Posted on 12/23/2002 9:34:53 AM PST by Gophack
The Richest Man in Town
The small, every-day things make a Wonderful Life.
William E. Saracino
William E. Saracino is a member of California Political Review’s editorial board.
This being my last column before Christmas, I invoke a point of personal privilege, opting out of my usual political ponderings to offer thoughts more apropos of the season.
You don’t have to know me very well to discover that I think It’s A Wonderful Life is perhaps the finest movie ever made. Oh, not judging on technical standards, though the movie is quite well done. Wonderful Life is a great movie — perhaps the greatest — because of the messages that are imparted in it. And though it is ubiquitous on television this time of year, do yourself a favor and buy the video cassette, or better yet the DVD, to avoid the editing done for the tube. Avoid the colorized version like you would a letter from Osama Bin Laden with powder on it.
It is a rare person who is not familiar with the scene at the end of the movie, where all of George Bailey’s (Jimmy Stewart) friends and family have gathered round him to help him through a tough spot. That scene, to me, is the essence of a successful life, of a wonderful life - having those you love and who love you surround you with comfort when you need it most.
I know from whence I speak. In September of 1998 I went completely deaf in the space of three hours one morning. I recovered my “hearing” in April of 1999 after successful cochlear implant surgery. During the seven months of my “Simon and Garfunkel” period, from September to April, (think sounds of silence ... ahem) and for the first few months after surgery while adjusting to the cochlear implant, I discovered how George Bailey must have felt. I could not possibly have made it through that very rough time without the support and love of my family and friends — delivered on a daily basis.
In the last scene from Wonderful Life, mentioned above, George Bailey’s brother offers a toast that goes: “To my brother George, the richest man in town.” The toast was full of irony, as George wasn’t rich at all in material things. Far from it. But he was fabulously wealthy in the things that really matter in life: faith, family, and friends.
One of the messages of Wonderful Life I find most compelling is how George got into the position of having all those friends willing to rally around him. The answer lies in the way he lived his life. He was constantly looking out for other people, always willing to help out, eager to do the right thing. He was always happy to engage in kindnesses that, while they might appear trivial on the surface, meant a great deal to the people on the receiving end of them. It was the small things, the every day things, that made the difference. George Bailey didn’t change the world. But he did make it a much better place, one person at a time.
I learned the importance of “small kindnesses” when I went through my great (non)hearing adventure. During my seven months of deafness, there were times I would get down, dispirited, or stressed. Every time that happened — and I mean this quite literally - one of my family or friends would call, write, stop by, send an e-mail, or do some small thing that picked me up. It may have taken them 30 seconds and might have involved the most trivial of things — but it made my day, many times. Many good things have come out of that time in my life. Among the foremost is my understanding now that the little things can mean a lot to people in day-to-day living.
Let me make clear I’m not talking about the moronic “random acts of kindness” mantra that the Cumbaya crowd prescribes as a cure for the world’s ills. What I’m talking about is specifically not random. Spur of the moment perhaps, but not random. I’m talking about premeditated acts of charity and love for those we know are in need of succor. Or even for those we only suspect are in need of it. I’m talking about appreciating the importance of taking time in our busy lives to do the small things — acts of friendship, for lack of a better description — that it is so easy to put off until “tomorrow.”
Don’t do that. Tomorrow is promised to none of us, and the spirit of somebody you know may well need a lift today. At 9 a.m. on September 18, 1998, I could hear just fine. At noon I was stone, cold deaf. Tomorrow may not bring you the opportunity to help someone that today carries. While we are busy trying to do the big things in our lives, let’s not forget what George Bailey teaches us — that often we do the most important work of living just by being a friend — one person at a time.
Mother Theresa put it this way: “Only rarely in our lives are we called upon to do great things. But every day of our lives we are called upon to do little things with great love.” I expect that sounds hokey and maudlin, yet I know the truth of it. During my challenging times I was, of course, cheered by the “big things” done and grand gestures made on my behalf. But it was the small, day-to-day kindness and thoughtfulness really got me through.
Doing “little things with great love” can be a challenge, as it requires a humility that isn’t necessarily natural to us. We, after all, grow up dreaming of big things, especially those of us in politics or the public eye. Most of us, myself included, define a successful life in financial terms ’way too frequently. Following Mother Theresa’s road may make the world better, but it’s unlikely to make us rich or famous. It probably won’t even get you noticed — except of course by the recipient of your thoughtfulness.
But there are other rewards. Standing before the Almighty on judgment day, would you rather be able to say you helped elect presidents, senators, and governors, or that you helped mend someone’s spirit when that spirit was tattered? That you drove only the finest cars, or that you took the five minutes necessary to brighten an estranged friend’s heart? That all your sweaters were cashmere or that you comforted all you met with love and laughter? All these things aren’t mutually exclusive certainly, but far too many of us do not have them prioritized properly.
As we approach December 25, let us contemplate the message of the child born in Bethlehem. And as we do so, let us keep in mind the admonition of Mother Theresa, who is doubtless one of His saints. Let us, by all means, do the “great things” that life brings to us, if that is our lot. But let us — every day — remember to do the little things with great love. By doing so we can impact the world enormously, just as George Bailey did, one person at a time. It’s the secret to a wonderful life.
God bless you all, have a very Merry Christmas, and a wonderful life.
I hate the movie, but love Mother Theresa, so I enjoyed the post!
“Only rarely in our lives are we called upon to do great things. But every day of our lives we are called upon to do little things with great love.”
God bless you, this Christmas and always.
God Bless everyone and Merry Christmas to all!
I'd be a MUCH better person if I could keep that questions foremost in my thoughts.
I loved the movie too. I think I've seen it at least 50 times all the way through and I couldn't begin to tell you how many times I've seen an hour or two of it without seeing it all.
The whole point of the movie is that suicide is NOT a solution. It's a wonderful life.
Of course you are right. But he thought it was and needed some 'supernatural' help to get straight. My druthers would be he didn't have such a thought at all. Christmas can be a tough time of year for some people.
Clarence
Yes. Truly it is "small acts of kindness" (or lack thereof) joined to personal responsibility (or lack thereof) that make all the difference in human living over time.
IMHO George Bailey was truly great in his supposed "smallness." He was an "everyday man," an Everyman, raising a family, working for a living, trying to do what is right by all who had any kind of claim on him.
At the end of the day, GB stood up for what he saw was right. And his vision extended to people who had no familial or otherwise "inside" claim on him. For George, the same standard appied to "all comers," regardless of "pedigree."
It seems that any time a human person does that sort of thing, there is a subsequent change in Reality....
So, instead of b*tch*ng about the current state of the world, may we spend the next few Christmas days giving thanks for our blessings, and thanks for our friends and neighbors?
God bless the President, God bless our Nation, God bless us, "each and every one" in this blessed Christmas season.
As you say, Gophack: "Merry Christmas to all ... it IS a wonderful life." God bless us, each and every one in this blessed and holy Christmas Season.
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