boss prayed aloud for those of us who were leaving. She laid her head on my shoulder as we prayed. I will never forget that moment.

Tonight I was also reminded of how much of an impact the smallest gesture or conversation can make. You may not realize it at the time, but it's there. I know being in ministry is hard, especially when you don't see the fruits of your labor. Be encouraged- you are making an impact. As part of the going away party, people had an opportunity to get up and saying a few words about those of us who were leaving. As I listened to people speak I was struck by how thankful and appreciative everyone was of us. Some of the smallest things we did made a huge impression. For these people, just taking the time to listen, really listen, was huge. It was encouraging and uplifting to hear people share their thoughts.

Is there someone in your life who has left an impression? Maybe it was a piece of advice they gave, or a shoulder to cry on, or just someone who took the time to care. I would encourage you to let that person know how you appreciate them. Call, write a letter, email...whatever. My personal favorite is writing letters. About 6 months ago I was thinking about a few people from Pine Cove, a summer camp I worked at in college, had really impacted me. I knew that these peole had no idea how much they affected me. I thought it would be encouraging for them to hear what I learned from them. I hadn't spoken to any of them in over a year, but that didn't really matter. I wrote them letters thanking them and explaining what a blessing they had been in my life. It was so cool to be able to do that. I think I probably enjoyed writing the letters more than they enjoyed getting them.

I could write much much more about all of this, but this has gotten long enough so I will stop now. I'd love to hear any thoughts yall have on all of this.