(this is the jared story)
..
Each day is a gift...
and you never know
how you can make the difference.
________________________________________
One day, when I was a freshman in high school, I saw a kid from
my class was walking home from school. His name was Kyle. It
looked like he was carrying all of his books. I thought to
myself, "Why would anyone bring home all his books on a Friday?
He must really be a nerd." I had quite a weekend planned (parties
and a football game with my friends tomorrow afternoon), so I
shrugged my shoulders and went on.
As I was walking, I saw a bunch of kids running toward him. They
ran at him, knocking all his books out of his arms and tripping
him so he landed in the dirt. His glasses went flying, and I saw
them land in the grass about ten feet from him. He looked up and
I saw this terrible sadness in his eyes. My heart went out to
him. So, I jogged over to him and as he crawled around looking
for his glasses, and I saw a tear in his eye. As I handed him his
glasses, I said, "Those guys are jerks. They really should get
lives."
He looked at me and said, "Hey thanks!" There was a big smile on
his face. It was one of those smiles that showed real gratitude.
I helped him pick up his books, and asked him where he lived. As
it turned out, he lived near me, so I asked him why I had never
seen him before. He said he had gone to private school before
now.
I would have never hung out with a private school kid before. We
talked all the way home, and I carried his books. He turned out
to be a pretty cool kid. I asked him if he wanted to play
football on Saturday with me and my friends. He said yes.
We hung all weekend and the more I got to know Kyle, the more I
liked him. And my friends thought the same of him. Monday morning
came, and there was Kyle with the huge stack of books again. I
stopped him and said, "you are gonna really build some serious
muscles with this pile of books everyday!"
He just laughed and handed me half the books.
Over the next four years, Kyle and I became best friends. When we
were seniors, began to think about college. Kyle decided on
Georgetown, and was going to Duke. I knew that we would always be
friends, that the miles would never be a problem. He was going to
be a doctor, and I was going for business on a football
scholarship. Kyle was valedictorian of our class. I teased him
all the time about being a nerd. He had to prepare a speech for
graduation. I was so glad it wasn't me having to get up there and
speak.
Graduation day, I saw Kyle. He looked great. He was one of those
guys that really found himself during high school. He filled out
and actually looked good in glasses. He had more dates than me
and all the girls loved him! Boy, sometimes I was jealous. Today
was one of those days. I could see that he was nervous about his
speech. So, I smacked him on the back and said, "Hey, big guy,
you'll be great!"
He looked at me with one of those looks (the really grateful one)
and smiled. "Thanks," he said.
As he started his speech, he cleared his throat, and began
"Graduation is a time to thank those who helped you make it
through those tough years. Your parents, your teachers, your
siblings, maybe a coach... but mostly your friends. I am here to
tell all of you that being a friend to someone is the best gift
you can give them. I am going to tell you a story."
I just looked at my friend with disbelief as he told the story of
the first day we met. He had planned to kill himself over the
weekend. He talked of how he had cleaned out his locker so his
Mom wouldn't have to do it later and was carrying his stuff home.
He looked hard at me and gave me a little smile. "Thankfully, I
was saved. My friend saved me from doing the unspeakable."
I heard the gasp go through the crowd as this handsome, popular
boy told us all about his weakest moment. I saw his mom and dad
looking at me and smiling that same grateful smile. Not until
that moment did I realize it's depth.
Never underestimate the power of your actions. With one small
gesture you can change a person's life. For better or for worse.
God puts us all in each other's lives to impact one another in
some way. Look for good in others.
Each day is a gift from God! Don't forget to say, "Thank
you!"