what is my name?

Everyone likes a compliment. A very pretty young lady of somewhat limited smarts (please note no reference to hair color) visited her doctor complaining of sharp pains in her side. After the examination the doctor said, “Oh my, you have acute appendicitis.”

“Look, doc,” said the young lady, “I didn’t come here for a compliment.”

Compliments are powerful things. Mark Twain once said, “I can live two full months on one good compliment.” Most everyone I know feels better when someone says something nice about them. Some might call it polishing the apple but I would rather think of it as encouraging someone to do their very best. Even the most shy person will blossom when noticed by someone they admire.

A school teacher can transform a student’s bad attitude into a good one and help him become more productive simply by giving him a few words of encouragement.. They are mere words but words are often more powerful than swords and can cut and slash just as disastrously. They can also carry a smile and messages of hope, love and a new outlook on life.

Just about the best compliment you can give someone is to remember his or her name. I am a great fan of Horation Hornblower, the fictional British seafarer in the service of the King of England. In the series of books written by C. S. Forrester we watch Horatio as he rises from Midshipman to become the First Lord of the Admiralty. In one of his adventures the men have come to near mutiny on a long and toilsome voyage. The leader of the unrest is a large and hearty Englishman sentenced to jail or the navy. He had not a good word for his captain until, in the heat of battle, the captain calls him by name. The transition is immediate. In disbelief the sailor says, “He knows me name … did ye hear that the Captain knows me name.”

That seaman became the Captains Coxswain, his right hand man and body guard. Learn any language and among the first phrases you will learn... "hello, my name is," along with it "what is your name?" A person's name is precious guard it, share it and respect others and you will have a pleasant life pleasant and many friends.