Kirk taught us to spread the positive. Here’s the backstory:
First, we weren’t even supposed to be in Hilton Head. We were supposed to be in Asheville, NC. We booked the trip before COVID. Ron took the trailer for its annual inspection. The brakes didn’t pass. In fact, the inspector said they were paper thin. He said we could take it anywhere if it was flat, but definitely not in the mountains. Asheville is in the mountains. We didn’t want to go anywhere flat either, not until the brakes are fixed.
We found this fact out Thursday around noon. Things weren’t looking good for a weekend getaway, so desperately needed. Determination pays off. We found one of the last rooms in Hilton Head that took pets, Red Roof Inn. Great place if you have dogs and want to travel. No frills, and I mean no frills. But has the necessities and is cheap for Hilton Head. One and a half miles to Palmetto Dunes, can ride your bike everywhere from there. Here’s a clip from our Friday night ride:
Secondly, in none of our conversations did we consider spending Saturday afternoon at the hotel pool. We played Pickleball in the morning, didn’t really have a plan for the afternoon. Possible tennis, possible golf, possible nothing. Ron wanted to take a shower, I wanted to work. Being a Minick, work is how you get through life’s heartaches. Our weekend get-a-way had a lot to do with how hard the anniversary of Cody’s death is for me. Trust me, it doesn’t get easier. So I headed to the pool around noon with laptop, phone and water, to work.
You know what happened?
When I got to the pool, I decided to dip my feet in the water before getting to work. That’s when our new friends, Kirk and Edith asked me if I wanted a beer. I said I’m more wine than beer. Edith said, “I have wine.”
I took that as a sign I was to take the day off.
“I’m cleaning the pool Edith.” 
Miss E
Kirk’s mother passed away 6 weeks ago, nine days before her 101st birthday. She went to sleep Friday night, didn’t wake up Saturday morning. Cause of death was listed as COVID, although she had no symptoms, and was not ill. In Kirk’s words, “She was done. She lived her life, and it was time to go.”
He has two siblings, a brother and sister. They thought about hiring a lawyer to have “COVID” removed from the death certificate. The cost is $3000-$5000. They didn’t pursue the issue. Why? The statistic is already recorded, what difference would it make at this point.
Edith was napping.
Tee wandered in at some point. Kirk was quick to introduce himself. Another friend made. She was a young COVID tester, getting away for the night. She has an artists heart and a sweet smile.
Ron joined us after about an hour. He was leery at first. I could tell from his body language he didn’t trust what was happening. I’m not sure how long it took Kirk to get him to start relaxing. Kirk is a beer and wine salesman. He knows how to make people relax. And I know the moment he broke down Ron’s defenses.
I was mid-story when Kirk interrupts me and says this to us:
“You know, 98% of the time when someone says something good about someone they don’t know it. The reason being because they say it to someone else. I make it a point of telling people when someone says something nice about them.
“Son, this here girl loves you. The way she talks about you when you’re not around makes that very clear. I just wanted you to know that.”
Kirk is right. Can you imagine how much better the world could be if we told people the nice things other people said about them? Ron and I have talked about this moment ever since. It’s impacted both of our lives. The more you think of the possibilities, the more exciting the thought becomes.
We are so quick to tell the negative. We need to be quicker and more intentional to tell the positive.
That’s what we learned from Kirk.
By the way, Kirk and Edith are from Boone, NC, right outside of Asheville. All four of us booked the room the day before. None of us planned the trip to HHI in advance. If we went to Asheville we wouldn’t have met.
In Kirk’s words, “Sometimes the Higher Power brings us together for a special purpose.”
I believe He does Kirk. I believe He does:-)!
