Tuesday's Ten: So Much Bigger

So today, for reasons I may write about later, I am thinking about some pretty deep things.  But they are manageable at this point, so I am going to focus instead on things that are much bigger than I am, much bigger and scarier than even what we are facing this week.

1.  The doctor, who came here from another country so his children would have a better chance for freedom.  He calls his mother every day he can, for she is still in a war-torn region that erupts with daily, unimaginable violence.

2.  The woman, earning pennies above the poverty line, who lives in fear that something will break, or fail, or need fixes she knows she cannot afford.

3.  The Soldier, coming home, unsure if he will still have a job or even the services he has earned.

4.  The child, frightened of her parents.

5.  The Mom, watching her hair fall to the floor and knowing that it's just a baby step in her fight for her life.

6.  The college graduate, thousands of dollars in debt, searching for a job and unable to even flip burgers because they are overqualified.

7.  Soldiers/Airmen/Marines/Sailors, away from their families and wanting so badly to hold hands and give hugs during Murphy's visits.

8.  A school is reeling today after a shooting left one student in critical care and an officer on administrative leave.

9.  The teacher, doing the best they can but stuck between school districts that are top-heavy and inefficient and parents who never told their children "no".

10.  I'll leave this one blank for you to fill in for yourself-- I'm sure you get the idea.

The fact is, every day, even as we are in our own small little sections of the world and wrapped up in whatever crisis is affecting us right then, there are the foes of fear, waste, sloth, apathy and anger affecting others, too.  How can we be anything less than understanding of others' battles?

How can we be less than kind?