Connections

The other night I was on a Skype video chat, and I felt like I could only catch one word from each sentence of the conversation before the WiFi would cut out. I had to ask repeatedly, “Did you get that?” when in fact they didn’t get any of what I was saying. It was frustrating! And, if you are anything like me or every other teenager in the world, there are only a little number of things that are more irritating than a poor connection on the phone, our computer, and especially social media. (Gotta keep that Instagram game on fleek, am I right?) But in contrast, when we find a good connection, we are instantly gratified and life goes on with added joy for the simplicities that are 4G LTE data and great WiFi. It’s easy to consider connections like these, but what about the connections that we cannot find on a screen or through a speaker?

Connecting with people is a focal point in our lives. We talk to, gesture, text, call, console, celebrate, and do life with many people. Maybe it’s at school, work, at Starbucks (yum!), or in passing. There is value in connecting with someone, and there is value in understanding how to make good connections with others. Good connections can happen even when someone is completely different from us. Connections go deeper than what we have in common, and they create some of the most joy-filled moments that life can offer to us.

               A few months ago, I flew into Detroit, Michigan to help FFA launch its first Virtual Field Trip on AgExplorer (a super cool resource which you should check out: https://www.agexplorer.com/). When I landed, I called the hotel shuttle and took a ride to the Holiday Inn & Suites Express in Dearborn, Michigan, which was about a 20-minute ride from the airport. If you know me, you know I love to talk, and the 20 minutes was long enough for me to strike up a conversation with the elderly man taking me to hotel. His name was Sabah, and as I spoke with him more, I learned that he immigrated to the United States from Iraq. Sabah and his family were Christians, who owned a Bible store in their home country. When Saddam Hussein rose to power in 2002, they were threatened to close the store or Sabah and his sons would be killed. Their store was burned to the ground, and he and his family fled their home country. Sabah seemed absolutely crushed as he told the story. He said, "I lost about 200,000 dinar when our store was burned, and I know that doesn't sound like very much money, but it's about $2 million in the United States. We lost everything.” Sabah’s sobering story began to change as he explained how much of a blessing it was that he and his family were here in the United States. In his broken English, he continued, "All three of my sons are very successful. One is an engineer, another a doctor, and the other in school. If they are good, I am good."

Before I knew it, we had arrived at the hotel. My conversation with Sabah had ended, and we said goodbye. But as I was checking into my room, I began reflecting on Sabah’s story and realized I had just made a connection with someone who was very different from me—a man who risked his life, left his country, and lost everything. I still can’t imagine the hardship and heartbreak he went through… But despite our differences, I couldn’t help but feel inspired and uplifted by Sabah’s joyful and resilient spirit. He lived life humbly and in service to his family and those around him. Although we didn’t have much in common on the surface, his heart radiated deep-rooted joy I could connect to instantly.

Now, I know we may not be planning a trip to Detroit anytime soon or even taking a hotel shuttle anywhere, but the same kind of connection can be made by you with your school bus driver, the cashier at your local convenient store, your pastor at church, or maybe even that classmate who you’ve always been curious to learn more about. Strike up a conversation with them. Ask them how there day is going. Greet them with a smile just to let them know you’re glad to see them today.

Connecting with people is a focal point in our lives. We talk to, gesture, text, call, console, celebrate, and do life with many people in many different places. Good connections can happen even when someone is completely different from us. Connections go deeper than what we have in common, and they create some of the most joy-filled moments that life can offer to us. Make today the first day you put down the devices with WiFi connection and trade them in for people with whom you can make a deep, joy-filled connection.

Abrah Meyer

Past National Central Region Vice President