The Rivers Flow Blog

PEOPLE WHO CARE

A few significant things: "they" took down my "I am Powerful" poster at the 23rd Street PATH Station and replaced it with an ad for Daffy's. It was odd--I felt a real loss for a few days, and it made me angry that a good message to all of humanity was replaced with a cheap ad. And, by the way, Daffy's had to take over 3 of the boards--couldn't 1 have been enough? I'm only asking.

The other thing: At night, on the southbound side of the F line at 23rd Street, there has been a young mother and her daughter--probably my daughter's age--homeless, asking for food and money. I passed by them a few times, but finally stopped on Friday evening--it was very cold here in New York that night--and asked, "Do you have somewhere to go?" She replied that they go to the shelter at night. My heart was sick--I gave her a $20 and told her to take care of herself and her little girl. Where are the people who care in her life? Are there any?


I have had this phrase stuck in my head for a few weeks now and it applies specifically to 2 people who have really been there for me in 2 very different ways. One of these people is my friend, Peter, who came back into my life after being absent for many years. Peter has been a loyal friend and a welcome addition to this business as he works tirelessly on all of the behind-the-scene duties that enables me to continue doing my work without all of the distractions. Is he paid handsomely for all of this? Not even close. But he works tirelessly for me even as he manages his own life. And for that I am truly grateful. He is a person who cares.

The other person is my trainer, Josh. We started together last June--I really thought that this would be just another trainer/client relationship. I show up, he makes me sweat and feel inept and then we both go back to our respective lives. But, no--he had to get involved in my diet, my periods of feeling less than motivated, assessing the ongoing issue of creating balance for me--he had to be more than a trainer. After a recent physical setback, he continued to insert himself into my life by checking in, keeping me motivated--you know, that annoying stuff that people who care do.

So this poses a quandary/challenge for me. If I was not a person who cared, I would sincerely hope that I would not be doing this therapy thing for a living. The challenge, here, is how do I become more of a PWC (person who cares), outside of my professional life? Because at the end of some days, I do wonder how much more I have in me.

And this quandary is not isolated to those of us in the mental health field. In whatever field we find ourselves in, how do we make those efforts to show the people in our lives that we care? I need to do a better job of showing the other important people in my life that I, too, am a PWC.

So, who are the people who care in your life? And do they know that they matter? Do they know you appreciate what they do for you? What are you waiting for?