Every once in a while, if you are fortunate enough, you will hear something and it will change your life. Forever. I'm not talking about the first time you hear, "I love you" from your true love, or the sounds of an accident that you'll never forget, although these examples are inarguably momentous occasions.
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In my case, I am talking about something that Oprah said during the final taping of her last episode. Now, I was not a faithful Oprah watcher. Truth be told, she sometimes got on my nerves, with her hootin' and hollerin' and always checking herself in the monitor. But that last show was probably the best one I've seen and she said something that struck a chord:
I’ve talked to nearly 30,000 people on this show, and all 30,000 had one thing in common: They all wanted validation. If I could reach through this television and sit on your sofa or sit on a stool in your kitchen right now, I would tell you that every single person you will ever meet shares that common desire. They want to know: ‘Do you see me? Do you hear me? Does what I say mean anything to you?’
Understanding that one principle, that everybody wants to be heard, has allowed me to hold the microphone for you all these years with the least amount of judgment. Now I can’t say I wasn’t judging some days. Some days, I had to judge just a little bit. But it’s helped me to stand and to try to do that with an open mind and to do it with an open heart. It has worked for this platform, and I guarantee you it will work for yours. Try it with your children, your husband, your wife, your boss, your friends. Validate them. ‘I see you. I hear you. And what you say matters to me.’
[via La Vita e' Bella]
And just like that, it stuck with me. Left me wondering about it, rolling it around in my mouth like savouring a Werther's candy. It made me realize that I do sometimes (shamefully) only listen with half an ear, instead of devoting my full attention to that person, validating that "Yes, I see you. I hear you and what you say matters to me."
Here's your challenge this week:
Scrapbook about something that has brought about change or that has touched your life in some significant way. It can be a monumental change, that causes you to make life-altering decisions, or a minute change - it's up to you.
We have company with us for two weeks (hence the delay in posing the challenge this week), but I am hopefully scrapping in the near future and will add my layout when I am done!
If you'd like to participate in this year long challenge, please share your layout below, using Linky Tools, by 11:59pm EST on December 31st, 2011. Please see the Leave Your Legacy page for guidelines, before linking here. Winners will be announced on January 1st, 2012.
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