When a lot of people think about modern cities and towns, the first thing which will cross their mind is the cold and unwelcoming feeling you can often get from places like this. With places like this becoming more densely populated, it can be much harder than it used to be for people to connect with one another, and this makes it far too easy to feel as if you’re on your own. Compassion and ethics are still a very strong part of society, though; you just have to look a little harder to find the best examples of it.
Most animals will only risk their lives to protect those closest to them. A mother bird, for example, may be seen attacking a predator twice their size to keep their chicks safe, in an act which seems foolhardy. Of course, this is only instinct, though, and the little bird would usually simply fly away. Humans like to take this a step further, and there have been loads of examples throughout history of people putting their lives on the line to keep a stranger safe. It’s amazing what people can do when they see someone in trouble.
A great example of this hit international news recently, when an undocumented Malian 22-year old scaled a building in Paris to save the life of a child who was dangling from the edge. While others stood frozen in shock, Mamoudou Gassama acted quickly and without hesitation to save the toddler’s life, risking everything to protect a child he had never even met. Of course, examples like this are extreme, and they don’t come about very often. It still shows the power of compassion in modern society, though, especially when considering that Mamoudou wasn’t the only one trying to scale the tower block.
Some of the most powerful acts of human kindness aren’t the ones which cause a worldwide sensations. In fact, there are loads of people around the world who dedicate themselves to helping others, spending their entire lives working to make sure that other people can enjoy theirs. The amount of people working for charities has gone up by over 40% over the last couple of decades. As living in modern societies becomes easier, more of the population are getting the chance to throw themselves into causes which they feel passionate about.
Charity and compassion can often be given on a very personal level. For example, there are a lot of children throughout the world who don’t have the care they need, either ending up in special establishments or on the street as a result. Taking on the responsibility of raising someone else’s child is almost unthinkable to some, but, with adoptings averaging out at more than 130,000 per year, it’s easy to see that other people think differently. You wouldn’t find people willing to look after someone else’s child in a society devoid of selflessness.
Adopting isn’t the only way to help a family, though. Along with those who can’t look after a child, there are also a lot of couples out there who simply can’t have one by themselves. To help with this, a surrogate mother can carry a baby for the parents, ensuring that it is born healthy and into a happy environment. When you consider the level of commitment this must take, it’s incredible that people are willing to do it, and it shows that compassion will often trump a person’s natural selfish urges.
It isn’t too hard to find examples of people being nice to each other in the modern world. Whether someone saves another person’s life, or they simply give a homeless person a bite to eat, it’s a good sign that the population is still good at heart. Keeping this in your mind can make the world feel like a much friendlier place. With negative news stories on the TV each day, it can be easy to slip into a paranoid rut, feeling as if you have to protect yourself or be selfish when there really isn’t any need. Instead, just think about how you’d like to be treated, and give other people the same kind of respect.
Hopefully, this post will make it easier to see the good in the people around you. Modern cities are often referred to as evil and dark places by those who don’t see the pleasant side of them. Some communities are just structured differently, though, and this doesn’t mean that they having something wrong with them.
