What is life worth?

What is your life worth?
I was once standing in line to buy pain medicine at the Pharmacy and I had just enough money in my pocket to afford it. I stood there wondering if I really needed it. Can I just live without it? Can't I just take several Tylonol and Advil as I have done before and tough it out? Maybe I should use this money to pay on bills? But I am in pain and I need the rest so I need it don't I? I was the 4th person in line and as these thoughts went through my head I heard weeping. The old lady at the head of the line was crying. But why I wondered. She turned to leave and as she walked past me I asked her what was wrong. I asked before I even thought. She looked up at me with her wrinkled face stained with tracks of her tears. At first I thought she was not going to say anything. But finally with a heavy sigh she explained that she did not have enough money for her husbands prescription. I asked how much she needed. She said $22. I handed it to her without even thinking about it. I actually suprised myself with the gesture. It was like I just knew without any doubt it was the right thing to do. She hugged my neck and thanked me again and again. She promised to pay it back but I refused to give her my address or phone number. The lady got her husbands medicine and thanked me and hugged me again as she left. I stayed in line the whole time and until she left so she would not know that now I could not afford my own medicine. I have never told anyone, not even my wife about this.
I learned something that day. I learned that I could change someones life with just a friendly gesture. I learned that there are people who are in greater need than myself. I learned that my life is worth what I make it worth. I learned that the worth of our lives are not measured in dollars and cents but kindness and compassion. Our legacy is not measured in what we leave behind but rather what we did for our fellow man. Did we open the door for the woman and her 2 children? Did we wave when someone waved at us while driving? Did we offer something without being asked? Did we let the guy with one item ahead of us in the supermarket?
I am a firm believer that everything we do effects the whole world. Like a pebble dropped in a pond our lives have a ripple effect and everything we do is felt by people we will never know.
I have learned the same thing here by those who have shown me what true character and love are. I have been the beneficiary of that same love I showed that old lady at the pharmacy. More so even. I have also received more prayers and well wishes than I could ever count. The impact of everything you have done is more than you will ever know.
So what is your life worth?
Your life is worth what you make it worth.
I hope when I die that my life was worth something. I hope I make my life worth as much as I can.
Make your lives worth more than your retirement plan or a vacation home. Make it count.
And in the end of your days you will not question why you are here but rather you will know that you were here to make a difference. You will know that you did make a difference. You will know that your life was worth it.

That's touching. And True.

I occasionally find myself in a position where a simple act of kindness or compassion will make a difference for someone. Like LifeNRA, I believe that good deeds do tend to propagate, enriching lives.

Thanks for making a difference. 'Twas a good thing.


Daniel

You're a great guy, LifeNRA. Without a doubt you have had and will continue to have a tremendous impact on people, whether on CPF or in your daily life. I'm glad I've had the chance to meet such determined and selfless people such as yourself. Thanks for sharing.

Reminds me of the movie "Pay it Foreward"

Too bad more people in the world don't think the way you do LifeNRA.

That's a very motivational story, Jeff. It reminds us all of how temporary our time is here on earth, and how the smallest friendly gesture could change the future a thousand years from know in ways we can not hope to know. These changes will be all that's left of us then, representing an echo of who we were in history.

But if you really need something as necessary as pain meds, many county hospital pharmacies will provide them gratis, in exchange for a promise to pay when you are able. A drug store pharmacist really can't do that, except by paying for it. Out of their own pocket. I do know some of them who do this, just like I know of some LEOs who "fix" tickets for friends and family. By paying for them. Out of their own pocket.

Hi Jeff, your post reminds me of what I was taught by my parents, if you want to give to someone or a cause give until it hurts, otherwise you are just going through the motions.

In your case you literally did just that, not meant to be a snide or smug remark rather a poignant example of what I was taught. I have often fallen short of this goal but have met it on occasion.

If you give until it hurts while you can, someday when the chips are down it will come back to you ten fold, was the rest of what I was taught.

I hope that you will receive much more than ten fold on your most decent of gestures.

Maybe there is still some good left in the world. Maybe.

There are times when I've thrown so much in for what I believe only to have it all thrown back in my face by the ungrateful (yup.. it does come back to you, and it even gets marked "return to sender"). Or the times when I've given and people didn't even have the courtesy to acknowledge my existence. Or worse: the times when I was down and out and all they did was kick me. We have a saying, it's one thing for people not to help, but pray they don't try and kick you when you're down.

Call me bitter, call me scarred, yup.. I am.

Jeff,

That was a caring, loving gesture and I bet you'll find it did as much for you as it did for the woman you helped. I'll think about that alot today. Thanks for sharing it with us.

Gary

KevinL said:

There are times when I've thrown so much in for what I believe only to have it all thrown back in my face by the ungrateful (yup.. it does come back to you, and it even gets marked "return to sender"). Or the times when I've given and people didn't even have the courtesy to acknowledge my existence. Or worse: the times when I was down and out and all they did was kick me. We have a saying, it's one thing for people not to help, but pray they don't try and kick you when you're down.

Call me bitter, call me scarred, yup.. I am.

