For more than 30 years, Eiler Larsen was the official greeter for the city of Laguna Beach
The Power of a Wave
Today’s blog is about “The Power of a Wave.” I first noticed how something as simple as a wave could impact people when I was a child of about 8-10 while vacationing with my parents. My dad loved the beach! His favorite beach in the world was Laguna Beach, California. We’d vacation there every summer. Back in the 50’s and 60’s (yes, I am that old!) Laguna was a sleepy little town mainly known for its art community, the Festival of Arts Pagent, and a greeter by the name of Eiler Larson (See above). As a kid, sitting in the back seat of my parent’s car, Eiler was both a curiosity and a mystery. He was a curiosity because I’d never seen anyone stand on a corner all day long simply waving to anyone and everyone who passed by. He was a mystery because neither my brother nor I could figure out why anyone would do such a thing. Yet, there he was, waving his fool head off. People would honk at him, wave back, and some even stopped to talk to him. It was quite the experience! Back then, Laguna was trying to do whatever it could to get recognized so more tourists would come. Eiler was a homeless drifter who adopted Laguna as his home, and, in return, Laguna adopted him. He was given a rent-free room at a friend’s home, grateful businesses made sure he never paid for a meal, and, over time, Eiler was featured in paintings, postcards, photographs, and sculptures — all of which brought revenue into the town. All because one man decided to throw himself out there and wave.
A Magical Power
So why make this the subject of one of my blogs? It’s because I think Eiler knew something that many of us have never learned, or as adults, we’ve forgotten. Eiler called it his “mission of friendliness.” According to Wikipedia, Eiler “suggested that his single gesture of goodwill had a ripple effect, saying, “Too many people driving along the highway are frowning and look unhappy. By waving, I make them smile and thousands of people have a happier day before them.” By waving to strangers, Eiler developed a spiritual connection of friendship with his audience. Those who understood, smiled and wove back. After years of doing this, it was clear that Eiler was not in it for the money. Everything he ever earned was used to give back to those he met. He’d buy candy and books to give to the children and poetry to give to the adults. As Eiler put it, “Some people have millions of dollars and no friends. I’ve got practically nothing and thousands of friends who drive by to greet me.”
My Own Experiment
COVID left a lot of us looking at life differently. Many of us became more insular and withdrawn from society. And, perhaps a few of us liked things that way. I admit, the separation gave me a lot of time to think. And, during that time, God gave me the inspiration for a book. So, not all bad. But, in 2018, I retired and lost a great deal of my connection to people. Then COVID only compounded that. As we were coming out the other side, people were still a bit paranoid about congregating in groups, and I was pondering what I could do to help. The answer came to me one morning during my daily walk. For over 40 years, my routine has been to get up early (~5 am), eat a light breakfast while doing a Bible study, and then going out for a walk. I used to cover 5 miles but, after replacing two knees, I’ve been cut down to one mile. While on my walk, it occurred to me to wave to my neighbors as they passed by in their cars on the way to work. I thought it might be a nice gesture that would communicate to my neighbors that we were connected in some way (after all, we all lived in the same neighborhood!) Right from the beginning, it was clear that this experiment might take some time. At first, not many people waved back. They seemed surprised that a stranger was waving to them. But, as the weeks passed, I began to noticed a few waving back. Tentative at first, and then some with more enthusiasm. I’ve been doing this now, most every day, for years. No articles have been written about me. No one has offered me free room and board, and most certainly, no statures have been erected. But, I have, nonetheless, seen some extraordinary things happen:
- Some people roll down their windows so they can both wave and shout a greeting.
- Some people honk and/or flash their lights to let me know I’ve been seen.
- A few have stopped to ask, why I do this.
- Once, the back passenger window of an SUV rolled down and a little girl waved her Teddy bear at me and wished me a good day.
I’m pretty sure that I have become known as the unofficial greeter of my neighborhood. It gives me joy to do it and I now understand what Eiler meant when he said it was his “mission of friendliness.” I hope I have created a sense among my neighbors that we are, indeed, connected. And, that hope is reinforced for me when I forget to wave, and the driver recognizes me and waves to me first. It’s times like that when I know I’ve made a difference.
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