Small World, Big Influence: Faith

Ohhhhhhhhhhhh how I used to loathe Valentine's Day. LOATHE.

When I worked at IWU, it was impossible to avoid the day-o-love. Students paired off as though they were headed for the ark. The entire Student Center smelled like a florist. {I believe my terminology of choice in the day was "reeked of flowers."} Girls merrily lugged massive bouquets and floated along behind balloons...and then there were the rest of us.

The ones who winced every time the lost-looking delivery guy showed up in the office corridors, clutching flowers while searching out the right office suite. The ones who sat at the front desk and greeted said delivery guy with fake smiles and a "Can I help you find someone?"

One year, our student worker Jenna {who was also single at the time} and I made a pact to wear black from head to toe on Valentine's Day in protest of the flowers, chocolates, and balloons that had taken up residence in our building.

We were cute, I think.

That also happened to be the day I met with a representative from a church directory company about our church's upcoming photo session. I was in charge of being the liaison between the company and the church, and this was my first big impression. On Valentine's Day. In all black.

I explained to the kind lady why I was decked out in mourning, and she laughed with me. She said I would get along very well with her own daughter, who also wasn't fond of the day. I wasn't quite as bitter as I looked, but it was a hard day, to be honest.

Right before the end of the work day, I looked up from my desk to find my friend Faith standing in the doorway, holding a box in her hand. It had fruit roll ups with Disney princesses on the packages. My nickname in college was Princess, and my college friends liked to remind me of that with little princess-y items now and then.

Faith came in and said she knew I probably didn't like the day, but she wanted to make sure I got something from someone, and when she saw the fruit roll-ups in the store, she couldn't pass them up. I smiled because it was just like Faith to remember me on a holiday like that. A couple of years before, she'd brought me a card on Valentine's Day. That year's day of love had been particularly hard, because I'd just broken up with my college boyfriend, and she had said it was important to her that I received something, even if it wasn't from a guy.

She was in a relationship and it would have been easy for her to forget that not everyone had a significant other to share fun days with. She could have been busy planning her own festivities, but she took time to remember me.

And I appreciated that so much.

Faith inspired me to spend several years finding unique ways to reach out on Valentine's Day. To let my single friends know they were special. To stop wearing black and eating Blizzards on the couch...and start finding ways to show love to others.

I think it's pretty appropriate that this story was up next for this little series, because...you know...Valentine's Day is next week. Might be time for all of us to think of people who need some love and reach out to them on a day when they might feel forgotten!