What Do We Live For?

“What do we live for, if it is not to make life less difficult to each other?”

--George Eliot

 

Glimpses at international tragedies offer us hints about people helping people. Regretfully these tragedies sometimes also give us pictures of people unmindful of others’ needs.

We may never be faced with a situation where we can make a difference between life and death for someone else. But if we’ll pay attention, we’ll probably find ample opportunities to help others. Opportunities that perhaps existed before, but had gone unnoticed.

What have you done lately for the single purpose of making another person’s day better?

Like holding a door open for someone whose arms are full of packages or children.

Like allowing another vehicle to ease into backed-up traffic.

Like reading to somebody who is unable to do so.

Like sending a card to let a person know they’re remembered.

Like taking a meal to someone unable to prepare one. Even a phone call to a friend so they’ll know someone thought about them. Sometimes sharing a smile will help brighten another’s day.

Just how long would one of these helpful acts take? A short time out of the day for being nice, doing something good-natured.

Think what difference we could make if we adopted this thought from Henry David Thoreau: “Be not simply good; be good for something.” Only a small portion of our life would be needed to show consideration, compassion, and generosity. What would it hurt to try?

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My latest book has released – Betty’s Blessing, a novella, book #2 in the California Bound series. (Book #1 in the series is Donna’s Detour.) Here is the cover, and you can read more about the book and the first chapter here.