Of Random Acts of Kindness and Social Media

I love technology, I really do but I think a part of our humanity has been exchanged for social validation. It saddens my heart when people whip out their phones to capture a fellow human in distress or worse still, to capture themselves extending a hand of kindness to another.

It is good to give out food or money to those in need but what riddles me is documenting those acts. Why would anyone capture a crippled man just going through his day because you gifted him a few dollars or a homeless woman you gave warm items of clothing? They may be at their lowest but sharing their stories with the world at their most vulnerable state may be taking the last bit of self-esteem they may possess.

As a Christian, the bible tells us to do good but not be so showy.

LIFE IS UNCERTAIN

You can never tell what tomorrow holds and you need to ask yourself whether you will want for someone to portray you in such light. Imagine if you discover pictures of you semi lifeless at an accident scene , shared millions of times with comments like 'I reject this in Jesus name'.

Do not get me wrong, random acts of kindness keep us all going. 

When I was in the University, there was a struggling old woman that sold foodstuffs around my house who always gave us extra stuff whenever we bought things from her. She was always so concerned about our welfare that it didn't seem real. We were not blind to the fact that she could hardly make ends meet but even in her state, she reached out  to us.

Another time, I was involved in an accident with a few friends. Our car ran into a ditch. It was on the highway in the middle of nowhere but somehow, there were a few cars traveling at that period and they all waited to help us. They made sure that we were back on the road before they drove off. I really wonder if the situation would have been the same if such happened now in the era of social media and 'extreme journalism'

We may have ended up getting burnt in the car before being pulled out because people would have been busier reporting the events to their online followers than they would have been saving us.

THERE IS HOPE

I still think we have angels among us who are unfazed by social validation. There is a man that reached out to a family I know and paid off about five million naira in medical bills. he made the donation annonymously. People like him keep my hope alive in the human race because I know there are many more.

The temptation to get likes and social applause may be overwhelming but you shouldn't let that override your call to humanity.

When you are giving out bread to another man, do not make it about yourself. It is low enough that your fellow man is at his lowest, documenting that for self-adulation is just wrong.Documentation may be needed for accountability in cases of charity organizations but outside of that, please try not to.

Be kind because humanity needs you to be.

*Image credit: www.medium.com/freecodecamp