Be a Fountain
The fierce, inspiring lady featured in Toyota's commercial is Amy Purdy. I stumbled upon her encouragement while browsing Instagram one day. I watched a 15 second clip of her dancing, noticed her two prosthetic legs, and could tell by the amount of zest she portrayed that she was definitely a fountain. I'm sure you've heard that expression before-- "be a fountain, not a drain." Uplift people with a never ending supply of encouragement and joy. Don't suck it out of them. Once I clicked a little further and viewed her profile, I realized that she is an inspirational speaker, had performed on Dancing with the Stars, and is a really amazing snowboarder. Those facts didn't surprise me. I knew her personality was that big after watching her for just 15 seconds.
While I was lounging on the couch with my in-laws a day before the Super Bowl, I squealed when I ran by Amy's commercial announcement. When I was asked to share what my excitement was from, I offhandedly told them that my friend was going to be in one of the Super Bowl commercials. That grabbed my father-in-law's attention as he asked, "Your friend? In one of the commercials? Really?" I then looked up from my news feed and realized what I had said.
I've never met Amy. I do not know her on a personal level. Yet, she touched me. I can tell she is someone I would want to be friends with.
I aspire to be that kind of person.
I'm sure we all have drains in our circle of people that we interact with daily. It's very easy to talk about your problems. And for some reason we are fooled into thinking that everyone else that cares to listen wants us to talk about problems. We feel sorry for ourselves and often want the world to feel sorry too. It's very easy to focus on all the yucky, bad, tiring things that come with living in a fallen world. It's easy to get caught in the cycle of bringing others down. Gossiping. Spreading rumors. Pointing out flaws and failures. Because the devil helps our minds twist the concept of bringing other's down as lifting up ourselves, which usually leaves us feeling even more empty in the long run.
Just as with gravity, down is easier than up.
My dad has a prosthetic arm. He lost his in the coal mines just before he turned 20. He's had it my entire life, and I never even fully realized until middle school. And that was only because that's when the kids around me started to realize. Sure, I knew he'd lost his real arm. I had seen him without his prosthetic. I had seen the battery on charge. I had found the collection of worn out ones under the bed. But I had never once seen my father get angry with his figurative deck of cards, even when he couldn't hold his literal one. I had never heard him ask "why me". He never uttered a single negative word in front of my sisters and I about his abilities or lack of. He doesn't consider himself "disabled". So I don't consider him to be.
Does my dad have daily issues? I'm certain. Being made of flesh, it is our human nature to have anger, confusion, and pity. Does he feel incompetent, flawed, and self-conscious? I really can't answer that. I would imagine. Wouldn't you? I know I sure would. I feel all those things, and I have all my limbs. My point is, that's not what he portrays. His countenance, perseverance, and attitude impacted my childhood in ways he'll never know. A positive, empowering impact. He is a fountain.
Sometimes I realize that I spent the day being a drain. It happens. Start again the next morning.
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