A Note on Treatment of Others and a Little on the Meaning of Life

Sometimes I like to look to the future, to a day when I’m in my 70’s or 80’s and what it will be like to look back.

What will I have wanted to accomplish? What could I live without? What couldn’t I live without?

Every time, I have a recurring thought: you could’ve accomplished a lot in your lifetime, but the fact of the matter is…memories of those accomplishments will fade over time.

So what wouldn’t fade? What would stand the test of time? What could you look back on and know that was one of the best things you ever did?

Touching someone else’s life.

Think of how many people you talk to, interact with, and meet on any given day. It’s easy to go through your day-to-day life paying little attention to others with the amount of stress going on in your own life.

There have been a few instances of late where I’ve watched how people treat others in their lives – both positively and negatively.

And it just makes me think: does the fact that you are busy really warrant being dismissive or downright rude to another person? Should your bad mood change the way you treat other people? Isn’t it always worth taking a few extra moments out of your day to comfort another person? Or to listen to someone who needs to vent? Or to just smile at a stranger on the street and say hello?

If there’s no other reason for us being here, I truly think it’s for each other; to touch another person’s life in even the smallest of ways.

Maybe it’s just a friendly hello to a stranger on the street; maybe that’s all they needed to brighten up an otherwise dull day.

Maybe you take an extra minute that you don’t even have to call up a friend you haven’t talked to in a while.

Maybe you continue a conversation for no other reason than to simply find out what makes someone else tick.

Or perhaps you just take an extra moment when you’re upset or frustrated to explain yourself to someone rather than say something you’ll regret.

Regardless, I don’t think any of us need to necessarily change the way we feel we should interact with others; instead, maybe it’s just about never taking those interactions for granted and taking just an extra moment to appreciate it.