How Do I Look Right Now?

Last night our team hosted an event at The Journey Home for the homeless families of the community. This was really encouraged and planned by my wife who specializes in events and bringing the community together. Last night we had a lot of people outside of our team put forth a lot of effort, a lot of time and money to create a great experience for a lot of people. 

The event included hot dogs & hamburgers provided by Jason Conner and The Firey Pig, free haircuts by Tyler Caldwell and a meet & greet with four NFL players. 

This is what caught my attention the most. The NFL players traveled across the country...Houston, Miami, San Fransisco and Buffalo. Probably not the most convenient trek, however, they showed up for nothing other than to give their time. 

I live in West Murfreesboro...about a 10 minute drive for me, and to be honest, I was dreading it. Not because I didn't want to be in the element, not because it was hot...not because of anything other than the fact that I would have rather been at home with my family and our dog relaxing by the pool after a long day. 

If you know me and encountered me at last night's event, you probably assumed by my energy that I wasn't into it. Whenever I witnessed the NFL players show up, they clearly carried a different energy than me. They appeared present and interested. They were totally 100% engaged talking with the families and tossing footballs and taking photos with the kids. Nothing else was on their mind other than giving the best version of themselves. I learned a lot from this. It made me question myself. "How do I look right now?" A lot of people associate me with the event...am I approaching people, am I showing them how much I appreciate them as a human? 

So the big lesson I learned from this is if you are going to show up and do things like this, don't show up with a half ass attitude. I know I could have done better. I know I could have met more people. I know I could have introduced myself and made a much better impression. Aside from the NFL players being pro athletes and their talent...what I learned from them is their commitment to giving back to others in their community. 

The reason why I am writing this is to remind myself of what I should be appreciative of. I know this...my wife is going to see this and she is going to hold me accountable. 

I leave you with this...

When you show up to support your community, show up and be with your community.