Be available.

For me, this day is filled to the tip top of the cup with the expectation of all the good things that will happen as I go throughout the next 14 hours of my waking life.

The people that I will encounter, encourage, or at a minimum smile towards - which hopefully, in turn, will set off a life-giving smile inside of them as well.

The information that I will get to be a part of learning about, the relationships that I will deepen, the observations of the world that will continue to deepen who I am and how I process each day's happenings.

Like I said, good things. Hopeful things. Exciting things.

But, that's me.

Within all of that goodness, I am also very aware of the incredible hurt, pain, and weight that so many of my fellow people are waking up with (if they even were able to sleep at all under such a heaviness), the piles of baggage they are loading into their car or strapping to their back as they embark of the treachery of the point A to B, or C, or L of where this life drops them today.

The people that can't even begin to think about how to smile because it's been so incredibly long since they have had anything to smile about.

So, how do I live in this tension between the two?

Hope vs. despair
What is to come vs. nothing will ever come
I can't wait to live vs. I can't wait to die

For me, it's through availability and openness.

Knowing that people are hurting, but being stuck in my own cheery disposition, unwilling to step into the junk of people's lives because I am enjoying my high (or steadiness), this just doesn't work.

Being slow to speak and having ears that are available go so much farther than you may imagine - and this applies to both friends and strangers.

Often time, people just need to process externally from their own mind - to vent. They may not want or even need you to solve all of life's issues, but instead just be their friend through the process (whether they are in the right or wrong). Listen first and without any expectations.

I love my fancy headphones, but there are times that I just have to leave them out and off in order to keep myself approachable.

Be available. 
Listen well. 
Love well.

This is my goal today - and hopefuly I will remember it in the days to come as well.

Want to give it a try with me?

Tell me, how are you feeling today. High? Low? Blah?

Comment, message, text, whatever form you choose - and whether it's me or not, just find someone that has open ears and go for it. We process poorly alone.

Much love my friends, share if you think others need this in their life too. ❤️

Much love my friends!

Be a pebble around stagnant water.

Myth: Talking to homeless people or people holding a sign panhandling is scary and dangerous.
All they want is money. They are rude. Ungrateful.

Truth: While there are outliers in life where the WORST POSSIBLE THING you imagine COULD happen: getting struck by lightning, your plane crashing, or the movie Jaws playing out in real life (and you're not the shark..)
MOST encounters with someone that is homeless is actually quite normal, and they respond how you probably would if roles were reversed.

This morning on my commute into the city, I saw a woman sitting on a very busy corner. One of the epicenters of Manhattan, NY: Greely Square. Right next to the iconic Miracle on 34th st, Macy's, and in the shadow of the grandeur that is the Empire State Building. What feels like half of the city's 9 million people rushing by, heads down, most with headphones in, focused on what the day has in store ahead of them... but then there is this lady.

Not moving. Stagnant you may say. Stagnant in a way that happens when you see a river rushing by, mighty rapids, but then off to the edge is this swirling bunch of water that just looks strangely stuck. Out of place. LIke, how does it get there? How does it stay there? The current directly next to it keeps going, how does it not get caught up in the rush of forward momentum?

It doesn't make sense... but there it stays.

She was sitting on an old milk crate. Not comfortable. A makeshift sign, with words written on a well-worn old box fragment, using a borrowed black sharpie that told a story of abuse, failure, and now despair.

Swirling. Day after day. Stuck.

"Excuse me"

She looks up from the half-completed crossword puzzle she was working on because, in reality, it's WAYYYY too painful to look up as people look down on you every second, minute, hour, and day.

"I don't have anything to give today, but I just wanted to say hi and wish you a wonderful day."

The curiosity of what my words would bring quickly turns into delight in her entire face.Her shoulders relax, she lets out her slightly held breath in a relief that doesn't really make sense because of the simplicity of the action and words, then reply's back:

"Thank you, I really appreciate that. You have a great day too. God bless."

You (and I) never know what it is going to take to unsettle the stagnant water on the edge of a powerful river. Possibly a storm comes in that brings enough rain to disrupt the trajectory of the river path or perhaps a massive tree falls down upstream and while floating by it clears out the stuck spot.

But potentially it doesn't take something as catastrophic or expansive as either of those scenarios...

Maybe, just maybe, a family with a young child are walking by on a trail that parallels the mighty river when out of nowhere the innocent joy of that young child leads them to pick up a rock and throw it into the stagnant place - giving it just the amount ripple that was needed to change the flow of the river, letting loose all the idle water.

Does a simple greeting of hello fix everyone and all of the hurt, pain, abuse, neglect, and failure that they carry around?

No.

But, seeing the relief that came with an untethered greeting of hello to a lonely woman in the middle of millions of people rushing by gives me hope that it COULD be that little pebble that was needed break the chains of injustice and untie the yoke of oppression...

And that my friends make it worth it to keep trying.

Will you join me? It could be as simple as hello and a smile.
Let's start with that and we can grow from there.

Cheers everyone! Have a wonderful day! :)

Share if you think this could be helpful to others.
Follow along with my journey to love well at my website:
www.HealthyHusband.com