Be Kind and Hustle

Phillip at the Nail Place

11/04/2002

He told me I was special

on the day I hated people.

With one word,

just one,

he corrected my whole

view

of humanity.

Again.

I spent 45 minutes looking for this little poem yesterday. After Wednesday’s terrorist attack in Atlanta, I remembered Phillip. Phillip, who is Korean, who runs a nail salon with his wife and sister and mother-in-law. Phillip, who over 18 years ago shared with me a deep-fried banana and made me feel seen on a day I felt invisible.

Kindness is so underrated. It comes naturally to some people. For others, it’s a conscious choice. I have to admit that I fall into the second category. I’ve trained myself to be kind, to slow down and consider what a person is going through, that I know nothing about, before I respond. To give myself a chance to be compassionate.

And I don’t always succeed.

I am a collection of little kindnesses, stored away like colorful scarves waiting for me to choose the one I need to wear today so I can give what I’ve been given. Each time someone offered me their best instead of their worst, they taught me how to show up for other people, how I needed to show up for myself. It’s easy to be invisible to yourself.

The only time we doubt the impact one person can have is when we are considering our own. We all have that one teacher, that one friend, that one mentor who took enough time out of their own busy schedule, where they were worried about paying bills or a sick family member, to see us in the moment and show us how we could be a better version of ourselves. We’ve all experienced the power of one. And all too often forget that we also possess that power. The next time we have a chance to be the only smile a person sees, which will probably be tomorrow, and will probably happen without our even knowing it, I hope we choose kindness.