We, TwentiesLife readers, are a people committed to improvement. We spend time evaluating ourselves, identifying and improving our weaknesses, building up and using our skillful strengths for good, and trying our best to be honorable people. Our hope is that with each passing day we are better people than the day before.
And that is a fine type of person to be. We are truly the people who will make tomorrows world a better place. Sadly, though, as a younger, more modern, more connected generation (than those before us), we spend a lot of time “online” and less time “involved.” This lack of involvement could become a detriment to all that we hope for in our world.
You see, it has been brought to my attention that while we hold ideals that if shared by the rest of the world would be fantastic, our generation is becoming like those before us, content with our small successes and complacent within our societies. And this would be fine if we lived in perfect societies. Sadly though, this is not the case.
We live in a world where bad things happen around us all the time. We live in a world where people sometimes just can’t catch a break. We live in a world that, should we assume responsibility for, could look very different in the years to come. It is up to us to decide what that world should look like. It is up to us to do the work to make it the world we envision.
If I asked you how the Health care bill will affect you in the years to come, could you explain it to me? If I asked you exactly how we elect a president, including the logistics of the electoral college, etc., would you be able to tell me? If I asked you who your governor/mayor/congressman was, would you know the names?
Our generation is one of dreamers, and the things we dream of are much greater than anything the generations before us could have imagined. We have ideals that would make this world a wonderful place to live in. The question I place before you is this: Do you know how to turn that dream into a reality?
To become an upstanding citizen is quite simple in theory, but a bit more difficult in practice. Here are a few areas that we can work on to become model citizens.
Be a better person. A good citizen starts with a good person. He/she is humble, honest, responsible, cares about his fellow man, believes in his system, obeys the laws and rules, is kind to others, listens to others, helps those around them, gives back to their communities,
- Learn how your local political system is set up. Meet your mayor. Go to a city council meeting. Learn the process. If you don’t know how the system works, you can’t effectively make changes, right? Once you have a good idea of how the wheels turn, learn about the issues that matter most in your community. Only then can you cast an effective vote towards something that will make a real difference.
- Get Involved. Get out there and develop a sense of community, or join in on the community all around you. Greet your postal carrier, meet your local librarians, introduce yourself to your congressman. Develop working relationships with the people around you. When the time comes that you need to call upon them, or them on you, it will be useful to already have built a rapport.
- Volunteer. With the economy in a lull, unemployment at a low, and all the other terrible things going on in the world, many people have become much more internalized. Less and less people are thinking about their hungry neighbor, the orphans in their communities, or all the other people struggling. Take a vested interest in your community and do whatever you can to build it up. Volunteer at your local schools, hospitals, nursing homes, museums, zoos, soup kitchens, meals on wheels, big brother/big sister, habitat for humanity, or even your church or cleaning up your parks. You already know how rewarding it is to help someone else, so you don’t need me to convince you.
- Be Kind to Your Environment. Leave everywhere you go in better shape than it was when you got there. Consider this (it may be oversimplified, but it works): If each of us picked up after ourselves and each other, our communities could hire less groundskeepers for our local parks, schools, etc, and those salaries could go places where it is much more needed.
- finally, and most importantly, be grateful. You live in a society where your voice matters, where your actions make a real difference. Most of us don’t truly understand that statement, so it’s worth repeating. Your actions make a real difference. The choices you make, the things you choose to spend your time doing, can have a significant effect on many people around you. There are so many people in the world who live in places where their voice means nothing, their actions are of little consequence to anyone. There is nothing they can do to better their situation. They don’t have the opportunities allotted to you and I, and they can’t pull themselves up. But we are in a position where we have the freedom to do and be just about anything we want. And when you truly understand the tremendous amount of value that such freedom entails, you start to understand just how important it is to exercise your voice. All of the work required to be a good citizen is nothing when you consider what little you did to deserve the amount of power that comes along with it.
You and I have the power to be heroes in our parts of the world. We can make real difference through action and example. President Barack Obama inspired the world with his presidential campaign, showing us that we too can make the difference. It’s time for us to do our part.
So what will you do?
