Posted October 11, 200619 yr I found an old email someone sent me a long time ago, so I thought I would share it with you. The words speak for themselves... 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. 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 friend's 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 at 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. 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, I saw a tear in his eye. As I handed him his glasses, I said, "Those guys are jerks. They really should get lives." 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 out 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, "Dang 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. 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. 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 I did 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.
October 11, 200619 yr Nice Story. I am sure there is a lot of truth to this. seconded. great story. a lesson to live by.
October 11, 200619 yr :o . hmm... good story, but its really... D: its sad that people like that person arent always saved. it reminds me of myself, because i had/have always thought about suicide... D: the reason is simple. because people dont feel for other people sometimes. its very difficult for people to make me angry at them to the point where they are on my list of people i hold a grudge against. theres only 3 people on that list, and one may not even apply anymore. that is why i am always kind to people, because you never know what they may do if you act mean to them. /emo.
October 11, 200619 yr . hmm... good story, but its really... D: its sad that people like that person arent always saved. it reminds me of myself, because i had/have always thought about suicide... D: the reason is simple. because people dont feel for other people sometimes. its very difficult for people to make me angry at them to the point where they are on my list of people i hold a grudge against. theres only 3 people on that list, and one may not even apply anymore. that is why i am always kind to people, because you never know what they may do if you act mean to them. /emo. SteveO, You know its not good to hold grudges, and I will tell you why. You are the only person the grudge is hurting, think of all the waisted emotion put into holding a grudge. I have had people do awful stuff to me in my life as most people have, but the sooner you let go of the anger the better you will feel. I held a grudge for 16 years against an older relative of mine that did things to me that I would rather not say. All it did was made me a very angry and hateful person. Like I said I was the only one I was hurting. And yes I thought about suicide to end the pain, but I could never do something like that, all that does is let them win. If you ever need someone to talk to, pm me sometime and I will listen, I promise you that. Cleatus Great story Gator, I seen it in an e-mail a long time ago, as a matter of fact I have received it on a few occasions, I always read it even though I know the outcome.
October 17, 200618 yr How very brave of him. Risking great redicule, embarrassment, etc ... for the sake of giving thanks and possibly help someone else think twice before choosing something stupid or selfish. He acted unselfishly. Others will have felt better about themselves, knowing they are from alone if they were feeling down about something past, present or future.
October 17, 200618 yr :thumbsup:Wow great story. After I read it made me think a little different about nerds lol jk.
October 18, 200618 yr Wow awsome story i should have stuck up for nerds when I was in school. Oh well maybe someday i will get another chance to help one out!!!
October 20, 200618 yr I was thinking today I was due to give another "Remember who you are TAC!" speech (not that it's really needed, peaple have been behaving lately). However, this Email in it's simple honesty, is much more moving than anything I can say. Thanks for sharing Gator!
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