Monday, November 30, 2009

On the (side of the) road...

"...Anyone whose good deeds exceed his wisdom is compared to a tree whose branches are few, but whose roots are numerous. Even if all the winds in the world were to come and blow against it, they would not budge it from its place..." (Ethics of Our Fathers, 3:22)

I write this to remind myself - the more random acts of kindness I commit, the more natural it will become, and stories such as the following will end differently:

While driving to school, I drove past a brother stopped on the side of the highway. He was getting out his spare tire from the trunk, and he had raised the car on the jack. Instead of pulling over immediately, I thought about it a few moments. By the time I decided to stop, I was 1/2 mile past this fellow, and it was too dangerous, perhaps, to drive backwards that distance on the highway. I thought to myself how happy I could have made this man, just by stopping and helping change his tire, and I resolved to stop and help at the next opportunity.

If I act goodly more often, such opportunities will result in my reflex to help, instead of a few moments of indecisive deliberation.

There are so many opportunities to better ourselves: holding the door for someone whose hands are full, smiling at a stranger on the street, complementing a friend for their efforts, praising a freind's yummy cooking, etc. It's so exciting!

Blessings to all for a joyous day of wise action :-)

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