You never know whose life you could impact.
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Click here for previous posts in this series.
How would history have been different if people hadn’t shared early and important inventions such as the wheel, nails, the compass, or magnifying lenses? What wouldn’t have been printed if it hadn’t been for Johannes Gutenberg? How would the ability to communicate over distance been affected without Alexander Graham Bell? What if Thomas Edison kept secret his completely functional lighting system? How much more illness would there have been left untreated if Alexander Fleming hadn’t noticed a moldy Petri dish of the fungus Penicillin in his laboratory?
These people all made a conscious decision to share. They shared their thoughts, words, and deeds with us.
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The history of things that are very important to life today is long and distinguished. Have you ever thought about how your life would be different without them? Sure, it’s quite possible all of them would’ve eventually been invented or improved upon if the above-mentioned folks hadn’t shared their discoveries. But would the impact that we see today have been the same?
That’s a rhetorical question, of course, because there’s not a real answer for it. But translate that train of thought into other areas of life and the consideration is just as important. If you have an experience, a story of some kind that would benefit others to know about it, then you should share it. Don’t be stingy. We’re taught from the time we’re toddlers that sharing is good; in a lot of cultures, it’s expected. When you’re older than a toddler, you should have the social skill of sharing “down pat.” Sharing isn’t relegated to only physical things like chocolate chip cookies. It’s also important to share intangible things like friendship. But it’s equally as important to share your story.
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Consider for a moment each of these historical figures: Jesus, William Shakespeare, Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther, Albert Einstein, Leonardo da Vinci, Ronald Reagan, Paul the Apostle, Edgar Allen Poe, Mother Theresa, and Corrie ten Boom. Whether or not you agree with their political position, religious stance, artistic genre or life choices, you do have to admit each of those people had an impact on their world. Our world. Each of them are readily recognizable because of the legacy they left behind. Because their words and presence were highly significant.
These people all made a conscious decision to share. They shared their thoughts, words, and deeds with us. Do this one quick exercise for me: choose any one of those folks and imagine erasing them and their impact from history. Things aren’t at all the same, are they?
It would be incredibly selfish of me to just sit on all the things I’ve gleaned along the way.
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That’s how it is with anyone today, too, who has something to share. This series of articles is entitled “Every Family Has a Story.” Your family is included. Our family is included as well. Our family actually has many stories to share. The story that is the running theme through this series is that we have two special needs children and although that has created many challenges in our lives, it has also been the source of unexplainable joy. I feel it’s not just my privilege to share about our ups and downs, I think it’s my responsibility.
It would be incredibly selfish of me to just sit on all the things I’ve gleaned along the way. If I notice someone who has similar struggles, and I just let them suffer in silence, all alone, and not offer a helping hand, that’d be heartless. You’ve probably been challenged before with the idea that if you had found the cure for a kind of cancer and kept your discovery a secret, it’d be one of the most selfish acts of all human history.
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If you open your eyes to the possibilities, it’s amazing to see just how many people you can relate to.
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Maybe you’re not hiding a cure for cancer, but you may be holding back on sharing a difficult struggle that you’ve beautifully triumphed through. Don’t be stingy—share your story! Someone out there really needs to hear it. They need to know they’re not alone. They need to hear that they’ll survive their circumstances. They may need some advice on how to handle it, or obstacles that can be avoided. They need to know that they can be triumphant too. You don’t know what kind of an impact your testimony may have on another person; it could really change their outlook or even the course of their life.
When you’re ready to step forward and start sharing, how do you go about it? There are any number of ways to share your story. Mention it on social media. Start writing a blog or even a book. Contact the hospital, agency, organization, etc. that was significant in your journey and let them know you’re willing to talk to people who are beginning theirs. Sometimes for me, it’s as simple as exchanging supportive glances with another parent of a child with autism. If you open your eyes to the possibilities, it’s amazing to see just how many people you can relate to. It’s just as important for you as it is for the other person when you share your story, because we were never meant to walk alone.
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