Compliments are amazing things. A few simple words that can make someone's day a little brighter, make their mood a little happier and turn a frown upside down in an instant. Compliment someone's outfit, their shoes, how they did their hair that day or their work presentation. Compliments are universal and unique. Sometimes, someone can give a compliment without even knowing. My favorite compliment I ever receive is when someone asks me "you really love what you do, don't you?" This person probably didn't even know that their question made me feel amazing. They gave me the best compliment imaginable and they didn't even know it.
Doing something you're passionate about and being recognized for it by a random bystander is such an uplifting feeling. Someone who knew nothing about me, who only just met me in that moment and who had a 15 minute conversation with me, was able to see my passion and make a comment like that. It made my day so much better and it was by far the best compliment I have ever received. I always appreciate any and every compliment I receive but this particular, unintended compliment left me a little speechless.
Compliments about something I love are the best compliments I could ever get. I'm a big believer in going after what you are most passionate about and doing what you love to make the most of the life you live so when someone recognizes my passions just by observation, it solidifies and reassures me about what I want to do with my life. Not that I'm ever unsure about what I want in life, but hearing a stranger strike confidence and understanding in me makes me feel even better about my choices.
In the particular moment I'm talking about, I was at the aquarium I volunteer at on a Saturday afternoon, working at the stingray touch tank. A family was there with two little girls and they were super into touching the stingrays and learning things about them. I got into a discussion with the girls' father about sea animals, the stingrays in particular. I was talking about the cow nose stingrays and the shape of their wings and he just looks at me and says "wow, you really love what you do, don't you?" and all I could really say was "well yeah I guess I do" with a nervous chuckle. After that moment I couldn't stop smiling. Here I was, volunteering my time to educate people about animals on a Saturday and someone was able to recognize my love and passion for it in an instant. It made it even better knowing that this wasn't even my actual job. It was just something I enjoy doing in my free time and I still exude just as must love and passion as I would if it was my day to day job. That tells me right there I'm doing what I love and what makes me happy and I'm definitely chipping away at the path to my dream job.
So now anytime I feel down or confused about my future, I just think about that dad who pin pointed my passion just by the way my voice sounded when I was talking about an animal, or how my eyes sparkled when educating his kids. So, thanks Florida dad for giving me the greatest compliment of my life and remember everyone, pursue your passion and always do what you love.
