I believe everything happens for a reason... and I believe yesterdays’ events play into this.
Lots of talk has been going around about paying it forward with many of my fellow BB friends acting on this idea. This got me thinking... I better get going... its my turn to pay it forward!
While I absolutely love the idea of paying it forward and the power of small but needed acts of kindness at the time this was suggested I didn’t take immediate action, in fact I have been sitting on the proposition for some time now.
The reasoning behind this is that I felt my time to pay it forward must come naturally and I would know when the opportunity presented itself, and as the karma ebbs and flows around the world circumstances would align themselves, and when they do I will find myself aligned with a person who could benefit in some way from my help.
That was the original thought but then… everyone began taking action - making out of the ordinary good deeds- and I felt as though I had to get going! start planning! and do a deed! I thought about who I wanted to help, who I knew needed help, and what I could do for them. I had come to the conclusion that I would go by the home which a group of special Olympic athletes lived and drop the girls off a special something - maybe cookies, or a movie I thought they might like. I had planned my deed doing, the deed seemed to meet the criteria of being "good", thoughtful and for the benefit of others.
But yesterday my path changed.
While leaving the school to catch my bus home there was a man handing out pamphlets that read: "these cards have been printed for the purpose of assisting me, a Deaf person, in making a living. Will you kindly buy one? ", and he was asking for $1 in return for the little pink piece of paper that had been folded into a book. I had come across this man, or rather, this man had come across me in the BMH (the Applied Health Science stopping grounds building). In response to his question which he made through gestures and signs I replied by opening up my wallet and showing him that I only had pennies (maybe about 15 of them) inside but I would give him these. To that his response was no, that he needed $1. I was turned off by his refusal, and remembering I did in fact have a dollar in my purse left without telling him so.
I think it is easy to forget to be charitable and help others as much as you can. I got caught up in other factors such as; feeling as though he was invading my space, hesitant to believe his intentions and hurt because he did not want my penny change and lost my connection to my original plan of helping others and paying it forward. As Thich Nhat Hanh, a Buddhist Monk teaches, we must be mindful of our actions, body functions, content of consciousness, or consciousness itself. While I may hold the values of goodwill and giving at high regard and believe that these are traits which I wish to have, I recognize the need for mindfulness, as things such as other duties and feelings may lead me to stray from my original intent.
Moments after my encounter with the Deaf man, while I waited at my bus stop, I had time to reflect on my actions and the teachings of Thich Nhat Hanh came to mind. Too did the teachings of my therapeutic recreation class for persons with disabilities of the unequal treatment and access to information that exists in our society. There was great reason to believe that this man was being held back from getting a salaried job because society had not presented him with the resources which he needed to find a job and perform the tasks in that job and that employers who he may have met treated him unjustly, viewing able-bodied people as the ‘normal’ in our still fairly ablist society.
Coming to my senses I left my bus stop and followed the path which this man had left on, to place a loony in his hands. While this event ended the way it should have began, I am reminded to stay mindful of the values which I hold on a regular basis and see that giving. Although giving can be something you plan it must also be something that you are mindful of on a regular basis and must come naturally.
Following on the note of just treatment which I touched on briefly above when mentioning persons with disabilities in an ablist society, look forward to some interesting posts coming later this week or next which I hope to right following my night at the ACC center with athletes from Special Olympics. The athletes who I co-coach with snowshoeing and track & field are a big source of inspiration and happiness in my life, although working with them can have its difficult moments. Myself and other coaches have volunteered to travel down to Toronto with the athletes to sell 50/50 tickets in support of Special Olympics. While this ‘night on the town’ will surely come with some troubles I am sure I will be bringing back more good news than bad and look forward to sharing some insights to why I love working with these athletes and about the social issues they face.
