The Giving Stone

"If everything looks good to you, I'll just have you sign this," I told my client, consulting a stack of papers on my desk. But the paper wasn't where I thought it was.

A mom of one of our brides had come in for a morning session to order her photo book. We were just wrapping things up.

"I have something for you," she told me. I was still searching the stack of papers.

"Really?" I asked.

"Yes. I might cry," she confessed.

At this, I stopped my search and looked up. Seeing the emotion on her face, I turned toward her. This was no time for searching for a design contract.

"When my father died a few years ago," she began, but then her voice broke. She covered her mouth and let the tears come.

I allowed a few seconds of silence, and gave her a sympathetic look.

"See," she shook her head, "I told you I would cry. I'm still emotional about it sometimes."

"That's alright," I said, still unaware of what she would be getting at.

"Anyway, when my dad passed away, my mom gave me this stone," she continued, handing me a small black bag. I opened it up and out slipped a shiny silver stone with the word "Imagine" carved into it.

"Every time I became sad or had a hard time, I looked at this stone that sat on the table in my house, and it brought me comfort," she said. "Knowing that this was a special gift given to me in a difficult time really helped me to get through it."

She smiled.

"But just today, I saw it again before I came here. And I thought... it's time. It's time to pass it on. So I brought it here to give to you and Kristi. Whenever you have difficult times or struggles in your business, let this stone be a reminder of hope and joy."

I studied the stone, and then looked up in wonder.

"Thank you so much," I said, but even as the words came out they seemed too trite for the generosity of this gift.

"And I think it's so appropriate that it says 'Imagine' on it," she said.

"Absolutely. When we renamed our business, we chose the word 'Imagine' because of all the possibilities that the word holds," I told her.

And the possibilities ARE endless. The sky is the limit with creativity... and with generosity, kindness, and joy.

That simple but thoughtful gift of giving on in remembrance of what or who was leaves me feeling warm inside. The concept of paying it forward and touching others through a simple object is magnificent. I am honored to be on the receiving end!

Love you all!

T