Life lessons
Chapter 20: Be a good person first
“Give the good in any way you can.” – John Wesley
A simple reason to be a good person
When we were kids,
adults used to tell us that Santa Claus would visit obedient children,
so if we wanted to get lots of presents on Christmas morning,
we had to be obedient.
Actually, it’s not just Christmas,
but we’ve always been obedient children for other reasons.
One is fear of punishment.
If we messed up,
we’d be spanked,
or banned from playing our favorite games.
The second reason is simply
because we were taught that way.
We were told to be polite and respectful to adults.
We don’t have a choice,
and we don’t even discuss it.
We must be obedient.
So now, do those reasons still influence and govern our behavior?
Maybe we’ll be rewarded with small gifts
for doing a good deed whether it’s
during the Christmas season or not;
We may be punished for doing bad things,
and there are many other standards that
remind us of our duty to be good.
Therefore, rewards,
fear of punishment,
and a sense of responsibility
and duty are still valid reasons for us to be good.
But those are not the only reasons.
There is another reason that
It seems even more fundamental and important.
When you are a good person,
true happiness will come to you
We grow up,
are taught moral standards and subconsciously,
we always want to be a good person.
It seems so obvious that
you don’t realize one of the simplest truths:
There is a close relationship
between true kindness and our health
and happiness.
Sadly, too many people don’t realize this.
I hope this book is useful,
and that kindness is literally at the core of each of us.
What do I mean by true kindness?
The idea that we should live
by the eternal moral values that have been
with us since the dawn of this world.
These eternal values are the principles that give meaning to our lives.
They help us become the kind of person we want to be.
Living in accordance with our conscience
and morality is the best way to help us live well
with others and ourselves.
“Only kindness and honesty can give us a healthy and human life.”- Harold Kushner
“Courage is daring to say “yes” to life no matter how harsh it is.
Courage is knowing how to smile despite the irony of fate.”