Emily Lund: All Good Deeds

I was in Salt Lake City for work, and who I assume to be a vagrant Mormon, broke into the car I was driving and stole all my stuff.  My laptop, my passport, social security card, prescriptions, eye glasses, and my soul were all taken.  Across the country, in Chicago, perhaps at the very same moment I was being robbed in Salt Lake, a stray bullet broke out our master bedroom window.

I’ve never been robbed in Chicago but I certainly wasn’t in any danger of death by stray bullet in the mountains of Utah either. However, all of it just sucks and makes me cry a little.  None of what happened was awful; no one was killed or injured.  I have my health, my family and windows and passports can be replaced.  It all just makes me want to be an angry American and blame factors or conditions on my unfortunate circumstances.  How am I supposed to respond?  Should I scream and yell about gun control?  Should I donate monies to the Salt Lake City police department?  Should I move out of the city, out of the country? None of that seems like the answer.  So what does this mean for me and my future as a citizen of Earth?

It means there are shitty people everywhere.  Even religious people, even gang members, mothers, sisters, brothers, CEOs, every last one of us has been or will be a complete jackass at some point.  Every one of us has the possibility to be a bag of shit today, tomorrow or the next day.  The reasons why are too many to list or even understand.  I’m tired of trying to pinpoint why; I don’t know why, and I’m not sure knowing why will allow us to fix it.

I don’t think political parties or laws or healthcare or money or solar power are going to change that fact.  We are who we are.  People aren’t necessarily motivated to be good or bad because of things like who is president, who signs their paycheck or who they pray to for salvation.  Sometimes people suck.  Sometimes I suck.  Sometimes I do want to move out of Chicago, out of Illinois, out of North America.  Sometimes, I want to be a dick every day and give up on goodness because it doesn’t get you anywhere.  

Then I come to a conclusion, and I’ve decided the only way to combat the jerks of the world is to be kind and do good.  They say,  “no good deed goes unpunished.” It’s probably true, but that doesn’t mean we should stop fighting against the shitbags of the world. Regardless of which side of the political spectrum you live on, regardless of which god you believe in or don’t believe in, you can still try to do good, help others, care for children, elderly, sick, homeless and anyone else who needs your help or assistance. Remove all the other thoughts on economy, guns, poverty, starvation, taxes, politics and just be good. In turn, your good deed may actually be reciprocated when you need a hug, a hand to hold or a surgeon to remove a stray bullet from your skull.