June 23, 2025
what happens when goodness becomes easier
We were driving to work when my mom noticed a guy picking up trash by the side of the road.
"Look at him," she nudged. "How could he be such a good person?"
Then we passed one of those signs: Litter Removal Provided By [His Name, I think].
She blinked and took the comment back; not with judgment, just a shift in tone. Like the goodness got diluted once it was part of a neighborhood program.
I asked her why it didn't count anymore when it was the same action and street. She paused for a bit and said that maybe it still counted. She didn't explain further, but that moment stuck through the drive.
***
I've been thinking about how we talk about goodness. How much of it depends on effort. On going out of your way into discomfort. It's similar to what I tell my college counseling students to emphasize in their community impact essays so they can stand out as sincere and self-driven.
Like goodness counts more when it's inconvenient.
But most of the good I've seen doesn't come from sacrifice. It comes from space, someone having enough time, guidance, or energy to act on what they already care about.
That guy was probably more effective and consistent than someone doing it once on a whim. But it didn't feel that way in the moment because we saw the system that made it easier to do good before the person who did it.
The sign, that pause, and the weird feeling that some kinds of care are harder to spot when they come with infrastructure.