Recently I was at O’Hare Airport, waiting in a long line to get through security. As I sized up the crowd, trying to figure out how long it would be before it was my turn, a T-shirt caught my eye.
In large, simple lettering, the T-shirt proclaimed, “Be nice. Do Good.” It made me smile, but I then quickly returned to talking with my family as we waited for our turns. What surprised me was that, throughout the next couple of weeks, I kept finding myself referring back to this simple T-shirt wisdom to “Be nice. And Do Good.”.
When I was growing up, my mother always said, “If you can’t say something nice, don’t say anything at all,” but the T-shirt message urges us to extend that further. It’s not just saying nice things: It’s being a nice, kind, compassionate person. It’s treating others as we’d like them to treat us. It’s being more patient, understanding, and concerned, even when we are busy or stressed out.
As for doing good, it can take many forms in our work, community, and the world, but for me, the focus is trying to make a positive difference in the world, whether it’s doing something as small as letting someone go ahead of me in line or as big as mentoring a child or volunteering at a local school.
This year I didn’t make any New Year’s resolutions, but I think I’ll use this T-shirt slogan as my guide for the coming year. I hope you’ll join me. Imagine what the world would be like if we all decided to Be Nice. And Do Good.
I’m Laurie Elish-Piper, and that’s my perspective.
