A new weekly feature from Lloyd Marcus…
Lloyd’s Life Lessons: The Extraordinary Leg-less Man
My performance of a song at an event did not meet my usual standard. While I was in perfect vocal form, the incompetent sound man unintentionally sabotaged my presentation. The presentation was not bad, just mediocre. Mediocre is unacceptable because I have built a reputation and always strive to make a powerful difference impacting the audience. For the next few days, I unwisely kept reliving the presentation in my mind and feeling upset about it.
My Christianity dictates that I forgive the (idiot) sound man, learn from the experience and move on. OK, I’ll be good. I apologize for calling the sound man an idiot. While I know what I should think and do, emotionally it is difficult. I take my performances extremely serious and seek perfection.
I love taking old materials and transforming them into something beautiful. Working on such a project, I made a run to the hardware store. I parked beside a middle-age man in a wheelchair with both legs amputated at his hips. His companion was in the process of lowering his wheelchair out of his van using an electronic lift.
The leg-less man made eye contact with me. With a big smile, he uttered, “How are ya’?” I said, “Great”.
Inside the hardware store I overheard the leg-less man cheerfully chatting with a clerk, “How are you today young lady?” She replied, “Oh, it’s goin’. How ’bout you?” His response was, “It’s goin’ great! I woke up this morning.” Wow! I can not remember the last time I thanked God for giving me another day.
When I made my purchase and exited the store, the leg-less man remained inside shopping. I spoke briefly with his companion who was waiting outside. I commented on the leg-less man’s pleasantness and upbeat attitude. I asked if the gentleman lost his legs in the war.
His companion said he lost one leg in a car accident. Complications forced them to amputate his other leg. The companion said his leg-less friend’s attitude is “just who he is”.
You see where I am going with this, don’t you folks? Talk about bad luck and reasons to be bitter; the leg-less man went out of his way to bring a smile and a little sunshine to everyone he met.
As a professional singer/entertainer, I have a responsibility to hold myself to a high standard and be upset when a presentation does not go well. But, I should learn from the rare incident, forgive everyone involved including myself and move on.
There are people courageously dealing with really “difficult stuff”! I am enjoying a truly blessed life. Thus, I must focus more on an attitude of gratitude.
Lloyd Marcus, Proud Unhyphenated American