Miata Mailing List: December 1999, Message #378

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On Fri, 3 Dec 1999, Marisa Hom wrote:

> It's so good to see people doing things for other people out of the
> goodness of their hearts, these stories come too few and far
> between...maybe if people shared more stories like this, then it would
> inspire others to go out and be that unselfish....I know that in my
> generation, it's all about me me me, and while I'm slowly trying to
> change that, it's difficult trying to work things into my schedule (how
> ironic)...I've been thinking about being a big sister, but the 
> commitment is every weekend for 2 or 3 years (i can't remember
> which)...but with the travel required for work, I can't dedicate that
> kind of time.  (how terrible is that???)....another friend told me about
> a program similar to big sisters' at UMass, where you would act as a
> role model to teenage asian kids who need guidance (should I be shaping
> the minds of our troubled youths though??? i think that's a dangerous
> thing)...i think the best thing for me would be to look for associations
> that connect people like me with community service jobs (yeah, aside from
> probation and parole officers)  Anyone have any suggestions?

Many people prefer keeping their stories to themselves, wishing to retain
their humility as much as possible. One needn't go out of their way, or
spend thousands of dollars, or take up entire weekends for the rest of
their lives to be unselfish and show compassion for others. You can do so
in your day-to-day activities and interactions with other people, as well
as with yourself. Don't try to become the next Mother Teresa if that isn't
what you can do. Not everyone needs to be. =) Smile, say hello, hold the
door open, stop and let those pedestrians cross the street, or let that
car get onto the road in front of you if it's rush-hour. Just being
considerate is a worthy expectation. Would you like to do more? Instead of
throwing out those things you no longer need, or selling them, give them
away. Do you feel you don't have enough money to do any good? Next time a
homeless person asks you for spare change, give them some. Ever dime
counts, and they'll appreciate it. If you have more, give more. Or give
them that spare $20 in your wallet even if you can't afford to. I
overheard someone once say, "When you think you're broke, give away ten
percent of everything you own, and you'll realise you can always live on
less than what you have." To a certain extent, that's more true than you
can imagine.

You can never run out of ways to show compassion for people. Every little
bit counts. Say hi to the next person you see. It does wonders for one's
mood. =D

And now I must see what the other admin is doing to our shell server. =)


-- Sean...
   Team Voodoo!
   Team Frou-Vroom =)
   Team Siddhartha