Sacrificing-Sanctuary

Sacrificing yourself is hard to do. The word sacrifice itself brings feelings of reluctance into the mind. It is giving up what you have, to benefit others of what they don’t deserve. It’s important that they don’t deserve it, because if they did deserve your payment, then it would not be sacrifice at all. It would be merely “giving back” or “making amends”. No, sacrifice is much more profound than a simple debt owed. It is disregarding instinct and following a sense compassion within you. Or rather, can it also be instinctive? An instinct to jump the fire, to save the innocent, to save the guilty. The selfless act of Giovanni’s elephant mother. Some could say she’s implied to take the bullets, because she’s a mother. But what has the baby elephant ever given to her, to deserve the cost of her life? It is a sacrifice. We often hear of sacrifices made in society today, but just how many of them were made from selfless intent? How many are for our own benefit? Although the only difference is in the change of mindset, the true intention of an action will reflect upon its results. Whether by a random decision by the whim, or a true act of care and love, a pure intentioned life that puts others before itself can only benefit this world of selfish ambitions. It is going against the current of hypocrisy and self-greed. A fish against the river. A leaf against the wind. A dying against death. A mother against a bullet.