For the past 12 years, I’ve followed the blog of a retired gentleman who turned a cancer diagnosis into an adventure. On the day he finished his chemo treatments in 2003, he bought a motorhome and set out on an adventure that would last 15 more years. He started a blog to keep his family and friends informed of his whereabouts and adventures. It wasn’t long until others started following it, too. Over the course of his blogging life he gained a significant following.

“Tioga George,” as he came to be known in the RVing community, had a simple mission to help others who wanted to become full-time RVers. How did he do it? Simply by freely sharing his experiences and knowledge through his blog.

Early last month, his blog posts abruptly stopped. After a week or so, one of his family members managed to log onto his blog to inform his anxious readers of what they feared the most: George had passed away.

I found myself mourning the death of this man I’d never met but who had undoubtedly touched my life. Not only did I learn a lot about RVing from him, I was inspired by his ability to be unapologetically himself and open about his mistakes without caring what anyone thought. George was always eager to grow, learn, and try new things. In fact, when he died at the age of 81 he was in the middle of converting a box truck into a home on wheels.

I think what has stood out to me the most about George is the significant impact an “ordinary” man had simply by being himself and being open to sharing his experiences and knowledge with others.

And when it comes right down to it, that’s the impact God intends for us all to have. He created us the way He has for a reason. When we are freely and truly ourselves as He created us, we make the impact on the world He created us to have. It’s as simple as that! Not easy, mind you, because it requires choosing to not care what others think or say. And trust me, they will think and say plenty. But pleasing others is not what we’re called to do. We’re called to please our Creator by being who He created us to be.