The Sender: A Story About When Right Words Make All The Difference

by Kevin Elko

Let’s start over. And let’s focus on one simple thing. I heard a story I’d like to share. In Africa . . .” he began, and the boys seemed to settle down. “In an African country there was a tribe of people in which all the parents had been wiped out by AIDS. The grandparents had to raise the babies, and they were at the end of their rope. The government was overwhelmed by the health crisis, and there was little help at hand, so they were all alone and had to figure it out themselves. The problem was that there was absolutely nothing they could do. Nothing. As elders gathered to discuss their endless problems, one of the men stood and addressed the crowd. “We have no hope, and there is nothing any one of us here can do. So whenever I see any of you in the street from now on, I’m not going to say, ‘How are you?’ I’m going to say, simply, ‘I’m strong if you’re strong. Are you strong?’ and you are going to respond, ‘I’m strong.’”