I wonder......why is it, when you help someone else

[CaliforniaPeggy]

feel better.....

That it makes you feel better at the same time?

:grouphug:

[liberaltrucker]

1. Human nature, my dear

At heart, we humans realize we're all in this together.

:grouphug:

[CaliforniaPeggy]

2. My dear liberaltrucker!

I think you must be right.....

We ARE all in this together.....

How lovely to see you tonight!

ACK! I just remembered that I've forgotten to send you my latest pics!

I'm sorry.......:cry:


:grouphug:

[liberaltrucker]

5. Not to worry

Busy folks get sidetracked.
:hug:

[mykpart]

3. Because, Peggy, you are a good person.

But then, if you weren't, you wouldn't bother to help someone feel better.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

4. Sometimes, though, I have selfish reasons for helping .......

Since I have discovered that helping someone else feel better also makes me feel the same......

But I do really care about that person!

Maybe I'm not so evil after all......but I'm sure as heck confused!

I appreciate your remarks, though, very much.....

:hug:

[liberaltrucker]

8. Dammit, Peggy, you care about that person as another human being

Helping is your Deity's work. It's natural to feel good about it.

[IChing]

13. The selfishness you feel is ego and not your id talking

I feel the same, yea,

You rock sweetie.
damn everyone reads your journals

you are in the top ratings

Ok, now i will have to report that

like it has not already been done....

Agent Mike? have you been reading this radical called Peggy?

that loves everyone?

[CaliforniaPeggy]

26. My dear IChing......

You are so sweet to me.....I thank you!

A radical who loves everyone......:blush:

:loveya: :hug:

[liberaltrucker]

20. self delete-user FU

[Shine]

6. because what goes around, comes around....

it's a universal law. :groughug:


:hug: :loveya:

[CaliforniaPeggy]

7. My dear Shine!

I appreciate your contribution!

Funny how little things can affect us......

Especially when we're tired as I am, now......

I do like the idea of what goes around, comes around! Some folks really deserve that, huh?




:hug:

[SofaKingLiberal]

9. Because you're not a Republican. n/t

[CaliforniaPeggy]

11. Sure as HELL I'm not!

:woohoo:

[Ava]

10. well peggy! you must feel good all the time!

because you sure do make us all feel that way! :)

[CaliforniaPeggy]

14. My dear Ava!

I wish I could say I do feel good all the time....

But that would not be true.....

I am human, and have hurt moments just like everybody else......

But I got to thinking after I helped you tonight .......

Hence, this thread......

I am glad that I can help all of you feel good!

There is so much suffering that I know I must do all I can to stop it...

:grouphug:

[Wapsie B]

12. It's the best drug in the world.

Human kindness. I think helping others touches us deeply and shows that we're all interconnected to something much larger than us.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

16. My dear bushwentawol.....

Oh, how I agree! It is such a powerful emotion.....

I strongly feel that we ARE all interconnected to each other, and to something larger, outside of us.....

So we have the power to help......as well as the power to hurt.....

I want to help!

:grouphug:

[Wapsie B]

19. I do too!

And I try to help wherever I can.

[SeattleGirl]

15. Because when you help lift someone up, you lift yourself up too!

:loveya: :hug: :loveya:

[CaliforniaPeggy]

17. My dear SeattleGirl!

You're so right, sweetie! And you said it so elegantly too!

:loveya: :hug: :loveya:

[bridgit]

18. well, there is that little ref as to casting your bread on the water also

http://sacramentofordemocracy.org/?q=node/view/3759 maybe its time for us to start being more like nancy reagan, and just start saying "no" to the globalization of selfishness...could be a way to go :-)

[CaliforniaPeggy]

22. My dear bridgit!

Thank you for coming by!

"Saying no to the globalization of selfishness..." Now here's an idea whose time has come!

I have forgotten what the biblical reference is to.....can you enlighten me?

:loveya: :hug:

[bridgit]

24. you bet = 'Ecclesiastes 11:1, "Cast thy bread upon the waters: for...

thou shalt find it after many days. Give a portion to seven, and also to eight; for thou knowest not what evil shall be upon the earth."

Rashi explains that you should do chesed and favors even for a person who you think you'll never see again. It may seem that you will not receive anything in return as if you "sent your bread upon the water". However, eventually you will get your reward. Rashi cites the story of Yisro who gave a meal to Moshe. Yisro thought of Moshe as an Egyptian whom he would never see again. But look at what happened at the end. Moshe became his son-in-law, brought Yisro under the Wings of Hashem", and Yisro's descendants later served in the Sanhedrin. http://www.neveh.org/price/pricecbread.html

http://scripturetext.com/ecclesiastes/11-1.htm

[CaliforniaPeggy]

25. Thanks!

I wasn't familiar with these details......

