One Person at a Time

I must admit I do get a bit worked up by people who I see refusing to make even a little effort to pay heed to the convenience of others. Too many people drop rubbish on the ground in the street even though they could hold on to it till they can dispose of it properly. Some even drop rubbish while walking past a bin. There are those who merrily smoke in bus shelters. Not to talk of those who spit in public, even in close proximity to others. And there are those geniuses who take calls on their phones using the loudspeaker, as if the phone is a walkie-talkie.

Too many of us take the view that the little things don't really matter. We assume that it's okay to cut corners just this once, or twice; depending on how many times we need to. The little things we tend to ignore very often end up being big deals to others. Ultimately the accumulation of all the little things we ignore become habitually major omissions and malfeasances that we do persistently. These end up being the means by which we harm ourselves and the environment through neglect and bad choices. 

As it turns out doing one little thing to spare the feelings or convenience of another person has the potential to make things better for society as a whole. One more better off person, or much improved environment is one more step to us feeling better about and doing better for ourselves. Instead too many of us are content to live like animals on a planet that we have claimed for humanity.