"Who do you feel more sorry for? Who do you actually want to hug? The person you happen to know has a tumour, and is just getting through life not talking about it, smiling, trying not to embarrass anybody about it; or the kind of person who’s always going, “My leg, that went there, and then I had this pain here and the doctor didn’t know what to do about it, and I get these flashes --” Oh, Christ, I’m sure it’s terrible for you dear, but shut up! Now – of course we do our best and we feel sorry for all kinds of people and we, you know, show sympathy, but – the real heroism of people who quietly get on with their lives and think of others should be rewarded, and usually is by the fact that they are liked. And if you’re liked, people want to be with you, and if people want to be with you they share opportunities with you, and you observe the way they do things, and your life can open up, and there are opportunities everywhere."
"I suppose the thing I most would liked to have known, or been reassured about, is that in the world, what counts more than talent, what counts more than energy or concentration or commitment or anything else is kindness. The more in the world you encounter kindness -- and cheerfulness, which is its kind of amiable uncle or aunt – the more, just the better the world always is. And all the big words – virtue, justice, truth – are dwarfed by the greatness of kindness."
More meandering insight to be found
here, or
here.
(h/t No Sign At All)
