One good turn

Most of the guys sat in the back of the van. We were on a youth group trip to a Pittsburgh Pirates baseball game. On the way to the game, two of the guys talked about ditching the adult chaperones and trying to get served beer. There were a few girls, but most of them sat in the front of the bus. 

As soon as we made it to our seats, a large group of the guys went off on their own to see what “trouble” they could find. They tried to coax me to join them, but I stayed with two other friends and watched the game. I certainly was no choir boy, but knew that the guys were “big talkers” and would spend most of their time roaming the bowels of the stadium than having any real fun. Plus, I loved baseball and rarely got to see the Pirates in person. They were my favorite team, of course, I would stay and watch.

Bad to the bone

Late in the game, several of the guys came back to our seats. They were giggling and joking about the trouble they managed to get into in the park. They claimed they got into a fight with a beer vendor and had to run from an usher. I’m not sure I really believed their claims, but I also didn’t care all that much. 

A few days later, one of the girls on the trip passed me a note in school. We were friendly but not the closest of friends. I opened the note, and it thanked me for being a “stand-up guy” and not falling to peer pressure. I didn’t realize it at the time, but she had witnessed the other guys trying to pressure me. The note didn’t say much else, but just that she appreciated that I wasn’t looking for trouble. 

Humble and kind

I kept the note for a long time in my “encouragement box,” an old shoebox where I kept old report cards, photos, birthday cards, and anything else that encouraged or inspired me. I would pull the note out anytime I needed a pick-me-up.

I’m not sure what brought the note from the recesses of my mind to the present, but it was there this week all the same. The note, as simple as it was, reminded me over the years that a kind word here or there, makes a ton of difference in our lives.

As the old saying goes: one good turn deserves another. Who have you helped today? 

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41 thoughts on “One good turn”

  2. Every morning I ask God that I might bless someone that day. Yesterday I was delighted to share someone’s book, and today encouraging folks to join me in watching an author’s interview via social media! (It’s even encourages me, especially since I had to turn down another book talk out of town because of my health challenges and those of my favorite chauffeur.)

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  4. I love the idea of keeping meaningful items in an ‘encouragement box’. I have something like that, but I haven’t given it a name. I like yours! And nothing about the story is surprising. Stand-up guy…then and now! 😉

    Liked by 4 people

    1. Yes, I’ve had an encouragement box off and on since I was a kid. I’ve gotten back into the practice of it lately. I feel it helps with rainy days when I just feel sad for no reason and the news headlines bum me out. I have one related to writing too, usually it’s stories or blogs that I think are well written or inspire my own writing. I’ve pointed to a few in past posts. I find they help!

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  5. I love that you had an box of encouraging things as a child. I had the same, so I’m now wondering if that’s something that all kids tend toward or if it’s unique to us “writer types”. As Jane mentioned, I loved that the young woman was not only perceptive enough to notice, but also acknowledge your behavior.

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    1. I’m not sure if having an encouragement box is all that common. I don’t know. Some might call it by different things. I just liked having a box that would make me smile. I still try to collect stories or photos that make me laugh or inspire my own writing. I think they definitely help.

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    1. Yea, I don’t know that what I did was all that commendable. I just did what was expected, but the girl’s actions really stuck out to me over the years. I always felt like it took a lot of courage on her part. It made a difference to me any wya!

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  7. That’s a nice story. Not the point, but I’m curious, are you still a Pirates fan? I have become one over the last couple of years bc of Brad’s love for them since a kid. They keep breaking our hearts but what a great stadium! We went a couple of times.

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    1. Ha, ha, that’s actually a funny question Donna. Growing up in Central Pennsylvania, I was a big Pittsburgh fan. I liked the Pirates and Steelers. I grew up when the Steelers were winning all their Super Bowls and was a huge Pirates fan when they won the World Series in 1979. However, I stopped rooting for the Pirates in the early 90s when they continuously traded away their best players for pennies and never put money back into the organization. They’re a hard team to be a fan. I’ve heard great things about their new stadium, but have never gone. I’ve become a traitor. I’ve become a Phillies fan. We usually go to a couple of games a year.

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      1. Oh my goodness, that’s almost verbatim what he says about them, “they continuously trade away their best players for pennies and never put money back into the organization.” He was so disgusted that we boycotted them last year but then they started out this year so good… Anyway, I get that you would cheer for the Phillies. I’m a fair-weather fan and followed the Red Sox when I lived in Boston and they were good. Love Fenway Park. And the year we moved to Seattle was the year the Mariners became great w Griffey and Edgar, etc. I’m pretty much done w the Pirates although I have become fond of some of the players, but as you alluded to, when they get too good they’ll trade them anyway.

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  10. I like that you were not a follower but held true to your own desires. It’s amazing someone noticed you didn’t fall to peer pressure and that she recognized you for it. When my husband started out in his business, I kept an “attaboy” folder for him with kind notes from clients or awards he won.

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  13. Awesome story, Brian, and it’s wonderful that you kept the note and that it provided you with lift all week, and all these years later. A kind word truly does go a long way and it’s so touching to hear that it often goes a further way than the sender may have intended.

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  14. I don’t know if I’m more impressed by the young lady taking the time to write you the note or that you chose not to join the troublemakers. Both are wonderful.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Thank you Dale, but it’s definitely the girl . . . She’s the one who stuck her neck out and encouraged someone else. If you saw the guys I turned down, it wasn’t a tough choice. Ha, ha. I wish I still had the note. It really did encourage me to do my best.

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  16. You’re so right—we never know the impact that we have on others—and others may never know the impact that they have on us. It pays to weigh our words carefully, lest we leave a negative impact vs. a positive one!

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