I so agree. My parents, and especially my mom, always taught us to give to those less fortunate, but even more important, to simply be nice to those we meet on our path, and to go out of our way to smile in greeting, even when sometimes we might not feel like smiling.

She even made a game of getting people to smile back at her, especially when she saw someone who looked dour in traffic, and it almost always worked, even if they smiled a bit grudgingly at first.

When I was in my late teens, I read about a study that showed that, by the simple act of smiling, seratonin is immediately released in the brain, making us literally feel happier. I redoubled my efforts to smile at everyone whose paths I crossed, because I was benefiting us both by doing so.

Years later, a young man from my neighborhood came up and thanked me, because he said he had gone through a period of being terribly despondent. He said that one of the main things that gave him hope was that, every time we saw one another, I smiled at him. He said he had been contemplating suicide, and that I helped him to come back from the brink, even though we didn't know one another except by sight.

By giving to one another, in whatever form that may take, we are spreading our own hope and love in the world, and who knows what the ultimate effects may be?

I am convinced, from long experience, that it is absolutely worth it, every moment of every day.