giving to a stranger

i just caught this ad from the Kindness Movement on tv. and i went, "that's exactly my point!"

ive been preaching this to many people for a while now, although many (u too, gf!) sounded unconvinced. why do we even do an act of kindness? is it fully altruistic? something that stems from the bottom of our conscience or moral duty is hard to use as a persuasive tool. but look at it this way. an act of kindness indeed goes a long way.

we give, not to receive directly from the recipient of our kindness, but so that he or she is moved to give further, to the next person. with that, a web of kindness can begin. a chain effect, in scientific terms. someday, if such an act returns to oneself, one can smile and be comforted that he or she is a proud member of that movement. kindness is not for reciprocation, but to just make society a little more civil.

and the problem in singapore lies in the people themselves. self, selfishness, and selflessness. we give to receive, often expecting a direct, immediate reward. u can even throw kiasuism into the mix. to make matters worse, people are made more cynical by phrases such as 好人有好报 and 助人为快乐之本. this fosters a culture that receiving is the carrot behind giving.

ive so much to say about this because i was like that once too. i understand totally. but something like what's depicted in the ad happened to me one day and this perspective developed.

either they finally caught my point or something divine passed it on to them.