Have you ever thought something really nice about someone else, but never told them? I think I do that far too often! I’m trying to develop the habit of actually saying those thoughts when they come…even when it’s a bit awkward!
My husband and I were eating dinner in our favorite Mexican restaurant recently, and there was a family in the booth next to us and they were…loud.
Really. Loud.
They had three kids under the age of 10. The toddler was especially rambunctious! And, as you can guess…they were getting a bit of side-eye from other diners.
I’ll be honest. I would have loved to have a quiet dinner with my husband without the chaos. However, I couldn’t help but notice how patient those parents were. Over and over (and over!), they calmly corrected their kids and tried to keep them reigned in, despite their natural spazzed-out energy. I’m not sure that I would have handled it as well!
As we were getting ready to leave, Mark and I were talking about how impressively calm those parents were and I said ”I need to tell them.” Okay…awkward! I’m naturally pretty outgoing, but I was still a little embarrassed to interrupt their meal.
I shuffled up to them and said “Excuse me, but I just want you to know that you guys are doing a great job with your kids. It’s not always easy, especially when you’re trying to keep them confined in public! Been there, done that!”
Stunned stares. Again…awkward.
Then, the Mom started to tear up. She blinked a few times and simply said “Thank you. You have NO idea how much we needed that!”
Isn’t that awesome?! It didn’t take a lot of effort. I had to step out of my comfort zone a bit, but those few words made such a difference!
Makes me want to push past those awkward feelings, step out of my comfort zone and speak those encouraging things that I usually just think, but never say.
