At the end of a walk in our neighbourhood today, Chris and I got talking to an older gentleman who lives on our street. He consistently says hello to anyone walking by, often commenting on the weather. Before today, we hadn't engaged him in a lengthy conversation.

This afternoon, Alex (I asked his name today) opened with a remark about the snow that's expected in our region tomorrow. Then he noticed that both Chris and I were wearing poppy pins and mentioned that he and his wife (Lois) had spent four evenings staffing a poppy table. He told us that he had had a long and fulfilling career in the Canadian Armed Forces. He said that he had lived and worked in many places in Canada and had even been stationed in London, England, for four years. As he described his various posts, he frequently mentioned people he had gotten to know. He told stories about individuals whose lives he had touched and people who had touched his life: the parents of a high school friend who made an hour-long trip to see him get an award, a friend from Australia who invited him to spend three weekends with him while Alex was on a training program in that country, a friend who drove him to a medical appointment. A common refrain was, "I've met some really wonderful people in my time."

I'm certain that Alex has met wonderful people. This gentle, positive man—who looks to be in his 70s—clearly sees the good in others, and no doubt others see the good in him, as I did today. He is friendly, outgoing and sharp. As I thought about Alex, Randy Newman's "You've Got a Friend in Me" came to mind.

I had several encounters over the past 24 hours with kind, grateful and complimentary folks: tea with my sister and phone calls with my mom, a video call with a woman who sought my advice with a work challenge, emails, texts and phone calls from friends who checked in with me, a conversation with my neighbour in a mix of English and Portuguese, even a kind gesture from a gentleman in the Costco parking lot who offered to return my cart (I thanked him then added, "I hope the Leafs win!" in response to his Toronto Maple Leafs baseball cap).

Like Alex, I see the good in others. Encounters like today make me feel like there is still much good in the world. That brought to mind Luke Bryan's "Most People Are Good." (Songs often come into my mind's ear as I write blog posts.)

Positive exchanges with others are uplifting. They smooth out the wrinkles of my life. They help me feel connected. And they remind me that we are here to love and be loved.