The Daughter

"Why are you taking a math class if you've already graduated college?" I asked The Daughter. She smelled of smoke.

"Listen, I'm 28, my psychology degree was worthless soI don't have a job, and I live in a house my parents own. In order for me to be able to teach in Utah, I need my teaching license. And I have to take this class to get it."

She explained she lives in a big home in an expensive resort town. She skis everyday...doesn't have to pay for anything. As she explained: "It's daddy's money."

It seemed like she had the perfect life.

"What a set-up," I said.

"Yeah, it's nice, but I need to break away. I'm sick of living off my parents...ya know?"

Independence is something we naturally crave. Whether we're 10 years old and want the freedom to our bikes to a gas station for a Slurpee, 16 and want the freedom to drive ourselves to prom, 28 and want the freedom to live on our own, or 88 and want the freedom to live on our own.

I hope The Daughter succeeds in transitioning into that next phase of independence. And if she needs someone to tend that resort house, she can call me up any time.

The Insurance Salesman

The Insurance Salesman is obviously a well-off man, about the age of 60-70. He owns his own office building, and has many clients. But he's only been in the industry for seven years.

"What did you do before this?"

"I've had five careers!" he exclaims.

"Well, which was your favorite?"

"My first career, when I was a farmer for 20 years! I loved being a farmer, but I couldn't support a family, and the business is very hard. When you're not farming, you're trying to find buyers for your product and haggling prices. The time commitment was hard on my family, so I switched. Now, I own five businesses."

If at first you don't succeed... :)

The Politician's Wife

Today I met the wife of a local politician. When I met her, she was standing in front of her torn-up lawn in the rain, with two of her kids playing in the mud.

I asked her what the hardest part about being a politician's wife is--expecting it to be something like "Everybody hates you." Instead, she said, "Actually, the hardest thing about being in politics is time. When my husband's not at work, he is at meetings...pretty much every weekend. So, on Saturday, instead of daddy playing ball with the kids, mommy is out there playing ball with them."

Noticing her torn-up lawn, I commented, "I see you've had some lawn issues..."

She told me her husband did something at a political meeting that other members didn't like, so they wrote an obscene word across her front lawn with laundry soap. She found it on Mother's Day morning.

I began to wonder how many times do I say things that might hurt others? How many times do I forget that each person is unique and loved by God? And suddenly, I realize: I write on lawns with laundry soap, too.

The Financier

I met the Head of Finance for a large company today. He had the most beautiful pictures on the walls of his spacious office. Amazing portraits from all over the world. I asked him how he got to the position he is in.

"I started working at this company 15 years ago, when I was 15 years old, just doing computer stuff. I received more and more responsibility, and found I have a knack for finance."

I was so impressed at the dedication and hard-work that paid off for this man. I was also impressed at the beautiful art on his wall. I asked where he got them.

"Actually, I photographed all of these," he replied. "I do photography on vacations, and have taken pictures all over the world." These are all his photographs.

Thanks for teaching me a valuable lesson: Your life's work might revolve around money, but your life must revolve around something better.

To The Financier: Thanks for the photographs! You have an amazing talent.

The Check Maker

The Check Maker works for a company that manufactures personal checks. I asked him what was the funniest personalized-check request he'd ever received.

"Probably this guy who made us write 'You're in America...now speak English' on the top of all his personal checks. I mean think about it--he is racially insulting the person he is giving both his name, address and checking account number to!"

Hilarious!

"The biggest mess up I've ever seen is when a lady called in and asked that her personal checks have the word 'Mrs. So-and-so' printed as her name. She ended up with checks that said 'Mistress So-and-so.' Needless to say, she was furious!"

Laughing at someone's funny story turns them into a hero for a second. In conversation, the most important thing is to make the other person feel important.

The Green Thumb

Today I woke up early and did some service planting flowers for our city. I stopped and chatted with the man giving orders.

"You must love to plant flowers!"

He said he oversaw the entire city irrigation system, which is pretty cool. So I asked him how he got to that position.

"About 27 years ago, I bought a lawn mower and started mowing lawns. I guess I did a good job, because a couple of years later the city hired me to mow lawns. Now I'm the head of irrigation."

He saw I was impressed, so he told me more.

"Check this out: I can turn any sprinkler system on or off from the computer in my office."

This man started with nothing but a lawn mower and work ethic, and now he's runs the irrigation system of a 100,000+ person city.

Thanks, Green Thumb, for teaching me a valuable lesson: It doesn't matter what you do, but how you do it.

The Gym Dancers (Los Bialadores del Gymansio)

It's not every day you see a couple dancing...in the middle of the gym.

"What are you doing?" I asked...even though I could already see what. What I really wanted to know was why.

"Dancing merengue!"

I asked if they would give me lessons right there, and they were happy to do so. So there we were, two native Hondurans and a white guy dancing merengue in the middle of the weight room at the gym (gyms on a Friday night are pretty sparsely populated...so it's not like we didn't have the room!). They were moving their hips, and spinning each other around...I was just trying to keep up.

"Umm...so why are you dancing in the middle of the gym?"

They laughed. "Because it's better than dancing at home!" Of course.

"How so?"

They looked at each other, a bit puzzled. After an awkward pause we all laughed together as they replied "It just is!"

I want to thank those two Hondurans for teaching me a valuable lesson: It doesn't matter where you dance...just that you do it.

For my dance partners: Fue un gusto conocerles. Gracias a ustedes dos por ensenarme esta leccion! No significa donde se biala...solo importa que se biale! Nos vemos en el gymnasio!