Blog #729: I Sat Next To One

Jan 29, 2026Blog Post

We might not see them…
But they’re everywhere.

They’ve risen from the ashes.

On a recent flight…
I sat next to one.

______

When you’re taller…

You consider it a small miracle when you get a rare seat with extra legroom in the emergency section on Southwest. On Sunday, I got lucky and found one.

It was a row of only two seats, and the first was already occupied.

I asked Seat #1 for permission to sit next to her.

______

Our conversation lit up fast.

She was a charismatic people person.

She had spent all day trying to get home from Florida, where she continually ran into cancelled flights. She had just won a national salesperson award…and so her flight exhaustion was leveled out by the feel of her recent success.

But that was not her most inspiring story.

Her husband shockingly had died two years before.

Now at age 38, she was a widow raising two young boys.

______

And she had found a way to rise again.

She had pushed her way through her intense life fire walk.

She was now moving forward like a super-powered locomotive.

Today…

She is succeeding mightily as a single mom.

She has a kick-ass career making great money.

She is a health-guru inspiring other women.

All…

Despite the intense life crash that had crushed her just two years prior.

______

Inspiration.

I find mine not because I’m inspiring by birth.

I find mine by soaking in the inspiration of others I meet.

But that part is no coincidence.

I see new faces.

And I meet them purposefully.

______

Be a “meeter.”

Meet the ones who stand next to you at the store.

Meet the ones who sit next to you on the plane.

Meet the ones who lay their yoga mat next to you at the gym.

Meet new people.

I’ve learned again and again and again…

When my head finds the courage to meet someone new…

My heart gets inspired by the stories my ears hear.

______

Living consistently inspired is freakin’ tough.

But…

When we tap into the inspiration of others…

We find a way to keep our own inspiration alive.

Meet new faces.

They hide an inspiration waiting to be shared.

For you to find.

And feel.

S.

 

(Audio version)

EXTRA Thoughts

Life doesn’t get old when we keep meeting the new.

Missed last week’s blog?

Inside us hides two phtographs.

Curious?

Here’s the link of last week’s blog:

Do You See Both?

May health, happiness, and harmony be your best friends this week.

Thank you for reading today.

With appreciation and gratitude…

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