What have you done for someone lately?

Recently I had the privilege to go to an event where educators and students were honored for their work in the community.  One young man, a college freshman, volunteered his time teaching Latino kids how to speak English and he mentioned that he is always looking for opportunities to help other people.  While I was inspired by his work, I must admit I was a little bit mad at myself becuase I'm more than twice his age, and I felt like I haven't done half as much.  The argument could be made that because we have a vast age difference, we have different priorities and responsibilities in life, but I think that's just an excuse.  We find time to do the things we want to do, so why can't we find that same time to bring joy to someone?

Whether it's visiting a friend in the hospital, buying a token gift, or just saying a kind word to someone, I have always been rewarded with a great feeling when I've put someone's needs ahead of my own.  But, if I'm being honest with myself, I do those things when it's convenient for me to do so, so is it really still considered a good deed?  I'm thinking not. 

After the recent passing of Yankees owner George Steinbrenner, a lot of the stories written were ones where he did something nice for someone that no one knew about but him and that other person (a story that comes to mind is that he picked up a huge hospital tab for a woman he barely knew with the condition that she could never speak about it.  She broke that promise after he died and I'm glad she did).  He also said something that really resonated with me: "if you do something for someone and more than you and the person you did it for know about it, then you did it for the wrong reasons".  Another quote I really like can be found in the mega bestselling book THE PURPOSE DRIVEN LIFE which says "that the greatest gift you can give someone is your time because its the one gift you can't get back".

So I'm going to heed this call and make more of a concerted effort to give my time and contribute to society in a way that uplifts and empowers my fellow brothers and sisters.  Won't you join me?

So, that's TarazTake for today.  What are your thoughts?