THE SECRET IS JUST ONE ACT OF RANDOM KINDNESS
This is the opening passage of a book I read a couple of years ago. That was way before the years when talk about Law of Attraction and The Secret dominates the internet and everywhere else. It’s a simple book that chronicles a great man’s first steps into the world of self development and his subsequent influences on thousands of other lives in many countries. The man is Anthony Robbins and I was one of those whose lives he touched.
On Thanksgiving many years ago, a young family awoke with a sense of foreboding. Instead of looking forward to a day filled with gratitude, they were preoccupied by thoughts of what they did not have. At best, they would scrape together a meager meal on this day of ‘feasting’. If they had contacted a local charity group, they would have had a turkey with all the trimmings, but they hadn’t. Why? Because they, like many other families, were proud people. Somehow they would make do with what they had.
They difficult situation led to frustration and hopelessness, then to irreparable, harsh words between the mother and father. The eldest sun felt devastated and helpless as he watched the people he loved most become more and more angry and depressed.
Then destiny intervened… a loud and unexpected knock at the door! They boy opened it and was greeted by a tall man in rumpled clothing. He was grinning broadly, caring a huge basket brimming with every conceivable Thanksgiving delight: a turkey, stuffing, pies, sweet potatoes, canned goods – everything for a holiday feast!
The family was stunned. The man at the door said, “This is from someone who knows you’re in need and wants you to know that you are loved and cared for.” At first, the father of the family didn’t want to take the basket, but the man said, “Look, I’m just a delivery person.” Smiling, he sat the basket in the boy’s arms, turned to leave, then called over his shoulder, “Have a great Thanksgiving!”
In that moment, this young man’s life was forever changed. With this simple act of kindness he learned that hope is eternal, that people – even “strangers” – really do care. The sense of gratitude he felt moved him deeply, and he swore to himself that some day he’d do well enough to give something back to other in a similar way.
This is a perfect example of how a random act of an unknown stranger,can change the life of one man who in turn went on to touch the lives of even more. I cannot help to think how often many of us let slip the opportunity to be able to say proudly, “Look it was me that first provided the catalyst for this great person to impact so many lives”. How many Anthony Robbins in our life we could have brought forth? They could have been the strangers we met, friends and enemies alike, neighbors and perhaps even our own children and loved ones
I wonder how many of us realize that to be great we don’t necessary need to have only talents and skills . All we need is just the habit to perform as much acts of kindness that we can at all levels. A word of encouragement, a smile or even a simple gesture like a pat on the back at the right time can often turn around the lives of a person in need of a little encouragement. Very often a person on the fringe of giving up needs not money but just an acknowledgment of his existence . A listening ear, an encouragement sometimes means more than a thousand buck.
I urge all of my readers therefore not to allow the excuse that we too are financially strapped and have even greater challenges, to stop us from contributing to the goodness store of this place we call home. In fact a mentor of mine took a lot of pain to drive home in me the idea that the best way to help ourselves when everything else fail is to start helping others. By giving help, we get help. That’s a Universal Law.
The above excerpt is from Anthony Robbins’ Notes From A Friend. I urge you to head down to the local bookstore and get one. For those of you who truly will want to read it but are a bit tight on the wallet currently, you can download one here. Please don’t download if you have no intention to read it yet. I rather you simply remember reading this post and one day when you truly need some motivation, make your way back here again. Remember this books stored on the shelves and computer are merely words. Only when you read them you will get connected to the energy for by reading you are giving energy and in return you get energy. Neat isn’t it? Life’s not meant to be difficult that’s another Universal Law. Ever seen a flower struggling to grow ? Or a tiger worrying about food? That’s going to be my next post.
Tags:acts of kindness,Anthony Robbins,Law of Attraction,The Secret,Universal LawsRelated posts
Tags: acts of kindness, Anthony Robbins, Law of Attraction, The Secret, Universal Laws
Print This Post
Posted in
Man, I totally agree! A random act of kindness can change someone’s live.
I was never a generous person; always thinking that for any actions on my part needs a repayment. Thus I was always weighing what returns from others before I would perform any deeds for them.
That is, until I watch Oprah Winfrey’s 2008 Stanford Commencement Address. You can look it up at YouTube.
Then I watched the movie “Paid It Forward”, and everything changed overnight.
For those who have not watched this movie, please go and look for it. What the boy did really put me to shame when I thought of how I had acted. It changed my way of doing random act of kindness, and it might to you too!