Today's Thought - September

[bluidkiti]

September 24

To ease another's heartache is to forget one's own.

~Abraham Lincoln

Sometimes, in our self-centeredness, we fall into a pit of self-pity. Most of us have enough pain and heartache to feed a lifetime of self-pity if we choose to. We all have had serious losses, stressful jobs, difficult family relationships, bad breaks, and unfair dealings with others. When we start to sink into excessive self-absorption and resentment or wallow in endless negativity, we may not even recognize what we are doing. The best way to climb out of this pit is to reach out to help others who have real needs.

We can volunteer at a school to help children learn to read, or visit people in nursing homes, or help clean up a riverbank, or help a disabled person buy groceries. When we focus too much on ourselves, we become narrow and negative, but when we bring help or relief to our community, we become connected, and we have a purpose and a mission that expands our world.

Today, I will reach out to others with a helpful hand.

Today's reading is from the book Stepping Stones: More Daily Meditations for Men*