Walk Across The Room

Today as I was eating Easter lunch with family at a restaurant in Houston, I was reminded of something very important.

Halfway through the lunch, I had gotten up to go over near the salad bar, and as I did, I noticed that the music which I had been enjoying was actually being played by a man with a saxophone in the corner of the room.

As I walked closer to him, I noticed that he was playing his heart out, and yet no one else seemed to notice or pay him any attention.

I slowly approached him, and as he lowed his sax I smiled and told him how incredible he sounded. Thats it. A simple smile and a short sentence of encouragement. As I walked off, I didn't think anything else of it.

About 30 minutes later I was in the middle of telling a story to my family when I felt a tap on my shoulder. I turned around and to my surprise it was none other than the saxophone player. 

He looked at me with excitement and said, "I just wanted to thank you for your encouragement. It really meant a lot." He then handed me his card and he was gone.

That really made me stop and think about life.

There are so many people all around us who are playing their hearts everyday, and yet, many of us never even walk across the room and give them a compliment, a pat on the back, or even just a simple sentence of encouragement.

I'll tell you this, I will never forget how heartfelt and honest that man looked as he thanked me for a sentence that took me 3 seconds to say. I wouldn't be surprised if that was the only compliment he got all day.

Today reminded me that we should look for people to encourage every day. The truth is that we all need encouragement. Everyone does. It can change a whole attitude and brighten someones whole week.

Let's encourage more people this year.