“Treat people how you want to be treated…”

This week we visited Ms. Riley somewhat fishing for information about her experiences with civil rights issues. However, time and time again Ms. Riley shows me that she is the star and producer of her own segment (😂😂), so our conversation turned to a lesson on respect and treating people with kindness.

Referring to the 10 years she spent as a housekeeper and nanny for a white family, Ms. Riley stated, “they always treated me with respect and treated me right… always gave me extra money when I went on vacation.”

If you have ever met or visited Ms. Lorene Riley, you notice that no one passes her door without checking on her or at least sharing salutations. Each person that spoke was excited and each person was genuinely happy to take time out of their day to interact with her. After getting some help from a very friendly CNA, Ms. Riley turned to me and said, “See, that’s all it takes.” Referring to the CNA’s big smile and sweet personality, Ms. Riley mentioned that it doesn’t take much to be nice and that it takes more energy to be nasty than it does to be pleasant. She said that if you put nice energy out there, you get it back. It’s that simple!

So this week let’s try to be like Ms. Lorene Riley who is ALWAYS giving out positive energy and getting it back tenfold! This weekend, smile more, do someone a favor, give a compliment, and spread that positive energy!