Don’t hesitate to encourage others

Has anyone ever said something to you that changed your life for the better? I bet family members and friends certainly have. But what about a stranger? The situation may be more of a rarity, but I bet it happens to many of us.

For instance, I remember being a scared college student at Indiana University years ago. One afternoon, feeling like I didn’t fit in with my roommate or others in my dorm, I fled to the church I (sometimes) attended.

As I sat there, sobbing my eyes out, a woman with red curly hair approached me. She quietly slid into the pew and gently took both of my hands.

“It’s going to be alright,” she murmured. “I know it will be.”

I can’t remember what else she said, but my heart lifted and I began to feel a little better. I never saw her again. When I returned to my dorm and checked my mailbox to find a sweet, encouraging little book from my mother, I cried again – this time, with tears of joy.

Fast forward to the fall of 2018. Longtime readers may remember my story about when I volunteered for the historic home tour in Noblesville that year. Two strangers approached me – Julie and Joan (pronounced Jo-Anne) – and told me they were former readers of my newspaper column.

“We think you need to bring it back,” they said. I was flabbergasted. I had stopped writing my column a few years previously. I had enjoyed it, but the paper carrying the column wasn’t reaching as many people as it used to.

“Oh … wow …” I said. “Yeah, I’ll think about it.”

Let’s just say Juile and Joan were VERY persuasive – thank goodness. Hearing these two ladies was the push I needed to return to writing my columns. Eight years later, I’m still at it. I write for not only The Reporter, but the Kokomo Tribune as well.

I grew up reading Erma Bombeck columns, stories, and books. I’ve always said if I could ever be half as good as she was, I’d be thrilled. Erma touched so many lives.

Writing this column week in and week out means so much to me. When people stop me and talk about a topic I’ve written about, I enjoy discussing it with them. I feel like, in a small way, I’m sharing life with family, friends, and yes – strangers.

We all need to share life with others, don’t we? I think one of the greatest ways we can do this is to speak up and encourage one another, even people we don’t know. It’s such a simple way to spread a little kindness, and so often those words may propel someone onto a life-changing path for the better.

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again. Julie and Joan, THANK YOU for pausing on a beautiful fall day in 2018 to share your encouraging words. You’re a shining example of the difference a brief conversation can make in the life of someone else.

Amy Shankland is an empty-nester, writer, and fundraising professional living in Noblesville with her husband John and two dogs. You can reach her via email at amys@greenavenue.info.