The enthusiasm and joy with which America has welcomed the Obama family to the White House is palpable and it is contagious. No one seems to mind, today, that we are being promised a long road to economic recovery, and no one seems to mind being called to serve. Can the President sustain his energy? Can we truly join him in the tasks at hand? Will tomorrow really bring change, and the day after tomorrow justice and goodness?
What I know is that the words and symbols grip me: Maybe the quotation that stands out most for me is something like, "If we all wait for someone else to do something, nothing will get done." What I realized is we don't have to do big things to change the world because a lot of little changes make big change. I listened yesterday to a video in which many, many people pledged to make a difference -- their pledges included huge commitments and ordinary ones: "I pledge to take good care of my children. I pledge to turn out my lights when I am not using them."
So after I listened to the Inauguration I decided to shovel a neighbor's driveway: not half an hour later the gas delivery truck arrived, parked in that cleared driveway and, because of the side of the truck that bears the hose reel, it turned out to be MY delivery. What a simple pointer to the reality that helping someone else is helping myself. When I got back inside, I returned a phone message from someone looking for help: because the family van did not pass inspection, a lady needed a ride to her cataract surgery -- I can do that, absolutely.
Mother Teresa said we don't have to go to India to make a difference -- we can love the people who need our love in our own homes, our own neighborhoods, our own places.
Getting better ... being better ... making a better world -- it won't always seem as shiny and new as it feels today. But it sure beats living our lives in our own little bubbles and exhausting ourselves trying to keep the bubbles from bursting.
Comments