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Photo by Dominik Scythe on Unsplash

I am a small person – stature wise. I’m a little more than a hundred pounds soaking wet; when I can stand I can claim 4′ 10″ if I’m wearing my shoes but in a wheelchair I’m nowhere near that height.

I spend most days in a small space – my living room – working with a very small group of folks who come to me to talk about big problems but also lots of small problems.

I’m not famous.

I haven’t ever been paid for something I’ve written.

The most ‘views’ I’ve had for a post was 160 back in October.

Some days I can do things like make dinner for my family. Some days I struggle with basic tasks like swallowing without choking (it’s more complicated than you might think!) And in our world of superstars and trending posts and multi-million dollar book deals it can be easy to start to feel unimportant or unnecessary or unappreciated.

But the truth of the matter is that every single one of us can think of everyday, ordinary folks who have done ‘little’ things for us in ways that were too incredible for us to ever express our thanks adequately.

The couple who came and reorganized my kitchen when I got out of the hospital so that I could reach my dishes without getting out of my wheelchair? Priceless.

The lady who took my vision for my front yard and turned it into an incredible garden of beauty and delight without me being able to lift a finger to help? Incredible.

The gentle smile and kind assistance I get from random strangers every time a building’s accessibility isn’t up to standard? Couldn’t do life without them.

The way my kids sometimes insist that I go and take a rest and then bring me a cup of tea to make it better? Fantastic.

Life is full of lots of fabulous, incredible, smart, capable folks. The world also has a few folks who have become famous or rich or trendy or popular or cool. I’m pretty sure we could survive without some of these ‘big names’, but I know that I for one wouldn’t get very far without the ‘small’ and ‘little’ people in my life.

Just like nature requires all sorts of plants, animals and little creatures to be able to allow ecosystems to blossom and flourish, our lives also benefit – more than we usually recognize – from the everyday actions of the little people around us, being committed to being their best authentic selves.

And when I remember that, it helps me to remember that maybe my ‘small’ and ‘little’ contributions (including this far-shorter-than-usual post) is worth something too!