True and Genuine Sisters

A month ago, someone I didn’t really like because she is not a very nice person in general (her favourite activity is to witch-hunt and gossip) came to me and asked for help. Her father and son had been involved in a bad road accident on the Nairobi-Nakuru Highway. She needed money to enable her 12-year-old son, who was badly injured, get surgery to remove a clot that was threatening his life. This was not the kind of problem that was easy to ignore although one’s feelings about the person requesting help can cloud one’s intentions. I knew that this ‘witch-hunter’ was probably never going to pay me back because she was known for not repaying debts. But after a moment of self-reflection, I decided to ‘lend’ her the money (I knew I would not get my ‘loan’ back). I chose to help because I realised that it was not about her, but her son who was critically ill and required urgent medical assistance to get better. And so I also prayed for her son and father, and even went to see them once to just see how they were doing. Two weeks later, her son was discharged from hospital and is now doing very well. In fact, he is looking forward to going back to school next week after receiving the all-clear sign from the doctor. And his mother, true to form, is amazingly back to her old ways now that the crisis is over. A wise friend told me this is what sisterhood is all about — helping even your worst enemy when they are in need because, without realising it, they bring to you a double dose of blessings from God (or from the universe depending on your belief system). When you lend a helping hand to someone you think does not deserve it, the more graces you receive. Helping people is not always an easy thing, especially in these harsh economic times when money tends to run out faster than it comes in. The ever increasing prices continuously place bigger demands on our funds making it difficult to even help our friends and families. But even with ever diminishing resources, we still can be true and genuine sisters to each other. The gestures do not have to be big and expensive. And we obviously cannot help everyone every time. But here is the good news. Sometimes helping just means you being physically there for someone. Small acts of love can go a long way in altering someone’s course of life and your being responsible for that change will eventually come back to bless you. But when you do these acts of love and generosity, do not keep score. When you do, you will be disappointed because you will be trying to cross out one good act with a blessing, yet things don’t work out that way. God is not a conveyer belt who passes on good acts and replaces them immediately with a blessing, the same way a shopkeeper would take your money and give you goods. No. Giving gives you peace and sense of contentment and goodwill. That by itself is enough because it means that your act of love has cleansed out all the negative energies and spirits around you. And for a while the world will be rosy because of your intervention, and when you are surrounded by positive energy, you attract goodness. That is how blessings and graces come your way, because you are sending out a radiant aura to the universe, which then attracts goodness to you, thus channeling the good stuff. However, if you keep score, you retain a bit of negativity in your world as you will undoubtedly look at the person you have lent a helping hand and wonder how come they are not ‘returning the hand’, or blame God for allowing bad things to come your way after you have been ‘so good’. The result: negative energy attracts negative energy. And the reverse is equally true. This is a lesson I have learnt over the years. So begin to enjoy the spirit of charity and when you do, don’t look back. Only forward. And enjoy the goodness.

Photo credit: courtesy