What is a Good Deed? - Story Review of The Good Samaritan

The Good Samaritan, a short story by Rene Saldana Jr., tells of a boy named Rey who was taken advantage of by a stingy neighbor. At first, he and his siblings were invited to swim with Orlando, but it turned out that he was purposefully avoiding them, and told his parents, Mr and Mrs. Sanchez to falsely inform them that he wasn’t at home. Later, the Sanchez family repeatedly used Rey’s family, and some other boys, to do some work in return for a reward, but either didn’t deliver on their promises or gave much less than what one would expect for such grueling work. Later, Rey was driving to a grocery store to pick his brother up, and saw Mr. Sanchez was stuck by the road with a flat tire, and unable to get it out. Initially, he wanted to ignore him and let him do his own work, but then imagined how he would feel if his father was there. So, he went to help, and as a reward, was invited for a barbecue at Sanchez's house, but showed that he wasn’t doing it for any reward, just out of goodwill.

We need more people with empathy and mercy in the world. People with these positive human traits are willing to help others in need, even if they are complete strangers. There is a story of a good Samaritan in the gospel of Luke, found in 10:25-37. A man traveling from Jerusalem to Jericho was attacked and beaten half to death by robbers. A priest and a Levite, two important religious figures, pass by but do nothing. However, when a third man, a Samaritan, passes, he sees the man and bandages his wounds, and takes him to a nearby inn for him to recover. Meanwhile, in the story, Rey helped Mr. Sanchez fix his car and replaced his tire without expecting anything in return, only out of goodwill, just like the Samaritan. Rey demonstrated empathy, as he considered what his reaction would be if his own father was in Mr. Sanchez’s shoes. He would certainly want someone to stop and help him. Thus, he treated Mr. Sanchez how he would wish to be treated and fixed his car. Empathy allows us to think what we would feel if we were in another’s situation.

When someone is in need, we should help them, even if we are not on good terms with them. We should break down barriers by helping others, regardless of our personal relationship to them. The Samaritan showed kindness and mercy to the victim, even though his kind was traditionally despised by the Jews. Rey did the same. Mr. Sanchez had exploited him and other boys in the neighborhood by promising them some sort of reward in exchange for hard labor, but always went back on their agreements when the task was complete. Rey still helped Mr. Sanchez out a couple times before he had enough. Later, Rey didn’t bother to help the man, but reconsidered, and stopped to help Mr. Sanchez when his car broke down. In both the case of the Samaritan and Rey, they helped someone even though they were either traditionally, or personally, rivals. Samaritans were despised by Jews, and Rey didn’t like Mr Sanchez exploiting him the past couple times he helped him. They treated all people how they would want to be treated regardless of their identity. Societal or personal barriers shouldn’t dictate if we help someone in need or not.

We should love our neighbors and help them if they are in trouble, for neighbors can be considered friends. Some people also take it up a step and treat all people like their neighbors or friends. Jesus encouraged people to love their neighbors. At the end of Luke 10:25-37, Jesus asked a man who he would want to be a neighbor of, the priest, the Levite, or the Samaritan. The man chose the final one, and Jesus encouraged him to be like the Samaritan. Although the Samaritan hadn’t ever known the Jew, he helped him regardless as he took the principle of loving your neighbor, and applied it to everybody in need. In Rey’s case, he certainly wasn’t friends with Mr. Sanchez, but he helped him because people who are fully devoted to religion help everybody they see. Rey and the Samaritan treated other people, especially those in desperate situations, like their neighbors/friends, because everybody should have help from others when they are in a deep hole. We should view everybody else as our friend.

The Good Samaritan, a short story by Rene Saldrana Jr, tells of a boy named Rey who was exploited by a neighbor, Mr. Sanchez, who constantly asked them to do his dirty work in exchange for a reward, but always took that away at the last minute or gave very little compared to what normally would be given for all that work. One day, as Rey was driving to pick his brother up, he saw Mr. Sanchez having issues with his car. Initially, he wished to have nothing to do with his stingy neighbor, but turned around to help him when he thought of his reaction if his father was in Mr. Sanchez’s situation. He fixed Mr. Sanchez’s tire, and was offered to come over for a barbecue, but declined, since he did it out of goodwill, not in expectation of any sort of reward. This story teaches us three themes. First, empathy and mercy are key to what makes a good person. Second, if someone desperately needs help, we should offer our assistance, regardless of their relationship to us. Third and finally, we should treat everybody how we would treat our neighbors and friends.