"I have one life to live and one chance to make it count for something...My faith demands that I do whatever I can, wherever I can, whenever I can, for as long as I can with whatever I have to try to make a difference." ~ President Jimmy Carter.
We must not mistakenly believe that making a difference only counts if it is something grand on a large scale.
We probably have at least one chance every day to do something that makes a difference to someone.
An incident comes to mind. I wrote about it once before. It happened 10 years ago and involved my friend, Kathy.
Kathy and I were students at the University of Santa Monica. One morning we went to the beach for a short walk before class. We both forgot to bring water. It was hot and Kathy started to feel nauseous. We headed for the shade under the pier, where Kathy was sick. Other than my arm to lean on and empathy, I had nothing to offer, not even a tissue.
A man who was under the pier at the same time observed this. He didn't have much to offer either. But he did offer what he had. He approached gently and offered to share from the bottle he held in a brown paper bag. It was not what Kathy needed or wanted. But his kindness, caring, empathy, and
generosity touched us deeply. There was even something healing about it, heart and soul healing.
Despite outer appearances, that man revealed inner dignity, goodness, and grace.
One thing we can do each day is to look for that in everyone. Trust that it's there and look to see it.
With love and reverence,
Charlene
