Let the sun shine in

Sometimes, all you need is a little sunshine. I don’t necessarily mean the kind you get in the yard — although that works wonders as well — but the kind I keep in a folder on my computer desktop.

It’s full of messages I get from readers, judges’ comments from newspaper contests and assorted other things that are sure to give me a boost when I’m having a tough day.

It’s not a very big file, at least when it comes to reader comments. Usually, in the newspaper business, we don’t hear much positive feedback.

Folks generally don’t say anything unless they disagree with an opinion column, or have a problem with something someone said or did, or they find or think we did something wrong. You get the picture.

But every once in a while, a reader will reach out with positive feedback, telling us how much they enjoyed something we’ve written or thanking us for telling their story. Those messages are part of what keep me going.

A few weeks ago, I wrote about how much I was looking forward to some time off, when I’d get a chance to blow off some steam, do a little bit of good and maybe get an emotional boost by going to Cape Comic Con in Cape Girardeau, Mo.

I wrote about what going to these events and volunteering with Heroes for Kids, the cosplay charity I work with, means to me and how it’s helped me keep an even keel the past several years.

After I got back, I received an email from a reader in response to that column.

“Good morning, Robert! I just finished reading “A little ‘smile therapy’.”

“I cracked some smiles and had a few chuckles. Theatre kids, big nerds and band geeks are the BEST! But I also had an all out sobbing break down at the end.

“My sister whose passion is teaching theatre to youth in Okmulgee, Okla., lost her husband 10 years back. I’ve watched her go down the grief path and it’s been a long hard journey.

“So when I got to the end and read that you’ve lost both your mom and wife, I lost it. That really SUCKS. It’s so not fair.

“I’m glad you’re finding ways to keep laughing and living. And knowing you are still worthy makes life doable. That’s the bottom line.

“You are worthy and loved. (And I’m preaching that to the choir, too — me.)” Receiving a note like this does more than brighten my day. It makes me a little giddy. After more than years in the business, that’s a rare feeling.

We have tough skins when it comes to criticism, but compliments and praise cut right to our gooey center.

The sunshine feels good.

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Robert Cox is associate editor for Carroll County Newspapers. His email address is RCox@cherryroad.com.