My Cup Runneth Over

I've been thinking a lot lately about how many truly WONDERFUL people I know, and how incredibly fortunate I've been to spend my whole life surrounded by people of great intelligence, wisdom, character, adventure, spirit, and heart. Who I am today is a composite of all that these individuals have contributed to my life over the past 33 years. And what's so great is that the more wonderful people you know, the more wonderful people you GET to know. So many people in my life today are here because I met them through friends or family who valued them and wanted to share that value with me. It's such a blessing to look in every direction of my life and see people who make me better, whether by sharing their life's knowledge/experience with me, influencing me with their character, or genuinely investing in my personal (or professional) growth. The concept "pay it forward" doesn't always have to be an intentional pursuit; in many cases, it's a natural consequence that comes from an abundance of goodness. When people who care for us pour their life into us, it multiplies and spills out of us, touching those whom WE care for. "My cup runneth over" becomes a reality....and deep calls unto deep.

I sat down to write about two quotes that a Facebook "friend" posted. This person is my coworker's aunt, someone who lives out of state and whom I would not have the occasion to know much about, but for Facebook, and she is just a LOVELY woman. She posts the most encouraging and uplifting quotes. It was in thinking about how fortunate I am to be connected to someone like her that I realized, my life is just FULL of such goodness, and always has been. My first inclination is to thank my parents, for starting me down the path of knowing great people at such a young age (yes, that's me at about 3 years old), but I realize this providence is entirely Divine. Last Sunday morning these ideas were again pressed into my heart as I read this verse from Psalm 16: "The lines have fallen to me in pleasant places; indeed, my heritage is beautiful to me."

If you're reading this, you're one of the many exceptional people I know (we are ALL exceptional) and I'm full of gratitude for your presence in my life. Thank you for being you and for sharing that with me!