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While I've seen great generosity, and even been the recipient of it courtesy of a few people I've met on the Internet, I hate to say that my experiences for the most part seem to mimic yours. Yes, some good still exists in the world, but the reason we usually end up discussing it is precisely because it is getter harder and harder to find. More often than not, I find when I've been down in my life my "friends" just kick the dirt in my face, and my family members do the same for the most part. Now I'm bitter at the world, but thanks in part to the occasional good deed I see I'm not bitter enough that I won't graciously receive good gestures directed at me, or give what little I have to offer when I see someone in greater need than myself.

I've heard it said that changing the world starts by changing one life at a time. Maybe it's true. I just wish that more people wouldn't be so self-centered and worried about acquiring things they don't need to show off to shallow people. Maybe if we tried to outdo each other with good deeds we would accomplish more than materialism and capitalism ever could.

LifeNRA You rock, I once did something much like you but only $10.00 felt great after. Cheap karma, carry on.

Christoefor

Cheers to You LifeNRA!!! Great story and well worth the read. I believe in practicing "Random acts of Kindness" when they are totally unexpected. Someoen did it to me once and it made my day, just little kid stuff but enough to make a difference. The one thing I do all the time and may just be specific to New England is Toll Booths. Short sections of roadways and bridges often have a "Toll" at the end ranging from 50 cents to $2.00, My kick is to always say to the toll taker, "I'm paying for my buddy behind me too" Of course I have no idea who they are, but they always catch up to you and smile and wave as your going down the road after the toll booths, just a funny little thing but those are the little types of things that I do and enjoy and make people smile.

Jeff, Paypal on the Waypal so you can get that prescription filled.
Compliments of the chef. :twothumbs:

To me, the sad thing is that often, it takes a life changing event to open people's eyes to what all they really have and what little they really need.

Forgive me for going a bit off topic or at least tangent to the topic, but I live in Indiana and we have cold winters. I detest wearing coats and my friends and family often make fun of me for not wearing one. I usually say, 'I'm just going from the door to the car, then the car will warm up shortly' and they roll their eyes. What I am usually thinking is the tens of thousands of folks that have nowhere to live at all or manage to find minimal protecting for the cold wind.

It's all about perspective... shame more folks don't have a bit better perspective.

The_LED_Museum said:

Jeff, Paypal on the Waypal so you can get that prescription filled.
Compliments of the chef. :twothumbs:

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good ol' potato! I was planning on doing the same as I read down the posts, but you beat me to it. I'll just give the $44 (doubling your output NRA :thumbsup: ) to that NRA fund I see thumbtacked..

First of all I did not post this story to get anyone to send me money. I am very grateful for any gift and I will accept it with a gracous heart. But I hope no one feels obligated to give me anything more. I am humbled by the genorosity shown to me by everyone. Thank you.

I have enjoyed reading everyones post on this subject and there are a couple of things I would like to express.
My gift to the old lady has been paid back to me many times over. It was paid to me even before I ever met her in fact.
I do not believe we give of ourselves for any kind of future reward. I believe that when we give from the heart out of love that we should not expect to be compensated for it in the future. That is the most wonderful gift of all. The one where we give not for reward or praise but for pure love of another. No gift is greater than that given from the heart with no strings and no qualifiers attached. That is what you have all shown me and that is what I want my life to be worth when I am gone. I want it to count.
I have received money, gifts, prayers, and well wishes from people with no strings attached. That is in my mind showing the worth of your lives. Worth that cannnot be measured by the flashlights you have or the cars you drive. It is measured by the genorosity and love you have shown to another. Your worth is measured by giving of yourself without being asked.
The people I have met here have shown me that there is good in the world and there are still a lot of good people doing good deeds without expecting anything in return.

It is obvious to anyone that your life, no matter when it ends will have meant something, to many people, not the least of which the little lady you so kindly helped with your act of generousity, bravo to a fine, courageous gentleman.

Sadly, too many are so into their own lives, I do not think they would NOT help others, if they noticed, I think in their constant cell phoned, harried state of mind, people simply are oblivious to others.

I once wrote an article in the local paper on this topic, prompted by an incedent in our local community. I was coming out of my doctor's office where he had checked on a cast on my hand, and across the street I saw a man pushing a full sized Cadillac by himself, or trying to, up an incline into a gas station. This was the busiest 5 lane road in town. Now I personally watched 6 cars go into the same gas station, having to manuver around him to go in, every single one was on the phone and they entered, got their own gas and left.

I pulled across and got out of my truck and helped push him up into the gas station and he was grateful, telling me he had pushed it almost 3 blocks by himself (on a 90 degrees hot August day) but could not make it up into the gas station alone. What a sad commentary on things I thought. A lot of people responded on the article slamming my observation, but I stand by it to this day.

LifeNRA said:

What is your life worth?
. . . So what is your life worth?
Your life is worth what you make it worth. . . Make it count.
And in the end of your days you will not question why you are here but rather you will know that you were here to make a difference. You will know that you did make a difference. You will know that your life was worth it.

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Absolutely d**n beautiful! Thank you for that.