SabrinaFair

Question Presented: What is the best compliment you've ever received?

Recently, a friend and former lover of mine paid me a lovely compliment. His words made me grin, and also made me curious--what is the best compliment I've ever received?

One of the most memorable and meaningful compliments of my life actually came from my Mama. When I was in high school, she and I were out in the pool and she said, "You're lovely--some girls are pretty, some are cute, but you are lovely." Over the years, I've held onto that compliment. To me, it is more than a description of physical beauty--instead, it is a word that embodies a beauty that shines from within, a pleasing appearance that tells of intelligence and grace. I'll never forget those words. I grew up in a household that valued brains over beauty, where a job well done was cause for the highest praise. I don't really remember complimented on my appearance very often by my parents. So I'll always remember that moment in the pool with Mama--its poignancy was enhanced by its rarity.

And so I ask: what is the nicest/sweetest/kindest/most meaningful compliment someone's ever paid you?

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"With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams,
it is still a beautiful world.
Be cheerful. Strive to be happy."
-Desiderata

Grasshopper Green

Someone once told me I was the type of girl he wanted to take home to meet his mother. We were just friends and it was many years ago, but it really stuck with me.

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"They say that patriotism is the last refuge to which a scoundrel clings; steal a little and they throw you in jail, steal a lot and they make you king"

Formerly Medusa

DaniGirl

The best complement I have ever been given was from my mom. I was always considered her "problem child". I got pregnant at 17 and even now when I am 22 that was the one thing my parents never let me live down. But after the shock and after I gave birth they had forgiven me. They love all three of my daughters. But even now they mention the pregnancy as my biggest mistake. This year has been really tough on me physically and mentally and I was under a lot of stress. I was venting to my mom over the phone about how worried I was about one of my daughters health problems. Then my mom gave me the best complement, she said " I know I should have told you this sooner but I just want you to know that I am so proud of you, you are a great mother". That was all I needed to hear.

samcol

That's really outstanding.

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It's time for the president to hand over his nobel peace prize.

Plan9

I don't get compliments I believe because I often feel like others don't understand me or they're just superficial garbage compliments.

...

Validation is a funny creature.

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Whatever you can carry.

"You should not drink... and bake."

snowy

My mother told me a couple of months ago how accomplished and successful she thought I was, and how proud of me she is. It touched me. I don't think of myself as particularly accomplished or successful--when I look at my life I see a string of failures and screw-ups, and it really got to me that when my mother looks at my life, she sees something entirely different. It really helped me get a grip on my perspective of myself, and to realize I'm really hard on myself. Thanks, Mom.

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If I am not better, at least I am different. --Jean-Jacques Rousseau

Punk.of.Ages

"You're the most honest person I know..."

I hear it all the time. It's the only compliment that really makes me feel like I'm succeeding as a person.

I mean, I really appreciate any heartfelt compliment I receive. It flatters me when somebody goes out of their way to make me feel better about myself, but when somebody validates that I'm an honest person, I don't get an ego boost; I feel like I'm living up to my potential.

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"The fact is that censorship always defeats its own purpose, for it creates, in the end, the kind of society that is incapable of exercising real discretion..." - Henry Steel Commager

"Punk rock music is great music played by really bad, drunk musicians." -Fat Mike

inBOIL

+1

The best compliments I've gotten weren't compliments, but actions that showed what the person doing them thought of me. Words are cheap, and it's hard to lie with actions.

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And you believe Bush and the liberals and divorced parents and gays and blacks and the Christian right and fossil fuels and Xbox are all to blame, meanwhile you yourselves create an ad where your kid hits you in the head with a baseball and you don't understand the message that the problem is you.

Jetée

I like this if for only I can relate, though it also holds some truth to it.

I don't particularly care for doling out or receiving compliments at all because I do think a sizable portion of kudos are given rather capriciously and too forward at times. You just met me, and you want to tell me how smart I am? Right.

...

The best compliment I can give is to myself, my family, and my friends, one in which we regard ourselves at truly content and happy in the presence of one another. And if that should change and one should move away, we become sad until the time we should see them once again. That's my ideal compliment.

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As human beings, our greatness lies not so much in being able to remake the world (that is the myth of the Atomic Age) as in being able to remake ourselves.

—Mohandas K. Gandhi

Daniel_

The best compliment I ever received was "I do".

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╔═════════════════════════════════════════╗
Overhead, the Albatross hangs motionless upon the air,
And deep beneath the rolling waves,
In labyrinths of Coral Caves,
The Echo of a distant time
Comes willowing across the sand;
And everthing is Green and Submarine
╚═════════════════════════════════════════╝

CinnamonGirl

Awww. That made me smile.



It wasn't a direct compliment, but my mom was talking about me to someone else, and said, "She's stubborn. And she has her own opinions. But if she loves you, she's your ally for life."

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"...for though she was ordinary, she possessed health, wit, courage, charm, and cheerfulness. But because she was not beautiful, no one ever seemed to notice these other qualities, which is so often the way of the world."


"Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?"

mixedmedia

Most recently, I was talking to my daughter about my boyfriend and I said 'well, I guess he loves me.' And she turned to me with this look of incredulity on her face and said, 'of course he does, mom, you're fucking awesome.'

Most of my best compliments come from my kids. And as far as I'm concerned, they're the only compliments that matter.

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Most people go through life dreading they'll have a traumatic experience. Freaks were born with their trauma. They've already passed their test in life. They're aristocrats. - Diane Arbus
PESSIMISM, n. A philosophy forced upon the convictions of the observer by the disheartening prevalence of the optimist with his scarecrow hope and his unsightly smile. - Ambrose Bierce

wooÐs

I've been showered with compliments regarding my character and what not all my life. I'm essentially numb to them. However, receiving compliments on my appearance lights me up like the sun. I've had body image issues forever, with my weight fluctuating between 127lbs. and 285lbs. When I'm told I'm 'so sexy' or 'so beautiful' by my ex (who I'm still sleeping with,) I feel high.