It all came to me as I watched the deep Mediterranean horizon… The hot summer sun on the glistening waves. I remembered another scene. One that I had seen from the plane as I was about to land in Beirut at the eve of winter. It had just rained…The sea was a deep blue, the land was a rich green…The sky was a grayish shade with streaks of sunlight penetrating through the clouds. It was, by all means, heavenly.
A colorful Sicilian market, an Indian palace, lavish yachts in Southern France, the crystal waters of the Caribbean…
Rain in Milano, winter in London, a full moon view from the mountains, a sunset in Kuwait.
Beauty is all around. All one has to do, is know where to look.
At nightfall, sitting at a café in the free zone, I threw my head back… I couldn’t see them at first. They began to appear one at a time… I then realized how bright they were, and wondered why it took me a long time to notice them. I drifted off, thinking of many things at once. How typical of myself, being the person I was… I always multitasked, never satisfied, and constantly challenged. Then, I took a step back. It was all clear now.
Thinking back, it was the best decision I had ever made.
Sometimes, admiring what we have in front of us is the greatest satisfaction of all. Sometimes, beauty isn’t something we would have to pay money for, or go on exotic trips to see. Sometimes, beauty is what we see in people we surround ourselves with. A child’s innocence, a younger sister’s plea for help, a friend’s appreciation…
Gratitude, love, and care.
I realized that when I surround myself with those 3 things, there is no room for me to hate, to be disappointed, or to be displeased. I realized that giving out a helping hand not only satisfies me more than the 100 things I do at once, but also shows how grateful I am for being able to help.
I realized that a smile on a friend’s face is worth my valuable time. I realized that a tear of joy is worth years of sleepless nights. I realized that paying it forward is what matters.
The expression "pay it forward" is used to describe the concept of asking that a good turn be repaid by having it done to others instead. More specifically, the creditor offers the debtor the option of "paying" the debt forward by lending it to a third person instead of paying it back to the original creditor. Debt and payments can be monetary or by good deeds.
Explanation taken from Wikipedia.
