I read this read story some time ago, and decided to bring it to you , please enjoy.
*author unknown *
One day, when I was a freshman in high school, I saw a kid from
my class walking home from school. His name was Kyle. It looked
like he was carrying all of his books, and I thought to myself, "Why
would anyone bring home all his books on a Friday? He must
really be a nerd."
I had quite a weekend planned (parties and a football game with
my friends tomorrow afternoon), so I shrugged my shoulders and
went on. As I was walking, I saw a bunch of kids running toward
him. They ran right up to him, knocking all his books out of his
arms and tripping him so he landed in the dirt. His glasses went
flying, and I saw them land in the grass about ten feet from him.
Then he looked up, and I saw this terrible sadness in his eyes. My
heart went out to him. So, I jogged over to him and as he crawled
around looking for his glasses, and I saw a tear in his eye. As I
handed him his glasses, I said, "Those guys are jerks. They really
should get a life."
He looked at me and said, "Hey thanks!" There was a big smile on
his face. It was one of those smiles that showed real gratitude. I
helped him pick up his books, and asked him where he lived. As it
turned out, he lived near me, so I asked him why I had never seen
him before. He said he had gone to private school before now. I
would have never hung out with a private school kid before. We
talked all the way home, and I carried his books.
He turned out to be a pretty cool kid. I asked him if he wanted to
play football on Saturday with me and my friends. He said yes. We
hung all weekend and the more I got to know Kyle, the more I liked
him, and my friends thought the same of him. Monday morning
came, and there was Kyle with the huge stack of books again. I
stopped him and said, "Boy, you are gonna really build some
serious muscles with this pile of books everyday!"
He just laughed and handed me half the books. Over the next four
years, Kyle and I became best friends. When we were seniors,
began to think about college. Kyle decided on Georgetown, and I
was going to Duke.
I knew that we would always be friends, that the miles would
never be a problem. He was going to be a doctor, and I was going
for business on a football scholarship. Kyle was valedictorian of
our class and I teased him all the time about being a nerd. He had
to prepare a speech for graduation. I was so glad it wasn't me
having to get up there and speak.
On Graduation Day, I saw Kyle. He looked great. He was one of
those guys that really found himself during high school. He filled
out and actually looked good in glasses. He had more dates than
me and all the girls loved him. Boy, sometimes I was jealous.
Today was one of those days.
I could see that he was nervous about his speech. So, I smacked
him on the back and said, "Hey, big guy, you'll be great!" He looked
at me with one of those looks (the really grateful one), and smiled.
"Thanks," he said.
As he started his speech, he cleared his throat, and began.
"Graduation is a time to thank those who helped you make it
through those tough years. Your parents, your teachers, your
siblings, maybe a coach... but mostly your friends. I am here to
tell all of you that being a friend to someone is the best gift you
can give them. I am going to tell you a story."
I just looked at my friend with disbelief as he told the story of the
first day we met . He had planned to kill himself over the weekend.
He talked of how he had cleaned out his locker, so his Mom
wouldn't have to do it later, and was carrying his stuff home. He
looked hard at me and gave me a little smile.
"Thankfully, I was saved. My friend saved me from doing the
unspeakable." I heard the gasp go through the crowd as this
handsome, popular boy told us all about his weakest moment. I
saw his Mom and Dad looking at me and smiling that same
grateful smile. Not until that moment did I realize its depth.
Never underestimate the power of your actions. With one small
gesture you can change a person's life. For better or for worse.
God puts us all in each other's lives to impact one another in some
way. Look for God in others.
"Friends are angels who lift us to our feet when our wings have
trouble remembering how to fly." -- Unknown
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