If you know me, you will realize that I often say that there is a disaster in someone’s life every day and that you may not even know it. As a nation, we have recently seen the heartbreaking images of Hurricane Harvey hitting Texas relentlessly. People lost their lives and many lost all their worldly possessions. The images were heartbreaking.
Did you look at the screen and wonder what to do?
I have told this story often, but it bears repeating because years ago I wondered what to do. During that time, I was watching the television screen as the aftermath, and the total devastation of the Indian Ocean was unfolding during the Christmas season.
At the time, he was the president of an international shoe manufacturing company. When I saw the image of a shoe wash ashore on a clear beach across the world, the images caught my attention. Shoes have played an important role in my life, both professionally and personally.
Here’s the deal. It is easy to part. It’s easy to stay at a safe distance and not get involved.
Lots of people do that, but I couldn’t live myself.
By that, I don’t mean just the tsunami. When I see someone in need or suspect that something is going on, I ask them. Simply telling someone that they may be having a difficult time can be immense and lets that person know that someone cares. Say, “How are you today? Are you okay?” it is simple.
We worry that people will discharge their problems to us and we take our concerns. That’s the main reason many don’t take a moment to help another person.
But aren’t we in all of this together?
What can a person do, what can YOU do?
My answer is simply this: YOU can do a lot.
When I saw the situation unfold after the tsunami in the Pacific, I initially had no idea what to do. But I knew that I couldn’t live myself and just doing nothing would not be acceptable.
I was in the shoe business, so I added two and two. If people had lost everything, that meant they had lost their clothes and shoes, among many other things. I set out to bring shoes to affected families and individuals.
Honestly, when I told my team that we were going to ship shoes to Asia from America, no one questioned me. They just knew it was something we would do, whatever the cost. I worked the phones and called the top executives of the business to ask for shoe donations. I was expecting a couple of thousand shoes. I ended up leading an effort that bought more than a quarter of a million shoes in the Pacific Ocean countries.
That event changed the trajectory of my life.
I’m not saying you have to leave your world and become a humanitarian like I did.
That is not what I am saying at all.
What I am saying, however, is that if you think that YOU cannot make a difference in other people’s lives, you are wrong. Your smile, your sincere prayers, your shoulder to lean on if you know someone close to you and needs your help can go a long way.
I have a friend who has a close friend who has been battling depression for a long time. The two friends live in different states, but for over a year now, not a day goes by without my friend sending a note, photo, or message of encouragement every morning before the sun rises on the West Coast.
I’m telling you, it doesn’t take much to help.
As I said at the beginning, we recently saw the devastation of Hurricane Harvey. Someday soon, those stories and lives will pass to the bottom of our collective consciousness. However, the people who lived through it and lost everything will need help for weeks, months, and even years.
You can make the difference. Thousands of faith-based organizations, nonprofits, schools, and civic groups have begun mobilizing in Texas to help restore normalcy to people who have lost so much. They need your money. They need your financial help, and I’ve said in the past, if you can only give $ 1, that’s just as important as someone who can give more.
More generally, I have a message that bears repeating. If you think that one life, your life, cannot make a difference, you are wrong. YOU can make a difference and YOU matter. We need many more humanitarians out there!