💡 Mindset Preparation

Many of us plan our lives around our personal goals, achievements, and routines.

But what happens when compassion calls us off-course?

Sometimes, it's not the personal dreams we chase, but the people we help that redirect our own story’s arc.

When we serve others—not to fix, but to simply be present—we often discover hidden pieces of ourselves waiting to be made whole.

Prompt: “Think of a time when showing up for someone else led you to unexpected clarity or purpose in your life.”

✍🏽 Writing Tip

Use entwined moments as writing anchors.

Instead of focusing solely on your own journey, try this:

Write about a time when your life intersected with someone else's, and you helped or stood beside them, or journeyed with them for a period of time

Describe how their story blended into yours.

--Focus on a turning point.
--Let that scene carry the weight of change without needing a dramatic event
--You might be surprised how much transformation lives in a long-forgotten conversation, or a time when you journeyed along with someone as they faced challenges.

🌱 Encouragement

If you’ve ever doubted that your story matters because it lacks spectacle, I'd like to introduce you to my friend and colleague,  Brandi Stone, who didn’t set out to be remarkable—she set out to be present in the lives of others.

And in doing so, she began mending her own life while bringing dignity to others.

In my blog post, Find Hope in Unexpected Places, learn how Brandi's presence had power to impact the live of others and hers as well. 

Don’t underestimate the ripple you create just by choosing to care.

📌 Takeaway

Helping others isn’t just a footnote in our life story.

Sometimes, it’s the new chapter we never saw coming.

When we serve with open hands, our hearts often receive the deeper healing. Brandi’s story reminds us that even in unexpected places where hope seemed thin, compassion bloomed—and can change lives on both sides.

🛠️ Insider Tip

Use dual timelines in your life story writing.

If a turning point in your life came through helping someone else, show the before and after—not just in your circumstances, but in your worldview. For example:

• Before: I avoided eye contact with the homeless in my city.

• After volunteering for one month,  I knew names, stories, and birthdays.

   
  This technique puts the reader there with you and helps them feel the power of transformation through service.

📝 Final Note

Have you ever found hope in an unexpected place—maybe while helping someone else, or witnessing courage in someone who was overlooked?

I’d love to hear it.

Brandi’s memoir, Hope in the Forest, is a tender and powerful example of how presence can light the darkest places.

May her story remind us that when we give ourselves to others with humility and care, we often find healing we didn’t know we needed.  📚 Hope in the Forest is now available at Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

Thank you for allowing me to be part of your writing journey,

Flora M. Brown, Ph.D.
Website-florabrown.com
Email-f[email protected]