How Many Times Will You…

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I get it.
It was early afternoon.
Broad daylight. A lot of traffic.
A man near the corner traffic light where I was stopped
was trying to wrap a blanket around himself to stay warm.
He was standing next to a building that had a slight
inset where he could huddle from the wind and cold.
And I was in a hurry.
I had somewhere to be so that I could make money
in order that my family had a roof over their heads.
That was my priority.
I did not have time to stop and ask this person what
had happened in their Life to have led them there.
Because if I stopped every time I saw someone
in need, I would end up on the streets myself!
( It reminded me of THIS:
http://rhsworks.com/unleashyourselves/how-can-you-not-see-me )

After all, we live in a society where the typical day
revolves around a clock. We have appointments,
commitments, deadlines, schedules, and all manner
of devices tracking every minute of our day to make
sure we are where we are “supposed” to be,
doing what we’re “supposed” to be doing.
And if we do it right, we get a cookie (paycheck).
I’d say half of the average person’s day is
dedicated to taking orders from a clock.
Wake up at X o’clock so that you can be
at work by X o’clock. Take a lunch at
X o’clock so that you can be back
to work in time for more work that
needs to be finished by X o’clock.
Leave work at X o’clock because
you have to get home by X o’clock
so that you’re in time for dinner.
Go to bed at X o’clock because
you’re supposed to get X number
of hours to sleep – just enough to
have you wake up at X o’clock
and repeat the process again
and again and again and again.

I get it.
Short and sweet – we simply don’t have
time to stop and help someone else out.

I was driving the other night on my way
to pick up my son and saw a car on
the side of the road. I wanted to stop,
but a clock said that I needed to be
where he was at X o’clock.
So I drove on by.

I get it.
We don’t have time to care.
I mean – it’s better that we don’t,
because really; who has time for it?

Just turn the music up, put the blinders on
and get to where you’re going on time.
Because you’ve got to be accountable to your
commitments and responsible for your family.

I get it.

And…. it kills me.

Every time I drive by someone with a sign
asking for help, every car I see along side
the road, every time I walk by somebody
who is dying on the inside for someone
to stop and notice that they are hurting.

Did you notice?
Or were you too busy paying attention to
some screen or clock dictating your Life?

Because that’s more important.

Because we’re going to be late for work.
Because we’ve got to pick up our child.
Because our favorite TV show is on.
Because we’ve got a hot date.
Because supper is waiting.

I don’t want to be sarcastic and cynical about it.
Truly – I want to hold onto the belief that all of us
really do care about our fellow mankind.
I need to believe that the compassion and love
that we are born with for one another is intact,
and that we’ve just allowed ourselves to think
we aren’t able to make a difference for them.

You see, at times I wonder where the guy was going
that stopped for me one night when I was broke
down on the side of the highway with my son.

What did he give up so that he could be there for me?

Because I know it was easier to just drive on by -
like everyone else had . It’s always easier
to just do nothing.

But he didn’t.
He saw someone in need of help,
and he made the decision to do what
most people would not do and did not do.
He stopped. He made a difference.
And I’m going to take it a step further;
he may have saved our lives.

It was night time. I was in a tiny car -
pulled just off of a busy highway.
Had a big truck come by and hit us,
you would not be reading this today.

( While you’re at it, read THIS:
http://rhsworks.com/unleashyourselves/would-you-have-stopped )

Sobering thought?
Yes.

I wish we lived in a World where helping others was
seen as more important than punching a time clock.
I wish we lived in a world where we truly embraced
“Do unto others as you would have them do unto you”.
I wish we lived in a world where the plight of our neighbor
was more important than points earned on a video game.
I wish we lived in a world where everyone believed
they could truly make a difference in their world.

Because you can
if you just will….

 

 

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