Standing In The Gap

Many a times, we find ourselves in situations where we have to stand in the gap. There are a myriad of causes, often unprecedented. Being caught out of the blue, it is not surprising to hear of lamentations and negative talks, especially if it disrupts our schedule, shifting our appointments and de-conflicting events can be a real pain sometimes. In addition, the thought of covering another person aggravates the pain and often lands us into a state of self pity.

Painful as it may seem, standing in the gap is necessary for a successful social life. This echos one of the key principles of friendship that we all hold dear to, that is to 'give and take'. This extra mile that we run might relief our friend of some worries, allowing him/her to concentrate on more significant priorities. We might meet the same situation someday and the situation might warrant someone to cover our duties as well. I reckon, the person who you have helped before will be more willing to step forward (to return a favour), like a wise lady once said "People never forget that helping hand especially when times are tough." Of course, I am saying that with the assumption that people around us are all appreciative. If our favours go unappreciated, we can only console ourselves that we have done a good dead and will receive our rewards in due time, from the one above.

However, we got to practice some discernment when we offer assistance to people. We got to critically assess if the case is truly genuine. Blindly offering help might promote sloth. Saying that, we got to exercise tact when we turn down the offer. This is an integral part of human relations as well.

"Our deeds determine us, as much as we determine our deeds."
George Eliot

Standing in the gap will borne for us some fruits as well. During the process, we might pick up some handy skills that will bring us a long way, I fondly call to mind a quote that I recently came across "The more I help others to succeed, the more I succeed". Truly, sometimes, by extending the helping hand, we receive more than what we give.