I have seen them, not in their legion, but a mere handful. Those for whom the only apt utterance is, “how, in this world of pain and suffering, where none is left unscathed, could such a one as this exist?” The woman who spent 3 days in hospital to donate a kidney to a stranger and who lights a candle of blessing to the recipient, every single day. The one who, cursed and abused by another, still speaks sweetly to them. The chef who gives himself to his work enjoying what he does believing that if the accolades are meant to be they shall come in time – no chase necessary. The woman undergoing intensive health treatments for hours at a time, who says that it gives her an opportunity, “all you have to do is sit there and think of how lucky and grateful you are.”
They who are able to see through circumstances to something higher, something unseen, to throw it off their back – renewed, refreshed, and totally alive. Theirs are not historic deeds but certainly heroic ones. They show us how to live free from anger, bitterness, jealously, ego and attachment. They speak softly with a glint in their eye and a smile on their face, beastly by their beauty, as though their sacrifice, their attitude was the least thing, unworthy of mention.
What, oh what would life be without these souls, I wonder? Those that would show us all the way – be our guide and our ideal. Of course, it cannot be that life is or has ever been without them, for they are as necessary to it as life is to them. And here is the great secret of their existence, they are actually not so rare at all. Each of us in our heart, in our best moments, when we think not of ourselves alone, are them. For, we know them when we see them, and, in our hearts, we too are but a step away, one action or inaction away, from emulating them.
5 THINGS CSL IS EXCITED ABOUT THIS SUMMER
1/ ROSE FOR DAYS
Alcoholic or not, it’s the toast of the season.
2/ SHAVE ICE
Channel Hawaii with this cooling treat.
3/ LAKE LIVING
If you can’t get to the beach, Canada is blessed with them.
4/ ELOTE
Street food heaven: grilled corn, Cotija cheese, chili-garlic mayonnaise and lime.
5/ RV ROAD TRIP
Good times with family and friends making memories.
This original article first appeared in the Summer 2022 issue of City Style and Living Magazine.
