There is a quiet difference between doing something kind and waiting to be recognised for doing it. The second activity can keep me occupied much longer than the first.
Recognition is pleasant. But if I need it before a helpful act counts, I have handed someone else the job of completing my good intention. Sometimes I can do the useful thing and leave it there. Nobody owes me a ceremony for ordinary consideration. This is inconvenient news for the part of me that has already prepared a modest acceptance speech.
An original reflection by Theo Luke Dornan. Independent and not affiliated with Alcoholics Anonymous or AA World Services.