--- title: Shine Where You Are description: One of the true joys in crafting these Words of Encouragement are the emails I get from folks who have a story to share that can encourage others. --- [![TranzAct Logo](https://blog.tranzact.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Redesign_images/TranzAct-Logo_200px.png?width=200&height=60&name=TranzAct-Logo_200px.png "TranzAct Logo")](https://www.tranzact.com/) # Word of Encouragement ## Shine Where You Are 4/1/22 2:03 PM One of the true joys in crafting these Words of Encouragement are the emails I get from folks who have a story to share that can encourage others. With that thought in mind, I have a question for you. Have you ever had one of those "yucky moments" where, in the words of one of my best friends, you think that “just because you’re paranoid it doesn’t mean the world isn’t out to get you!” 😊 Those yucky moments can be a bit dark and make you yearn to be able to "see the light." This week, a light came in the form of a story in an email from Dave Boufford, (a.k.a. Mr. Positive and the creator of [MrPostive.com](https://mrpositive.com/?utm_campaign=words%20of%20encouragement&utm_source=hs_email&utm_medium=email&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-8KbnjW4BQ3r9t065SvQejTZQgcHJfI73tNRIhSogV2rm1MWuEj-84nS-3fjj_SbGYI3XVf)). ![shine-bright](https://blog.tranzact.com/hs-fs/hubfs/shine-bright.png?upscale=true&upscale=true&width=300&name=shine-bright.png)The story highlights the importance of being able to "Shine Where You Are" and it begins by featuring a bus driver who was driving a crowded bus in New York City during rush hour. Some men on the bus were arguing with each other. Others would not give a pregnant woman their seat when she boarded the bus...the bus that was packed with cold, tired and irritated people just looking to get home. What did the bus driver do? As the bus approached Seventh Avenue, the driver got on the intercom. "Folks," he said, "I know you have had a rough day and you are frustrated. I can’t do anything about the weather or traffic, but here is what I can do. As each one of you gets off the bus, I will reach out my hand to you. As you walk by, drop your troubles into the palm of my hand, okay? Don’t take your problems home to your families tonight, just leave them with me. My route goes right by the Hudson River, and when I drive by there later, I will open the window and throw your troubles in the water." Guess what happened on this bus? People "burst out laughing. Faces gleamed with surprised delight. People who had been pretending for the past hour not to notice each other’s existence were suddenly grinning at each other like, is this guy serious?" But this driver was serious which is why "at the next stop, just as promised, he reached out his hand, palm up, and waited. One by one, all the exiting commuters placed their hand just above his and mimed the gesture of dropping something into his palm. Some people laughed as they did this, some teared up but everyone did it. The driver repeated the same lovely ritual at the next stop, too. And the next. All the way to the river." Since I can’t possibly top the words written in this story, with Mr. Positive’s blessing, here is the rest of the story exactly as it is written by Elizabeth Gilbert. > "We live in a hard world, my friends. Sometimes it is extra difficult to be a human being. Sometimes you have a bad day. Sometimes you have a bad day that lasts for several years. You struggle and fail. You lose jobs, money, friends, faith, and love. You witness horrible events unfolding in the news, and you become fearful and withdrawn. There are times when everything seems cloaked in darkness. You long for the light but don’t know where to find it. > > But what if you are the light? What if you are the very agent of illumination that a dark situation begs for? > > That’s what this bus driver taught me, that anyone can be the light, at any moment. This guy wasn’t some big power player. He wasn’t a spiritual leader. He wasn’t some media-savvy influencer. > > He was a bus driver, one of society’s most invisible workers. But he possessed real power, and he used it beautifully for our benefit. > > When life feels especially grim, or when I feel particularly powerless in the face of the world’s troubles, I think of this man and ask myself: What can I do, right now, to be the light? > > Of course, I can’t personally end all wars, or solve global warming, or transform vexing people into entirely different creatures. I definitely can’t control traffic. But I do have some influence on everyone I brush up against, even if we never speak or learn each other’s name." > > "No matter who you are, or where you are, or how mundane or tough your situation may seem, I believe you can illuminate your world. In fact, I believe this is the only way the world will ever be illuminated, one bright act of grace at a time, all the way to the river." Personally, after reading this I thought about Southwest Airlines where the flight attendants occasionally remind you that Southwest planes are equipped with smoke lounges – they are outside on the wings of the plane. But whether it’s planes, buses, or just everyday life, we can, in the words written in Matthew, "Let our light shine before others." ### Would you like to share your thoughts? 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