I once asked my mother
Did you ever want to be famous?
Or maybe travel the world?
How about climb Mount Everest?
Or maybe step foot on the moon?
Did you ever want to be the greatest?
Did you ever want to make a huge difference?

She did not give an answer right away
But instead sat me down on that royal blue sofa
Took my hand
Smiled
And said…

We all need to be somebody
It’s not always
The awards and recognition we receive
That defines us for who we are
But it’s the little things
That makes all the difference
To the world and beyond
We don’t always take the biggest chances
But sometimes not taking risks
Can make the difference
Between good and bad
If you only ever remember one thing that that I’ve told you
Always remember
That the little things
Make all the difference

So I grew up remembering
Her answer to my questions
Although I never thought about those words
They still stuck in the back of my head
Like glue on paper
As I got older I got to know a girl
From a little town in Wisconsin
That moved here in Florida
When she was about fifteen.
Gabriella was her name
Shy and timid she was
Like a little kitten that had just seen the world for the first time

But I made her feel at home
We hung out all the time
On the beach when the sun blazed down upon us
After a couple of months she gained a lot of confidence
And we talked about everything
And we went to everything
Together.

One day we went to a party
And they had drinking there
We were dared to take our first sip of wine
Gabi went up to take the drink
But I stopped the both of us
And we drove off in my car
And that was the end of it.

One thing she never discussed
Was where she had last had lived
And I never brought it up
However, I still remember
That one time
When I got a grasp of what her last home was like

It was a nice summer day
August the twenty first
The day before her birthday
I had gotten two bracelets
One contained a little charm saying
Best
And the other had an identical charm saying
Friends
I wrapped up the second piece of jewelry
The one that said Friends
In red tissue paper
And gave my gift to my best friend

She opened it
Tearing the tissue paper ever so gently
And opening the box to see what the inside contained
She held the bracelet in her hand
And then
Started Crying

I was not expecting this reaction
“What’s wrong?” I asked
I’ve never had a best friend before,” she responded.
Matter a fact not a friend at all
I never seemed to fit in
Until I came here
I’ve always wanted to, though
And sometimes I’ve done
Stupid things
Just to have people like me.
You have made my life so happy
And now I have confidence in myself
Thank you, I love it
I will treasure it forever
My best friend.

She gave me a hug
And I hugged her back
Who knew that a simple present
Could make a difference

Well, we grew up
I went to college
And she went to California
And became an actress
Now, she’s making millions
On many different movies
And still today
I see her
With that same bracelet I gave to her
On her sixteenth birthday
I guess mama was right

We all need to be somebody
It’s not always
The awards and recognition we receive
That defines us for who we are
But it’s the little things
That makes all the difference
To the world and beyond
We don’t always take the biggest chances
But sometimes not taking risks
Can make the difference
Between good and bad
If you only ever remember one thing
Always remember
That the little things
Make all the difference