The fortunate among us often look for ways to make life more meaningful. We stay engaged with our families, our community, our faith, and the beauty of nature around us. We look for ways to bring joy and fun into our own lives and into the lives of others. Those moments add a spark that makes life richer and worth sharing.

So when I recently heard a public remark about striking a target “a few more times just for fun,” in the context of military action, I honestly could not believe what I had heard.

My disbelief at that level of cruelty and inhumanity quickly turned to outrage. The idea that a school filled with children could be targeted and destroyed, then dismissed as “collateral damage,” is heartbreaking enough. But the notion of violence carried out “just for fun” feels almost beyond comprehension.

I also recognize that not everyone will see these moments the same way I do. Good people can look at the same events and come to very different conclusions.

In moments like these—when one outrage seems piled upon another—it can be hard to remember that I still have control over my own thoughts and reactions.

So I get up a little earlier.

I sit quietly and make my list of things for which I am grateful. And there are many.

I focus on the things we can do, right here in our own community, to make life better for one another.

Our Rotary club has become one of the most powerful reminders that humanity is far stronger than inhumanity. Around the world, 1.4 million Rotarians share a simple mission: to serve others.

Last year alone, our club raised nearly $350,000 and gave thousands of volunteer hours to make life better for people we may never even meet.

And when I remember that there are over 40,000 Rotary clubs doing the same thing in communities all over the world, I realize something powerful:

While a few people may choose cruelty,

millions choose service.

And in the end, I believe that will be enough.