There is a rhythm to our morning. The sun climbs over the Watchung Mountains, commuters scurry onto buses and trains, coffee shops are filled with the chatter of folks planning their day. But there is the headline of the moment: the day doesn’t belong to the deadlines, the traffic jams or the endless patter of chatter and work. The day belongs to us, and what we choose to do with it.
More often than not we treat time as an opponent. We fight it, curse it, lay blame on its feet, and complain needlessly as it slips away. But each day, each sunrise, is a reminder that we have been handed another opportunity to do something that matters, something that is real, something that is everlasting and something that is good. Why some don’t take advantage of this is mind blowing.
While I am riffing today, let me add, we live in a culture that is obsessed with things. Obsessed with possessions, obsessed with scarcity, filled with concern about money and worldly items. The question we need to ask ourselves isn’t do we have enough, the proper question is are we doing enough to help others who truly don’t have enough? This isn’t that difficult.
The next time you are cursing the darkness or sitting in traffic, ask yourself how you could be more helpful to others. In public and corporate life much is given and much is expected. Those in positions of authority must pivot and help others. Help someone land a life altering job, perhaps arrange a life altering introduction, provide pro bono services, volunteer at a hospital or a food bank, donate to a worthy cause or simply make someone’s life more complete. When we commit ourselves to this service or commit ourselves to helping others, we suddenly find ourselves less chaotic, more fulfilled, more complete, and somehow time isn’t so fleeting – the days don’t seem to blur together.
Over the next few weeks our law firm will dedicate to completing our 6th year of helping supply food banks with dollars and service. This year, we will be touching down in Los Angeles, Chicago, Jersey City, Morristown, Parsippany, New York City, Little Rock, Houston, Atlanta, and Detroit. I only wish we could land at another dozen in need places.
Tom Scrivo and I have built a law firm that prioritizes community service and giving back. Each year we seek opportunities to help raise money and awareness for worthy causes. We are honored to be able to participate with our corporate partners and honored that our employees have a passion for helping others.
I know this piece is linked to this time of the year so let me continue. Helping others isn’t charity, it is community maintenance. It is truly the societal glue that bridges us all together. That is the architecture of a moral and decent society. We talk infrastructure–roads, bridges, and tunnels. But the real infrastructure of our existence is the invisible web of connectivity, of kindness and of people tethered together in a mission to make our society better, richer in spirt and more robust in compassion.
This year, we should all think about doing a little extra for those who are truly in need.
