For those of you who might have come over from "gayldsactor" who hasn't posted to his blog for quite a while, here is a thought he posted to facebook:
"There's a wonderful line in a book by J.M. Barrie...called The
Little White Bird. He writes... 'Shall we make a new rule of life always to try
to be a little kinder than is necessary?' 'Kinder than is necessary'...What a
marvelous line, isn't it? 'Kinder than is necessary.' Because it's not enough
to be kind. One should be kinder than needed.
"Why I love that line, that
concept, is that it reminds me that we carry with us as human beings not just
the capacity to be kind but the very choice of kindness. And what does that
mean? How is that measured? You can't use a yardstick...it's not like measuring
how much you've grown in a year. It's not exactly quantifiable, is it? How do
we know we've been kind? What is being kind anyway?
"...There's another passage
in a different book I'd like to share with you...In Under the Eye of the Clock
by Christopher Nolan the main character is a young man who's facing some
extraordinary challenges. There's this one part where someone helps him, a kid
in his class. On the surface it's a small gesture, but to this young man, whose
name is Joseph, it's...well, if you'll permit me...'It was at moments such as
these that Joseph recognized the face of God in human form. It glimmered in
their kindness to him. It glowed in their keenness. It hinted in their caring.
Indeed, it caressed in their gaze.'
"...'It glimmered in their
kindness to him.' ...Such a simple thing, kindness. Such a simple thing. A nice
word of encouragement given when needed. An act of friendship. A passing smile.
"...what I want to impart to
you today is an understanding of the value of that simple thing called
kindness, and that's all I want to leave you with today.
"...what I want you...to
take away...is the sure knowledge that in the future you make for yourselves
anything is possible. If every single person in this room made it a rule that
wherever you are, whenever you can, you will try to act a little kinder than is
necessary, the world really would be a better place, and if you do this, if you
act just a little kinder than is necessary, someone else somewhere, someday,
may recognize in you, in every single one of you, the face of God...or whatever
politically-correct spiritual representation of universal goodness you happen
to believe in."
- Wonder by
R.J. Palacio
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