Being thankful – the ‘Who’

Last week, I wrote about what I am thankful for. I want to conclude this week by covering the ‘Who’. Who am I thankful for?

Like many of you, I am thankful for family, friends and colleagues but there are always people who stand out in our stories.

My Father

The first person who stands out for me is my father. I am thankful that he believed in me and set before me a vision that showed me anything is possible if I’m willing to work for it.

Two of the first books he bought for my brother and I were ‘The Power Of Positive Thinking’ and ‘A Guide To Confident Living’ by Norman Vincent Peale.

I flipped through the pages wondering where the pictures were. I was at an age when all my books were meant to have pictures in them.

Thinking the words were too many, I looked at the titles again. I told myself, it must be important to think positively and to be confident, otherwise daddy wouldn’t have bought ‘the books with no pictures’.

This was the start of my journey into personal development and recognising the responsibility that comes with that.

A wolf in sheep’s clothing

I am thankful for a co-tenant when I was a young child for teaching me to listen to my inner voice and trust my intuition. As a young child, I was scared of the dark and always imagined monsters hiding under the beds. I often snuck into bed with my parents.  

One day my parents travelled and left us in the care of a co-tenant who was like family. As I was scared of sleeping alone, I stayed with him. After a while, I felt very uneasy and I just knew I wasn’t safe. I realised I was more scared of being with him than I was of the monsters. So I left.

He taught me the power of my intuition, the importance of listening to my inner voice and recognising when a hand bigger than I understood was delivering me from evil.

My intuition has bailed me out more times than I can count and that protection from above has been my life saver.

My Science Teacher

I am thankful for Mr M.S. Ali who taught me for one year. Until he came to my school, I had believed the lie that I wasn’t cut out for sciences and had no hope of passing them.

M. S. Ali came, saw that I had the potential to be good in Sciences and he made it his mission to help me.

The most important thing he did was to challenge how I saw myself in relation to those subjects and the mental block I had put up.

Over time, I realised that I could grasp contents that previously seemed like Ancient Greek. In one year, this amazing teacher helped me to turn around my grades.

I have never forgotten the impact he had on my life and the lesson he taught me. He taught me that ‘can’t learn’ was my fear and did not have to be my reality.

My Pastor

I am thankful for Pastor Douglas in St Kitts and Nevis for shoving me into the limelight. Before I met him, my preference for introversion meant a life in the shadows.

One day he told me I would be delivering the sermon the next Sunday. I had not done much public speaking apart from running scripted training sessions.

I told him I don’t preach or speak in public and he replied that I would be. I spent the week agonising on what to speak on and dreaded the countdown to ‘doomsday’.

I can’t recall what I spoke on but I remember my dry throat, my hands gripping the lectern tightly and my knees knocking together. I was grateful for the lectern.

That sermon led to other speaking opportunities across the Island and I kept wondering who was more surprised – me or them?.

I didn’t know what they were hearing but I went along with the ‘charade’ until I believed in myself and realised I had a knack for public speaking.

My Mentor

Early on in my banking career, I saw a job that was two levels above my current grade. My allocated ‘buddy’ reminded me I had to be in a role for at least eighteen months before I could expect a promotion.

Fortunately I had an Area Manager who taught me to focus on what I was capable of and not to be defined by my current role. This gave me the boldness to go for that role and double my salary in eighteen months.

As I write this post, I am flooded with memories of incredible people who have brought out of me what I didn’t realise I had and others who pushed me to realise my dreams. I am truly thankful for them all.

Conclusion

Finally I am thankful for all of you who read and share my Blog with others. Without you, my efforts will be wasted.

Please take a moment to say thank you to and for those making your life a better and more purposeful one. See you all next week.