Influential Strangers

[Clint]

Have you ever had a stranger say something to you that changed you for life?

I was walking down the street in Long Beach, California 15 years ago. I was there to do a project and I wanted to be home. The project hadn’t started because the contractor didn’t arrive on schedule, so I was just hanging around waiting for them and I was feeling sorry for myself. I didn’t realize how I looked as I watched the sidewalk go by under my feet.

I heard a voice say; “what’s the matter friend, you look like things are pretty bad”. My first reaction was to look at eye level to see who said it but I didn’t see anyone. My gaze drifted down to a man in a wheelchair who was looking up at me. I realized the voice was his.

He was a double amputee (legs) and he was close to loosing his hands. They were all wrapped in gauze and blood was seeping through the gauze. I don’t know what he was suffering from. We spoke briefly as he tried to encourage me. I was pretty embarrassed and didn’t prolong the conversation. I realized it should have been me who was trying to encourage or help him. I’ll never forget the cheer in his voice and his desire to see me lighten up. I’m a lot less prone to feeling sorry for myself now. If I feel down and out, I often think of the man in the wheelchair who hadn’t lost his joy.