Reflection
Sometimes doing good things is really hard...
..but there is such a need for good things to be done, and we all want to be a part of doing those good things. Sometimes we’re tired, frustrated, angry, and no longer want to try doing these good things. Blind to the light that drew us, deaf to the call that first inspired us, poor in the hope that it’s worth it to keep going.
Along the struggle to get good things done, I make a lot of errors. We all do. I get frustrated when I feel that people are working against me, that things should be easier, that none of these things are worth it, that I’m not seeing the bigger picture. But then some beautiful things happen along the way.
I talk to a friend from home for hours, and I can hear them smiling through the phone. The priest at mass meets me, a Presbyterian, for a brief handshake before mass in Founders Chapel, and then gives me a blessing, using my name, during the Eucharist. I’m the only person on the bus on a rainy Friday morning, and I become friends with the driver and learn all about his life. I apologize to my professor for being in her office hours so much, and she responds saying, “Never apologize for helping me do what I love.”
If we are doing the things which we love, the light is so easy to find. Yes, it will be hard to press on when things are tough. Yes, your good intentions may become derailed. And yes, the emergent despair may be overwhelming. But if the blind can see and you can hear a smile, then we still have a lot to hope for, and a lot of good things to do. Doing what you love is always worth it.
Grant Sobek ‘26
Economics, Religious Studies & Mathematics