Some days it's easy to be bogged down in the world. The news is the greatest catalyst for gross feelings and a lack of happiness. There are criminals roaming the streets unpunished. There are parents abusing their children, unchastised. Selfishness is a quickly spreading disease and thievery is a past time.
Man, how facile it would be to give in and live as the rest -- for self alone.
But in the words of Mother Teresa: “People are often unreasonable, irrational, and self-centered. Forgive them anyway. If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives. Be kind anyway. If you are successful, you will win some unfaithful friends and some genuine enemies. Succeed anyway. If you are honest and sincere, people may deceive you. Be honest and sincere anyway. What you spend years creating, others could destroy overnight. Create anyway. If you find serenity and happiness, some may be jealous. Be happy anyway. The good you do today will often be forgotten. Do good anyway. Give the best you have, and it will never be enough. Give your best anyway.”
It cannot be said better than that -- do good anyway.
Last week in my article I told you of the foster kids that went to camp this week at Royal Family Kid’s Camp, and I’d like to take a line to thank those who invested in camp through thoughts, prayer and donations. This week I’m here to tell you that we did good anyway. Despite the bitter world the campers have by now returned to, we did our best to give them happiness anyway.
The moments when I had to wipe away bright pink and sparkly eye shadow from the eyelids of beautiful and tired campers and remind them of their natural perfection as they slipped down into their bed, the moments where little campers were found in silent tears over a missing letter from mom and then quickly comforted, the moments where little campers came to me wishing to tell me the story of how she was taken from her mom because her heart could bare the burden on its own no longer; these moments may be crushed by whatever the campers must walk home to, but we created them anyway, because there is always the chance that they won't be defeated, that our message of love and hope has not fallen on deaf ears, and that we may save a child’s spirit.
In this I encourage you to do good anyway. Each moment, choices are made and opportunities are presented that can make or break a person’s day. Compliment the shoes, smile at the stranger, clean up the mess that isn’t yours, and converse with the friendless in the corner because you never know the true weight of your small acts of kindness. They may be heavier than you expected. And when no one recognizes you or thanks you, take heart and continue on. This world is in desperate need of the “Do Good Anyway” frame of mind.