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Selfless acts of kindness to strangers bring community healing and reconciliation

Francisco Miraval

On the early hours of July 20, 2012, my home phone suddenly rang. It was my editor at EFE News Agency, telling there has been a shooting at a movie theater in Aurora (where I live.) She asked me to start writing stories immediately.

A year later, that fateful day is still impacting the community in Aurora, but, to paraphrase Aurora’s Mayor Steve Hogan during the memorial service to honor the 12 persons killed in the massacre, we will not allow the evil act of one person to mark us for the rest of our lives.

For that reason, Hogan invited Aurora residents to transform the day of the anniversary of the tragedy, and every single day from now on, into a day of service to others, mainly those who we do not know, because those strangers may need our help at a moment notice, or we may need they help at any time.

I must confess that, to me, Hogan’s call to selfless actions seemed out of place. His invitation to do good things for people we do not even know seems to contradict what usually happens in our hyper-individualistic and almost narcissistic society, where the three more important persons in my life are I, me, and myself, in that order.

However, it is, in my opinion, the hyper-individualistic, narcissistic approach to life is one of the key factors behind the massacres we unfortunately see happening more and more.

In other words, if I see the other not as “other like myself,” not as “a friend I still don’t know,” but as an obstacle I have to eliminate (for whatever reason, real or imaginary), then, as a consequence, that attitude of believing I am the center of the universe and the whole universe will lead to the destruction of the other, even if the other is totally innocent.

From that point of view, to promote selfless acts of kindness to strangers, to people we know nothing about and we expect nothing from them, makes sense because it will have a therapeutical impact on the community, promoting both social healing and community reconciliation. 

In Aurora, the call to selfless acts of kindness to strangers was heeded. On July 20, 2013, hundreds and perhaps thousands of volunteers participated in numerous events, including meditations sessions, art therapy, mental health counseling, tai chi and yoga classes, and sports.

Other volunteers planted “Remembrance Trees,” wrote messages on the Healing Wall, donated blood, and prepared meals later distributed about senior citizens and shut-ins.  Many were also part of the Meditation for Peace, wrote greeting cards for nursing home residents, or created beautiful origami.

Reid Hettich, pastor of a multicultural church in Aurora, said those selfless acts of kindness to strangers was a way to put in action the words of St. Francis’ prayer: “Make me an instrument of your peace.”

My own prayer is for us to become instruments of peace before the next tragedy happens, to avoid it, and not afterwards, to regret it.


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