It Only Takes a Minute
It only takes a minute to get someone to like you. It also only takes a minute to make someone your worst enemy. Personal actions are a great influence on the society at large, every small culture and every family unit. Regardless of who a person is, what they do, or how they say something, their every action is possibly scrutinized by someone on the planet.
For example, the political picture of the United States is pretty ugly. There are so many people vying for the top spot that it is impossible to decide without knowing so many negative facts about your favorite choice. I hear individuals speak poorly about candidate A or candidate B just based on a single act from five, ten, thirty years ago. I don't believe that perception of something I did when I was 22 years old can prove the character of my being 27 years later. People change, people learn, people grow. That's what we do.
Another way that a person can become your best friend is by the simple act of smiling at them when they look like they need it. I once smiled peacefully at a man who was clearly agitated and late for something. He gave me two great tickets to that day's professional basketball game! All I did was smile at the man. Our actions, even brief, may have a great impact on another person. We should be more aware of what we do or say because it could make or break the day.
September 11, 2001 is clearly a huge day in world history. When airplanes shot across the sky and took out economic, political, and military symbols of the United States, that action prompted a great response. It created the largest and most heinous group of enemies a single act has created for decades. That single act of attack against a great nation did not result in the same intended reaction that the criminals expected but it was a reaction. Now most of the country hates everyone of the Islam faith whether it is warranted or not. There seems to have come two different breeds of reaction from this attack. The before mentioned hate, or absurd levels of tolerance providing privilege over common sense to the very same group. Equality has been torn away based on prejudice for and against this single group of people.
Love is love, or it isn't love. Who gets to decide? What happens that minute when love dies? Do you walk away or make the other person's live a living disaster? Do you use your minute to leave the past alone or do you use it to destroy the other person's life? When is love not love? When it is not real. How do we know? When it dies a painful and destructive death.
On the bright side, if a child hugs you, you are sunk. You will love that little thing for the rest of your life. If a dog bites you, you are likely to become afraid of all dogs because of that one dog. If a stranger gives you money on the street, or robs you at gunpoint, your perception of all people will change.
Isn't it incredible how a single minute can change someone's entire life?
