I recently heard a quote that really stuck with me. To be fair, this really isn’t a rare occasion at all because I have a lot of quotes around my house and a lot of things seem to ‘speak to me’ in different seasons of my life. Bless my husband for dealing with all the motivational quotes scattered throughout our home. (I think he secretly enjoys them.)
The quote that is currently running on a hamster wheel in my noggin is “Be the type of person you want to meet.”
On the surface, this short quotation may seem pretty simple. You could take it as, be nice to others. Or smile at someone every once in a while. But to me, it hits a little deeper.
When I read it the first time, I thought to myself, “Okay, Kaile, who do you want to meet?” And more importantly, what does that say about you? I think, depending on your answer, it says a lot about who you are trying to become. As you can probably assume, this query formed a bit of a mental dilemma in my head.
You see, I’m not 100% sure who or what I am trying to become. But I know I can’t be done becoming that person or ideal already at 23! That seems absurd. I have so much more life to live. How can I be done growing and learning at 23?
I have come to the conclusion that I simply cannot.
In light of this epiphany, I decided to make a list (and all my OCD friends said Amen!) of all the things I want to become in the rest of the years that the good Lord gives me…
I desire to become so much more than materialistically successful. The ways we view success on this Earth really don’t hold much appeal to me. Money, power, ranking, etc… I have met some pretty rich people in my life and all I saw in them was loneliness. Don’t get me wrong, having money is fun! Being able to provide for your family is imperative. BUT, your checking account balance should not be what makes you feel whole or gives you purpose. These material gains are unfortunately fleeting. As the great theologian Kristian Bush once sang, “You can’t take it with you when you go, I’ve never seen a hearse with a trailer hitch.”
I desire to become someone who collects memories and not just more stuff. When I look back on my life, I want to have the ability to look back on memories that I can cherish. Not just things that my future children are going to have to sort through when I’m gone. I want to make memories with my husband, my children, my parents, my siblings, my friends. Heck, I want to make memories with complete strangers. After all, strangers are just friends we haven’t met yet. For me, making memories doesn’t have to involve some fancy vacation, but rather, simply spending quality time with the people I hold dear. Laughing with them. Eating with them. Enjoying one another’s company. So many great moments are formed around a dinner table. Have you ever noticed that?!
I desire to become someone that brings joy into other people’s lives. I think this is something we can all strive for. What a blessing it is to meet someone that just makes you feel good. Have you met someone like that, yet? They enter your home and bring with them a sense a warmth and peace. It’s not anything they say or do in particular, but it’s more like their whole being just lights up a room. To me, this involves working on being positive, forgiving, gracious, and kind. You don’t meet many people that exemplify all of these traits very often, but when you do, it’s a real treat. Oh, how I want to be that for others.
So, I suppose that is what my over analyzing mind took away from the quote, “Be the type of person you want to meet.” Apparently, I want to become a relatively poor person that eats a lot and laughs often?! Seems like a realistic goal to me.
In all seriousness, I think it’s important that every once in a while in our lives we take a second to take stock of who we are and who we are becoming. Is it someone we are happy with? Are we heading in the right direction? If so, great!! If not, then it is never too late to start over and redefine who you are by thinking about ‘who you want to meet.’