What Kind Of Harvest Will You Leave

Harvest time begins soon in France and it got me thinking about how that can also be applied to our lives and the choices we make in living it.  What kind of harvest will you leave?

Sunday, Mother Teresa of Calcutta became Saint Teresa of Calcutta.  The fruits of her harvest left to mankind  are Missionaries of Charity orders in 139 countries, that continue to provide care to the poor.

Obviously she left an abundant harvest to benefit the wellbeing of the disadvantaged worldwide.  The legacy of her fruits will continue to grow with the expansion of her benevolent convents.

In stark contrast is the CEO of Mylan pharmaceuticals, who just unapologetically upped the price of EpiPens in the United States.  Her unremorseful statement was to remind critics that she runs a for profit company!

Her financial gains derived from price gouging will fill her pockets and a few of her directors, leaving thousands of those who depend on EpiPens to save their lives in an emergency scrambling to be able to afford them.

She heads just one of many big pharmaceuticals, who have tripled or quadrupled medications without any second thoughts or mercy upon those left in the wake of deprivation of these needed medicines.

The vast majority of us  will not make it to sainthood nor be made a CEO of a multibillion dollar company.   We do however have the choice to strive towards goodness of a saint!

Within our own  circles of life, wherever we are,  and whatever we are doing with our own lives, we  can leave sweet fruits to help others around us, or bitter fruits to exploit, wound, anger or abuse.

The choice is ours alone to make. We can take our God given gifts to be of service to humans or not. I like a passage in the Gospel of Matthew about being able to know a man by the fruits they produce;” Thus, by their fruits, you will recognise them”.

One of my Facebook friends shared a video about a man who so loved flowers in war-torn Aleppo, Syria, that he risked his life in planting them in roundabouts or giving them away.

He said he did so to bring some beauty to the heinous violence and destruction he lived in, because he felt humans needed to be reminded that beauty can still exist.

Tragically, a recent bomb killed him, leaving his 12 year old son alone.  There are already efforts to try to help the son, and continue the legacy of this man’s beloved fruits.

He left a harvest of roses and colourful flowers that hopefully will continue to survive against odds amongst the vast crumbles of his besieged city.

I find this a very poignant, albeit sad illustration of how only one man did his best to share his talent to brighten the lives in his community in a simple but extremely needed way.

A lot of the time, we have the tendency to think that we are too insignificant,  too unknown, too poor, too unimportant, too busy, too handicapped, too depressed or too ungifted to offer anything.

We can easily think that we are not in any position to help others in any way or shape, because we have no ideas about how to even start..

You might think that you do not have any specific gifts to share with others, not because you do not have them, but maybe you are blind to seeing them as such. 

For those who have hearts turned outward to the needs or suffering of those around them,  and have the sensitivity to care about the plight of  human beings, that is a gift in itself and that is your starting line.

I have certainly in the many years of seeing patients, have run across numerous individuals who are blind to their own gifts that can be used to not only help themselves, but to help others as well.

One of the limiting drawbacks, is that we think in too large of terms.  I  doubt that Saint Teresa even conjured up spawning 139 convents to help the poor when she started out.

When we plants seeds of goodwill even in poor soil and amongst weeds, miracles occur!  All we have to do it make a start or beginning and leave the Spirit of God do the rest!

Do not worry if you can not fathom any community project, because you might be called to seed a fruitful harvest amongst those close to you.

In some abusive families, where everyone comes away with scars that will last a lifetime, you might be called to model another way of treating each other, that will stop generational abuse.

Actually, it takes a very brave individual to stand up to family who would rather alienate or abandon you, than see how your fruits of goodness offer peace, healing and love.

Perhaps more important is what kind of harvest will you leave in the hearts of those in your family, your close friends, people you have had love relationships with and colleagues.

Have you treated them with kindness and respect and been mindful of their needs or have you manipulated them with your anger, criticism or indifference and left them with hurtful and painful memories of rejection?

Have you made an effort to strive towards harmony and peace in your relationships with others, or been more intent on creating division, exclusion, dominion, or  alienation?

Have you been willing to  walk the bridge of forgiveness, or have you held on to bitterness, hatred and blame.

Have you made an effort to make amends to those who you have hurt or offer a peace branch to those who are at odds with you?

In the end, how you treat people within your inner circle reveals more about the goodness of your fruits than anything else.

Some strive for an image of power and having all the answers  as a way to manipulate the opinions of vulnerable others, while hiding behind one of contempt, resentment and an alternate agenda that has nothing to do with the wellbeing of others, but of narcissism and personal gain.

Unfortunately, we see that often in those who seek political power or in others aiming to amass wealth at the exploitation and expense of others.

Eventually that false persona, or false image begins to rip and tear revealing the truth underneath and their ugliness, deception and betrayal is made visable to all.

A recent perfect example is Bernie Madoff, once  a revered Wall Street magnate, whose fraudulent wealth management company  left thousands stripped of their life savings and in financial ruin.

On the other side of the spectrum, there are thousands of unsung heroes of humanity out there.  Their quiet ripple of good deeds don’t make the headlines, yet touch the hearts of others on a daily basis.

The beautifully hand knitted shawls I saw in a Saint Louis Catholic church offered freely to comfort the sick and those in grief,  each with a Miraculous Medal pinned to them,  came from such benevolent unknown hands.

I know of others who daily fight for the protection of animals and, or that have become stewards of the earth, sharing their knowledge of plants or planting fields of wildflowers.

There are others who stroll the streets of Paris at night to offer solace and new beginnings  if desired to prostitutes. There is an organization that provides shelter for young homosexuals abandoned by their families.

Even if you do not have the time nor any applicable designated talent, you can always offer kindness, encouraging and gentle words to others around you.

After we are gone,   others left behind won’t remember your accomplishments, titles, diplomas, etc, but how you made them feel  with goodness, respect, kindness and acceptance.

Grapes of goodness leaving sweetness in the hearts of others or grapes of avarice, anger and  exploitation leaving feelings of betrayal and wrath; the choice is ours.