The Boomerang Principle

I loved this inspiring message given by Lloyd Newell as the Spoken Word with the Tabernacle Choir Broadcast last summer (2009). Because I keep going back to the choir website to read it I have moved it to my blog to share and to enjoy. I hope that others will enjoy its inspiring message as much as I have.
Last year was an exceptionally troubling school year for me on the site where I worked. I felt as if I was treading "troubled waters" each day. Perhaps the problem was all mine or my perception(s). I loved the people with whom I worked -- or at least the majority of them. It was hard to put your finger on the pulse or source of contention. I must have read this piece about the boomerang a hundred times because it gave me some kind of peace about the "issue" with which I was dealing.



The Boomerang Principle Delivered By: Lloyd D. Newell
Boomerangs have been used for generations both as a weapon and for sport. Most of us are familiar with how these wooden, angular objects, when thrown correctly, fly right back to the thrower. But boomerangs aren’t the only things in life that behave this way.

One of Aesop’s fables tells of an ant who falls into a fountain and is about to drown when a dove, watching from a tree above, drops a leaf into the water. The grateful ant climbs on it and floats to safety.

Just then the ant sees a hunter approaching with a net to catch the unsuspecting dove. The ant quickly bites the hunter on the ankle, causing him to drop the net and allowing the dove to escape.

Good deeds, like boomerangs, come back to us. This truth, which has been called the boomerang principle, is evident throughout our daily experience. We witness it on playgrounds and in corporate offices, in schools and stores and streets. When you interact with someone and strive to extend respect and friendliness, most respond in kind.

Of course, the opposite is also true: rudeness usually generates rudeness; anger tends to lead to more anger. More often than not, we find that our thoughts, attitudes, and actions are stamped with “return to sender.”

It may not happen immediately or directly. And it’s true that some people choose to hate even those who love them, just as some people continue to patiently love even those who despitefully use them. But eventually and overall, we will get back what we give out.

If we want kindness, we extend kindness. If we want more love, we give love more freely. If we want friendliness, forgiveness, and compassion, we offer the same to others. What we send out will come back to us, just like a boomerang.