A Thought on Kindness

This past Sunday I was taught a lesson that I had been taught before, but it was as lesson that I often forget. This particular teacher approached his lesson with a bit more creativity than past teachers of this principal had and his lesson will forever remain with me. The principal was kindness. What he sought to illustrate was that when we are kind and we lend a helping hand, not only are the beneficiaries of our kindness aided, but our own lives are enriched.

To illustrate his point the teacher asked for a volunteer. A young man volunteered and joined the teacher in the front of the room. The teacher removed his tie and proceeded to blindfold the young man. He then placed a small piece of chalk in one corner of the room. The young man was tasked with finding this incredibly tiny piece of chalk and we, the audience, were instructed that we could in no way help him. The young man proceeded to get down on his hands and knees and attempted to find the chalk. He crawled all over the room, running his hands over the carpet, reaching under chairs and furniture. As he searched, you could see the effort the ordeal was having on the man. He began to sweat as he moved back and forth. Still, he could not find the chalk. Minutes passed by. Eventually, the instructor told us that now we could help the man. We yelled and shouted and directed him to the piece of chalk in just a few short seconds. The task had been so much easier for the man when we helped him.  Watching the man crawl around on the floor and being unable to help him, even with this simple task was hard for me.  How easy it would have been just to tell him where the chalk was to begin with! I could have spared him all the effort and time that he had spent crawling around the room on his hands and knees. And so it is with life. How often do we let times go by that we could have done a service to our fellow man? How often do we fail to help lift the burdens of those around us when it would have been so easy for us to have made a difference in their lives? I know we can do better. There is nothing so important in this life as kindness, charity, and love. These attributes are what lead to a content and accomplished life. So the next time you see someone struggling, or that could use a little help, choose to make a difference. Choose to be kind. You never know when you might be exactly what that person needs.