I had a discussion recently in which someone said that "there are no righteous people on earth." If you define righteous as, "acting in an upright, moral way; virtuous" then I must say that I know plenty of righteous people. They're not perfect; they may lose their tempers from time to time, and their egos may sometimes get in the way, but they strive to do good, to do what's right. There are good people in the world and I think it is sad when people can't see that. It seems we are encouraged at every turn to be other than righteous. People say 'only the good die young,' or 'good guys finish last,' The good don't die young, they don't die at all. The good they do lives on, their spirits live on, long after they leave here. Think of the life lessons, love, and care a loved one gave you while they were here. The good they did ensures that they will never finish last. Perhaps we need to re-evaluate our definition of finishing "first." If you define finishing first as being wealthy with lots of things and power, then you don't know what true wealth is.
My grandmother told me once that if you go looking for trouble, you're sure to find it. If we constantly look for people to be wicked, dishonest, or "bad" then we're sure to find them to be so. When we look for the good in people and focus on what we appreciate in others, we will surely see it. Make no mistake, there is good in everyone. We were created from love, beauty, and all that is good. External influences and ego sometimes get in the way, but good is who we are at the core. Ralph Waldo Emerson said, "Treat a man as he is, and he will remain as he is. Treat a man as he could be, and he will become what he should be." Imagine if we treated everyone as they could be. Working with youth has taught me that if you have high expectations of a child's ability, they will rise to their potential with the slightest encouragement. I believe this to also be true with adults.
The media feeds us news about all the tragedies, injustices, and horrors going on in the world, with little attention to the good people do. This leaves us believing no good is being done. Don't believe the hype. I personally know or have made acquaintance with many men, women, and children who seek to do the right thing, live morally, and help others. I look for what is good in a person because that is what I want to experience from them. I've found that if you want peace, you must come from peace, if you want love you must come from love, and if you want goodness, well you get the point. Those who say there are no righteous people in the world are talking to a mirror, but they don't realize it. We are all connected and made from the same substance. If you see good in people, it's because you see good in yourself, if you don't....Love and light.
My grandmother told me once that if you go looking for trouble, you're sure to find it. If we constantly look for people to be wicked, dishonest, or "bad" then we're sure to find them to be so. When we look for the good in people and focus on what we appreciate in others, we will surely see it. Make no mistake, there is good in everyone. We were created from love, beauty, and all that is good. External influences and ego sometimes get in the way, but good is who we are at the core. Ralph Waldo Emerson said, "Treat a man as he is, and he will remain as he is. Treat a man as he could be, and he will become what he should be." Imagine if we treated everyone as they could be. Working with youth has taught me that if you have high expectations of a child's ability, they will rise to their potential with the slightest encouragement. I believe this to also be true with adults.
The media feeds us news about all the tragedies, injustices, and horrors going on in the world, with little attention to the good people do. This leaves us believing no good is being done. Don't believe the hype. I personally know or have made acquaintance with many men, women, and children who seek to do the right thing, live morally, and help others. I look for what is good in a person because that is what I want to experience from them. I've found that if you want peace, you must come from peace, if you want love you must come from love, and if you want goodness, well you get the point. Those who say there are no righteous people in the world are talking to a mirror, but they don't realize it. We are all connected and made from the same substance. If you see good in people, it's because you see good in yourself, if you don't....Love and light.
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