Faith

I wrote this some time ago, figured it was a good day to share it.

I have been chastised over the way I treat people. People look at my actions and shake their heads criticizing my choices without knowing why I would act the way I do. They just don’t understand. It is not that I treat people badly, quite the contrary, I am overly generous. Now don’t misunderstand this, I am not trying to brag or make myself into something I am not, I am simply trying to show why I do the things that strike me as being right.

Not long ago I was sitting in my SUV waiting for someone when a person approached my passenger door. It was summer and so the window was down, this man said hello and then proceeded to tell me his story. He and his family had come to town for a job, but it had fallen through. Now he needed money in order to get back home since he was out of gas and had no way of getting any. I gave him ten dollars and he thanked me and went on his way. As I tell my friends and family about what happened ninety five percent of them shake their heads at me. “You were had.” “He suckered you.” “Throwing your money away.” Many versions of these statements were given to me from many different sources.

Perhaps they were right. The man might have walked off knowing he now had money for liquor, drugs, or whatever else he chose to spend it on. He may not have had a wife, kids, job, or car. He may have suckered me. But I don’t care. That’s right… I do not care.

I would rather give ten dollars to someone who may be using me than to give nothing to someone who might need it. I am not naïve. I know there is a chance, or even a likelihood that the money went for something other than what was told to me, but I choose to have faith in people. I choose to think that someone might be in trouble and need help because I know that if I were in a situation where I needed something I would want someone to be willing to help me. It does not work like that always, I know, but I have faith. I have seen people give all of themselves for others and I have seen people take all for themselves from others. I choose to be one of the former.

What about you? Is it that hard to be generous? Or kind? Or good?

Some things should be done for others without asking for a return.

Life Definitions

Passion - Find the things in your life that make you giddy. That make you a child again in your absolute joy in taking part in them.

Love - To have something or someone that it causes you to ache when parted and extreme joy when together.

Tranquility - A complete peace in both physical and emotion states.

Charity - To give of yourself with no thought of return.

Happiness - Something that lightens your spirit.

Hope - To know, even in darkest of hours, that times will be better. That possibilities abound.

Friendship - To have someone you love. Someone who understands. Someone who cares and who you care about beyond words.

Compassion - To feel emotion and pain for sorrows and trials that are not yours, to pick up others when they have fallen.


Would it not be good to define your life in such terms?

Respect

Respect. Some people deserve it, some don't. How do you tell the difference? The ones who deserve respect are the ones that give it. It has nothing to do with authority, money, job, or any other type of status. If someone does not show respect they are not deserving of it.

It sounds so simple, but it is not. It is not simple because you will always run into people who think they deserve your respect even though they are not willing to give it in return. The idea that you are OWED something is hard for me to grasp. The world only owes you what you are willing to put into it. Why should someone treat you with respect if you are not willing to reciprocate?

Respect is decency. Pure and simple. It is not a matter of bowing down or feeling someone is better. It means treating them as equal human beings. Not everyone is at an equal job, education, or financial level some are higher and some are lower, but everyone is a human being and deserve decency and respect for that, as long as they are willing to show it too. I have the utmost respect for all people until they do something that proves me otherwise. I do not owe anyone more than that, and they do not owe me any more. It is not that hard to do, it just isnt.

"You must not lose faith in humanity. Humanity is an ocean; if a few drops of the ocean are dirty, the ocean does not become dirty." Gandhi

Unwanted Things

"Welcome to the real world, where most of the time, things, don't go your fucking way." Gus - The Ref

Things don't always work out as planned or wanted. It may seem bad or painful at the time, but things like this can be viewed another way. They can be viewed as an opportunity.

Opportunity to experience something else, something beyond that which you wanted. Perhaps you will find something better. Perhaps there are things out there that you did not expect or know and are waiting. Things like that do happen.

It may also be an opportunity to find out who you are. Your strengths and your weaknesses. When something happens you did not want it challenges you to overcome, to adapt, and to examine how strong you really are. You may find that you have reserves of strength you did not know about, or you may find that things mattered more than you expected. These unexpected trials will cause you to look at yourself and come to a conclusion, what that conclusion is depends on you and the situation.

It is not a matter of survival, all situations can be tolerated and survived it is simply a matter of response and will. Even the darkest of moments can be overcome but it requires effort, strength, and time. Attitude is everything, if it is bad the more of the three are required, if the attitude is good it is less.

So... have a good attitude, take things as they come, make unwanted things challenges, and look for the good in all situations. Things aren't as bad as they seem sometimes, look at what you have, not what you have not. Even if you do not get what you want you may already have enough... more than enough... more than you could ever hope for... the best of something.