The Unlikelies
Discover more from The Enthusiast by Brad Montague
I originally thought of this as a book.
The more I worked on it, though, the more I just wanted to share it with you.
It came from looking at my real life heroes. Seems like the actual humans I look up to most in the world would actually be the *least likely* to ever appear on the cover of a comic or headline the next superhero movie.
So, The Unlikelies were born.
Thanks for being here. You make better tomorrows (and a better world) seem much more likely. I’m deeply encouraged and inspired by all of you. Keep going!
Take a read and let me know: who in your life would make a great member of the Unlikelies?
The Unlikelies
Behold, the Unlikelies! The front pages of today’s newspapers will not feature their faces. Children’s lunchboxes and backpacks won't have them printed any places. Still, the Unlikelies will show up softly working to heal the world's flaws. The Unlikelies always show up and not for spotlights or power or applause.
Quiet work. Gentle work. See-the-ways-this-garden-has-grown-work. Simple work. Vital work. Let-someone-know-they're-not-alone-work. They are the whisperers of helpful words. Openers of doors. Leavers of pennies on gas station counters. Forgetters of debts, doubts and scores. They are scratchers to the backs of little dog ears. Feeders of every bird. Presenters of well-timed napkins. Listeners to the unheard.
The world is not as it should be. There's many wrongs we must work to make right. We might think it takes being louder or richer or having powers like heat vision or flight. But something small happened today. Something was quietly shared. Something simple and good was done. Something was thoughtfully prepared.
The littlest things we do for each other are actually a very big deal. Those acts unlikely to make the news are really what help us all heal. So, here's to the Unlikelies. To those heroes kind and strange. Maybe if we were all more like them, the world would be more likely to change.
Who’s an unlikely hero you’d like everyone to know about? I love hearing from you. Leave a comment!
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The Unlikelies
This is so beautiful. When I was a single mom and my kids were young, life was pretty challenging. But, the older woman across this street who lived alone noticed me. Once in a while she would come out and she would say, "I think I need a hug today" and she would put her arms out and hug me saying that she needed that. And then at the end she'd always say you are a good mom. She'll never know how much that meant to me. She would definitely have fit in this little book of yours. I hope you publish it in some way because I'd love to have a copy.
Reading these comments is as lovely as reading your original letter! I remember years ago taking my baby niece out to a coffee shop to give my sister a break. My anxiety at the time was that I wasn’t a fit person to do anything much. A stranger at the next table chatted and smiled and when I said I wasn’t mum but auntie she said, ‘isn’t that lovely, it means they trust you.’ And even now, that brings tears to my eyes. Did she know one of my biggest struggles is to trust myself? It was a vital gift that she needn’t have given 🥰🥹