Proceed with Caution

People often ask what is going on in the world.  Watching the news may leave you feeling defeated and sad.  All over the world people are suffering from some kind of depression and every day they have to put on a smile for the world when they simply want to crawl up into a ball and hide.  There are wars happening all over, and some people are afraid to simply walk out of their front door and be in public at all. 

With inflation at an all-time high, and many jobs being replaced by artificial intelligence (AI), seemingly daily, it is no wonder that people are stressed.  However, so many of us force ourselves to smile and act like all is well, but behind that mask could be brewing a deep sadness that no one knows about, so be gentle with others.  It cost you nothing to smile at someone, and tell them that you hope they have a great day.  Or to just tell them that they are simply amazing. 

Think about news stories that you may have heard about, where a person appeared to be so happy, yet that evening they took their life.  How many times have people said to us “Good morning!  How are you?”  And we simply respond, “Wonderful!  I’m great!  How are you?”   We give that robotic response to appear that all is well, and that we do not have a care in the world, when nothing could be further from the truth.  Sometimes the people that appear to be the strongest on the outside, are going through the most on the inside, so be kind and be gentle. 

It costs you nothing to offer a word of encouragement when you can.  Hearing your words may have made someone smile for the first time that day.  Or, perhaps you gave them a glimmer of hope that fueled them to continue moving forward knowing that it would get better.  There are more people suffering internally than we may know.  Kindness truly does transcend the act itself and I hope that your life is filled with more of it.