meaningful exchange
Photo: Evan Kirby
I remember the time when my heart beat so loud in my chest I could hardly wait to open that small gift from the love of my life. Have you ever felt that way? When time stood still and you didn’t want to be anywhere else but there, at that moment? Do you crave connection with real people in real ways?
What if you interfaced with someone who was intensely hungry, arms bare bones, eyes inset, reaching for hope? Or someone on the corner of a street, in the park, or even alone, wondering to yourself who cares for them?
The world lives loud. Competing noises and distractions crowd in, affections are divided, squeezing out time. Reaching for the familiar, something that makes you feel human, someone that speaks your language. You listen, pushing back the minutia and choose what matters.
Then it dawns on you, “I want real; I want words exchanged with people that matter, words that will imprint.. actions creating a visual expression that is touchable, smell-able, lingering.”
My story is about the importance of capturing the intrinsic value of those around us whether we know them or not.
Since I was a young girl, I loved seeing people awakened with hope. I loved it when a word of affirmation was given, when eyes grew large with excitement.
A few years ago, I met a young girl who experienced verbal and physical abuse by her calloused and indifferent father. She shared the torment of the night and dreaded the next morning. I heard in her heart a yearning for tenderness; so I resolved to handcraft a teddy bear out of expensive fur, soft and endearing. I gave her words, something to hold onto and she smiled. I offered friendship and a listening ear. Her life changed that day: and so did mine. A small gesture offered a meaningful exchange, speaking a language of care to a vulnerable heart.
I realized, I am a miner. I like to mine for gold in people; I like to find the gold in circumstances and transpose it into something meaningful and then offer it as a gift. The gift of experience, perhaps the gift of a hand-lettered card or a custom recipe for a day out with questions and conversation starters that inspire new horizons or kaleidascope ideas? The tangible expression of the heartfelt message that says, "I see you."
This blog is about sourcing the hungry heart and the captive ear with ways to mine for gold in people, places, and things. I am a miner, an artist and a creative soul offering color to a monochrome world.