"Give honest, sincere appreciation." - Dale Carnegie
What gift could be better? It's free. It's thoughtful. It's needed, or at least useful. And even if it's returned, it's a good thing.
You reach a stage in life where material items, great as they are, can easily be superseded by the right words.
Through all the years of receiving performance evaluations at the office, I remember one written sentence: "Man of great character." Completely uncalled for, and unlike anything I've seen before or since, but may go down as the highlight of my career.
Someone else used the term "man of action." An innocent remark made in the context of a larger conversation, but powerful in my ears.
"Thanks for helping me with math." Even where the need is clear and the benefits are obvious, the unprompted gratitude makes the effort seem that much more worthwhile.
"You are an excellent supervisor," from someone I've worked with only occasionally.
"You can definitely write, no doubt about that."
"You need to teach."
I try to return the favor in thanks to God, which has been been portioned to me in such gracious abundance that I may never be able to do so justly in full measure.
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