Pay It Forward

One of my all time favorite movies is "Pay It Forward." The story of a boy, from a troubled background, who sees the benefit of helping others and then having those helped, help others yet again. And so on, and so on, and so on, as the dated shampoo commercial goes.

Over the years this has become almost a mantra to me. When asked if I can teach a religious education class I try to weave into the program a movie night, and then a community service project. (Still hasn't happened, but I'm still pushing.) I've taken pictures for the local Pinwheels for Peace installations, and wondered, does this change the children? And what about "my girls" who now find themselves donating books, cleaning trails, and thinking about how that can help those less fortunate? Little steps, like the boy, and I wonder if all this effort is really worth it. Does all this community service and thinking about our fellow man really make an impact? If we were so preoccupied with each other's well being, could we avoid war?

Unlike the movie and the little boy, I'm not in a state of despair. My world has not comedown around me, nor have my efforts been discovered by the news media. So I'll patiently watch and see. Will those helped, pay it yet again?

Can we change the world?

Would you like to help?