| INSIGHT | COLUMNS & GUIDANCE Remember Korey through Acts of Kindness by Phil Bolsta The football season is well under way but while we cheer for the Vikings we are still grieving the loss of Korey Stringer. As we listened to testimonials and read newspaper accounts about his kind and loving nature, boundless good humor and easy rapport with children, our grief only intensified for we realized more fully that we had lost a truly magnificent human being. Grief is heavy and dark, yet it is also our friend. Just as surely as we yearn to break free of it, at the same time we are reluctant to let it go, for we know that as grief fades, so will our thoughts of Korey. Eventually, the name Korey Stringer will simply evoke a bittersweet memory, a fleeting smile, a momentary flash of sadness. And then we will get on with our day. Korey deserves better than that. He was admired by those who knew him for his many acts of kindness, both spontaneous and planned, so let us celebrate his spirit, honor his memory and commemorate his charitable efforts by deliberately and genuinely engaging in our own acts of kindness. You can become an honorary member of Korey's Crew, the charitable foundation he founded, simply by shifting your perspective to see that, as the Roman philosopher Seneca observed, "Wherever there is a human being there is an opportunity for kindness." It can be as simple as offering a heartfelt smile to a stranger on the sidewalk or holding open a door for someone with an armful of packages. Or take it a step further and volunteer one afternoon a month at a retirement home or hospital. The opportunities to touch people's lives in a positive and loving way are endless. It's one of life's richer ironies that, if you help others purely out of the goodness of your heart, your own life will soon be bathed in more kindness and love than you ever dreamed possible. As poet and philosopher Ralph Waldo Emerson noted, "It is one of the most beautiful compensations of life that no man can sincerely try to help another without helping himself." This is the legacy and the gift, then, of Korey Stringer's short but extraordinary life - that by consciously becoming kinder, you will be blessing not only the lives of others but your own life, as well. And if you can remember Korey whenever you make a child laugh, help a stressed-out friend clean her home, or bring a batch of freshly made cookies to your workplace, you will be keeping his memory and his spirit alive in a very real and meaningful way. After all, at the end of your life, all that will matter is how much love is in your heart. In the name of Korey Stringer, don't wait until then to begin living that truth. Phil Bolsta is a writer, speaker and massage therapist in Plymouth who teaches a free monthly class - "You Are Beautiful and You Are Loved"- at Pathways in the Uptown area of Minneapolis. He demonstrates how affirmations can bring you peace, heal your life and strengthen your connection to the deep love. For more information on class times, call Pathways at (612) 822-9061. Phil can be reached at (763) 553-7703 or at PhilBolsta@mediaone.net Copyright 2001 Phil Bolsta |
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Oct 2001 |
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