But I know the moral to the story well!

It reminds me of my sigline.....and I do try to live up to that....

Thank you.... :loveya: :hug:

[bridgit]

53. you're welcome...

:loveya:

[Robeson]

21. As Shakespeare said.....

..."Sweet mercy is nobility's true badge."

[CaliforniaPeggy]

23. My dear Robeson......

That is a quote that I am unfamiliar with....

But it is still meaningful, and lovely!

Thank you for it.....

:hug:

[wildhorses]

27. because my dear CalPeg, as the song says:

"It Takes Two"

ONE CAN HAVE A DREAM BABY
TWO CAN MAKE THE DREAM SO REAL
ONE CAN TALK ABOUT LIVING LOVE
TWO CAN SEE HOW IT REALLY FEELS
ONE CAN WISH UPON A STAR
TWO CAN MAKE A WISH COME TRUE
ONE CAN STAND ALONE IN THE DARK
TWO CAN MAKE THE LIGHT SHINE THROUGH

IT TAKES TWO BABY IT TAKES TWO BABY
JUST ME AND YOU
YOU KNOW IT TAKES TWO

ONE CAN HAVE A BROKEN HEART
LIVIN' IN MISERY
TWO CAN REALLY EASE THE PAIN
THAT'S A PERFECT REMEDY
ONE CAN BE ALONE IN A BAR
LIKE AN ISLAND HERE ALL ALONE
TWO CAN MAKE JUST ANY PLACE
SEEM JUST LIKE BEING AT HOME

IT TAKES TWO BABY IT TAKES TWO BABY
JUST ME AND YOU
YOU KNOW IT TAKES TWO
IT TAKES TWO BABY IT TAKES TWO BABY
JUST ME AND YOU
YOU KNOW IT TAKES TWO

IT TAKES TWO BABY IT TAKES TWO BABY
JUST ME AND YOU
YOU KNOW IT TAKES TWO

ONE CAN GO OUT TO THE MOVIES
LOOKING FOR A SPECIAL TREAT
TWO CAN MAKE THAT SCENE IN THE MOVIES
SOMETHING REALLY KINDA NEAT
AND ONE CAN TAKE A WALK IN THE MOONLIGHT
THINKING THAT'S IT'S REALLY NICE
BUT TWO LOVERS WALKING HAND IN HAND
IS LIKE ADDING JUST A PINCH OF SPICE

[CaliforniaPeggy]

28. My dear wildhorses......

I don't know this song, but it is beautiful......

How well it expresses our need for partnership, for union with another person......

Thanks for posting it today!

:loveya: :hug:

[Phillycat]

29. Hmm...

It's one of the most fascinating and wonderful lessons I've learned in alcoholism recovery - when I feel bad, the thing to do is go help someone else. Does it work? Yes. Does it work every time? Yes it does. And so, there is the tiniest part of selfishness about it too, because you know it will make you feel better, but of course it harms no one.

It's a riddle wrapped in an enigma. :) But there is nothing like that feeling. :hi:

[CaliforniaPeggy]

33. My dear janesez......

Good morning to you!

Now you're seeing the philosophical, thoughtful side of me....

Late nights in the Lounge have this effect on my psyche!

I so agree about the feeling of selfishness.....I have felt this, and have wondered about the best way to handle it......

There is nothing like that good feeling.....except maybe post-coital!

:evilgrin:

[Phillycat]

40. Oh, well

post-coital - there's NOTHING like that feeling! :thumbsup:

[DrGonzoLives]

30. When I help people polish off a case of beer, I feel better

n/t

[CaliforniaPeggy]

34. Uh-huh!

:spank:

[MissMillie]

31. Because you have a heart of gold

One of many things we love about you!

[CaliforniaPeggy]

37. My dear MissMillie.......

I thank you......it is good to hear this!

You might not believe it, but I do suffer from low self-esteem....

And last night, I was feeling it........until I helped Ava feel better...

:loveya: :hug:

[ScreamingMeemie]

32. Sometimes...but sometimes not. I spend my life trying to make my

mom feel better, to no avail. Some people just don't want to feel better. :hi:

[CaliforniaPeggy]

38. My dear MrsGrumpy.....

Alas, you are right too! Some people do NOT want to feel better.....

They have found that it pays off if they whine and complain....

But this is a perversion of the natural way we were intended to feel.....

Or so I believe.....

I've read about you and your mom, and my heart goes out to you over it.



