The bearer of good news

We all know how good it can feel to receive good news.  Whether about major or minor subjects, it always feels nice to land on the side of good and not bad.  

For me, delivering good news to someone else is also a most pleasurable experience.  It's one of those things that brings on, for me at least, an instant surge of happiness and optimism.  I can't help but smile and feel slightly euphoric, even if the news doesn't directly affect me in any way. 

Today I had the pleasure of phoning a young man who is going to be interning at my work starting in May.  He hadn't responded to my initial email about receiving the position, so I called to follow-up and make sure he had gotten my message.  Turns out he hadn't checked his email yet, so this was the first he had heard about landing the position.  He was ecstatic.  I could literally hear the smile in his voice over the phone as he started telling me how this had made his day, and how he was so excited and grateful.  The corners of my mouth couldn't help but turn up in a big grin, and my afternoon instantly went from mediocre to great.  

I'm so glad that it fell on my shoulders to make this phone call, because I needed a small moment like this to remind me how nice it is to be the bearer of good news.  Sometimes we get too caught up in ourselves, too worried about spoiling ourselves, and we forget how nice it can be to contribute to the happiness factor of others. 

Talk about a very satisfying moment to what would have otherwise been a drab Monday afternoon.  Hopefully Tuesday will be just as inspiring.