Between the horror stories coming out of the Middle East, the volcanic eruption in Japan that killed 31 people, a shooting in Miami that injured several teens and countless other tragedies we see on the news, it becomes easy to get discouraged or cynical about many things. It becomes hard to see all the darkness and negativity of the world and not be overcome with sadness.
However, in this same week that claimed many lives and altered others forever, there have been stories of happiness and life. Beside a headline about police violence was the news of Chelsea Clinton’s new baby girl, and across from the stories of ISIS were pictures from George Clooney’s wedding.
People have an amazing talent for finding good things in the midst of the bad. Even though things can be falling apart around us, there are those little reminders that life and happiness can be found.
We The Threefold Advocate encourage you to look for these positive reminders that life is not all bad. Some people prefer to shut themselves away from the bad news by not watching TV or reading the paper, but that only encourages ignorance. While sometimes it may seem so, there are good things happening everywhere, everyday.
It is important for us to find these moments and cherish them. They can remind us of God’s love and handiwork as well as his power. Sometimes this good news can come in the form of a stranger saying hello, getting a letter from a friend or your cousin calling to say she is pregnant. Whether big or small, good news has the power to change your mood quickly, and that good mood can spread. Attitudes are contagious, so if you are tired of hearing about the bad news, go out and spread the good.
We The Threefold Advocate want you to go out and not only see the good for yourself, but help others find it too. Some people have a harder time than others seeing the good in life. Maybe someone is struggling with depression or didn’t get in to their dream school. We don’t always know what people are dealing with, and one way to help them is by being a light in their darkness.
Put some chocolate in someone’s mailbox. Smile at the people you pass on the quad. Let someone go before you in the checkout line. Start a fundraiser for those persecuted in other countries. “Be the change you wish to see in the world.” Or, as Gandhi said, “If we could change ourselves, the tendencies in the world would also change. As a man changes his own nature, so does the attitude of the world change towards him.”