Everyone Has a Story....

Everyone has a story.  For any of you that watch Kathie Lee and Hoda in the mornings, you know that they have a segment every week with the same title.  They have a person or family on that have been through a difficult circumstance and each story has a happy ending.  Although the experiences are really good and the people they have on always deserve the recognition, the song itself has become somewhat of a joke.  The best one was when the guest musician was singing the song, written by Kathie Lee, and the camera shows Kathie Lee crying and then pans over to the family where the kids are jumping on the couch and fighting with each other and the mom is trying her best to be the referee.  I believe it was more of a moment for Kathie Lee than it was for the family that was on – but it still makes for funny TV and I am all for that!  No, I am not making fun of the segment – just how it turns out sometimes. 

My point in bringing that up is this - every person does have a story and there is something to be learned from their life.  My fellow trainees and I have only known each other for seven days now, but we have quickly become good friends.  There is a wide mix of people which always makes for an interesting group.  I love hearing about how other people live out their lives and understanding what is important to them.  One who is a mother and really understands the importance of that role, one who moved to Nashville a week before she started working and is learning not only her new job but how to navigate through a big city, and there is one who writes science fiction novels.  They each have a unique story that brought them to this chapter in their life.  As the days have progressed it has been enlightening to hear a twist in someone’s story, simply based on first impressions.  The one I would call the class clown recently donated a kidney to his sister.  One of the quieter ones in the group loves to sing and is auditioning for a Broadway play.  It is the variety among people that helps keep life exciting and moving. 

We do learn from other people’s stories.  Their mistakes can keep us from doing the same.  Learning how someone overcame obstacles in their life gives us hope that we can do the same.  Seeing someone accomplish so much motivates us to dream bigger dreams for our own lives.  This is why we should not be afraid to open up and allow people to see the great moments of our life as well as those times that we struggled.  You never know how it will affect someone else and really impact how they move about in the world. 

What I love about life is that we are writing our story as we go.  Although I do believe that God has a plan for each of us and knows how our life will turn out – we do not have that ability; therefore, we have to trust and believe that we can follow something much greater than ourselves.  Understand that your life is important and you matter to others – probably more so than you realize.  It is true – everyone has a story, what’s yours?

Today I am grateful for:  1.  Loving my new job  2.  Making new friends  3.  Hearing their stories  4.  A really great work-out tonight  5.  A hilarious phone call with my bff, Autumn last night