A WORD ON HELPING OTHERS

I saw a woman crying, she was bawling, she was sobbing so bad that she had not time to breathe. I am weak for things like this, so, I walked up to her and asked her what the trouble was. She couldn't answer me for what seemed like an hour, so engrossed was she in her uncontrollable bursts of water and gasps for air. I sat there patiently until she was relieved of what appeared to be great sorrow. Finally, she looked over at me and said, "Who are you?" I said, "I am no one really, I am someone who might be able to comfort you, if you wish." She took a long look at me, then retorted, "What the hell do you care if I am sitting here crying?" I looked at her for a moment, being careful to mark my words, and I stated simply, "I care for everyone the same, there are none that I would not do the same for." "Granted, it may be none of my business, but, I do care." "It is my nature to take the time to nurture those that might need it." "If you think that I am being nosy, or if you think that I am being intrusive, I will walk away." She sat there and thought about it for a while, and, then she said, "I am old, tired, bored, lonely, broke, and, I just came from the Doctor's office, in which case I have been told that I may not be alive much longer, it seems that I have developed many different problems, all due to stress; stress that I have been carrying around for too many years." She then looked at me and asked, "So what do you think of that?" I replied, "I am so sorry to hear that you have had such tough times, and, I think that some of your problems can be fixed." Her expression was as if I had said something really stupid, and, I felt her contempt. I sat there for a few, and then I said, "I believe in miracles, I believe in mind over matter, I believe in self-healing." "Let me ask you a question; if you are so dissatisfied with your life, why are you crying so badly over the fact that it might be over soon?" She did not know what to say. I continued. "I think that if you were to examine your life, there must be something that has led you to think that you still want to live." "What would that be?" She wasn't ready to tell me, so, I went on. "Listen, I do not have a lot of answers, do not have much money, do not have much time, but, if you really want to live, then maybe in some small ways, I can help you to find some joy in life." "Finding happiness to even the smallest degree would aid in your being able to heal yourself, in which case you would be able to buy some time." I could see the spark of hope in her swollen, red eyes. She was listening and wanting to hear more. I said, "I have some contacts that might be able to help you in some small ways, but, you have to want to help yourself also." "Are you willing to do your part?" She looked at me and nodded... I was quiet for a time. She was staring at me, and, finally spoke. "Why would you do this for me?" I replied, "Whatever I do for you, I do for myself." "In so assisting you, I have assisted myself." She seemed perplexed by this, so I explained a bit more. "We are of the same cloth, we are of the same world, we are of the same incidents, we are of the same birth, the same death, the same of all that is; if we do not help one another, then, when our day comes for help, there will be no one there to help us, and, if there is , it is because that person offering assistance is seeking to secure his/her place in the circle of life." "Understand, I feel for you, as I have felt such remorse before, I feel for you as, I have been in pain before, I feel for you, as, I have suffered before; these are all things that we do not quickly forget, and if we do, then we are indeed, alone." This seemed to make sense to her and she let me help her to her feet. We exchanged phone numbers and addresses. I called her when I got home to see how she was doing. She sounded cheerful and glad. I visited her when I could, I took her groceries, made her some favorite foods, brought her little gifts, connected to her life, introduced her to other people her age, and generally, kept my word. That was several years ago. She is now healthier, more active, and laughs all the time.

It doesn't and shouldn't take much time for us to be kind to another person. You never know whom you are being kind to. In the full circle, it will benefit you like you cannot imagine, and, it might save you from a life of loneliness, unhappiness, and self-defeat!