The importance of being nice
Cleaning off my desk this afternoon I came across a framed quote a reader gave me a few years ago — “It’s nice to be important but it’s more important to be nice.”
I don’t know who said this, there’s no attribution. I do remember the day I received it, however.
An older gentleman used to call me almost every day. Sometimes he would call with a story idea, and some of them turned into stories I wrote that were published in our paper. I even quoted him a few times in stories, as he seemed to know everyone in town. Often, though, he’d call just to talk. He’d start by saying, “That was a great story you had in today’s paper.” Or, he’d say, “That wasn’t your best work. Your heart was not in that one.”
I’d say, “Thanks” or “I’ll try harder next time,” and then we’d visit for a little while. Over the course of time, we became friends. But sometimes he’d call me at a busy time of day, or he’d call me several times a day, and I’d get annoyed. One day I snapped at him that I was busy and had to get back to work. About an hour later, a security guard in our building called to say I had a packet downstairs. In it was the above quote in a plain black frame. Humbled, I called to apologize to my friend.
Finally, one day he didn’t call. I let that go for a few days, but finally I knew something was wrong. I called everyone I could think of that he knew and finally found out he’d had a heart attack and had been in the hospital. After that his calls were more sporadic. A few months back I realized I had not heard from him in a long time. When working on a story recently, I interviewed a guy who knew my and he told me he had died.
I miss him. I miss the daily calls and even the critiques. Today the quote sits on my desk as a reminder that I should never be too busy to be nice. People like my friend are the ones for whom I write my stories.
So, thanks Steve Hallmark. I promise to remember to be nice.
Tricia Pemberton
Staff Writer
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