False happiness renders men stern and proud, and that happiness is never communicated. True happiness renders kind and sensible, and that happiness is always shared.

Charles de Montesquieu

I interviewed my dad on video in his final weeks. When I asked about his work and finding meaning through helping others, he responded, “I don’t think you can be focused on, ‘Oh gee, I want to make a difference.’ It has to be spontaneous. If it’s not…there’s some kind of egotistical thing going on. That’s a red flag. You hope you impact people on the deepest level you are capable of at the time. Sometimes you hit it, sometimes you don’t. You’re trying.

Lisa Shannon, A Thousand Sisters: My Journey into the Worst Place on Earth to Be a Woman