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Last Hubnugget Hub of 2011....Cheers!

Updated on March 23, 2014
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Pay It Forward

Franz Kafka had a short story called 'The Hunger Artist', about a man who showed his craftsmanship in a cage for a fee at amusement parks. People stopped by to see his rigorous fasting, curious in their minds but indifferent in their hearts. The artist himself did not care about them; he was there to fast only for himself to the point he would do it for free.

I recall this story now and then when I see a homeless person on a street corner. There he stands, in the winter cold, staring at us; and we, drivers in our warm cars are staring at him (some though try to avoid eye contact). It's a strange ritual in which we all participate and each of us has different moral approaches to this phenomenon. Usually I don't give money, not because I'm cheap, but because I have always believed in the "teach them to fish so they can eat for a lifetime" philosophy. And sometimes I wonder if my money will only go for a drink for them, and that will inadvertently make me responsible for keeping them in their plight. At least that is how I think.

What happened yesterday made me ponder further. I went to a gas station to fill a tire with air. The self-service pump was left working; apparently someone had just driven away. Since I only had one tire to fill, I used all the air, which saved me 75 cents that I would normally pay for air. As soon as I was done with the tire, I overheard someone calling me and asking something. I turned around: it was a man and he wanted money; I said I had none and got in the car and then realized that I still had three quarters in my hand. As I drove on I thought more about it. I was given the air for free and indirectly used someone else's money. Now I'm a person who never asks for money or any assistance, so this situation made me feel rather uncomfortable. I should have given the money to the guy, I thought trying to analyze the dissonance I felt, but he was already miles away left behind.

So today I drove by this other what I assumed homeless man on the street. I felt compelled to give him money to make up for yesterday. Why? He had nothing to do with it. But I realized he earned it by just doing his "thing" in the cold as Kafka's Hunger Artist. As I was trying to dig in my purse, the green light came on and I had no option but to press on the gas pedal. Too late! And then I became strangely calm, at peace with everything: each to their own, and I got the air for free, so they will get something for free from someone else, Hopefully!!

Lesson learned is that a new year is coming and we should practice as many acts of kindness as possible. Maybe the last person that used the air at the store was "paying it forward". Granted it is a small token but a good deed just the same. We cannot put monetary value on acts of kindness because most people could use our time and attention rather than money and it certainly has more value. I guess my message today is just be kind to each other and try to do a good deed everyday no matter how small, and perhaps that person will do the same and eventually the world will be a better place. Happy New Year Everyone.....Cheers.

The categories this week are Travel and Places, Books, Literature and Writing, and Politics and Social Issues. The hubs are great reads so please don't forget to vote for your favorites.

Which one of this week's Travel and Places nominees is your favorite?

  • 5% The Best of The City of Orlando - Travel and tourism information for the non-tourist in the Orlando area
  • 8% Ten Things to do in Kandy, Sri Lanka.
  • 13% The 12 Hottest Rooftop Bars With Spectacular Views in NYC
  • 2% Edisto Beach, SC: The Inside Scoop
  • 17% Things to Do Outside of Disney Theme Parks in Orlando
  • 56% Riding an Amtrak Train Overnight — Tips for First-Time Rail Travelers
102 people have voted in this poll.

This poll is now closed to voting.

Which one of this week's Books, Literature, and Writing nominees is your favorite?

  • 9% Is Literature always subjective? Could someone validly claim The Catcher In The Rye is garbage?
  • 7% Words that don't make the perfect couple
  • 19% Children Books and folktales of Hawaii: This Ain't Your Three Little Bears
  • 17% Essential Websites for Writers
  • 38% How To Improve Your Creative Writing: Show, Don’t Tell!
  • 10% Ebb and Flow of Water
69 people have voted in this poll.

This poll is now closed to voting.

Which one of this week's Politics and Social Issues nominees is your favorite?

  • 8% Why Do People Swear?
  • 32% Is Learning Languages the Solution to Racism?
  • 9% Horrors of the Diamond Industry
  • 8% What's wrong with people these days?
  • 31% December 17th: A Day The World Stood Together
  • 11% Three Great Peacemakers - Mother Teresa, Rigoberta Menchu, and Deganawida
74 people have voted in this poll.

This poll is now closed to voting.

To All The Wannabes Out There

To All The Wannabe Hubbers Out There

The Hubnugget program is a great way to start your hubbing career. It’s a great way to get noticed and get to know lots of fellow hubbers out there; after all, one of the reasons you have joined Hubpages is to get read by others.

When you are nominated by the Hubnugget team then it’s a great idea to start promoting it, such as telling all your family and friends to read and vote for your hub. Feel proud that you are part of that Elite group of people that have been nominated. Many of which are very successful here on Hubpages.

The rules are very simple and easy to achieve. To be nominated you need to write a well written hub with lots of info and perhaps some pictures to compliment your storyline. Be sure to use as many of the capsules that are available and your hub pages score has to be 75 or higher. Your hub that was nominated needs to be above 55. If you are one of the winners, then you will be profiled in our next Hubpages newsletter, and viewed by thousands of hubbers, therefore resulting in you getting a lot of views and possibly some revenue. So Congrats to all the nominees and best of luck to all of you.


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