The Ripples one Creates.

Listened to a BBC podcast which interviewed some Jews in Paris. Amidst the waves of rising antisemitism in Europe and with the recent attack on a Kosher supermarket in Paris killing 4 people many Jews in Europe are thinking of migrating to Israel. When the BBC reporter visited a synagogue cum kindergarten in Paris there were French soldiers guarding the gates. Many Jews felt they didn't want their children to grow up in constant fear.. Meanwhile Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu has been calling for Jews to return. This however only accelerates the Israeli settlement activities in West Bank and East Jerusalem, stirring the wrath of Palestinians and in a vicious cycle further fueled terrorist attacks on the Jews in Europe. As I listened to the podcast I kept seeing the concept of cause and effect taking place in this whole chain of events across countries.

Indeed this concept surfaces in my mind very so often nowadays, even when I am watching TV dramas.The TV serial which I am currently watching, "The Overachievers" tells the story of how a tycoon's bias and favortism towards his children proved too tough a test to sustain the initial close bonding amongst the siblings. The ensuing tragedies arising out of acts of jealousy brought about tragedies which in turn brought deep sorrows to the man who started it all. Being a HK TV serial it is as usual exaggerated and dramatic. Yet the truth still holds about how a person's actions have many intended and unintended repercussions which often bounce back on the doer.

Another observation is how the single act of one person creates a rippling and multiplier effect on other people. A more mundane example perhaps is that of a wife who creates a scene in the morning causing the husband to enter office in a foul mood which in turn spoils the day for his subordinates who in turn may go home feeling miserable venting their frustration on their family members and so forth and so forth in a constantly widening circle. Of course the reverse is also true and there are endless stories about the ripple effect of random acts of kindness.

It all boils down to being constantly aware whether our speech and actions may cause harm or distress to ourselves and others. There may be many unintended victims one never dreams of harming or the multitudes of ripples one never imagines creating.

As someone once said "I can not improve or suffer myself without diffusing good or evil around me through an ever enlarging sphere".