Our lives remain

In these small hours

These little wonders,

These twists & turns of fate

Time falls away

But these small hours,

These small hours still remain”

– Rob Thomas, Little Wonders

Can good experiences with someone outweigh the bad?  It’s a question I’ve struggled with at many times over the past ten years, and one I don’t think I’ve ever really found the answer to.  Some days I get angry when I remember certain events.  Some days I’m sad.  And some days, I smile.  But every October, I go to the store and I buy a bag of pumpkin candy.

Pumpkin candy — you know, that sugary hard stuff?  It’s basically candy corn in a different shape (if you want, you can even buy it in the same package as candy corn).  I just buy the pumpkins though.  I take them home, eat a few pieces (not like exam time in college where I used to eat the whole bag), and with that sweet, sugary taste, I remember how the smallest of actions — something as simple as a piece of candy — can positively affect the life of a child.

I’m not going to get too far into why or how I was affected so much, or especially, why I sometimes need that bag of candy to remember the good stuff.  That would sort of defeat the purpose of the manuscript I’ve spent the last seven years of my life working on.  But when I walked into my local Walgreens this week and saw those seasonal bags of goodies out on display, I was inspired to write this post, to remind everyone out there that you too can have that kind of an impact.

On Monday, I get to go meet my new “little sister,” a little girl whom the Big Brothers Big Sisters program deemed a “match” for me.  They’d asked me if I’d be okay with a brother, a little boy, and I’d told them fine.  Give me someone who I can talk sports with and we’ll be buds in no time.  Yet it’s fitting that they found me a little sister instead, a twelve year old girl in need of a mentor.

Just like I was.

Who had an influence in your life growing up?  How did they have an influence?  What do you remember most?

PS:  I know you’re wondering why it’s pumpkin candy that’s special, and I promise that story’s in the book too.  Only a few more weeks ’till it’s out…