Do Some Small Thing

Photo by Andre Flamboyan on Unsplash.

It was more than a dream. I knew it. I sat up in bed having just seen British soldiers in early twentieth-century uniforms firing on unarmed demonstrators in India. I had an inexplicable knowledge it had something to do with Mahatma Gandhi.

I knew little about Gandhi or India’s struggle for independence. I studied his life and the Bhagavad Gita he’d memorized as a young man. I particularly connected with his statement, “I am a Muslim and a Hindu and a Christian and a Jew and so are all of you.”

As I studied, I realized my dream had shown me the 1919 Amritsar Massacre, when British troops killed nearly 400 peaceful Indians. Still, Gandhi, remained committed to nonviolent resistance. I loved that about him.

I was already practicing the power of fasting, but Gandhi strengthened my resolve. His observation, “Poverty is the worst form of violence,” resonated. I felt a spiritual inclination to fast and make an offering to benefit the world’s poor and hungry. In the process, I was struck by the insignificance of my offering. I could give everything, and it would only feed a few for a brief period. My contribution was infinitesimally small. Then a voice whispered, “But I can feed them all.” Suddenly, it wasn’t about the magnitude of my gift; it was the act of giving, about doing something, no matter how small.

We each contribute in different ways, balanced in the innumerable intersections of opportunity, ability, and personal priorities. Some offerings are visible; others, equally important, go unnoticed. All are mingled and magnified by an unseen Benevolence, making the gift larger than the giver. If a humble Galilean can feed a multitude with a few loaves and a handful of fishes, surely the Architect of the universe can magnify our tiny gifts to “feed them all.”

Just do something, no matter how small.