Giving and Gratitude: Sometimes Love is A Washing Machine on Talks with Dr Shafer
Giving and Gratitude: Sometimes Love is A Washing Machine on Talks with Dr Shafer  
Podcast: Talks with Dr Shafer
Published On: Tue May 28 2024
Description: Giving and Gratitude: Sometimes Love is a Washing Machine Hi everyone, this is Dr. Shafer on Talks with Dr. Shafer. I'm so glad you're here. I'm a physician, mom, life coach, publisher, author, and I am passionate about storytelling as a tool to help you reclaim your story, reframe it, and build your most beautiful future. Thank you for joining me today on this short talk with Dr. Shafer. Today, I wanted to share a story I wrote about my husband called Love is a Washing Machine. My last name is very precious to me, Stedron. In Czech, it means generous. It is a gift to me from my husband, the most generous man I have ever met. I have seen his generosity in countless moments with countless people. We were friends long before we married, and I can recall always being transfixed watching him speak to strangers. He's the kind of man who helps elderly people get home safe, who gives directions to anyone and everyone and in all sorts of languages, who helps anyone in any way he can always, no matter what. He gives his time and attention without expectation and feels grateful for the small and large opportunities life gives him to be of service to others. He has helped me in immeasurable ways and has inspired me more than I could ever say. He believes in the good in people in a way that is rare and admirable and his kindness is infectious. Recently, we went out to lunch at a restaurant. The charming restaurant was empty except for us and a few employees. The owner had come upon some hard luck and was struggling to cope emotionally with the sudden changes that left the entirety of the restaurant and her family's future squarely on her shoulders and in her hands. She was exhausted and stressed and trying her best to keep it all together. We talked a bit, we cried a bit, we hugged, and we shared our stories of challenges and of the triumphs waiting. hidden in the wings, even in the moments that we can't see them. Even though the challenges seemed stacked against her, she still believed that she would overcome them. She absentmindedly mentioned that on top of all the major issues she was facing, even the washing machine was broken now and needed to be replaced. Life was handing her a mess, and even her washing machine gave up on its job to help clean it up. I sat down at our table next to my husband who looked at me with kindness and said, we can help her. I smiled knowingly at him and watched as he pulled over. I smiled knowingly at him and watched as he pulled out what she had said it would take her to replace the washing machine. Like I have so many times before, I sat and watched as he walked over to the kind woman and gave her generously what he could. He handed her the bill and the money. She was surprised and first said, no, eyes wide, but then... Her shoulders relaxed and she hugged my husband and her son, who was helping at the restaurant, wiped his eyes and shook his head. It wasn't an extraordinarily big gift, but it was enough so that it was one less thing on the list of challenges, one less hurdle to jump over, one less task taking up their time in this season of life that required them to really hustle, to work countless hours and simply get through. It was a small thing that we could do so that she could remember that good things can happen and that they will happen for her. And we have seen her continue to work tirelessly since this moment to rebuild and to create a more beautiful future for herself and her family than before, one step at a time. Little House of Dreams Entertainment LLC 2004 All Rights Reserved Host: Shafer Stedron, MD Learn more at www.drshaferstedronova.com Follow/subscribe for more inspirational episodes of Talks with Dr Shafer with Dr Shafer. Music Credit: Shafer Yost, Impulse