That phone call that changed my life

[Toilichte]

Inspired by another thread on here. 3 years ago I was in a deeply unhappy relationship, I posted on here a lot at the time. Finally one day I was brave enough to fill in an online form on a solicitor website that Google threw up. I hadn’t done any research into the firm, didn’t know what I was doing, just knew I was unhappy, venting to mumsnet and things needed to change.

I had a conversation with a solicitor, it hadn’t been my plan that morning. He called me after I put in the form. He was so kind, and on it. He made the process seem so clear. I was worried about ownership of my dog- he didn’t think that was silly or the wrong thing to focus on. He just gave me excellent advice.

I wasn’t married, and so actually the process was quite simple. I never engaged his services. I just had that conversation which let me know the lay of the land and that was it.

I don’t think he knows that he changed my life, and I will be forever grateful. Probably one of a million conversations he’s had on the same vein, but for me that conversation means the world.

I volunteer for a DA charity. One of my clients said that I’d been such a help and inspiration, that once she’d come out the other side, she’d be signing up for volunteering at the charity.

I did put the brakes on a bit, and tell her to give it some time (as it can take you to some dark places) but I felt chuffed that she was empowered enough to come out with the comment… and glad to have made a difference.

These days we are all so wrapped up in our own little worlds, managing life as best we can and praising someone's actions is not automatically our default setting. My view is that when praise / thanks are due, they should be voiced. A little bit of positivity in someone's day can make a huge difference to them - much as it has done for you when you received the advice in such a friendly and supportive way. 😊

This is so true.

I was in the supermarket a while back and there was a lady in the same section as me. She must have been in her late 70s and she had the most fabulous hair style. As we shared the same weighing scales I said to her "can I just say, your hair looks absolutely fantastic!"

DH looked at me like I'd gone totally mad, complimenting a random stranger in Waitrose, but the look of sheer delight on this lady's face showed me I'd made her day and, as a result, made mine too!