Find the Courage for One Small Thing

The world has felt particularly overwhelming again the past few weeks.

I’m glad I have this memory to remind me of what to do about it. . . . .

It’s been a few months now, but I remember it clearly. My uncle was in the hospital again on a dreary day.

Until a bright light entered the room. . . in the form of the hospital housekeeper. As she entered the room, she bowed to my uncle. She turned and bowed to me.

Then, as she emptied the trash cans and swept the floor, she talked with my uncle, asking how he was doing.

She said she had come from Thailand. Another friend from Thailand who worked at the hospital had helped her get this job. She was very excited to have it.

Her accent was thick; my uncle’s hearing was poor. But they continued trying to talk with each other, brightening the room more and more with each miscommunication and ring of laughter.

Even when her work was finished, she stayed a little longer and chatted.

After she left the room, the day was a lot less gloomy.

Maybe it was a small thing she did, chatting to a sick man in a hospital bed while she cleaned up his garbage.

Or maybe it was the biggest dose of medicine that he got that day.

Alice Walker wrote about it beautifully in The Color Purple:

“Helped are those who find the courage to do at least one small thing each day to help the existence of another—plant, animal, river, or human being. They shall be joined by a multitude of the timid.”

When the world feels overwhelming, I want to remember to take Walker’s advice, and be helped by being like the hospital housekeeper from Thailand.

It doesn’t take a lot to improve the existence of one other thing on the planet each day. But it can help a lot.

I wonder what your one thing will be today.

I wonder what mine will be, too.


Share your thoughts in the comments.

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21 thoughts on “Find the Courage for One Small Thing

  1. Lynn D. Morrissey

    I love this example, because it doesn’t cost a thing, but just a tiny bit of time. We can all do one small thing and spread some sunshine midst the gathering doom. A pinprick of light (small) always dispels the darkness (large). I love to compliment people for small things. But it becomes big to them, because many never notice or say thank you. I do this on the phone a lot when greeted by a helpful medical staff helping me. they always say that it makes their day. I love asking for their super as well, so my compliment will stretch even further. AND my favorite thing is in person to ask for the clerk to get his manager. The manager, usually surly, because he just KNOWS you are going to complain, can’t believe it, when instead, you sing the praises of his employee, and THEN you compliment *him* for being such a great super! 🙂 Small things tend to grow larger.

    Thanks so much for sharing this, Lisa. Everything you write is LARGER than you will ever know!

    xo
    Lynn

  2. Barbara Harper

    I’ve been blessed by people like that in hospitals. My mother-in-law’s bath aide from hospice was one of those people who brightened up a room when she walked in. She made it seem like giving old people baths was the best job in the world. I’m so often caught up in my own thoughts, I need to be more aware of others and attuned to ways to encourage them.

  3. Laura @ Our Grand Lives

    I remember when my parents and in-laws were each hospitalized near the end of their lives and it was the small kindnesses from staff and volunteers that made such a big difference. I also remember that during my career as a first grade/kindergarten teacher, I would stand near the bus door and greet as many children as I could as they arrived each morning. It’s amazing what a smile or a hug did for them… and for me each day! Thanks for the reminder for us all! Visiting via the Crazy Little Love Birds link up!

  4. Jean Wise

    Good example for my word of the year – courage. Love the story illustration too. and the quote. You encouraged me today with your words. The world and this month of Janurary has been quite overwhelming and very very long and dark….

  5. Donna Connolly

    Lisa, this is an uplifting reminder of the power of small acts of kindness. The housekeeper’s simple gesture transformed the atmosphere in that hospital room, proving that even the smallest interactions can bring light into someone’s day. Your reflection, paired with Alice Walker’s wisdom, is inspiring—especially in times when the world feels heavy. Thank you for sharing this story and encouraging us all to find our “one small thing” today. ????

  6. Liz Dexter

    This is lovely. It’s what I’m concentrating on at the moment: I can’t make the world better but I can do individual things to make individual people’s lives better or lighter.

  7. Paula

    Lisa, what a bright spot to you and your uncle’s day for sure. I love finding those little pockets of brightness. Kindness comes in so many ways not just big ways, sometimes it’s those little ones that bring a smile.
    Thanks so much for sharing with Sweet Tea & Friends this month sweet friend. ????????

  8. Nancy Andres

    Pinned this post as a reminder that I can always cheer myself up by doing service. Thanks for sharing it at SSPS#346. My posts are #59, 60, 61, 63, and 66. Warm regards, Nancy Andres @ Colors 4 Health.

  9. Debbie-Dabble

    Lisa,
    What a great post on one small thing like a simple act of kindness and all that it can do for someone in need of it…
    I just lost my best friend to cancer…She was diagnosed only 2 months after my husband passed away…Even though she died in 2025, I still look at it as the last gut sucker punch that 2024 had to deal to me as she was diagnosed in 2024 andi t just took her a bit longer for her to pass….With all that her husband went through, he was able to have a beautiful funeral service for her after which he gifted me a butterfly necklace with some of her ashes in it…I will treasure his one small simple act of kindness forever…
    Thanks so much for stopping by…
    Hugs,
    Deb
    Debbie-Dabble blog

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