Bravery in a Small Package

"I just do all I can and that's all I can do."

• Joy Haver
  

Bravery in a Small Package

I didn't intend to learn one of the great lessons of my life in that moment. And, I didn't intend to watch a person of such small stature grow into the largest, bravest person I've ever witnessed right before my eyes. But, it all happened in a moment as I made a brief, albeit important stop as I walked down the hall from my office.

Near the entrance to my office is a countertop that extends up to about four feet in height and behind this sits a small, quiet woman of great stature. There are times when walking past doesn't yield a view of her, except for the top of her head as she sits using the computer to do her work. Yet, on this day my view was changed by a simple encounter.

I stopped because it appeared to me as if an uncharacteristic burden seemed to be expressed across her brow. For this is a brow, usually alight with a twinkle nestled in the eyes just below. So much so that I have often marveled that such a countenance is the perfect match for her name, Joy. This day though, the twinkle had faded and the Joy I know was not the same. I was soon to learn why.

As I spoke with her I watched as she used all she had to keep back tears that were so ready to flow. There were only a few times when she had to push back the salty water with her fingers. My heart ached as I listened to her tell me of her challenges.

Her husband is fighting cancer and the chemotherapy is not going well. And, as if that's not enough she flew to Rhode Island last weekend to rescue he aged mother and bring her to the shelter of her own home. Yet, her she was, determined to be on the job each and every day so she could provide the much needed financial support necessary to sustain her family. She is engaged in a most noble cause indeed!

I walked down the hall in an effort to gain a little respite from the rigors of my own business and what I found was a changed perspective. I found that bravery can come in small packages and in seemingly small ways. I found that a giant can be seen amongst us, hidden in a small body. I found an example of goodness and grace that can scarcely be equaled.

Perhaps most importantly, I've learned that the greatest people are those living as part of our lives. They aren't the most famous and they aren't generally on television. They don't have throngs of people chanting their names in stadiums and they don't have photographers chasing them around. They're our friends and neighbors. They're the people we can buoy up with a listening ear and a helping hand. I encourage you to find the Joy in your life and help the brave become even braver and the giant in them stand a little taller.