Many many moons ago I walked out to my car one day after work and found a note on my car and I was afraid. Recently, I had been the victim of a hate crime and was scared this was the start of another attack. I ran back into work and had a co worker come out with me incase something happened. Hesitantly I picked up the note and read it. I would never have expected those simple words on that note to mean so much.
The note was from a former military wife. She saw my blue star sticker on my car and because she had been there before; felt the need to leave behind a simple message of gratitude and support. What she left me with was much more and it laid the groundwork for me to play it forward.
“I am who I am today because of the choices I made yesterday”, written by Eleanor Roosevelt. That simple and plain act I will never forget and impacted me at a time and place in my life that has helped form a part of me today. I never pass up a chance thank someone for their service because maybe no one has stopped to do so. It is not common for people to do so anymore. It is so uncommon that Hubs has been approached once and had no idea how to respond. I had to for him.
The story I am about to share with you is no different. This story doesn’t involve the military or soldiers. It centers around the beginning of teaching and laying the groundwork to play it forward. Many of us can relate to how a simple act can be so powerful. It’s like a little pat on the back saying “good job mom. Your doing all the right things.” In the situation we share as parents of ASD kids we all need these little “gold stars” on our chart. We rarely get the positive ones.
The following story is one posted by a member of a group on Facebook. With her permission I’m sharing her story and the photo.
“Last night we went out to dinner. A woman was sitting across the room from us and i noticed her paying a lot of attention to us. As we were finishing up, she came over with a brown paper bag and asked if she could give it to my son.
Not wanting to be rude, i said ok.
On the bag was a handwritten note saying how impressed she was with his manners and his behavior. Inside the bag was two dollars.
I went over to thank her and started to cry. I explained that what her message meant to me considering that three years ago i was terrified.to take my son into public places due.to his autism and his behaviors.
My son is seven, and most of the time things aren’t so pleasant when we go places, but that was a message I needed to hear..”
Don’t be afraid or embarrassed to approach someone with a positive comment. You might not know how their day, week, or year has been. Your comment might just be the one thing that pushes them forward and keeps them going.