I
came across this photo essay on MSN, and some of the pictures made me smile,
and some of them made me wonder if I’m as nice to others as I could be, inside
and outside of my home and my small circle of friends.
The
problem is that articles like this make it seem that acts of kindness are rare,
newsworthy, but they are not rare. Most people are thoughtful, and most people
do kind things for others – with no thought of praise or attention – all the time. I mean that literally, all the time.
But
kindness rarely makes the news. More likely is a story about someone breaking
into that vending machine or someone stealing the bike seat, or one about how America
is to blame for that poor, shoeless girl’s plight. Unkindness and bad news are
what sell in the media, and sadly, the reason misfortune sells is that we keep
buying it.
And
the more we buy it, the more we believe it, which makes it less likely we will
act with kindness, thinking “why bother.” The ultimate end of such a path is we
will be like lonnie5000, who commented:
“There
is no such thing as kindness, random or otherwise. It’s all just propaganda
meant to spread false hope in a failing society. And the quicker you sheeple
realize this the better. Thumbs down if you are a mindless sheep being herded
by the corrupt government or you are just a dumb***.”
Poor Lonnie5000, I seriously think he needs some medical help.
ReplyDeleteI've found that focusing on helping others makes my own problems seem small. I've had wonderful encounters when I've prayed for God to use me for that purpose.
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