Allow me to share with you my favorite authors of all time.  They are Mark Twain, C.S. Lewis, Judy Blume, and Greyson Masters.  I’ve never had the honor of meeting Twain or Lewis.  I have enjoyed the opportunity of conversing with Judy Blume when I was a child.  And I’m proud to say that I can call Greyson Masters a friend.  He is also a brilliant children’s book author.  His masterpieces have included “What Will Be Your First Words of the Day?: A Morning Tradition”, “#LastWording: Bedtime Just Got Real”, and most recently, “The Worthless Penny”.  All can be found at https://www.amazon.com/s?k=greyson+masters&ref=nb_sb_noss_1.

Greyson and I enjoy similar occupations.  He writes children’s books.  I write children’s books.  He performs assemblies and writing workshops in schools. I perform assemblies and writing workshops in schools.  He is a master illustrator.  I hire my good friend Mark Sasser to handle all our drawings.  OK, so Greyson is a triple threat, where I barely come in at a double threat.  And we both share the same hometown.  On paper, one could objectively see where we could be work rivals.  You know, the Peyton Manning and Tom Brady of obscure children’s authors.  (With me being Peyton of course…just because I have the bigger forehead.)

But this could not be further from the truth.  Greyson is a friend and we grab coffee now and then to check in on each other and share war stories.  But Greyson takes is a step beyond.  Just because that’s the class act he is.  Allow me to share an excerpt of an email I recently received from him:

Happy new year, Jay! How the tarnation are you doing?! Hope well!

Hey, quick question…on Thursday, January 9, I’m headed to ##### to do an author visit at ###### Elementary School. It’s being funded by a local organization there.

I know it’s extremely short notice, but if you have any collateral material about your author visits that you’d like me to leave behind at this visit – or any other future visits I have coming up – just let me know. I’d be happy to get it in the right hands while I’m there. No pressure of course – again I know it’s short notice and just thought I’d ask.

Your #1 fan,
Greyson

Now first of all, anyone that can work in the word tarnation into everyday conversation is OK in my book!  Secondly, who does this?  This is a guy on his way to perform a paying gig and he takes time to think about who else could benefit from this visit and then reaches out to see what he can do to make this happen.  Most people these days have a ‘me-first’ philosophy.  To most it’s ‘Dog-Eat-Dog’ in order to get ahead.  But the older I get, the more often I find that the most successful folks I meet are the ones that genuinely put others first.

The world needs more Greysons!  He’s not only a friend and an absolutely fantastic author, but a role model who consistently demonstrates selflessness and empathy.  If you get a chance this week, do yourself a favor and check out one of his books.  And take some time to think of someone that you could reach out to and help.  This is how the world becomes a better place.  One selfless act at a time.