7-13 May 2018

Whenever you practice one virtue you will always find that there are many virtues along for the ride, such as kindness, consideration, respect, wisdom and many more. Being ‘present’ often results in noticing when someone requires a little bit of extra help and offering that support such as helping an elderly person cross a busy street or taking the neighbour’s dog next door for a walk they are unable to.

I recently read an article about a couple’s marriage being saved due to putting some thought into a question they would ask themselves each day. The question they asked themselves each morning and pondered on was ‘What can I do today to make (their partner) day better?’. I suspect sometimes they would ask their partner directly too. Wouldn’t it be nice to be asked that each morning by your partner? And wouldn’t it be nice to go to bed knowing that you did something to make your partner’s day better?

If you don’t have a partner just ask a friend, a colleague, or a stranger what you could do to make their day better or easier, or just put some thought into it yourself and hope they appreciate the gesture.

When we are thoughtful we are being selfless as we consider what we can do for another person. When we do something for someone else we always feel good. It is said that when you are feeling low the best medicine is to do something for someone else and more often than not, if not always, you feel good about yourself.

Please remember to also put thought into what you need for yourself too because if you don’t look after yourself first then you can’t look after anyone else. Give yourself a treat by doing something you love, it’s the simpliest things in life that bring us so much joy.