Gifted response

I don't know why, but it seems that every time I go on vacation, some calamity, natural or human-induced, happens.

This time it's floods in Philippines, earthquakes in Padang and tsunami in Samoa, a triple whammy no less.

I am always relieved to first find out that people I love, living in those affected locations, are safe, then I start to feel guilty that I am enjoying myself, unaffected by the devastation wrought, as others lay dead, dying or suffering.

Can I make a difference in my comfortably cocooned world so far removed from the chaos I read about in newspapers and see on TV?

I feel useless and ineffectual even if I donate money to help out in those areas. It is never enough, is it?

Even prayer seems meaningless. Do my prayers truly make a difference?

Perhaps I will never be able to tell, but ultimately I do believe prayer works for in itself, it is a response to a situation, a conscious action I take that will open me up to further action.

Prayer leads me to mourning human loss, hoping for those who survived and trying to see how best I can lend a helping hand in order to cast light into the darkness.

Prayer is a call to action.

That no matter where I am, I can make a difference (even a small one) just as different parts of the body must work together to achieve change and progress.

In contemplation, perspective is revealed. I am thus able to appreciate what I have already been given, and reminded that my gifts must be shared in order to be true gifts.

For what use are my talents if they lie dormant and unused? What use are the blessings I receive if I do not, in turn, bless others? They will wither on the vine, waiting to be stripped off and cast into the fire.

It is my hope that upon reading this, you will stop to think how best you can answer the question: "What have you done today to better the world?" and come up with a creative, meaningful and gifted response to recent events, both at large and close to home.