(This
blog was originally posted on March 6, 2017)
 |
| Photo by Rick Hustead |
This afternoon I read a blog that really impacted me. In Subir Chowdhury’s
essay titled The
Power of a Glass of Water: Why Simple Acts of Thoughtfulness Matter Today,
he considers the value of simple acts of consideration and the way such actions
benefit other people at no cost to ourselves. At the beginning of the article,
Mr. Chowdhury recounts an in incident in which passenger asked a flight
attendant for a glass of water before takeoff. The flight attendant told him that
snacks and beverages would not be served in the Economy section until the plane
was airborne. (The fact that Mr. Chowdhury and other people in the Business-
and First-Class sections of the het had already received complimentary
alcoholic beverages and snacks while the jet was still on the tarmac was beside
the point.) The gentleman who asked for a glass of water was a senior citizen;
the cabin crew refused to bring him anything to drink even after repeated
requests and explaining that he was very thirsty. Finally, another passenger
sitting near the writer in the First-Class section stood up, went to the galley
and brought the other man the water he needed. While the flight attendant who
refused to do this herself seemed a bit put-out by this action, he observed that
the older man was very appreciative of the other passenger’s thoughtful
gesture.
It is very easy to be thoughtful and considerate of another person’s
feelings. Many of us can still hear one or both parents reiterating the
importance of observing the Golden
Rule of reciprocity: “Do unto others as you would have done unto you.” In
other words, if you don’t like being
disrespected, teased, hit, etc., it is pretty likely that others do not like
this kind of treatment, either. Similarly, when someone does something kind or
thoughtful that benefits you, this action should (hopefully) inspire you to do
something good for another person.
Simple acts of kindness and consideration are easy to do and generally
make both parties feel good. Examples include helping someone reach an item on
a high shelf at the grocery store, assisting a person on crutches to cross the
street or lending a person the use of your mobile phone to call roadside
assistance to get his keys out of the locked car. Parents whose teenage son or
daughter recently got a driving license are probably familiar with this one: Call
or send a text message when you get where you are going, and then when you are
on your way home! A smile or a compliment can make someone’s day. Mailing the
rent check to your landlord on time or helping to clean up after a mess—even if
you didn’t make it—are such little things we can all do with very little
effort, but they can all mean so much.
Sara R. Fogan, C.Ht. is a certified hypnotherapist based in
Southern California. She graduated with honors from the Hypnosis Motivation
Institute in 2005. For more
information about Calminsense Hypnotherapy® and to set up an
appointment, please visit http://www.calminsensehypnotherapy.com/.
© 2018
