Compassion for All

I am sharing a column that will be published next month.

“Compassion for All”

By

Rob Claudio

One of the things I enjoy doing as the weekend comes to an end is watching the CBS show Sunday Morning, after making a pot of coffee and reading the newspaper in-between. I enjoy watching this program because it always has a great mix of stories that are both informative and filled with positive pieces about what goes on in a good part of our world, which we aren’t shown every day.  It is my counter punch to the daily ongoing news that seems to come at us with lots of negativity along with doses of fear about many things.  Hence, I make it a point to balance all that appears wrong with much that can also be right.  On a recent episode, there was a great story about a young man on his way to work in the Midwest and inadvertently hit a squirrel that darted in front of his car.  Two policemen had their cameras on when they stopped to see the young man performing chest compression CPR.  Initially, the policemen couldn't see that it was an animal, as they thought it may be a child, until they walked up closer.  When the men saw that it was a squirrel, they figured that it was already dead.  The policemen became the narrators of the story as they were a witness to this incident happening on the ground.  As they kept rolling their tape after what appeared to be a failed valiant effort by this good Samaritan, the squirrel suddenly came back to life and jumped up as it ran over into a nearby tree, to the astonishment of the three men observing.  The savior of this squirrel was absolutely ecstatic, as the policemen stated that they have never seen anything like this.  When they further questioned the individual about why he decided to perform CPR, his response was that he had to do what was right, even if it was an animal that most people would not care too much about.  As the story closed, this individual who saved the day was identified as a local college student that wanted to study medicine in the future.  The final piece of the segment ended with everyone in agreement that he was going to be the best healer in the field of medicine, if this incident was any indication about his compassion for human life.  I absolutely loved this story and was so glad that it was captured on video, if only to memorialize what doing the right thing looks like through the efforts of a caring human being, especially when they thought nobody was looking.  To me, these stories also revitalize me in a way that so many of the other life draining dramas don't.  The other thing that this served as a reminder for, was that there are many more good narratives about good people that do not make the news.  I am positive that there are unsung heroes in many communities through-out the world that constantly do the right thing without an audience of any kind.  My faith in others that have such integrity is strong, although we may not hear about it daily.  I just know that they exist and as a result our world can be a better place for all of us.  It is my hope that many of you also look for those unique features of human kindness and compassion as often as you can, as I believe they will continue to fill your life with the good that we all could use more of. 

“My mission in life is not merely to survive, but to thrive; and to do so with some passion, some compassion, some humor, and some style.”
-Maya Angelou