No snivelling today, Look for the Heroes

Among the many things I am passionate about, the things that give me joy, is owning the privilege of watching my fellow humans do the most amazingly unselfish, self-sacrificing, difficult, dangerous and too often death-defying things on behalf of complete strangers and animals alike. I envy their stamina for staying in the good-deeds department day in and day out. There is so much to do, so very much that I sometimes think my heart will shatter under the weight of it all.

In no particular order of adoration I offer Jane Goodall, the Dalai Lama, my father Christie Kiefer, the Monks of New Skete, Jacques-Yves Cousteau, Cesar and Ilusion Millan, Wendell Berry, and my partner, who lovingly supports my attempts to share some coherent scribbling with you, and confesses shameless gratitude that I've moved my rants out of the living room and into a Blog.

Frankly, there are plenty of days when I would rather stay in bed and watch Lassie reruns, eat bon bons (Sees’ Candy variety if you’re ever inclined), take a nap, seduce my partner back into bed, read trash, take another nap and pretend that what really counts is that my little circle of family and friends are mostly safe and perfectly okay without me. Which they usually are anyway, but that’s not the point. It’s NOT enough to feel your conscience only when the next horror story downloads itself into your private little inbox. You must make a difference, no matter how small you think it is. The smallest gesture of love and sacrifice can save a life without you ever knowing it. I’m pretty sure you get pink clouds at sunset for that kind of act. Pretty nifty payback.

 So okay, sometimes, I DO stay in bed and pretend. I’m entitled to a walloping good bad day as much as the 
 next pasty, winter-weary slouch. Or so I tell myself. Usually about the time I’ve got my pillows arranged just so, something will drop into my mental inbox that makes me wince with guilt and a dab of fear for playing procrastination roulette with life, and I drag my lazy bones out of bed, gather up my bon bons, look longingly at the nice warm spot my partner had the gumption to vacate before I did and whine my privileged ass downstairs to do the work of living mindfully, thoughtfully and compassionately. This is FAR more work than you might imagine for me. Fumbling attempts at sarcasm and a questionable grasp of cynicism’s concepts are so much easier to put out there. And I’m lazy. Really. Whole new level of laziness most of you will never accomplish. If my mother were still around she’d make a point of letting you know how lazy I am. Which reminds me, just because something is TRUE doesn’t mean you should repeat it within earshot of the guilty party. I’d much rather people talk behind my back.

So, my lesson to myself today was to remember my heroes, and try to make a difference. It is in that spirit I share with you the names of just some of the people I worship, more than bon bons even.


I think I shall make one day a week hero-sharing day.