Paying it Forward

January 22, 2006

My apologies for the deviation from my typical column. I’m writing this from an uncomfortable airplane seat as I fly across the country on my way back from a long weekend in Vegas. Up until a few minutes ago, I thought I may never see Bluffton again. It was a bumpy take-off, an even bumpier ascent, and suffice it to say the Dramamine is not working so well.

There is nothing like four days in Las Vegas to make you really appreciate what you have back home. The lights, the noise, the crowds, the noise, the smoke, the noise – all things that are absent in Bluffton and I realize now more than ever, why Bluffton is the right fit for me.

But, back to vacation… It was an interesting trip and I learned a lot. Barry Manilow looks like a wax figure of himself, that should be in Madame Tussauds Museum (had some plastic surgery, have you Barry?). Howie Mandel is by far one of the funniest live comedy performers I have every seen. Tip everyone. Fifteen is apparently not my lucky number. And, the world is about people.

My mentor, Steve Nicholl, told me time and time again that the world is about people. And, while it always echoes in the back of my head and I have preached those words from time to time myself, it really rang true during this trip.

Our feet were swollen after having walked for two days in an effort to see every site that everyone said we “had to see” – and sadly in Vegas there aren’t many places to just sit and relax but plenty of places to sit, relax and lose money. Whatever the price, it was worth it. So, we sat down at a roulette table. And there, we met Bob. Bob was a marble salesman who had accounts with many of the casinos. This afternoon, he and his colleague were visiting their client’s work sites and decided to stop at a casino rather than finish out the work day (classic!). For two hours Bob entertained us. He told us story after story, joke after joke and made the afternoon fly. And, when Bob finally decided to call it a day he cashed in his chips, took his winnings and slid them across the table to us calling “enjoy the rest of your stay” as he slipped through the crowd.

Who does that? Bob was I guess, in the truest sense, paying it forward. And while no one should be expecting money to fall into their laps, his actions made me wonder. The unexpected acts of a few can start a chain reaction that will impact many.

Now, Bob’s gift to us was swiftly lost on red (I told Joe to go with black) but it was the message in his gift that made me think. It is the people here in Bluffton that will make your neighborhood, your office, your golf course, your classroom, your place of worship remarkable. Know them, and once you do, pass your story along to me. I would love to tell it.