Aktive Direkt Hilfe e.V.

DThere is a sufficiency in the world for man's need but not for man's greed. – Mahatma Gandhi.

We abuse land because we regard it as a commodity belonging to us. When we see land as a community to which we belong we may begin to use it with love and respect. – Aldo Leopold.

The ultimate test of man's conscience may be his willingness to sacrifice something today for future generations whose words of thanks will not be heard. – Gaylord Nelson.

The activist is not the man who says the river is dirty. The activist is the man who cleans up the river. – Ross Perot.

There is hope if people will begin to awaken that spiritual part of themselves, that heartfelt knowledge that we are caretakers of this planet. – Brooke Medicine Eagle.

When we heal the earth, we heal ourselves. – David Orr.

Environmental sustainability is not an option—it is a necessity. For economies to flourish, for global poverty to be banished, for the well-being of the world's people to be enhanced—not just in this generation but in succeeding generations—we have a compelling and ever more urgent duty of stewardship to take care of the natural environment and resources on which our economic activity and social fabric depends. – Gordon Brown.

By accepting responsibility, we take effective steps toward our goal: an inclusive human society on a habitable planet, a society that works for all humans and for all nonhumans. By accepting responsibility, we move closer to creating a world that works for all. – Sharif M. Abdullah.

A human being is part of the whole, called by us "Universe," a part limited in time and space. He experiences himself, his thoughts and feelings as something separated from the rest—a kind of optical delusion of his consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires and to affection for a few persons nearest to us. Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole [of] nature in its beauty. – Albert Einstein.

When we are at peace with God we are better able to devote ourselves to building up that peace with all creation which is inseparable from peace among all peoples. – Pope Johannes Paul II.

Life becomes harder for us when we live for others, but it also becomes richer and happier. – Albert Schweitzer (1875–1965).

In life, you can never do a kindness too soon because you never know how soon it will be too late. – Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882).

Goodness is love in action, love with its hand to the plow, love with the burden on its back, love following His footsteps who went about continually doing good. – James Hamilton.

Do not say that if the people do good to us, we will do good to them; and if the people oppress us, we will oppress them; but determine that if people do you good, you will do good to them; and if they oppress you, you will not oppress them. – Muhammed (570–632).

Conquer a man who never gives by gifts; subdue an untruthful man by truthfulness; vanquish an angry man by gentleness; and overcome an evil man by goodness. – Indian proverb.

It is not what they profess but what they practice that makes them good. – Greek proverbt.

The ideals which have always shone before me and filled me with the joy of living are goodness, beauty, and truth. To make a goal of comfort or happiness has never appealed to me; a system of ethics built on this basis would be sufficient only for a herd of cattle. – Albert Einstein (1875–1955).

Do all the good you can, in all the ways you can, to all the souls you can, in every place you can, at all the times you can, with all the zeal you can, as long as ever you can. – John Wesley (1703–1791).

Resolve to make at least one person happy every day, and then in ten years you may have made three thousand, six hundred and fifty persons happy, or brightened a small town by your contribution to the fund of general enjoyment. – Sydney Smith (1771-1845).

The sun makes ice melt; kindness causes misunderstanding, mistrust, and hostility to evaporate. – Albert Schweitzer (1875-1965).

Be kind. Remember that everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle. – Harry Thompson (1960-2005).

A good deed is never lost.—He who sows courtesy, reaps friendship; he who plants kindness, gathers love. – Basil of Caesarea (c. 329-379).

Help thy brother’s boat across, and lo! Thine own has reached the shore. – Indian proverb.

Treat a man as he appears to be, and you make him worse. But treat a man as if he already were what he potentially could be, and you make him what he should be.. – Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832).

A young and successful executive was travelling down a neighbourhood street, going a bit too fast in his new Jaguar. He was watching for kids darting out from between parked cars and slowed down when he thought he saw something. As his car passed, no children appeared. Instead, a brick smashed into the Jag's side door! He slammed on the brakes and backed the Jag back to the spot where the brick had been thrown.

The angry driver then jumped out of the car, grabbed the nearest kid and pushed him up against a parked car shouting, 'What was that all about and who are you? Just what the heck are you doing? That's a new car and that brick you threw is going to cost a lot of money. Why did you do it?'

The young boy was apologetic. 'Please, mister...please, I'm sorry but I didn't know what else to do,' He pleaded. 'I threw the brick because no one else would stop...'

With tears dripping down his face and off his chin, the youth pointed to a spot just around a parked car. 'It's my brother, 'he said. 'He rolled off the curb and fell out of his wheelchair and I can't lift him up.'

Now sobbing, the boy asked the stunned executive, 'Would you please help me get him back into his wheelchair? He's hurt and he's too heavy for me.'

Moved beyond words, the driver tried to swallow the rapidly swelling lump in his throat. He hurriedly lifted the handicapped boy back into the wheelchair, then took out a linen handkerchief and dabbed at the fresh scrapes and cuts. A quick look told him everything was going to be okay.

'Thank you and may God bless you,' the grateful child told the stranger. Too shook up for words, the man simply watched the boy push his wheelchair-bound brother down the sidewalk toward their home.

It was a long, slow walk back to the Jaguar. The damage was very noticeable, but the driver never bothered to repair the dented side door. He kept the dent there to remind him of this message: 'Don't go through life so fast that someone has to throw a brick at you to get your attention!' God whispers in our souls and speaks to our hearts. Sometimes when we don't have time to listen, He has to throw a brick at us. It's our choice to listen or not.

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Ask yourself: Have you been kind today? Make kindness your daily modus operandi and change your world.” – Annie Lennox.

“Act as if what you do makes a difference. It does.” – William James

“There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self.” – Ernest Hemingway