Pay It Forward free essay sample

The movie, â€Å"Pay it Forward,† is an inspiring tale about a young boy, Trevor McKinney, who accepts a challenge given to him by a teacher at school and sets out to change the world. He comes across many obstacles along the way, but with perseverance and bravery, he ultimately succeeds in creating a movement that becomes the first step in helping make the world better. Trevor’s world-changing idea is to do favors for three people, and in return, ask them to do favors for three other people each. This is the idea of â€Å"paying it forward. † When Trevor first introduces this plan, many people dismiss it because of its great naivety and simplicity. In today’s time, mankind has fallen so deep into sin that often times we forget how easy it is to serve others and do good deeds. Trevor’s idea is not a failure, but instead, people fail to see the greatness in it because it sounds so easy; one would only imagine that it would take much more than people doing a few favors to suddenly improve the world. As we talked I could see her stress levels rise; I made her aware of various government and state resources that I was certain she would qualify for. The mother began to tell me that she has applied for those resources but has never heard anything back from the agency; I gave her my number and told her to give me a call and I would do my best to advocate for her. I then bought her groceries and told her not to worry about it. Part of my job at Partners in Housing is to help advocate for individuals who need specific resources but are not certain how to go about applying for them; the woman called the next day and I began the process of advocating for her. When I checked up on her, I found out she had received food assistance, job assistance and housing assistance. Altruism, Social Responsibility and Codependency When performing an act of kindness, one must be careful in which how he or she performs the act and how often he or she gives aid to an individual. Some individuals can become or already are codependent and heavily rely on others to provide for them in one manner or another (emotional, financial, food or habitual). I have had a five year experience with an individual who was completely codependent; this individual was a friend of mine and her codependency cost us our friendship. No matter how often I helped her or in what ways I helped her, it seemed as if it was never enough and that she would â€Å"dig† herself deeper into trouble. Eventually, I had to distance myself from her, and told her she needed to learn how to problem solve for herself; she became angry with me and our friendship ended. Codependent individuals have difficulty problem solving for themselves, being alone, or being self sufficient in general; this is due to many factors which include mental instability, not developing the appropriate skills to become self sufficient, and the consistency of others always providing for them. Whether an act of kindness is altruistic has been a topic of debate for years and more so now. Random acts of kindness have the potential to reward the individual giving as well as the individual receiving; so long as the act of kindness does not become obligatory or overwhelming, it can enrich the lives of the individuals involved. Research has found that â€Å"†¦acts of kindness-especially spontaneous†¦can boost happiness in the person doing the good deed. Granted, not all acts of random kindness are altruistic; however, this does not necessarily mean they are selfish either. Random acts of kindness may be performed by individuals with altruistic intentions who are also satisfying (whether they know it or not) a deeper psychological need; for example, I helped the woman in the grocery store not only because I was deeply concerned for the welfare of her and her family, but because I know what it is like to be in that particular situation with no help or access to resources. On the other hand, an individual can perform a random act of kindness that is seemingly altruistic, but is only doing so to benefit from the act; the price of the act is generally more than the individual receiving can afford. The individual performing the act may want money, or sexual favors; however, this is a worst case scenario. I cannot completely say that every act of random kindness performed is altruistic (the act usually benefits both parties in some manner or another); however, I can say that most acts of random kindness I have seen performed have altruistic intensions (the individual may not realize he or she is satisfying a psychological need). So long as the act of kindness is not damaging and is performed to help another individual; then it may not be of importance if the individual believes it to be altruistic. I believe individuals should have a social responsibility to work together and help one another to help make cohabitation possible; unfortunately, there are few individuals who perform acts of kindness due to the â€Å"dog eat dog† society we live in. Everyone is always on the go and with today’s economic downfall, individuals are more concerned with their own families and selves to stop and help others. Conclusion A random act of kindness does not need to be one of bravado or show; it does not need to involve monetary means or gain. A random act of kindness can be simple; helping someone carry groceries, asking if an individual who looks in distress is okay or simply asking an individual how his or her day is going (especially in our society where people are quick to â€Å"flip the bird,† but not to say hello). Altruism should definitely be a guideline when performing a random act of kindness; but the act does not need to be completely altruistic. If making an individual happy for a moment or a day brightens your day, then the act has a positive impact on both parties involved; however, if the act has no basis of altruism, then it can have a negative impact on one or both parties. Remember that acts of random kindness must not be obligatory or overwhelming; this can make the individual not want to help anymore. It is best when the act is rewarding and satisfying to both parties involved.