Wait, What?
I was talking with a friend at work the other day. He shared a story about a previous coworker who had a run-in with a neighbor boy.
Apparently the man spent a lot of time on his front porch, and had several items of value out there (a custom ashtray, for example). One day, he came out onto his porch and noticed the ashtray was missing. Over the next few days he found other items missing. He decided to set up a web-cam to see who was stealing from him.
The recording from the web-cam revealed the culprit to be a 12 year old boy who lived next door. He approached the boy about it, and here is the key: instead of rushing to judgment and going off on the boy, he stopped and asked the boy why he had been taking the man's items. It turns out that the boy's mother had cancer, and he had taken the things to sell in an attempt to get money for her bills.
Okay, so while I don't commend the boy's methods, I do commend his desire to help his mom. What most impressed me about the story was that the man took the time to get more information. Think how many situations in our lives could have very different outcomes if we simply take the time to talk with another and find out more information.
That's the topic of a great book I read a few months ago called, Wait, What?: And Life's Other Essential Questions by James Ryan. In the book, James Ryan shares why it's so important to stop and ask the question that can provide key, needed information, which in turn, can change the whole course of someone's actions.
In the end, the man chose not to notify the police, and instead helped the boy's family by giving them a $200 donation toward their medical bills. Think how many lives were touched and impacted for the better, just because he took the time to ask, Wait, what?"
Blessings.
Apparently the man spent a lot of time on his front porch, and had several items of value out there (a custom ashtray, for example). One day, he came out onto his porch and noticed the ashtray was missing. Over the next few days he found other items missing. He decided to set up a web-cam to see who was stealing from him.
The recording from the web-cam revealed the culprit to be a 12 year old boy who lived next door. He approached the boy about it, and here is the key: instead of rushing to judgment and going off on the boy, he stopped and asked the boy why he had been taking the man's items. It turns out that the boy's mother had cancer, and he had taken the things to sell in an attempt to get money for her bills.
Okay, so while I don't commend the boy's methods, I do commend his desire to help his mom. What most impressed me about the story was that the man took the time to get more information. Think how many situations in our lives could have very different outcomes if we simply take the time to talk with another and find out more information.
That's the topic of a great book I read a few months ago called, Wait, What?: And Life's Other Essential Questions by James Ryan. In the book, James Ryan shares why it's so important to stop and ask the question that can provide key, needed information, which in turn, can change the whole course of someone's actions.
In the end, the man chose not to notify the police, and instead helped the boy's family by giving them a $200 donation toward their medical bills. Think how many lives were touched and impacted for the better, just because he took the time to ask, Wait, what?"
Blessings.
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