Remember when I told you the story about my mother and the glass of water?...Every day is a personal quest to prove her wrong...that I make a difference...Most days...I barely feel that I make a dent...but I am satisfied to know that it is a new dent...one that would not have existed if I hadn't pushed...
I meet with men and women day in and day out...I hear their stories...help them search for solutions...stand with them as we wait for answers...empathize with their stresses and pains...and encourage patience while I get pushy with services that are supposed to be easy to access...usually the day ends with my exhaustion and their looking forward to another day of waiting...often denials...but not today...
Today...I got to make that call...the one where you tell someone to take a seat...where you ask if they are ready to hear the news...their breath sucks in and their voice quavers...and I let them tell me they are ready...Then I say...yes...you were accepted...yes...you were approved...yes...you were awarded...and then they weep...The most beautiful release of emotions...As if they have never heard those words before...As if they the real reward was that they didn't give up...that they stayed in there and believed...for the first time...
It is almost miraculous to share that moment when someone is rewarded for not giving up on themselves...I have personally had those moments...I have stood in awe of an achievement....that took so long...that I never thought would come...but I held on...
Today...I got to make that call three times...three times I heard someone weep in relief...in joy...in pride for their own stamina...and I thought to myself...I make a difference...every day I make a difference...just by walking in the door...just by returning my calls and finishing my paperwork...every day is a small victory for me...I am everything that no one believed I would be...I haven't just survived...yes...I've overcome...and yes... I've transcended...yes...I leave my footprint...anonymous as it may be...yes...my very existence has purpose...
These are the days...yes...
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