Making an Impact: Lessons from Robin Williams

 




Images of Robin Williams are attributed to wallpaper.com 

The other night, I decided to revisit a classic movie, one that holds both beauty and depth, What Dreams May Come, starring the incomparable Robin Williams. The film itself is a work of art, rich in emotion, color, and meaning. But it wasn’t just the story on screen that moved us; it was the man behind the role.

About 20 minutes into the movie, I noticed my daughter quietly wiping her eyes. Within moments, her composure broke, and she was crying. Through her tears, she expressed a sorrow I knew well: the pain of knowing that someone who radiated such joy, kindness, and vibrancy on screen was no longer with us.

She spoke of Robin Williams as if she had known him personally, his ability to make people laugh, to speak from a place of truth, to be larger than life without crossing into cruelty or insensitivity. She couldn’t understand how someone who seemed so full of life could be gone.

In that moment, I wrapped my arms around her, feeling the weight of her grief. The only words I could find were these:

"What you’re feeling right now, that wave of emotion, is called making an impact. Robin Williams made such an impact on the world that even now, years after his passing, his work can move you to tears. That is a legacy."

And it’s true, Robin Williams wasn’t just an actor. He was a force. He left behind more than movies and stand-up specials; he left behind moments, memories, and a sense of connection that transcends time. His presence, his humor, and his humanity still touch lives today.

That is the kind of impact I strive for, not for fleeting fame, not for the surface-level sparkle that fades, but for something enduring. Something that, years from now, can still bring comfort, laughter, or inspiration to someone I may never meet.

I ask the universe each day:

Where can I make my impact?

Who can I lift today?

What words, what actions, what kindness might ripple far beyond my own time here?

Because if we can live in such a way that our absence is felt not for the hole it leaves, but for the light we gave, then we have lived well.

Robin Williams showed us that. And in his own way, he’s still showing us now.


© 2024 G Blue. All rights reserved. 

Location: San Diego, CA, USA

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