While men make a big deal about being good at something so that they can be praised for it, woman wait with mixed emotions for the day when they will be recognized for all the secret, selfless good they do.

Giving is supposed to be its own reward. You can give without loving — seeking to please; in the hope or with the intention of getting something in return — but you can’t love — you can’t be love, love’s instrument — without giving. Or for-giving.

You can always give to yourself and appreciate yourself for what you’ve done for you. But it is exactly to the other as myself, to the other as the way to myself — to the very best in myself, or the worst — that I have a responsibility.

Put other people first — if you have the heart to be truly generous — and you’ll never come in last. Support others in winning, and you can’t lose. Unless, of course, your reason for doing so, is to demonstrate to the world what a wonderful person you are — kind, caring, self-sacrificing.

Why do nice guys finish last? Not because they’re always thinking about other people, but because they’re always thinking about what other people think of them.