There's just so much about this world I can not reconcile -- especially my children with this World. Since having kids I have had many a personal reckoning about risk, inevitably, and control. I have been pleasantly surprised that motherhood has provided amazing perspective and did not send me over the edge ... at least so far. (I realize we all live very, very close to the edge.)
But lately ... lately I have been thinking quite a bit about the fierce urgency of now. That is, what are those things about my local and global community which I can and must push back against? What are the things that I should not, now, or ever, reconcile myself to?
You know that great Pablo Casals quote about how me must, "work to make this world worthy of its children." As vague and bumper sticker-ishly generic as it first seems, I love it for its truth and its broad applicability. Posed as a question to oneself, it actually becomes quite meaningful: what work am I doing to make this world worthy of our children?
Time is neutral, but action is value-driven and motion-driven. Leonard Pitts recently wrote an article about the death of two seminal figures in civil rights history. His point was that time alone does not drive change. It is the actions of people such as those profiled in his article that change the world:
"Call it the myth of inevitability. It is the mind-set that says enlightenment and progress are the inescapable byproducts of time ... time doesn't bring change. People bring change over time ... human progress does not roll in on 'wheels of inevitability.' Change is a conscious decision." -Leonard Pitts, April 26th 2010
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| Doc Brown urgently wanted to save the clock tower. What is your passion? |
As my beautiful, strong, big kid loves to say, "Someday is not a real day!" After learning the days of the week she is wise to the lame art of procrastination and inaction. I am, finally and thankfully, off my ass and out of the confines of my head on a few issues. Before my kid learned the days of the week, many things felt too broad and daunting to even know where to start. But with her help I am learning to get specific, realistic and action-oriented. At the time of this writing those are pedestrian safety, less driving, and my family's favorite collective cause: shelter animals.
So let's hear it sisters and brothers. What will you not put up with? What is untenable to you and do you actively seek to change? Do you involve your children?
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This was a great post, Lesa...I think so much of my life I've been pushing things like this off until I feel more in control of things and - lets be honest - that will never happen. lol. My biggest project is preserving the feeling of community that we have now. I want my kids to grow up knowing the neighbors, knowing that there's someone next door or three doors down they can go to if they need it.
ReplyDeleteAlso, supporting local businesses, farmers, high school students who babysit, etc. Goes back to community, I suppose. I heart a good community!
Prepare yourself folks, I'm not feeling "wordy" today, so I think this will be short and sweet.
ReplyDeleteMy cause of the moment (besides the ones that would be obvious from my comments from the last post) is school lunches. As a school nurse, mother, and human I am APPALLED at what our children are fed in the school cafeteria.
So many parents tell me they want their child to eat the 'healthy, balanced' meal prepared for them at school, but their child refuses. They are shocked to hear that some of the meals have over 1000 calories and 150 grams of carbs--for elementary students.
I love that I have so many passionate women in my life. I feel really lucky my girls have people around them that care so much about so many things, it takes a village after all.
ReplyDeleteSo you know how I am kind of obsessed with making bumper stickers? I think, "I heart a good community" would be awesome.