Forget about being Noble. Just be Human.

I don't have to show anything to anyone. There is nothing to prove.

Cristiano Ronaldo

A couple days ago I sat through a rather interesting workshop (Summit for WorkingFamilies) as a representative of NCMB/NCWG. During the discussions, one aspect that came up was employers who gave time off to their workers to handle family issues. When one person complemented the employer for their noble act, the employer just said the following:

I’m not being Noble. I’m being Human. And that’s the least you can do.

He continued explaining what he was doing was easy, giving his employees the breathing room to carry on the fight. It was them who were the real Noble people, those dealing with the struggle, and yet carries on every day. That’s when it hit me, we have become so desensitized, so isolated into our own selfishness that when someone actually acts human, we view it as an exceptional act of nobility. 

And I was reminded of a story I heard a several months ago. This family struggling with their child’s cancer asked Cristiano Ronaldo, the soccer player, if he could send them a shirt so they could auction it off to pay for the kid’s treatment. He did more than that, and covered all the expenses for them. Yet, he said nothing to the media. They found out because of the family he helped.

If you have seen him during the World Cup, you will notice he has a “Z” marked into his haircut. Bad haircut jokes started to flood the social media. It wasn’t till later that they found out why. 

You see, it’s not about being noble, or about wanting attention, or about doing the right thing to brag about it. It’s about being human, and helping those going through the real tough time. We all know someone who had been dealt a bad hand. The least you can do is offer them a hand, ESPECIALLY if nobody offered you a hand when you were down.