Have you ever had that person come into your life who perhaps did things a little differently, who made you think and dig a bit deeper inwardly to see where they were coming from? Their walk was sure and their goals were set, and they exhibited incredible action in executing those goals in order to achieve success. Well, I have experienced this at many levels in my life, but there is one person in particular I choose to share with you as you read my article this month.
I can’t remember the exact date, but I do remember it was a kind and welcoming first meeting. She was professional, very business-like but most definitely friendly. As I reflect on our meeting, I think about what Maya Angelou said: “I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”
Our next meeting was when I dropped off my daughter to attend a cupcake decorating class and my new friend was the instructor. This time I felt so drawn to really get to know her. You could see her business-savvy character shining through, and her intentional concern and care for her students. I am not sure when we met again, but when we did, we began a work of service in our community. There were many things I learned from her. She was truly all about business, sprinkled with kind words but allowing no nonsense when it came to our purpose of work. She would always say to me “Iron Sharpens Iron.” She was so right! When you know your purpose and you are doing purposeful work with one another, you build, motivate and cause the other to grow.
Over the last four years, she has been my business colleague, resident New Orleans Chef at The Bridge, event setup and breakdown partner, my personal accountability mentor, but most of all the “Iron” that I needed. You don’t know what you don’t know until you open up and allow knowledge to be received. It was an honor to work with her these past years, and I have been deeply saddened by her passing. I will miss her oh so dearly.
