We’ve already talked about the power of touch. About being grateful and thankful. About building bridges. We’ve covered some topics.
This might be our most important.
Give. Just. Give.
Of yourself. Of your soul. Of your wallet. Of your time. Of your energy. Of. Your. Self.
You may not realize it, but 6 months in, that’s what you’re doing right now. You’re being present. You’re spending time. You’re giving love. And hugs. And holy hell are you giving hugs. It helps that you’re a fairly huggable young man, whose body basically morphs to and absorbs the shape of whatever you hug, but still. Holy hell do you hug.
Where was I? WTH I just lost myself thinking about hugging you by the way. Remember that when I take your car keys away one night.
But give.
Think of progress. Think of your history books. Not even US History, but World History. Think of how we got from Pyramids to Skyscrapers. From Woodrow Wilson to Barack Obama. From suffering to suffrage. From infant mortality to required rear-facing car seats up to like, 90 lbs (I exaggerate, but still.)
We got there because people gave forward. Ideas. Time. Energy. People gave. To make the world better than it was.
I look back on my childhood and even early adulthood and realize I never gave enough, and I never acknowledged, enough, what I was given. Perhaps the most important thing I was given were shoulders. To lean on, to cry on, and then, and now, to stand on.
I ask that you acknowledge always the shoulders you are standing on so you are thankful for what you’ve been given, but perhaps even more importantly, you look up, you look forward, and adjust your shoulders for the feet looking for their foothold. It will come at you sooner than you think. Your ability to make an impact in this world and to give starts on Day 1. (Nice work, by the way.)
You make an amazing elf. You will, undeniably, make, an even more incredible person. I’ll leave the definition of “incredible” to you, forever and for always.
Today you make me proud because in you, I see already, such an incredible ability to give.
Go on and dust your shoulders off, Jaanu.
Suneet Bhatt 