Do The Small, Kind Things.

I did a nice thing for a stranger today. I’m not going to bother saying what it was, or give any details about the interaction beyond saying that it cost me zero dollars, just a few seconds of my time, but still made a tangible difference in that person’s seemingly rough day. I’m not saying this to brag or boast, just to say it happened.

And the reason I did it is that while I have never been in the specific situation this person was in, I know what it’s like to just be absolutely fucked… except some stranger helped me out. And I still think about the people who helped me in those moments. The people who stopped when I was in distress. The neighbor who helped me push my car off the ice. The couple who gave me a ride when I was hauling a car battery for a mile in an Indiana August. To the guy who jump started my car when it died at a gas station in negative 40 degree wind chills.

So since people have done the little things for me, I try to do the little things for others.

And you should too.

It’s not hard to build a better world, you just have to actually give a shit when you see problems you can fix. It’s easy to just ignore things, and think that someone else will deal with it. And we’re not always in the position to help people, I get that. But when we are in the position to help, we should.

Every time.

Anyways, Crysta and I got back from our annual Phillips vacation this morning. While it’s nice to be home, I already miss the lake. That’s why there’s a photo of an island on this post – it’s not meant to be a metaphor or anything.

But maybe it should be.

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