Lotion Your Knees

I recently met up with a good friend from more than 30 years ago. We were close back then, and he helped me through the toughest experience of my life – the death of our second child.

He said he wanted to share a life lesson that I had shared with him, one that had stuck with him for over 30 years. I was flattered – maybe it was how best to deal with a loss, something I shared about relationships, or a deeper faith issue? I have made sharing life lessons part of my mission on this earth, have a blog at lessonsonpurpose.com and do it to help others. So, I now was to hear what impact it had on my friend…

His reply: "You taught me to lotion my knees."

What?! "Yeah, lotion your knees so they don't get sunburned while playing golf or sitting in the stands of a game."

This advice was alright I suppose, but not groundbreaking or life changing.

That exchange reminded me of a few things:

• Our words matter and people remember what you share
• It isn't up to us to define what is impactful in others. Our role is to give and offer help – and it is received how it is received

But, the most important insight I gathered from this exchange is to not take myself so seriously. Our role is to do our best in this world, and take the wins and impact with joy, not expectation.

As a bonus – I'll bet my friend hasn't had sunburned knees for 30+ years!