I’ve been afforded opportunities to bear witness to people performing selfless acts of kindness, some were isolated incidents while others simply lived their lives in servitude of others. No matter the circumstance, giving selflessly is about setting aside your ego. It comes from a truly loving place. Upon recent reflection of my childhood, there was one recurring thing that jumped out at me: my mom rarely, if ever, took time for herself. She gave continually of her entire being for our family.
My parents ran the family business out of our home; dad was at job sites during the day and mom took care of all the administrative tasks. It was apparent to me from a young age, that my mom was always “on”. She’d orchestrate the daily mechanics of getting all five of us kids up and moving in the mornings, then spend her day doing business stuff. Give or take 6 hours later and she was picking us up from school, schlepping us to practices, cooking dinner, breaking up fights, washing the dishes, getting us all bathed, doing homework with us and putting us to bed. All that (in a nutshell), and she’d barely have a moment to breathe before catching whatever rest she could before doing it all over again the next day.
Having a handful of kids to contend with was no small undertaking – it took some serious effort. My perception was that my mom seemed to have endless reserves of energy. As an adult, I look back and see that wasn’t true. She was tired. She did get sick. She ran out of patience. She had to holler when we wouldn’t listen. She stole quiet moments when she could, but they were far and few in between. My mom did what most mothers do: she gave wholly of herself despite how she may have felt or what she may have wanted to do. She always acted selflessly.
Recognizing her as the example she was helps me understand how the human spirit can be so resilient and beautiful. You may say that she had to do all those things, but she didn’t. There really was room to tell us “no” more often or punish us more frequently (who says that?!) or utilize her energy toward something for herself. She hardly ever did. Giving of myself freely to others makes me happy and is what keeps that happiness cyclical and moving from person to person. Going out of my way for someone has sometimes been the perfect diversion to me finding my way or being an unsuspecting participant in a happy coincidence that furthered myself and my spirit.
We all have the ability to give and act selflessly; surely someone has done something for you in this manner? If not, be the catalyst. Act lovingly on someone’s behalf or for their benefit and I’m sure it won’t take long for that goodness to multiply and find its way back to you!
