Look around. Hurricanes, floods, earthquakes, plant closures, hunger, despair, you might think the end is near. There are those who see the glass as half empty and others who see the glass as half full. Pessimists or optimists, it’s time for everyone to step up. The analogy holds even when we watch the baseball playoffs. With all the tragedies, we live in a CNN world now. Hurricane Katrina captivated everyone a few weeks ago, today it is a memory for most. The good thoughts and instant charitable contributions are long gone and the earthquake in Pakistan has now grabbed the headlines. It is impossible to help all those who are affected and help them until they overcome all their challenges.
So should we give up? I’m an optimist. I believe that if you make your way through the garbage, you can eventually see the light. After a while, the tragedy is just a memory. The same thing happens when we are faced with a personal tragedy. Seeing someone terminally ill can overcome many. You forget about the world around you and focus all your time and effort on this person and rightly so. Unfortunately, as the terminal term dictates, the affected soul succumbs to the disease. As difficult as it is, we somehow find the strength to carry on. We continue for our spouse, we continue for our children, we continue for the wishes of the deceased, and we continue for ourselves. The days turn into weeks and the pain and memories are less and less. Agreeing with this observation does not mean that we should not do anything. Making a gesture to help or momentarily cheer someone up is not useless. Nobody knows how much time we have in this world and we should cherish every moment.
What can we do to help? Everyone should look around and see what they can do. I own a printing and promotional items company. My small gesture is to sell Christmas cards drawn by underprivileged youth and return the proceeds to their special school. A second thing I’m doing is capitalizing on a popular trend. American Apparel clothing has caught on and I am offering it at 25% off and I also give part of the proceeds to local and international charities. We all must do our part. If I bring joy or help a person or family, then it’s worth it. Can I save the world? Can I help all the recent victims of natural disasters? Probably not. But if we who have not been affected by these tragedies do our part, surely we can make a dent in the challenges of these people. Doctor’s could donate an hour a week to those who have no money, pharmaceutical companies could donate medicine to those victims, home improvement stores could give employee discounts to any victim, the list can go on and on.
If we don’t try, the world will surely be doomed. Let’s help create a better world for everyone. Now we are in the holiday period, let us all think of ways to make this a really happy occasion.
steven schneidmann
http://www.solutionsink4u.com