:loveya: :hug:

[redqueen]

35. It's LOVE!

:D :D :D :D

Being a kind, caring person makes your heart swell up with it.

Isn't it wonderful?

[CaliforniaPeggy]

39. Ah, my dear redqueen!

Indeed, it is love!

And YES, it is wonderful!



:loveya: :hug:

[BigMcLargehuge]

36. We went out for ice cream last night

while Mrs. McLargehuge, the kids, and me were enjoying our soft serve, a senior citizen was eating dinner at a picnick table on the little hill between the parking lot and the screened in dining room. The place, FWIW, is called Clam Haven, and is friggin awesome.

Anyway, as we're eating ice cream the lady stands up and can't seem to work out how to get her tray down to the trash can. She seems shaky on her legs and leery of the hill. I am guessing she was somewhere over 85. I handed my ice cream to Mrs. McLargehuge and helped the lady with her tray then gave her my arm and helped her down the hill to a car where her daughter was waiting. She thanked me with a smile.

Mrs. McLargehuge thought it was pretty dashing.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

41. My dear BigMcLargehuge!

That is a wonderful story.....

And it doesn't surprise me one little bit, either!

You are a gentleman with a heart of gold, sir!

This sort of act is just what I'm talking about......

It's the loving action that makes the world a MUCH better place....

We need many more such actions!

Thank you for sharing your story!

:loveya: :hug:

[BigMcLargehuge]

43. my parents raised me to be thoughtful and courteous

I blame them :)

[mopinko]

42. because doing good is

NON-ZERO. whether on a small scale, or worldwide.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

46. My dear mopinko......

The concept of NON-ZERO is a new one to me......

Can you explain it further?

:shrug:

[mopinko]

59. wellllll

it derives from game theory, like the prisoner's dilemma. it turns out to be very useful in understanding human nature, and human evolutionary psychology. the short answer, is that some things are zero sum, for me to win, you must lose. but some things are non-zero, win-win. i think as a general rule, republicans think the world is zero sum. but democrats are mostly smart enough to see that the more you do good, the more good there is.
the guy who wrote the most interesting book i ever read- robert wright, "the moral animal" about how human nature evolved, recently wrote a book called "nonzero" in which he insists that the arc of human history points to an extinction of war.
all extremely interesting stuff. a very useful lens through which to see politics.

[AirmensMom]

44. Because, dear Peggy,

that's what it's all about. And you must feel pretty darn good because you're ALWAYS helping others feel better! :loveya: :hug: :grouphug:

:yourock:

[CaliforniaPeggy]

47. My dear AirmensMom.....

Thank you so much!

I do feel good when I can make someone else feel better about where they are......

I do have my down moments though......

But I don't always talk about them......

I just try to get away from those places and help someone else at the same time....

:loveya: :hug:

[noonwitch]

45. It's called Grace

It's how God works.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

48. My dear noonwitch.......

Ah, so that's what it's called......

We have a bit of God in each of us.......our souls!

:hug:

[atomic-fly]

49. the soul likes it...

feels good though.
sometimes I have to be aware and
let people help me. I'm too quick to refuse help.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

50. My dear atomic-fly.......

Indeed, I do believe that our souls like it!

And it can be very difficult to accept help.......

We have so much pride that this can interfere with our own needs.

But just like with anything, once you practice accepting help/love from someone else, it does get easier!

Then both you and the person who's helping you can benefit.....

:hug:

[mikeytherat]

51. I helped the proverbial "little old lady" load her groceries today,

then took her cart back to the store (I was on my way in).

Felt good.

mikey_the_rat

[CaliforniaPeggy]

52. My dear mikeytherat!

Good for you! It does feel good, doesn't it?

You just got yourself some GOOD karma, baby!

Have a great day!

:loveya: :hug:

[tjwmason]

54. Because we have a "good" side and a "bad" side.

Helping people is a small victory for the "good" side, and deep down we realise that.

Also, when one does good to somebody they normally give somethng in return - gratitude.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

55. My dear tjwmason!

Indeed, I feel how true this is......

If we're lucky, we can see our good side being in the ascendent....

And gratitude does play a big part......Positive feedback for the person doing the good thing.....

Good karma, as I observed above....

:loveya: :hug:

[leftofthedial]

56. when we sacrifice

endorphines are released

when we see someone else smile, endorphines are released.

we're wired that way.



edit: well all of us but Dick Cheney are wired that way.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

57. My dear leftofthedial!

Oh, I didn't know that! Thank you for telling me....

*I'm smiling!*

Let's hear it for endorphins!

BTW, you are a sweetheart.....:blush: :loveya:

[leftofthedial]

58. wow!

I feel good!

:hi: