Shine Your Light
Photo by Paolo Nicolello on Unsplash
There was a laundry room in our dorm when I was in college. One day as I was doing laundry, I went to put my clothes in the dryer but it was occupied by someone else’s dry clothes.
I wanted to get finished, so I took the other clothes out of the dryer, put them on the folding table, and then put my clothes in the dryer.
Not such an unusual thing to do, I would think.
Before my clothes were dry, someone came screaming down the hall wanting to know whose clothes were in the dryer.
I popped my head out the door and said they were mine.
“So what did you do with my clothes?” she yelled. “Where are my clothes?”
I walked with her to the laundry room.
“Right there,” I said as I pointed at the pile of folded clothes on the table.
“You folded them?” she asked sweetly.
“Yes,” I said, “I didn’t want them to sit in a heap and get all wrinkly.”
I got to be known for folding clothes that were in the dryer when I did my laundry, and occasionally someone would pass by my dorm room and thank me for folding their clothes.
One time though, a girl stopped by to thank me and I hadn’t done my laundry in days. What a glorious day that was. Someone else was following my lead.
What a gift that is to have someone take your kind gesture and pass it on. Another little piece of light in the world.
Photo by Ryan Hutton on Unsplash
You have a light inside you. We each do. That light is filled with kindness and love.
As Martin Luther King Jr. said so eloquently, “”Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.”
All we have to keep the darkness from taking over are the little lights we put out into the world.
Every little piece of light we send out into the darkness helps to conquer it (or at least keep it at bay) just as when there are so many stars together in the night sky, we can see.
Shine your light out into the world, and with any luck, the next person will pass it on.
If you know someone who would enjoy this post, please pass it on!
I will not be posting next week due to the Thanksgiving holiday. I hope you each have a wonderful time participating in whatever tradition makes you happy!
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Carol,
I really love the message; it’s eloquent and elementary. But I’d be willing to bet that 4 out of 5 people who nod their heads in agreement would seldom go out of their way to shine a light. Why can’t more people get on board?
Keep up the good work. Love ya!!
P
Mr. Chilini,
I have no idea why so many people would rather keep their light to themselves. You get so much more in return when you share it.
There is a segment on a show called Inside the Actor’s Studio. where the host, James Lipton, asks each interviewee the same 10 questions. The tenth question is “If heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the pearly gates?”
I’ve thought long and hard about that question for many years and finally came up with my answer. I’d love to hear Him say, “Well done, my child. I’m proud of you.” What I don’t want to hear is that I did just enough to squeak by.
Unfortunately, not everyone feels that way. I’m afraid that “What’s in it for me?” is a far more popular philosophy than “What can I do for you?”
It’s great to have you on board, and I love you too! (You sparkly diamond!)
What people don’t seem to understand is that if everyone was all about “what can I do for you?” we wouldn’t have to worry about “what’s in it for me?”. All our needs would be taken care of, usually by those whose needs are being taken care of by us. does that make sense?
Absolutely!
A great topic you shine your light everyday to me and all that know you. Thank you so much for this. Every time I see you, your smile just brightens me up. I know God is with us all and it was in his plan for us to be great friends. I love you friend and keep up the good work.
Thanks Lynn, you are one of the lights in my life who inspires me to shine brighter. Thanks for being such a special friend! Love you girl!
My mama would have loved this post. No matter how dark her life got at times she always managed to shine her light in many ways. She would write a simple note of encouragement to someone who was down and out, made a phone call to say I love you to someone who needed to hear that and donated money anonymously to the needy so many times in her lifetime. Her light shown bright to lots of people as we found out during her funeral. So many people came up to us and said, Your mama did this, your mama did that, your mama sent by child to camp, your mama sent food by the house, your mama prayed for me. I will never be my mama but her lessons I pray in a small way washed over me so that I can shine my light as needed. I fall short so many times but I keep trying. Thank you Carol Horton. May God bless you during this time of Thanksgiving and reflection. Prayers for a safe and happy week for you and your entire family. Love you girl. Thanks again.
Thank you Susan. I think you do your mama proud. We may never be our mothers, but their examples will help us be the best people we can be.
Just so you know, your comments are a always light to me. They make me feel like I’m making a difference by sharing my perspective.
Thanks, and God bless you and your family. I wish you a wonderful holiday week!
Love you…c