Sunday Night With John: An Uplifting Story

An Uplifting Story 

John Paul Derryberry 

One hundred percent of me loves the line from The Dark Knight, "Some Men Want to Watch the World Burn." Five percent of me sometimes thinks this way. I'm not proud of this fact, nor do I actively seek out this side of my personality. Sometimes through the course of life decisions, I can control this side. But, with those I cannot manage, my worst personality trait pops up. The unfortunate part is that I'm like 50% stubborn, which most of the time leads to success because I refuse to give up. However, on occasion, it leads to my failure. I get too stubborn to realize I'm wrong and am allowing my bad 5% to drive. At those times, I need to start listening to those around me who love and care for me. 

My wife and I were driving back to her parents for a long weekend. We were chatting about our careers, next steps and plotting where we were heading. My wife casually said, "Your Sunday Night With John has been rather preachy lately. You are at your best when you lean into your compassion for others, the joy you have for life, and how you almost always find the right words to offer hope, not a condemnation, to your audience."  As the conversation continued to move through various topics, I kept coming back to her two-sentence critique of my recent blog.

Was the 5% of me who wants the world to burn going to lead the way, because that's never good. I have learned that sometimes my wife knows me better than I know myself and I should listen. Wouldn't the world be a better place if we all listened more to those who know us best?  She has learned to say these critiques casually so I will hear her. I went back to re-read my last couple of blogs and reviewed the blogs I have planned out for September.  I shook my head in disgust. She was right. 

For various reasons, I had slipped into the 5% of me that I dislike. I scraped the plan and, instead, wrote an uplifting blog about my dog on Sunday morning. My editor emailed and said she was happy to see me return to a better writing form. The response from you, my audience, was more profound, and I like to think it was more than just the adorable picture of my dog included in the post.

That's the thing about course changes in life. They are nothing like the narratives we create in our heads. The uplifting crescendo of an epiphany moment rarely occurs as large and loud.  Profound moments are the quiet contemplations where someone says something that lands on us softly enough to not startle our defenses but sufficient enough for us to notice. Most crucial, they contain a reflection of our beauty. 

The best part of me is the 95% lead-with-compassion side, and when my compass veers off my true north, I fail. That's where loving people, like my wife, come in and quickly remind me of the heights I achieve when I I lead with my best. You want to change lives? Lose the monologue in your head that thuds like a hammer. For a truly uplifting story, craft a quick two-second reminder of what makes the person you are trying to help amazing. Then, sit back and watch your handiwork grow into a life-altering moment for them and those around them.