So many good things happen when we decide to care. Be it in our personal life, in a social context, or even between human beings and animals, there’s novelty in caring for living beings. Materialism has blinded us, and stripped us of our good soul; well, mostly. How many of us honestly pay attention to things or individuals with no materialistic importance? Not too many, I guess.
Perhaps we don’t bother applauding for a soul trying to make a difference in this harsh world. But why? Are we too occupied with our own business? Certainly not. We are never too busy, it’s the level of priority we tend to believe in.
But there might be someone around us caring for the littlest of things. Someone with a good intention to feed his soul with the joy it brings with the promise of no materialistic gain, nevertheless, the act of kindness continues, to the best of his ability; most of the time away from the public eye.
I don’t remember doing such things that involve non-materialistic achievement. That doesn’t mean I never did anything the opposite. It’s just I don’t remember. But I remember noticing people stretching their arms to those in need. Sometimes to a lowly stray animal, desperate for food or water for survival. That’s true kindness— the gratitude expressed through the eyes, the gaze you get helping an animal live another day is priceless. Sometimes it doesn’t cost you money, but an intention to care for the creatures on earth.
I am from a part of the world where summer reigns. Seasonally, it’s not summer all year round but a couple of months of heat can make it unbearable. Water becomes a vital source of life when the heat hits hard. We can hydrate ourselves with fancy juices or plain water from collectable sources but it’s the birds and stray animals that suffer most. With industrialisation rapidly claiming most greens, finding a shelter to cool off or get a sip is becoming incredibly challenging for those creatures.
Don’t we have anything to do about it?
Not that we have to go against industrialisation, that’s impossible to stop in this era. But we can care for those tiny creatures around us. As I said, someone might be caring for them without raising public attention. I remember seeing a man, a hard-working man in his tiny auto workshop offering water to a thirsty cow staring at the bucket placed inside the shop. It doesn’t ask for the water, not that it can ask like us, but the man sensed it. He has the heart to understand what that stray animal wanted at that hour of high noon.
Similar to him, I have seen many putting water bowls on the balcony so the birds can quench their thirst. What do they get in return? Do those birds drop coins for every sip? People might not even notice when the birds came and had the water, perhaps no birds will ever come— but it’s a heartfelt joy those people want to feel in exchange for the water bowls. The sense of caring brings them close to feeling the divinity.
It’s winter. Snow has covered a good part of the remaining wilderness. But life must go on and that squirrel living in that tree close to your house is definitely looking for food. Digging up the layer of ice to reach the seeds underneath isn’t easy. Why don’t you put some nuts in a can under the tree for them to find out and collect? Or a few bird seeds in your yard for the Magpies.
Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around.
—Leo Buscaglia
Care and it shall come in return.