I am not weak for being kind ? I am being human
Photo by Sandrachile . on Unsplash
My Mother is by far the kindest person I?ve ever known.
I now try to model myself after her ability to be loving towards every single person she meets. Her love is unwavering.
And I feel like this is a very rare quality these days.
Living in New York City, it?s very easy to not be kind. Everyone around you is constantly fending for themselves ? even when it?s for something as simple as getting through the subway doors.
People have no regard for others in the city. People can easily be rude to even the elderly or disabled.
And whenever I do witness a ?random act of kindness?, it?s extremely uplifting and gives me an ounce of hope that there are still genuinely good people out there.
It inspires me and reminds me of how my Mother would act in situations where people are being really terrible, yet she still shows kindness to them ? This is a very difficult thing to do.
But, at the same time, kindness can often be misinterpreted and people can take advantage of that.
Growing up, there were times when people would take advantage of my Mother?s kindness because they deemed it as weakness.
After realizing that, I told myself that I would never let people take advantage of me ? that I did not want to be perceived as a weak person.
So, when I got a little older, I didn?t want to be kind all the time. I thought,
?If people weren?t going to be kind to me, then why do they deserve my kindness??
Where is the logic in that?
But, there is logic in that.
You know that saying, ?Nice guys finish last?.
Well, I used to believe that. But, I don?t believe that anymore because the thing is, life is not a race.
Who are we to judge who is in ?last place? or not? What even qualifies someone for being in last place?
I don?t care about how much money you have, how big your house is, or what kind of car you drive. I don?t care about your job title or how many awards you?ve won.
I care about the way you treat me and the way you treat others. I care about the way you treat those who are less fortunate than you. I care how you act when no one is watching.
Did you shove that stranger just to get through the subway doors? Did you treat someone unkindly because they treated you unkindly?
At the end of the day, what matters most is how you treated the people around you and amount of love you you?ve shown to others.
?And, in the end, the love you take is equal to the love you make? ? The Beatles
So, please don?t mistake my kindness for weakness.
Because I am not weak for being kind ? I am being human. I want to show compassion, empathy, and love towards the people I encounter each day. It?s the least we can do in the world that we live in.
And if I can inspire just one person to do the same, then I?d say that?s a much bigger accomplishment and is much more worth being kind than being unkind.
?I?ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel? ? Maya Angelou
