One Simple Thing Anyone Can Do to Have a Better Day

Today as I was walking down the highway to the harbor looking at the parking lot, my phone rang. I didn't have very good days.

I walked past chic restaurants and designer shops showing tempting outfits. However, with the second demolition in two years, the mortgage had to be repaid and months gone by, this trivial matter of indulgence was almost overwhelming.

For the past two years, I have felt depressed, sad, depressed, lonely, and unworthy more often than I have ever felt happy, happy, happy, loved, or appreciated.

I have had worse days than good, but I was on my way up. I was reading self-help books and taking advice that helped me. I was writing and painting, two things I had left behind in an effort to strengthen the company.

Gradually, I was rebuilding myself, but the little obstacles still had the power to take me out.

I was very sad, but I had been booked a few times, and I was going back to my family overseas.

I would go back to the most important people and I didn’t care. I was taking steps to get to my well-being. I realized that only I could change my life. I believed I had the strength and power to overcome my challenges and be a better person to see for myself.

But back on the phone. While answering the phone call, I realized that it was a promotional call from an international charity that I had supported a few years ago while working.

I was expecting it to be a request for donations. It annoyed me that this man would call me for money when I, myself, was counting every penny so that I could earn a living in one of the most expensive cities in the world.

At a deeper level, my feelings of inadequacy were reinforced because I would have to deny his request. My condition began to darken.

While this young man with his charming Irish style was discussing the move to provide drinking water to millions around the world, I was tempted to hang up the phone. I was almost appointed and I couldn't talk for long. Why did it matter that I hung up the phone? I would remove the phone from my ear and hit the red button.

However, something made me stop.

I reminded myself that the world is not around me. The person calling me does not know my condition. He just does his job. When I despise him, I spread hatred and indifference. He didn't deserve that. This was my chance, albeit a small one, to make a better decision.

So I sat in line and listened to what he had to say. For the first time, I informed him that I had a few minutes to relax and that I would have to hang up the phone soon. You may have thought I was just making excuses, but you moved on at a fast pace that was somewhat appealing. It made me smile.

As I approached my destination, I apologized and excused myself from the conversation. My caller thanked me for my time and promised to call again sometime when I was not staying.

This little event lasted five minutes but it was an important guide for my day. I was so happy to be polite and respectful to someone I didn’t know for a few minutes. I’d like to think I didn’t hurt someone else’s feelings, even if he was a stranger.

If I had chosen to abruptly hang up the phone, I would have carried the indifference all day long. Instead, the determined Irish chapter illuminated my day a little with his enthusiasm.

I have seen recently that every little thought, every decision, every step we take has a profound effect on us, and on the world around us.

Older to me, in my sense of superiority and privilege, I would have hung up the phone without thinking twice. Older I would consider my time the most appropriate to spend on a phone like this, a good reason though it may be.

I also realized that all communication is an opportunity to do good and to receive good, whether it be a phone call, a shopping trip, or even a consideration of the people you travel with when you play music on the train.

Today I also realized that I have become a better person, almost without realizing it. I feel like I care more about the world around me, more humble about my place in it. That makes me feel happy and satisfied.

And all you need is one phone.

So make an effort to make all your communication work. To face the world with a smile and a kind voice. If you throw grace in the world, you will go back, repeated many times over