The Greatest Gift

I appreciate your patience and support as life and death have trampled all over my plans and routines and ability to think all too clearly.

Today is the day of my dad’s funeral. It’s going to be a long and heavy day, so I won’t write a lot here. But I wanted to give you something that my dad gave me and also gave to pretty much everyone he ever met.

He believed in me. Even when I didn’t.

It wasn’t something he reserved for people he thought stood head and shoulders above everyone else. He didn’t hand pick his favorites and disregard the commonfolk. In his mind, no one was common. He saw the best, the unique, in everyone because he believed we all bring something powerful, something wonderful to this world.

And I want you to know from the very depths of my soul that I believe in you. You are amazing—but nowhere near as amazing as you will grow to be. It might not show up in headlines or bestseller lists or viral posts—it very well may and certainly should—but the truly one-of-a-kind gifts you bring to this world will brighten the lives of the people you meet. You have the power to make people’s lives better simply by being exactly who you are.

We’re all we’ve got on this planet. And I’m really glad we have you.