“This spring, I took my puppy for a short walk. We got about halfway around the block when our mail lady pulled up next to us and turned off her truck.
“You got a new puppy?!”
I nodded proudly, beaming at my fuzzy new friend. It felt good to walk with a dog again after losing both our dogs last year.
I’d been dragging myself around the block alone for months, begrudgingly trying to pump some fulfillment into the walks I used to enjoy so much with my best friends.
“I noticed there hasn’t been anyone barking at me from your window for awhile. I’m sorry. I’m really happy for you and your family. She’s adorable!”
We hadn’t exchanged more than brief pleasantries in the years since she’s delivered our mail, so I was surprised by the sudden familiarity. Heck, I was surprised she even recognized me outside the context of my own driveway.
But she did. And she took a chance by letting me know she sees me.
It was comforting to know that during a really tough time in my life, someone had noticed. She’d been thinking of us.
And she stopped to take thirty seconds out of her day to let me know. To acknowledge our journey through grief and joy in the last year.
We’re never as alone as we feel.
And crossing the threshold of formality to recognize someone’s grief or happiness or hardship or prosperity can mean the world to someone going through it.
Feeling seen is feeling human. And it can take only seconds to brighten someone’s day.”
