Sure, it takes effort
To be kind: You have to
Be able to transcend
Your own immediate needs,
Put yourself in
Someone else’s shoes,
Value another person
Who isn’t you,
Let yourself be vulnerable
To the possibility that
They may not reciprocate,
Consciously create
A world where
Compassion is the norm.
A small gesture
Feels so large
When one has been
Toiling away without
Perspective, the
Horizon being only
What is directly before
One’s eyes rather than
The splendid whole.
In one corner of the
House, someone was reading
Something that went
Completely against what
Everyone else in the home
Deemed appropriate,
Something so revolutionary
It might actually allow
Some light to shine upon
An otherwise shadowy mess.
Their dead eyes
Reflect a dearth of
Self-love, which
Affects their ability
To care for anyone else,
Which, in turn, makes
It exceedingly difficult
To build a society where
People care for each other.
The good news is that
People can change,
And have demonstrated
Time after time that
It’s possible to live
From a place of kindness.
Every single person
Matters.
No one is more
Important or valuable.
Each human being
Has a unique set of gifts.
We all deserve to be
Treated with kindness.
Everyone can shine
If allowed to.
We don’t have to compete
Against one another.
We’re all in this
Together.
It was clear
He tried his best
But, as usual,
It just wasn’t enough,
It never was,
Which brings us
To today.
The exhausting struggle
Between pessimism and optimism,
One seeing all the things
We can’t change and
The other visualizing
A new day. No small feat,
Convincing a doubter that
We can actually do
Something to help the poor,
Reverse the tide of
Discrimination, improve
Everyone’s quality of life,
Live in peace,
Save the planet.
It’s been shown time and again
That human beings can do
Amazing things to help
One another, enduring evidence
We are capable of moving beyond
Trepidation to collaboration.
What is often
Overlooked,
Ignored,
Is that one can
Become amazingly
Wealthy without
Destroying people
Or the planet.
It was a
Beautiful moment,
A realization
That he had the
Ability and
Wherewithal to
Make a difference
In other people’s
Lives without any
Need for recompense,
Only the reward
Of knowing he had
Done something good.
