ATTRACTING PEOPLE TO YOU

In West Virginia folklore there is a story of a country doctor who was called out to a holler late one night to assist a woman about to give birth. By the time the doctor arrived at the farmhouse, things had progressed to a point where the doctor asked the husband to help him by holding a gas lantern up high in order to illuminate the makeshift delivery room.

Before long, the courageous mother delivered a healthy baby boy. As the father lowered the lantern, the doctor barked an order to keep the lantern aloft: "We're not done yet." Shortly, a second child appeared on the scene, a healthy baby girl. Shaken by the unexpected arrival of twins, the father heard the doctor say once again, "We can't stop now. It looks as if it's going to be triplets." To which the stunned father, still holding the lantern high, replied, "Do you think it's the light that's attracting them?"

Light has a quality of attraction. I recently left my office door open late one afternoon in our mountain home and, at dusk, the light from within attracted -- a hummingbird! (Coaxing a hummingbird out of the house is a little like pushing a rope. Mostly, whatever you do doesn't work!)

You, too, have a light that attracts...an inner light. Not visible to the naked eye, but apparent just the same. We speak of a "twinkle" in the eye or a "flicker" of warmth in the heart. Some people shine with a light of kindness. Others emit a light of hope. There are those who glow with enthusiasm and still others who radiate love.

Almost all creatures are drawn to light, including humans. Do you want to attract people to you? Positive and life-affirming inner qualities can attract people like a warm fire on a cold night. What will draw other people to you best cannot be purchased in any department store. They will respond to that which radiates from within.

You may not always see it, but your light is shining through. And it's one of your most attractive qualities!

Steve Goodier