“If you can’t feed a hundred people, feed just one.”
This quote is by Mother Teresa, who devoted her life to helping people in need. She and others who worked in the charitable organizations she founded helped people who were living in poverty, provided care to people dying from terminal illnesses, and in many other ways treated people in need with dignity.
I appreciate Mother Teresa’s words because they are another way of expressing the truth that every effort we make to do what is right and good has value. When that includes feeding the hungry, that certainly has value. But I think of Mother Teresa’s use of the word “feed” as having a more expansive meaning, of referring to giving in many contexts: having compassion, treating people with respect, being patient, assisting others, treating people fairly, being generous.
Whenever we act in a caring way toward others, it matters. Sometimes that will be with just one person, at other times more. Similarly, whenever we put effort into working on a task or project that has the purpose of helping others in some way, that has value too—whether it benefits many people or just one.
Endeavoring to follow our spiritual path helps us to discern the ways that we can do what we were created to do. And keeping in mind Mother Teresa’s words of wisdom, which are based on loving kindness for others, will help us to follow our path.