On Selflessness

One of my closest friends and I were talking the other day on the bus about colleges and how much it was going to cost us. When I mentioned my summer job plans, she agreed she had similar ideas but wasn’t planning on putting it towards college. Instead, she was going to donate most of it to different charities like the Trevor Project and some research organizations. “My mom wouldn’t approve, so I’ll just tell her I spent it all on clothes. She’ll probably yell at me but eh, it’s worth it,” She said with a laugh like it was no big deal. And I just sat back and looked at her. Wow, I thought. This was a side of my friend that I had never seen before. Most teens today would have actually spent that money on clothes.  Most teens wouldn’t donate it to charity. And most teens definitely wouldn’t accept punishment from their parents for donating either.  But then again, she’s not like most teens.   

Easily inspired, I am not, but for her I made an exception. Though I did not have money to donate, I had time.  So last night after I finished all my homework, I stayed up an hour later to make some inspirational cards for some of my track teammates seeing as we had a meet the next day. Though it was past midnight and I was tired, I wanted to put a smile on my friends’ faces. This afternoon, the cards really seemed to make everyone happy and they all ran beautifully! My lack of sleep did not affect my race at all – I got a personal record!

So maybe you’re not the richest person, maybe you don’t have all the time in the world. But maybe you do have something to give, be it a helping hand, a few words of encouragement, a smile.  And maybe it would make someone’s day for you to give it. So what’s stopping you from giving it?