On July 4th I was performing for the families of the US Army at the National Training Center. During one show I was doing a ring and rope routine, when I looked down and noticed a young girl about 4 or 5 years old climbing up the stage.

Her mother was out in the audience and suddenly realized her daughter was missing and on stage with me. She was pretty concerned.

I looked at the girl and said, "Hi, what's your name?" She looked up and replied, "Ava".

"Hi, Ava. Would you like to do a magic trick with me?"

She smiled and said, "Yes". I told her to stand right next to me and to watch me so she could learn how to do a magic trick. I finished the routine and then allowed her (with some help) to cut and restore a rope herself. When she finished she went back to her mother.

After the show, the event coordinator, the show's producer, and Ava's mother all came backstage to thank me on how the situation was handled. Apparently, similar situations had happened at other base events that ended up with not so positive results. The smile on the mother's face made my day.

They booked me for next year, but that didn't even come close to the joy I felt working with that little girl.

Lesson? Professionalism 24/7..it pays big dividends both ways.

That's a great post. Thanks for sharing that with us. I agree, that professionalism goes a long long way.

Bill

Good thinking on your part! Bravo!

I don't think it's got to do with thinking. You can't think something through so fast. Imho it's because Steven is a 'mensch' in general, and this plays off in all aspects of his life.

Sorry, man...

But what's a 'mensch'?

"A nice guy"?

I think I'd agree with you if I knew what that meant... lol..

Mensch is a Yiddish word that literally means 'person'. It's also used to mean a decent human being.

Here's a quote from an online dictionary
( http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=mensch&r=67 )

n. Informal pl. mensch·es or mensch·en (mnshn)
A person having admirable characteristics, such as fortitude and firmness of purpose: “He radiates the kind of fundamental decency that has a name in Yiddish; he's a mensch” (James Atlas).

This is a great story. I hope I handle a similar situation as well when/if it arises.