Decency, Pure and Simple
Collecting donations in cash or kind is a curious thing. You are compelled to find out how much people are willing to part with, in the name of the greater good, a ‘cause’ greater than their own needs, and essentially, how generous or giving they are. In a time where money is difficult to come by for most of us, it is especially heartwarming when people are eager to give. But this is not something I’m readily willing to find out about people. In fact, I’ve been kind of weary of collecting money from people because it would mean I’m peeping in on this very personal detail. It’s funny, but also interesting. Of course, at the end of the day, everyone that does donate in my eyes is generous. But some give more and than others. And this knowledge is a burden I would sometimes rather not shoulder.
I have always been a bit weary of people who like the glamour of ‘causes’. Go Green! Power to the poor! Free Palestine! I wonder, sometimes, whether any of these people are really willing to do what it takes to see the changes they claim they want to see. And whether they truly believe the sweeping statements they stand by, or claim to do so simply because it seems like the kind of thing they should believe, in order to appear to be a certain kind of person.
And this is why I hate the pretentious: it’s like you have this archetype in your mind, this vague, abstract concept of a personality, which might not even really be humanly plausible. Artist. Liberal. Activist. Intellectual. And then you have this checklist of things that you need to be/believe in to be that archetype. “I should think that Che is cool and that weed should be legal and that the rich are the evil.” Or, “I should listen to a certain type of music, like a certain kind of book, and whether I actually like these things or not is immaterial”. There are very few people I know who actually un-pretentiously form their own opinions and carefully think about what they believe to be right and wrong, and most importantly, are up to changing their minds as they grow older and wiser. They don’t really care what ‘type’ of person that makes them. Luckily, they are all my friends.
I see people who are all about the hoo haa about Iraq but don’t bother to treat those who are waiters or drivers like human beings. I see people who are always so busy sending things to the IDPs but won’t stop to give a beggar in Colombo a red cent. I see people who spend a lot of time writing about the evils of the elite, but wouldn’t take a stray dog in from the cold, leave alone another person.
It’s wonderful when people want to help, but I believe true generosity comes from wanting to help anyone you can help, anytime you can help. It’s not about choosing your causes, choosing who deserves your goodness, and who doesn’t. That’s not a judgment I feel we are fit to make about others.
It could be buying the tri-shaw driver a maalu paan the next time you stop at Perera and Sons to buy yourself something. It could be saying ‘Good Morning’ to the man whose job it is to open the door for you at Food City. It could be letting a friend share your home in a time of need. It could be taking the neighbourhood’s stray dog to the vet. It could be, literally, the famed helping-an-old -lady-cross-the-street.
Really, the opportunities present themselves to us all the time, and most of the time, we don’t even notice. We walk on by, rushing to hand in our large donations to a cause that is in our eyes more worthy than a shabby beggar, a stray animal, a cab driver who likes a chat just as much as the next person.
What cause do I believe in? Well, mostly, I believe in the cause of human decency, pure and simple. Very easily achieved, results guaranteed to satisfy all parties involved. It won’t take a minute out of your day.
That was a lovely post. Thanks. I think we sometimes underestimate the joy of giving unconditionally. I doubt anyone really regrets being generous. In fact we often stop to think if we can afford it, but once we go through with it, we tend to be glad we made the right choice. That ‘feel good’ feeling is also a hugely unexplored motivation. It’s probably a selfish reason, since it’s slightly therapeutic. But the getter cares not for the giver’s motives.
P.S. Shouldn’t it be “wary” instead of “weary”?
TYFR
Comment by Archangel — June 24, 2009 @ 3:34 am
I nearly agree with you nearly all the way…but you contradict yourself and we have had that argument a couple of times.
The world is full of evil and there is are so many people and causes that should be worty anyones “godness”, so everyone is forced to choose causes and set priorities.
I m not talking of treating other people with respect, as anyone who does not respect a trisaw driver or someone holding open a door should get that right before embarking on greater humanitarian missions and that it exactly where making the world a better place starts and ends.
BUT I do think that there is a need for anyone individually to asses what he or she wants to help, because there are a lot of people out there who just live on other peoples bad conscience. You get INGOs in that category that capitalise on the bad conscience of the “western world” and you get beggers infront of MC who are strategicaly placed there by the begger mafia to capitaise on the fact that in sri lanka people would not want to be seen comming out of a “luxery shopping complex” passing 10 beggers without giving any of them anyting. In the end I would want whatever I can spare from the money I have to actually do some good and not end in the pocket of someone who comes and collects the money of the street beggers by the end of the day and drives off in his prado to the next casino. Neither would I want to donate it to an international organisation of which I know that the people working for it are besides doing helpful to the communities they are working in, are wasting money on exessive advertising campaigns and staff that lives miles above standard of the country they work in.
I think its not about choosing who deserves your godness either but I think everybody who wants to do good should put some serious thought into what could actually DO good appart from it just beeing done with good intetions, because otherwise it is just a modern indulgance.
Comment by Coconut — June 26, 2009 @ 8:26 am