I was on Long Beach Island with my family.

I was running.

It was hot.

When it’s hot, I run without a shirt. Since my surgery, I have no breasts. Since I have no breasts, I see no reason to wear a shirt. Especially when it’s hot.

I know it’s not the norm. I know that society doesn’t really welcome going flat or top surgery or choosing to have your breasts removed or a public display of a double – or single – mastectomy (which is not how I can or will refer to my surgery), and exercising without a shirt is maybe forcing that into people’s faces.

But it makes no sense to me to be hotter than I need to be when I run.

I get a lot of weird reactions. Again, I know I’m not the norm. I say hello to everyone who passes by me, and I get some smiles and hellos, but I also get a lot of ignoring – looking at me and then looking away – and a lot of what seem to be disapproving stares.

But the other day I ran past two people walking and said good morning, and after I passed them, they started to cheer and applaud.

It took a bit for that to sink in – for me to register the clapping and cheering. Then I turned around and walked back to them.

“Is that for me?” I asked.

“Absolutely!” they answered. “We hope you don’t mind.”

I think that’s when I started to tear up. I told them that often I got weird stares and ignoring and disapproval. I told them that they made my day. My week. It had been a very hard week in a lot of ways.

They told me they admired my strength, my courage, my confidence, me.

I asked them if I could hug them, which, in retrospect, was quite rude, as (again) I had been running, and it was hot, and I was sweaty. But they hugged me. As I turned to start running again, they shouted out to me, “Keep rocking it!”

You never know when your comment to a stranger will support them, cheer them, give them what they long for.

This is why I talk to strangers.

I’d love to hear your thoughts, and please share this post with others if it resonates with you. Let’s start a movement of loving ourselves First Most Always!

Photo by Nappy Stock on nappy

The post this is why I talk to strangers – part two appeared first on International Speaker, C-Suite Advisor, Creator of Joy, Love Yourself First Most Always | Lisa Kohn.