Today was slightly crazy. I woke up not feeling well in a hotel in St. Petersburg, Florida, forcing me to scratch my plans to drive to the beach for a morning jog. I slept in and missed hotel breakfast. Missed my exit on the way to see a client, which ended up taking me all the way across the bridge to Tampa and back, which made me late for my appointment. Sweated bullets trying to multi-task driving back to the airport, filling up with gas, returning the rental car, and still holding my meetings with clients on the phone. Didn't have time to get dinner before or between flights...yeah, definitely back in the real world again.
You know what, though? I met some amazing people today that made my entire day worth it.
There is the former musician and current entrepreneur who initially thought I was single because I wasn't wearing a ring (sorry Craig, I'll fix that!). He is my age, loves his dogs, doesn't really have a homebase, travels wherever the wind blows him, really likes to play the field, and never wants to be tied down...even though he said his lifestyle is often un-fulfilling. His fun outlook on life is infectious, but he reminded me that the grass is not always greener on the other side. I am grateful to have roots and a great marriage to ground me.
Then the woman from Tampa who has a toddler and travels as much as I do. We talked about the challenges of being a working mom, how hard it is to leave her daughter when she travels, and how to find the best nanny (?!). She opened up to me and trusted me, a stranger, about some of her deepest fears for her family. From her, I learned about making yourself vulnerable to new people, and about a mothers love.
Finally, the young girl and her one-year old daughter moving from Tampa to NYC to live with her mom because her baby's daddy was on probation and they were going through some hard times. She felt like she needed to move away from him to teach him a lesson and give her daughter a better life. From her, I learned courage, strength and selflessness.
As I sit in my tiny hotel room in Manhattan reflecting on my day, I realize that each of these people and their stories changed me a little. I learned something from each of their struggles, joys and personalities that will stay with me forever...and that beauty overshadows any chaos in my day.
Strangers are beautiful.
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