“You’re beautiful…”
“You have amazing hair…”
“You are such a pretty girl…”
Everyone loves these kinds of compliments, right? Don’t get me wrong, I always love hearing nice things about myself; it’s definitely an ego boost. However, I was recently told such a genuine, different kind of compliment that it literally left me speechless. It was just your typical day at work, taking orders, running food, etc. During our slow period, I was making small talk with this elderly woman while I bagged up her food. As I handed her the bag, she touched my hand and paused for a moment.
“Thank you for everything,” she said. “You are such a kind soul… I can see it in your eyes.”
I was so surprised to hear something so genuine from someone I had only interacted with for a few brief moments. I smiled and thanked her as she went on her way, but her words stuck with me all day. It got me thinking—why do we hold back on our compliments to others? I mean let’s be honest, if we see someone in the store with great shoes the best that we can muster up is “I like your shoes” or maybe “those are really cute!”. But why do we only compliment what we can see on the outside?
It was so refreshing to hear something nice said of my character rather than my appearance. That woman showed me true kindness, and I wish it was something that happened more often. I think people hold back with what they say, in fear of embarrassment. I know I’ve definitely held my tongue in situations just because I didn’t know the person very well and I thought it might be weird to say something. But honestly, how silly is that? We have so much power with our words.
We have the power to completely change someone’s day around! Our words affect the relationships we have, the affect we have on others, and affect we have on ourselves. Words can honestly do so much damage… but they can also do so much good, if we choose to consciously use our power for good.
I am actively going to make it one of my goals to only spew kindness. I choose to do good with my power. I choose to spread light, and love, and empowerment to others. I choose to compliment what I see on the inside, and not just the outside.
I choose love, because love.is.everything
.
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