How often do you stop to help an old man unload his groceries? Or stop your car to help a visually impaired man to cross the road? We are living in a world where news is always followed by ‘feed’ and facial expressions are replaced by emoticons.
We talk about world peace and women empowerment on social media – we empathise with it, give it a thumbs up and scroll down. Never have we stopped to notice why the little girl who comes to our house to clean isn’t going to school.
We write a 200-word paragraph on Mother’s Day claiming how lucky we are to have her with 20 hashtags followed by a picture in which we look great. However, when was the last time you just hugged your mother and helped her with kitchen chores?
Mother Teresa is the epitome of kindness. She once said, “What can you do to promote world peace? Go home and love your family.” Human beings are the most powerful animals. So let us not fall into the mercy of technology. Each individual has the power to make another person smile. So keep your phones away for a minute and go make someone’s day.
Compliment someone on how beautiful they look, send postcards to sick children, offer hot tea to those unemployed labourers, listen to your grandparent’s stories, talk to your friends and family or simply just make someone smile.
During the pandemic, we have learnt the importance of mental health and how important it is for everyone to be kind to themselves and others. Try and stay positive. Use this time to indulge in chores and interests you’ve been neglecting, such as taking an online class or learning a new skill. It can be hard to think past what is going on today, but give yourself permission to daydream about the future. Remember that things will return to normal.
Celebrate Christmas every day because you have the power to do so. As my favourite Mother Teresa said, “Not all of us can do great things. But we can do small things with great love.”