To Whom It May Concern,
I have a challenge for you. If you should choose to accept it, the only possible outcome is success.
There's infinite power in that. Power to disarm, power to unite, power to grow.
I've noticed between the gossip and useless chatter, we lament about the horrible things happening in the world. We feel sympathetic, hurt and afraid. Everything feels so broken, so disconnected.
These same thoughts creep in as I survey the brilliant accomplishments of my peers. There is no doubting the innovative minds of my generation. Doctors, lawyers, entrepreneurs and rocket scientists.
Just think, we could be that crazy generation that will be known as the ones who flew to work wearing jetpacks. We create the trending topics and hashtags for every cause under the sun. We've found cures to diseases and catch Uber rides back to our Airbnb.
Despite all of this, I feel as though we are so deeply disconnected.
I don't think any of us are really all that different. We all have our fears, our doubts, we compare ourselves to others. We wonder when we will grow our wings and finally learn to fly.
The world needs us. It needs our contributions, our innovations, it desperately needs our love.
Aren't we the world? Aren't each one of us a piece of that 7.5 billion-piece puzzle floating on a ball out in space?
A cup of coffee. It's a reminder that we're all human. A reminder that you are brimming full of stories that I could never imagine, as am I.
A cup of coffee. I suppose it doesn't have to be coffee. It could be tea or even drinks at the bar. Lemonade on a hot summer day or hot cocoa in the dead of winter.
It doesn't have to be fancy, but it's a start. It's a challenge you cannot fail. I've seen its power, and I hope you can to.
Find a fellow human. Someone who looks different from you. Someone whose stories you aren't so familiar with. Maybe this person comes from the other side of the planet or maybe they live right next door.
A cup of coffee. That's all it takes. Sit with them and hear their stories. Hear their hopes, and their dreams. Hear about the time they fell and thought they could never get back up or the time they were bullied because of the shade of their skin. Hear about their victory and the day it all made sense.
I pray that you find your fellow humans capable of making an impact in this world. I pray you find the depth of humanity and God's fingerprint on each and every one of us. I pray you grow in knowledge of the pain your fellow humans feel, but also in sympathy knowing that they no longer struggle alone.
So this is my challenge to you and if you should choose to accept it, the only possible outcome is success.It all begins with just a cup of coffee.