“The moral test of a government is how it treats those who are at the dawn of life, the children; those who are in the twilight of life, the aged; and those who are in the shadow of life, the sick and the needy, and the handicapped.” – Hubert Humphrey,VP, Pharmacist
My son Andrew will never get married. He won’t have children. He won’t drive a car or experience many of the milestones we take for granted.
But he is happy. And he is healthy.
And to me, that’s everything.
When a stranger gives him a smile, it lights up my entire day.
When a girl glances at him kindly, joy rushes through his whole body like a wave of sunshine.
It doesn’t take much to be deeply, profoundly human.
Let me tell you a story.
At a party held at a school for children with special needs, one father stood up to speak.
What he said stayed with everyone who heard it.
After thanking the staff who worked with such devotion, he paused and shared a reflection:
“When nothing disturbs the balance of nature, the natural order reveals itself in perfect harmony.”
Then his voice began to tremble.
“But my son Herbert doesn’t learn like other children. He doesn’t understand like they do.
So tell me… where is the natural order in his life?”
The room fell completely silent.
Then he continued:
“I believe that when a child like Herbert is born—with a physical or cognitive disability—the world is given a rare and sacred opportunity:
To reveal the very core of the human spirit.
And that spirit is revealed not through perfection—but in how we treat those who need us most.”
He shared a moment he would never forget:
One afternoon, he and Herbert were walking past a field where some boys were playing soccer.
Herbert looked longingly at them and asked:
“Dad… do you think they’ll let me play?”
The father’s heart sank. He knew the answer was likely no.
But he also knew—if they said yes—it could give his son something far more valuable than a goal: a sense of belonging.
So he gently approached one of the boys and asked:
“Would it be okay if Herbert joined the game?”
The boy looked over at his teammates, hesitated, then smiled:
“We’re losing 3–0 and there’s ten minutes left… Sure. Let him take a penalty.”
Herbert lit up.
He ran to the bench, put on a jersey that nearly swallowed him whole, and beamed with pride. His father stood at the sidelines, tears in his eyes.
He didn’t play much. He just stood nearby, watching. But something in the boys shifted.
They began to see him—not as a distraction, but as one of them.
And then, in the final minute, a miracle happened.
Herbert’s team was awarded a penalty kick.
The same boy turned to the father and gave a knowing nod:
“It’s his shot.”
Herbert walked slowly to the ball, nervous but radiant.
The goalkeeper caught on. He made a show of diving to the side, giving the boy a clear shot.
Herbert nudged the ball gently forward.
It rolled across the goal line.
Goal.
The boys erupted in cheers. They hoisted Herbert into the air like he’d won the World Cup.
They didn’t just let him play.
They let him belong.
The father closed his speech with tears falling freely:
“That day, a group of boys made a decision… not to win, but to be human.
To show the world what kindness, dignity, and love really look like.”
Herbert passed away that winter.
He never saw another summer.
But he never forgot the day he was a hero.
And his father never forgot the night he came home, telling the story as his wife held Herbert close, weeping—not from sorrow, but from joy.
A final thought:
Every day, we scroll past distractions—memes, jokes, quick laughs.
But when something truly meaningful crosses our path, we hesitate.
We wonder: Who would understand this?
Who should I send this to?
If someone sent you this story, it’s because they believe you’re one of those people.
That you see the heart in others.
That you understand what really matters.
Because each day, the world gives us countless chances to choose decency over indifference.
As one wise man said:
“A society is judged by how it treats its most vulnerable.”
I stole this from post from Greg Martin. Oh my goodness I have chills throughout my whole body, I love this so freaking much.
Filed under: General Problems
Quite ironic for a MAGAt to post this. Don’t you support the cutting of Medicaid and food assistance to those struggling to survive? Don’t you support throwing out those seeking refuge from oppressive conditions in their native lands? I didn’t think experiencing empathy for “others” was in the trump playbook.
Thoughts?
Medicaid was first established in 1965, but Arizona was the last state to get on board in 1982. Back in 1982 there was 8.7% of our 231 million population were provided some services by Medicaid. Today there is 23.8% of our 330 million population are receiving some services from Medicaid. That means in abt 43 yrs.. the percentage of our population being provided products or services increased by 2.75 TIMES.
Maybe I have always worked under the wrong impression that Medicaid was suppose to be a economic safety net, maybe it has become a economic hammock for nearly 25% of our population. I know what my Dad was making when he died at 56 y/o and what the median family income back in 1968. My family income was abt 15% below the median income in 1968. I am pretty sure than Barb’s family had a similar income. Both Fathers were blue collar, union card carrying workers for large corporations. My Mom did not work and Barb’s Mom did some child care for some teachers. Neither one of our parents ever applied for Medicaid or was granted Medicaid. Neither Barb nor myself has ever applied nor accepted any money/products/services from Medicaid. Neither Barb nor myself has ever drawn the first week of unemployment. Back in the early 70’s when I was a store manager/pharmacist of regional drug store chain and I had a young woman, divorced with two grade school kids. One day we compared the “value” of all the benefits she received between her job and Medicaid and in reality, she had a greater income than I did, when one considered her income from her working, rental assistance, food stamps and some monthly $$ for Medicaid. In the 2007-2008 time frame, I was Pharmacist in Charge of the in house pharmacy for what was claimed to be the 2nd largest out pt mental health company in the county. In house we had a adolescent Psychiatrist, and most (95%) of the pts were on Medicaid. One woman – to me – stood out as a sad imagine of Medicaid people. This woman had EIGHT KIDS and every kid had a different LAST NAME. I understood why her kids needed to see a adolescent Psychiatrist, her style of trying to manage her kids was more like what you would expect to hear from a Marine drill sergeant. I hear on TV about that there is abt 14 million Able-bodied adults without dependents.The cost per person/month is all over the place because of variances in what states allow but the dollar range is $300 to $500 per month, that description in my mind’s eye represents a economic hammock. If the percentage of people on Medicaid goes up nearly three fold over the next 50 yrs as it has for over the last 50 yrs. I have seen numbers were currently abt 50% of households pay no federal taxes. For those who want to have universal health insurance, I estimated that if we CONFISCATED all the assets of Billionaires would pay for the first six months and if we confiscated all the assets of all the millionaires would pay for the second six months.. then we would have NO RICH to tax to pay for all the social problems that politicians and bureaucrats like to hand out.
I’m just weeping here…
Oh gosh, I have tears in my eyes. It makes me wonder if I could have done better when I was younger and when I was raising my daughter. ❤️