Just A Thought

 We sat in the shaded outdoor café enjoying chips and tortilla soup. It was our last day of vacation, and we were reveling in the ambience of the San Antonio Riverwalk -  fifteen miles of trees, gardens, fountains, unique bridges, shops, restaurants, and hotels flanking the San Antonio River. Half of the river is natural, and half is man-made. It is only 3-4 feet deep, so people can safely walk the various paved pathways along its banks without unsightly handrails. Over the years it has been developed in such a beautiful destination that over 11.5 million people visitors each year.

As we nibbled on our snack, we were talking with my niece who had met us there. It was our last few minutes together, so we were catching up on her life, commenting on the ducks and savoring our time together. Suddenly my niece was distracted. She interrupted our conversation and called out something to a woman who was standing on a tour boat that had just docked nearby. The lady was bent over the side of the boat looking for something. We could see that it was her phone. She had dropped it, and it had landed under the seat that was now blocking her view of it. It was perched partly on the deck of the boat and partly dangling over the water. My niece was directing her to the exact location of her “almost lost”, phone which may have been worth $800-1000.

I was immediately reminded of something I had overheard from one of those passing tour boats just the day before. The guide was explaining that every other year, in the winter, the city of San Antonio drains the Riverwalk in order to clean it out. Last year they found 1,000 cell phones at the bottom of the river. That’s easily $800,000 worth of phones. It all adds up!

It is amazing how small things can make a big difference, especially when one person does it many times or many people do it a few times. The cumulative result can be dramatically good or bad. Consider these few examples:

·      If everyone in town threw their empty cans out their car window, a beautiful city could quickly turn into a garbage dump. 

·      If everyone in the neighborhood planted a flower garden, it could quickly seem like an affluent neighborhood.

·      If everyone drove aggressively, flashing their lights and honking their horn at anyone who dares inconvenience them, it would feel like a cruel dog-eat-dog world.

·      If everyone said please and thank you, the world would seem like it is full of good people.

Jesus taught a powerful principle that, if followed, would add up to making things dramatically better for everyone. He said “Do to others whatever you would like them to do to you. This is the essence of all that is taught in the law and the prophets.” (Matthew 7:12 nlt) If everyone in the world truly applied this principle, it would be a much more beautiful place to live. But we can’t wait for everyone else to go first. We must go first and trust that others will follow. If enough people choose well, it will all add up, and our world will be better for it!

# posted by John W. Hanson @ Saturday, October 18, 2025