Inspiration for the day
Whatever you do will be insignificant, but it is very important that you do it.
I recently interviewed Anna Lappé for TreeHugger.com, and I wanted to share one of her responses that bears a striking similarity to the above quote from Mahatma Gandhi.
I asked Anna about her suggestions for dealing with the feelings of futility that a lot of people experience when exposed to some of the more daunting problems of our day and age.
I like to remind people that the more apt metaphor for our feelings of futility would be that we feel we’re drops in the desert: the water dissipates before even touching ground.
If we were really to picture ourselves as drops in a bucket, we’d of course realize that buckets fill up, and can fill up quite fast. (Who knows, your drop may be the one that pushes the water over the edge.)
I think it speaks of the gap that appears at times between action and perception: small things can contribute to much larger results, even if their effects are not immediately apparent.
The question, I suppose, is whether making the effects of such small inputs visible will help to change behavior. My sense is that doing so can help, but first the will to change must exist.
Critically, however, just as will must exist before action, the tools for action must be available for use once that will is formed: futility can arise from a sense of powerlessness in the face of large problems, but it can also stem from the lack of clear direction and appropriate tools. That is, I want to change, but I have no idea how.
While much effort is spent convincing people of the problems we face—a necessary task if ever there was one—it is extremely important that we continue to build the tools and platforms to enable change once that will is formed.
I’m trying to do my part.