Kaiden, a spunky and sweet fourteen-year-old friend and neighbor was recently called Home with a capital H. My heart is full of all the sweet interactions I had with her. I think of her spunky smile, her conversation after a church lesson about truth and how good it made me feel that she wanted to talk about the lesson. I remember when I learned she loved photography, she was excited to share some photos and I put a meaningful quote on it for the young women in our neighborhood. I remember her glowing smile as she sat in church and her willingness to share her goals and encourage others. And then I learn at her funeral, she reached out to everyone. She knew how to respond to people in ways that made them feel loved and understood. At her funeral it was said:
"She had a smile that could be felt around the block. She was the first to introduce herself to others. She said hello to people she didn't know. She showed love to both those she knew and those she didn't know. She had a smile that could change the world." - Tim Olsen
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| Kaiden |
And she did. While our fears sometimes inhibit us, her courage to reach out, blessed hundreds and her influence is now magnified 1000 fold with her passing. One of the scriptures she had underlined was from JS 1:33: ..."God had a work for me to do." And that is the message I'll remember with Kaiden. God had a work for her on both sides of mortality. I learn from Kaiden, the small and simple is often profound and significant.
The power of one, to change, reach out, do or say something has the power to tilt the earth one way or the other and each one of us has that power every day. Thank you Kaiden, for teaching us that profound truth the way you lived your life.
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Your deed can be as simple as making someone feel special,
reaching out to a lonely person,
helping a troubled kid find the right path,
or comforting a friend who needs a shoulder to cry on.
The fact is that you’ll be changing the world one good deed at a time.
-Frank Sonnenberg
