Hey there friends and family,
Here’s a story from dad that could and maybe should start a discussion. Our top leaders speaking badly about America is very bad for America. All the doom and gloom talk from our leaders does is let the crazies in our world have a voice. No apologies for someone who speaks “off-the-cuff” and “He really means something else . . . “. I don’t care if you are trying to be ‘folksy’ or speaking words that you ‘think’ are what Americans are thinking. There is never a reason for a leader to speak derisively about others. I have to use the old saying, “If you can’t speak good about someone, don’t speak at all”. There’s probably a dozen other appropriate ‘sayings’ that mean the same thing which tells me, there must be something in those words of wisdom.
My cousin, Mike, who dad speaks about in this story is quiet, soft-spoken, shy and a firefighter. Retired, I think. I have a strong suspicion that he’s also a hero many times over. It’s not difficult at all to visualize Mike helping the refugee couple without the slightest hesitation. My point is: Charity is more often than not, hidden. A person doesn’t brag about doing something that comes naturally from the heart. Our leaders who brag about their charity only sound bombastic and belligerent.
My daughter, Jennifer, is in the Army. She has said that the Army encourages soldiers to do charitable works during their time off. That’s why she was taking care of rescued, malnourished and neglected horses in Hawaii when she had a horse roll over on her, severely injuring her spine and some internal organs. Jennifer is healthy after a long recovery and, I’m sure continues to quietly help others, including animals, not expecting praise for what comes naturally to her. The only way I found out about the Army’s encouraging soldiers to do charitable works was because of Jenn’s getting injured.
I think dad would agree that charity is all around us, in the little kindnesses that people do and don’t expect recognition for. I also believe charitable contribution is one of America’s biggest strengths. A quiet act of kindness speaks louder than any show of strength or power.
Enjoy the story,
David T
p.s. I’m serious about starting a discussion. The “Leave A Reply” section is at the bottom of each post . . . Hint, hint . . .
“Charity Prevails”
By Don Tschirhart
Excerpted from the unpublished book “It’s a Wonderful World II: A Retired Reporter Looks At Life“
Charity Prevails
I’m not sure why some countries denounce the United States. I’m not sure why some US citizens and news people are so critical of our country.
Probably it’s because we have so much, do so much, waste so much, occasionally throw our weight around and in the eyes of some we don’t give as much to charity as we should.
Despite all the nasty words screamed at our country, America is really a paradise, its people and government generous to a fault. No one fights to leave, only to enter our country.
My guess is that the US gives more foreign-aid and loans to poorer countries than all other nations combined. My guess is that industry and commerce give more to charity than those outside our borders.
Much of why our nation is so generous starts at the grass-roots.
My nephew placed an old couch on the curb in front of his Royal Oak home for a waste pickup. Soon he saw a young couple sitting on it.
“Can I help you?” Mike asked and quickly discovered the couple couldn’t speak English, were too poor to purchase a new couch but might be able to buy his. Mike had difficulty making them understand the couch was free.
The couple couldn’t move it. Mike put the couch on his pickup and drove it to their home.
I believe Mike’s small generosity delivering his give-a-way couch to the poor family’s home is repeated coast to coast daily. US soldiers in Vietnam, Afghanistan and Iraq sponsor orphanages and give generously to all the people, unlike what some politicians say about our troops’ deportment.
United Fund drives throughout our country are nearly always oversubscribed. Every day we see charity reflected in news stories. At our church and others in the US food pantries feed those who temporarily need a helping hand. Large food baskets that include hams and turkeys are delivered before major holidays.
The same day of Mike’s gift of time and transportation it was announced that the United States had provided nearly $62 million in American tax dollars to help 185,000 refugees who had fled from the Darfur region of Sudan into the African nation of Chad as the result of attacks by Arab-led militia. How many other countries have contributed as generously?
The one-paragraph story appeared on an inside page of The Detroit News, as if the paper was keeping the donation a deep secret.
There was a news story one day about airplane owners at the Dupont-Lapeer Airport taking handicapped children for free rides around the city.
What a thrill for those kids who have little to look forward to when they wake up each morning and for pilots who watch their smiling passengers as they leave the ground.
Southfield cardiologist, Dr. Vicky Savas M.D., for years has been a good-health missionary using her time and talent to lecture and give free or inexpensive seminars on heart disease, especially as it affects women.
And then there was a story about a nine-year-old Bay City girl, Chelsea Bartlett, who donated three garbage bags full of her beloved stuffed animals in order to comfort children involved in traffic accidents and other tragic events.
The fourth grader said she wanted other children to experience the joy they had brought her.
I don’t mean to get into politics, but I hate it when I feel some candidates undermine in their speeches the good things our government has done in our own country and others.
Yes, there has been a tremendous toll including more than a thousand American lives lost in Iraq. All of us pray for them and their families.
But just think of the invasion result. The United Nations allies have stopped the torture, gassing, rape and execution of hundreds of thousands of innocent civilians by a crazy man and his sons.
We, the US, have notified the world we are willing to fight evil. Those Iraqi leaders were evil. Their terrorist followers, who cut off the heads of innocent people, are evil. Naive church leaders, including my own, should be praising the US. not condemning it.
If all agreed on the American right to defend others from cruelty, our troops probably would come home sooner.
Every day in America people do nice things for others. And throughout the world Americans do nice things for others.
That’s why life in the United States is so meaningful.
