Forward

 “When I move forward, I don't do it thinking I’m so fearless and courageous, I move forward knowing God is.” (Ajal Brown)

Whether it’s for months, days, or years, there are people who enter your existence that bring about change for the better as a life catalyst. Good things happen because of the personal growth they cause to happen inside you. You are truly blessed by their presence in your life just when they are needed the most.

No song better expresses this sentiment than “For Good” from the musical Wicked sung by the two characters of Glinda, the Good Witch of the North, and Elphaba, the Wicked Witch of the West, to each other.

I'm limited
Just look at me
I'm limited
And just look at you
You can do all I couldn't do, Glinda
So now it's up to you
For both of us
Now it's up to you

I've heard it said
That people come into our lives for a reason
Bringing something we must learn
And we are led
To those who help us most to grow
If we let them
And we help them in return
Well, I don't know if I believe that's true
But I know I'm who I am today
Because I knew you

Like a comet pulled from orbit
As it passes a sun
Like a stream that meets a boulder
Halfway through the wood
Who can say if I've been changed for the better? But
Because I knew you
I have been changed for good

It well may be
That we will never meet again
In this lifetime
So let me say before we part
So much of me
Is made of what I learned from you
You'll be with me
Like a handprint on my heart
And now whatever way our stories end
I know you have re-written mine
By being my friend

Like a ship blown from its mooring
By a wind off the sea
Like a seed dropped by a skybird
In a distant wood
Who can say if I've been changed for the better? But
Because I knew you
Because I knew you
I have been changed for good

And just to clear the air
I ask forgiveness
For the things I've done you blame me for
But then, I guess we know there's blame to share
And none of it seems to matter anymore

Like a comet pulled from orbit (like a ship blown from its mooring)
As it passes a sun (by a wind off the sea)
Like a stream that meets a boulder (like a seed dropped by a bird)
Halfway through the wood (in the wood)
Who can say if I've been changed for the better?
I do believe I have been changed for the better
And because I knew you
Because I knew you
Because I knew you
I have been changed
For good

How can you know when someone is a catalyst? Here are the five qualities that make up this kind of person. They…

·       Create a vision for change in a person.

·       Drive for action that causes transformation.

·       Provide a mindset of learning and experimentation.

·       Have many ideas and are constantly seeing possibilities.

·       Quickly process and bring together much information (in a form that is organized and relevant.

"Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around.” (Leo Buscaglia) [i]

---

[i] Adapted from:

·       “Catalyst Leaders: 5 Telltale Signs Part 1 of 2 and 2 of 2” by Tracey Lovejoy

·       “Catalyst “by Dictionary.com

Leo Buscaglia