David J.

Pollay

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January 19, 2009

Lessons from an Unexpected Gratitude Letter

I received an email last year. I asked permission to share it with you. I have three reasons for wanting you to know this story. But first, here’s the email:

David,

It was almost five years ago that I first decided to look you up. Allow me to explain the reason behind my decision to contact you after so many years. It will explain how I think you have been helping people for a long time.

I have been a police officer in Milwaukee for almost 15 years. I was very good at it, and I felt that I was benefiting society. However, it was an extremely stressful occupation for me because, in spite of my successes, for many of those years I had virtually no skills for managing stress and its effects on my health.

Picture this scene: An almost middle-aged, overweight, out of shape, half-asleep cop with a bad attitude is hauling his aching frame from a squad car at 3:00 a.m. into a convenience store for his sugar and caffeine fix to get him through the rest of the shift. A 20 oz. Mountain Dew was the usual fuel of choice for this purpose.

For some reason unbeknownst to me, I grabbed chocolate milk that night instead and was instantly reminded of a young David Pollay spooning sugar into a bowl as he explained how much of it we consume in a typical day. Do you remember your speech “Sugar: The Hidden Menace”? I remember you said there were six to eight teaspoonfuls of sugar in each carton of chocolate milk (Pollay, 1978ish). 

That incident five years ago in the convenience store was a turning point in my life. It was then that a confluence of three ideas hit me all at once. First, I needed to gain control over my health which was in a sorry state of affairs. By simply heeding the advice of your speech I was able to return to my normal weight. After much struggle, I kicked the soda habit and in so doing I lost the aches and pains.

Second, after 10 years on the streets, I realized I needed a different job with a little less stress. I then requested and received a transfer to the Identification Division of the Milwaukee PD. There I was trained as a CSI photographer. Third, I decided to return to college. I am now in my third year working toward a Bachelors Degree in Communication.

My kids are also benefiting from your speech because I have a good mental image of how much sugar they are eating on a daily basis. Jakob, 5, and Louis, 3, are my two wonderful boys who are also responsible for motivating me to get off my butt and continue to make the important changes in my life.

David, all of this was sparked by a flashback to your speech. It was ahead of its time and delivered in a way that was impossible to forget. I just stored it away and dug it up at a most opportune time.

Thank you, David.

Andrew Smith

Here are my three reasons for telling Andrew’s story.

First, Andrew’s e-mail was a gift to me. How often do people from our distant past – in my case, 30 years ago – look us up to tell us that we have made a difference in their lives? Are there people in our lives that we can give a similar gift to this year?

Second, Andrew’s story is inspiring. His life reminds us that we are never stuck on a path without options. We always have a choice. Andrew took the best of his life – his meaningful role as a guardian of his community, and a father of two boys – and improved it by improving his health, furthering his education and pursuing his mission (Andrew plans to apply his degree to inspirational speaking in the community). Are there things we can improve in our lives this year?

Third, Andrew’s e-mail taught me that we do not always know the impact we are having on others. Even if the effects may not be known for many years, it is heartening to think that our roles as parents, friends and colleagues may be having a positive influence on others. We are reminded to give our best to what we care about most – our family, our work, our education, our community – the results of our efforts could have a long-lasting, positive influence on others.

Andrew thanked me for the impact I had on his life. And now, I want to thank Andrew for the impact his letter has had on mine.

David J. Pollay is the creator of The Law of the Garbage Truck™. Mr. Pollay writes the Monday Morning Momentum Blog each week. He is a syndicated columnist with North Star Writers Group, creator and host of The Happiness Answer™ television program, and an internationally sought after speaker. Mr. Pollay’s book, Beware of Garbage Trucks!™, is due out in early 2009. Mr. Pollay is the founder and president of the personal coaching and seminar organization, The Momentum Project.

© 2009 David J. Pollay. Distributed by North Star Writers Group. May not be republished without permission.

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