Wednesday: Experience # 2

Before I’d  left on this walk, before the rain, my daughter-in-law had suggested I might drop into a Starbucks for a warm drink and order water in a cup with a lid and straw for her toddler son. Her idea appealed to me now: the rain was picking up – and so was the wind.

And I knew the din indoors would wake up my grandson; it was way too early for him to be napping. Lord knows I didn’t want to upset his schedule.

Lesson Learned #1. Sometimes, the doors to friendship and new experiences open unexpectedly; we just have to be aware and receptive.

Looking through the window, I could see a crowd. Where would the stroller fit? How would I manage? A woman who had been standing nearby reached forward to open the door for me. I hesitated, however. She looked down at the sleeping child and said, “I’m a bubie [grandmother], too.” And then she bent forward to look closer. “He’s cute!” So, naturally,  I walked in and she followed me.

We struck up a conversation. She was waiting for a friend who was late. I got drinks for me and my grandson, who had indeed woken up,  and we sat together on a stool facing the street, next to my new acquaintance. She proudly showed me pictures of her own grandson and daughter and told me their names.

Lesson Learned #2. As in talk radio show interviews, if you show real interest, people like to share their stories.*

We began talking. Within moments, I learned she

• was interested in creativity, innovation and technology;
• had just returned from attending the recent TED** conference in California;
• was a founding board member of  Save A Child’s Heart (SACH)***
• was a photographer whose photos were part of Sach’s exhibition “Art to Heart“;
• was trained as a clown; and
• was a writer and entrepreneur.

After twenty minutes of spirited conversation, it was nearing my granson’s lunchtime. I had to go. My new friend Debra Silver and I exchanged cards.

Her friend never arrived. Neither of us had been to that coffee shop before.

A pleasant evening with a new friend. Photo: Debra Silver

At the end of the visit, I thanked her for opening the door to the coffee shop and  then to her life. (I like metaphors.)

Creatively Yours,

Nellie Jacobs

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Through her Igniting Imagination programs and services, creativity consultant Nellie Jacobs stimulates creative-thinking, providing tools to individuals, organizations and companies to help ‘mine’ hidden or latent human resources for the personal and professional betterment of all.

All Igniting Imagination with Nellie Jacobs talk radio episodes are numbered and archived for your listening pleasure, inspiration and convenience at http://www.blogtalkradio.com/Igniting-Imagination.

Seasons 1 and 2 guest photos, profiles, topics and links to their episodes are posted on at www.ignitingimagination.com. Just follow the links.

Twitter:@nelliejacobs                                                                                                                    Linkedin: http://www.linkedin.com/in/nelliejacobs

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** TED’s goal is to foster the spread of great ideas. From it’s website: “TED stands for Technology, Entertainment, Design. It started out (in 1984) as a conference bringing together people from those three worlds. Since then its scope has become ever broader…”

***  From it’s website: “An Israeli-based international humanitarian project, whose mission is to improve the quality of pediatric cardiac care for children from developing countries who suffer from heart disease and to create centers of competence in these countries. SACH is totally dedicated to the idea that every child deserves the best medical treatment available, regardless of the child’s nationality, religion, color, gender or financial situation.”