We are always told to not care about what other people think, to freely speak our mind, and that the opinions of others are irrelevant. But where is the line drawn? Should we really say exactly how we feel if it is at the expense of others? When do we put others first?
It's a dog-eat-dog world. We're all out for our own, trying to focus on ourselves and the future. Fronts are made, choices are decided, and personas are established. But do you remember how we were taught to never judge a book by its cover?
How we have no idea, what is behind the hardcover, that we haven't read all of the pages of the novel, their novel. That maybe you saying "hello" to them made their entire day, your action of holding open the door for them, made them smile for the first time in a while. We forget that our actions have such a large effect on others. That our compliment really did go a long way, or how deep our conniving comment hurt another.
I was browsing my Facebook newsfeed one day and stopped aimlessly swiping at someone's post. It was a post from someone I went to high school with, someone I had not talked to in months, but it caught my attention. It was a long post, something I usually am too lazy to read, but it was the best 200 words I had read in a long time. Alec was wearing a shirt made by a non-profit, Umttr.
A man walking across the University of Maryland campus stopped him, asking what his shirt meant. Alec went on to explain to him the meaning, leading to the gentlemen confessing how he contemplated taking his own life just a few weeks prior. He comforted the older gentleman, leading to him thanking Alec for being there to listen. It is stories like this that make me think, think about how much we actually play a role in someone else's life.
It takes 17 muscles to smile and 43 to frown. It is easier to be nice to someone then figure out a negative comment that will hurt them. We have so much drama in our world already, enough negative events to write a never-ending book, so why add to it? It's not hard to be nice, its statistically easier to smile, and I promise you it feels better in the end being the bigger person, or being the nice guy. Just some food for thought.
