Unrelated to the post below, just gratuitous posting of an image 😀 This one is from that same trip to the San Diego Zoo in May of 2006.
I thought I was out of sorts yesterday (when I wrote the post about tinted windows and such). I found myself this evening needing to concentrate on my BFA project, which was intentionally designed to require me to improve myself. Well, I found myself even more out of sorts tonight. Comes from being lazy and from feeding distraction. So I set about trying to get my head straight so that I could do some writing, because I can’t bring myself to try to fake inspiration.
So after listening to a couple of short talks, I read a blog post by my friend Heather about an effort she spearheaded to really buoy up a young boy who is just heading into battle against cancer. She received a wonderful response to her call to action– many people sent in hand-made cards and other items to help lift this boy in a time of struggle. Heather noted something interesting about the experience: the effort to lift another had resulted in those doing the lifting being lifted themselves.
This excerpt from one of my favorite talks explains this principle wonderfully, so I thought I would share it. I may have shared parts of it before. It bears repeating, if for no other reason than to help myself remember it. The message never gets old and I always need to hear it.
“As we serve we grow. President George Albert Smith taught, ‘It is not what we receive that enriches our lives, it is what we give.’
“Selfless service is a wonderful antidote to the ills that flow from the worldwide epidemic of self-indulgence. Some grow bitter or anxious when it seems that not enough attention is being paid to them, when their lives would be so enriched if only they paid more attention to the needs of others.
“The answer lies in helping to solve the problems of those around us rather than worrying about our own, living to lift burdens even when we ourselves feel weighed down, putting our shoulder to the wheel instead of complaining that the wagons of life seem to be passing us by.
“Stretching our souls in service helps us to rise above our cares, concerns, and challenges. As we focus our energies on lifting the burdens of others, something miraculous happens. Our own burdens diminish. We become happier. There is more substance to our lives.”
It really is so easy to get distracted from that which is really important (which ironically is that which makes us happiest.)
I am grateful for those who, despite their own challenges, set forth the example of reaching to lift others. It came just when I needed it today. The only question that remains is what I’ll do with it. 😉