It may have been my fifth
call to the IRS help center. We had received a letter informing us
that there was an error in a federal tax return we had filed three
years earlier. But no one who worked there seemed to be able to tell
me what the problem was.
But this time, I reached
someone who felt that he should put some time and effort into the
task. It took a while, but he stayed with me on the phone until he
found the error – one wrong digit in one of my children's Social
Security Number.
I was very grateful, and
impressed with his thorough work. I thought he deserved a little
credit, so I asked if I could speak to his supervisor.
I heard tension – almost
fear – in his deep African-American voice when he said that his
supervisor was not available, and that he could give her a message.
“I just wanted to tell
her how helpful you were. You solved my problem, and you were kind
and pleasant.”
His tone changed
completely.
“Ma'am,” he said, “you
don't have to tell that to my supervisor. It's enough that you told
it to me. I get a lot of people yelling and complaining, and it's
great to hear someone say something nice. You just made my day.”
● ● ● ● ● ● ● ●
A few years ago, I spoke
briefly to a women I hadn't met before. I couldn't help noticing her eyes
– they were such a stunning blue color. I decided to say something
about it.
“You probably hear this
all the time,” I said, feeling a little awkward, “but you have
really beautiful eyes.”
She looked startled. “No,
I don't hear that. Thank you. You made my day.”
● ● ● ● ● ● ● ●
I recently sent
an e-mail to a friend who had shown me kindness a few days earlier. I
explained how her thoughtfulness and generosity had touched me and
several other people. She replied to my note with these words: Thank
you, Marnie. You made my day.
♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥
I
was a very foolish teenager.
And
I did some foolish things. In some of the things I was breaking God's
laws. Although none of these were serious sins, I am ashamed and
sorry for these moments, and I am glad to have repented and left them
behind me. I wish I had been smarter.
Still,
looking back now I realize that if could relive my teen and young
adult years with the power to change one thing about myself and my
life, I would not change these foolish moments of transgression.
This
one thing is what I would choose to change: I would be kinder.
I
would smile and say hello to the shyer kids in the halls of my high
school. I would reach out in friendship to the new students. I would
be the one to say, “Hey, you guys, don't pick on her. She's my
friend.”
Why
do I feel this way? I'm not sure exactly, but this is what I'm thinking: my foolish mistakes were not,
for the most part, things that hurt anyone besides myself. But I
wonder if I could have changed somebody's day ―
or week, or year, or life ―
with some small compliment, or by asking someone to sit with me at
lunch, or by listening with understanding and compassion.
Maybe kindness is bigger than foolishness.
The
Apostle Paul has some thoughts about this, too:
Though
I speak with the tongues of men
and of angels,
And have not charity,
I am become as sounding brass,
Or a tinkling cymbal.
And
though I have the gift of prophecy,
And understand all mysteries,
And
all knowledge;
And
though I have all faith,
So that I could remove mountains,
And have
not charity,
I am nothing.
And
though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor,
And though I give my
body to be burned,
And have not charity,
It profiteth me nothing.
Charity
suffereth long, and is kind;
Charity envieth not;
Charity
vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up,
Doth
not behave itself unseemly,
Seeketh not her own,
Is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil;
Rejoiceth not in iniquity,
But rejoiceth in the truth;
Beareth all things, believeth all things,
Hopeth all things, endureth
all things.
Charity
never faileth:
But whether there be prophecies,
They shall fail;
Whether
there be tongues,
They shall cease;
Whether there be knowledge,
It shall vanish away.
And
now abideth faith, hope, charity,
These three;
But the greatest of
these is charity.
(1
Corinthians 13)
At
this special time of year, many of us find that our thoughts turn
more often to the miraculous and sacred birth of Jesus Christ. It is, indeed, a cause for great celebration.
But
it is His life that makes His birth a holy day. It is His love, His
words, His service, and ultimately His great sacrifice for us all,
that should leave us stunned and wet-eyed as we deck our halls. It is
His magnificent glorious charity that will “cover the multitude of
sins” as Peter tells us:
"And above all things have fervent charity
among yourselves: for charity shall cover the multitude of sins" (1 Peter 4:8).
It
is He, our benevolent Savior, who “makes our day” – not just
Christmas Day, but every day that we turn to Him. It can be as simple
as a phone call, an email, or a smile in a crowded department store.
So go ahead: make someone's day. You might find that in doing that, you make your own day, too.
Merry Christmas.
And above all things, clothe yourselves with the bond of charity, as with a mantle, which is the bond of perfectness and peace. (Doctrine and Covenants 88:125)
These
things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and
that your joy might be full. This
is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you.
(John 15:11-12)
