August 2024
This morning, I stumbled across a video of Fred Rogers (of Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood fame) accepting his Lifetime Achievement Award in 1997. His speech focused on the people who made him who he is, and he spoke directly to the audience in this brief but powerful exercise:
“All of us have special ones who loved us into being. Would you just take, along with me, ten seconds to think of the people who have helped you become who you are? Those who have cared about you and wanted what was best for you in life. Ten seconds of silence. I’ll watch the time.”
During the ten seconds the camera panned to the audience, most of whom were teary-eyed yet smiling, appearing lit from within as they thought of the people who, as Fred Rogers so beautifully said, loved them into being.
Take your own ten seconds now, to think of all the people who have loved you into being. They could be sitting next to you right now, or they may be across the ocean, or they may have passed away. Let’s take that ten seconds now.
How was that for you? Who came to mind? What memories arose? How did that ten seconds make you feel?
For me, a vivid memory of my parents came to mind. When I was a child, Mom and I used to bring Dad’s lunch to him at Maine Medical Center where he worked. On this day that came to mind, it was warm and sunny at the top of the hill in Portland, Maine’s West End neighborhood. The car windows were open and the song “Ebony and Ivory” by Paul McCartney and Stevie Wonder was playing on the radio. I can see Dad approaching, a big smile on his face, and Mom and I excited to see him.
Deep gratitude arose from this memory. Despite problems that arose from addiction, despite attentions being divided at times due to all that was happening in our little family, my parents gave me all their love in all the ways they could. Most importantly, they showed me what it looks like to never give up on someone you love. They showed me that love requires daily re-commitment to each other, a choice to keep showing up no matter what. I am very grateful to have grown up in such an environment. It was very hard at times, but we always remained “The Three Bears,” as Dad liked to call us. They never gave up on each other, and they never gave up on me. What a blessing.
I invite you to take these ten seconds here and there and think of all the special people who have loved you into being. Cultivate that gratitude and then, pay it forward. I guarantee that you come up in others’ ten seconds, as a special one who has loved them into being.
