I was reading the saved a life thread and it got me thinking... I have never saved a life but have been given the opportunity to change a few lives.

My niece is 2 and we are in the process of adopting her. She was born addicted to meth and has some medical issues because of it. We have had her hear with us since she was 4 months old.

Another niece of mine is also staying with us for the summer. She is 15 and was making bad decissions with her boyfriend and was forced to come out here (we are in California and she is from Alaska) for a while. She has been here since Memorial Day and will be going home in late July. I hope she takes some of the things we have talked about to heart and makes better choices when she gets back home. I have also been talking to her boyfriend, 16.

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TLJ ~ Where opinions are encouraged, not deleted

You laugh at me because I am different,
I laugh at you because you are all the same.

Your mind is like a parachute, it only works when it is open.

Your Question: Have you ever changed a life?

Yes, I think so. When I was younger, probably close to 19 or 20 years ago. I was walking around town waiting on my grandma to pick me up cause she had gotten delayed. I went into a laundry mat and used the telephone to call her and she said it would be a while. Well, I was just killing time til she got there. I saw this man who was really really dirty, looked depressed, etc. He was homeless and resting up in the laundry mat. He was alone. Well, I struck up a conversation with this man. Nothing important that I can remember, just a general conversation. Hours go by and he finally starts to smile and appears to be feeling somewhat better. Well, finally my granny arrives and I tell I have to go. He tells me that I saved him. I am like what do you mean? He told me that he had told his family goodbye and was planning to commit suicide, but then I came into the laundry mat. And because I was so positive and didn't judge him for his appearance and even had a 'real' conversation with him that he felt there was hope. All in all, he said alot of things that I had said to him made a difference in the way he had been thinking and feeling.

A few weeks later, I saw this man again and waved to him. Minutes later, he found me at the local diner and come up to me and Thanked me again. I told him that I really hadn't did anything. He smiled and said you did more than you know. He told me that that next day, he took his best clothes to that laundry mat washed them up and went job hunting and got a job. Several more weeks later, I ran into him and he didn't look like the same man. He was very clean, shaven, dressed nicely and had a lady with him. He introduced me to her and it was his daughter. He hadn't seen here in years because of his shame of how far he had fallen down on his luck (being homeless & dirty) She smiled and hugged me. Months later, I ran into him again and he introduced me to his fiance! He had really really gotten his act together. Now, years later, I still actually run into him from time to time and he is still doing great. He still has a job, a wife, has his family back, and he just told me that he has bought a home, etc.

AND everytime I meet him and when he introduces me, he says this is the girl that saved my life. It not for her, I wouldn't be here.....and he sincerely means that. I have never forgotten this man nor do I think I ever will. NOR the lesson we BOTH learned.

ADDED: I in no way knew how this man felt. I had no idea that he was really depressed or suicidal. I just thought he was lonely when I struck up a conversation. Back then, I had no idea what 'depression' was like. I was just a kid really. Point is, I didn't know when I was talking to him that I was 'helping' him. I was just hanging out and chatting.

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email is moserlara@yahoo.com

Nellyhill-- good for you for adopting your niece!

I think we changed the lives of our kids when we adopted them. Nicole was 6 when we adopted her, and Brandon was 17 months. Both were in foster care when we met them.

Holly

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Forgiveness is love in its most noble form. -Anonymous

I volunteer at a therapeutic horseback riding school. We (and especially *the horses*) change the lives of our students every day.

It is quite amazing to see the kids and adults progress and the changes in them as those with physical disabilities are able to forget their physical limitations for an hour each week and those with emotional disabilities are able to feel the unconditional love of an animal... their hearts tune in to the horses' hearts and the rhythm of the horses' walk.

Extremely rewarding for me!

I hope that I change lives thru the way I live mine. I have a very giving heart and I hope that what I give changes someone's life in a small way. If only to let them know that someone cares.

The only example of someone telling me that I've changed their life is this: I am VERY outgoing...drama, singing, you name it. In 6th grade we had a flakey teacher would didn't really "teach"...she just sat around Anyway, I kind of took control of the English class since she wouldn't . I organized the kids to take tuns standing in front of the class and reading out loud. We did plays to act our scenes and basically, had fun learning. So a couple of years go by and I run into one of the boys from my class (he had moved and changed schools). He said "hey, you're that girl who changed me". I didn't understand and found out that before he had that class with me, he was super shy, couldn't stand up in front of people and talk and had no confidence. He told me I changed his life by making him do those things in class. He later did lots of plays and now makes his own movies. That made me feel really good, especially since I was only a kid

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Proud to say I haven't shopped at a Wal-Mart since Sept 2003

I hope that at work I make a difference in the situation but I am sure I don't save lives. I work in a post-op unit and I know that I do make a difference and take very good care of the patients when they are at their worst, terrible pain, vomiting, etc. and make them feel a little better. Even offereing someone a wet washcloth or being right there with their meds does make a difference and I come home pretty often feeling really good about them.

It is an 8 bed unit, I work nights with an aide and myself the only Rn and we are really able to give one on one attention and it is nice. We can only have 6 pts. at the most as they are all fresh post ops and there is no more staff so the most we have is 6.

I really go out of my way for the soldiers from Ft. Drum that we care for. I just feel that they are away from home, young and need someone to care so for the 8 hours that I take care of them, I try very hard to be patient and help them to relax. Lots of them are stabalized in Iraq and then sent home for the ortho surgeries or whatever. I can't tell you the # of pictures I have had to take of them for their girlfriends that they send through their cell phones showing their war injuries!!! Makes my job nicer too.

WOW!!! What an inspiring story. God surely arranged that encounter to change this man's life.

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No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him. 1 Corinthians 2:9

These are some awesome stories. I hope I have changed some lives for the better. I was a foster parent for ten yeas to over 75 children, 5 of whom I adopted. I right now I have guardianship over my granddaughter and we are in the process of adopting her. Some of my former foster kids would drop by when they got older to let me know they were okay. It was great to see they were thriving.

I also smile and say hello to as many people as I can each day. Who knows when you might come across someone like daltonmama did and just being nice could make them feel better.