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December 20, 2006
Be of Good Cheer, Snoopy
Posted by Brian Zopf | Filed under: Cause Marketing
What are some simple, everyday things you can do to help others that won't cost a dime?
The answers are out there all around us, but too often we're victims of 'all-or-nothing' thinking. We figure we have to sell everything we own, give it all to the poor, and move to the deepest heart of Africa in order to do any good. Nonsense. If you want to sell the family farm and give the proceeds to the poor I'll be the first to admire and acknowledge you for sainthood. Heck, I loved the story of Robin Hood as a kid. Still do. But as great a sacrifice as that would be, the real tragedy is the number of opportunities all around us everyday that are missed. Now those are powerful smelling salts that would make Maid Marion blush!
Have you ever seen someone less fortunate--either on the street, on TV, or elsewhere--and been really moved? Maybe you prayed that God would send help? Well, guess what? He just did.
One of my favorite Peanuts cartoons by the late artist Charles Schulz is a simple 4-frame comic that has stuck with me since my youth. In the 1st frame Snoopy stands shivering next to his doghouse in the snow. In the second frame Charlie and Linus come by, all bundled in their winter faire. Upon seeing Snoopy freezing, Linus leans down to pat his head and says: “Be of good cheer, Snoopy.” To which Charlie responds: “Yes. Be of good cheer.” They walk on together and the final frame shows Snoopy, still freezing, outside in the cold.
The message is quiet, but clear--powerful, and convicting. The tragedy wasn't their lack of compassion, but their lack of action. They didn't do anything. Well-wishers are one thing; but actions speak louder than words.
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