If you aspire to "Inspire", how does one go about doing that? Well I think I discovered the answer to that question while being away with my husband on a weekend getaway. I had been thinking that I would need to tap into resources in books, check into communication classes and research how people who have built their lives around their superior abilities to inspire others. While most of that will be very helpful and certainly help to hone my skills, the truth is sometimes our ability to inspire or be inspired by others just happens. When it does, it is glorious! 

It all started at the spa.....

I walked in as the "9:00 appointment" for the day at the spa we were staying at and walked out with my spirit soaring and it wasn't the haircut!

There was an immediate bond with my stylist that day. Within the first 5 minutes we discovered we had many personal traits in common and we felt and chatted during my hour long appointment as if we had been the best of friends for many years. We shared stories about our families, life experiences and I spoke of my journey that started when I wrote and recorded my song "They Believe" and also spoke of the process I went through when I wrote "The Soldiers Left Behind". She was such a great listener and I was thrilled to share with her the message that was intended behind both. I wasn't sharing this information like a laundry list of things I have accomplished in my life. I was just so energized to share my message with someone that had a genuine interest.

As we were finishing up with my new hair style and our discussion, she looked at me and said "you know I have to tell you that we have another thing in common" I could see in her eyes and sensed almost immediately what she was thinking. I then asked her "are you a writer too?" getting more excited. She said that she was and that not only was she writing a book, she was working on a screenplay for a movie. I was instantly inspired by her excitement and she looked at me and said "you have inspired me to keep writing". Those words shook my spirit to the core and I found myself in a state of bliss that was difficult to contain! I encouraged her to share more of writings and was even more excited. I insisted that she needed to keep writing because her ideas where really good. I hated that our time needed to come to an end but my appointment was over and I knew she was busy. As we started to say our goodbyes, she looked at me and said "I wish you lived closer, I would just love to grab a cup of coffee with you and just hang out". I told her I would be thrilled if we could stay in touch and if she would write down her full name so I could keep an eye open for her book. She went above and beyond and actually gave me her phone number and asked me to be sure that I keep in touch!

Walking out of the spa that day I felt as if my spirit was barely being contained in my body. I felt it was literally soaring by such a positive experience! So you see, sometimes the best of inspiration is given and received when we least expect it. She expressed that I inspired her but truth be to tell, I was equally inspired and thrilled to make such a special spiritual connection with a complete stranger.

As I took my walk today I realized that it would serve humanity well for us to find a way to inspire, encourage, or just share a kindness with even those we don't know. Afterall, looking back on the days immediately following 9/11, I was witness to several encounters when complete strangers would just look in the eyes of people standing near them at the grocery store, work, anywhere in public and would just have this "knowing" and genuine concern for their fellow man. We lifted each other up, comforted one another and happily supported one another without complaint, question or hesitation. It occurs to me now that we need to challenge ourselves not to wait for the next crisis to come together, but to show this type of humanity as a daily practice.

I know this won't resolve the whole "world peace" issue but it sure would be a great first step!

Lesson for the day: Inspiration can be an equal blessing for both the person giving and receiving..

Wishing you Love, Happiness and Light!

Until next time,

Laura D.