I had a nice chat with my taxi driver home from work this morning about giving, and karma, and making a difference…
Early in the week my daughter and I were talking about how we can make a difference without the need to tip ice buckets over ourselves, or donate to charities that experiment on animals, or donate to charities where most of the money goes on admin and overheads…
I’ve done hundreds and hundreds of hours of voluntary work, but that isn’t really the answer either, as people deserve to be paid…
More and more homeless people are on the streets, but we’re urged not to give them money in case they spend it on drink and drugs… And a few years ago I did give some money to a girl begging on the street, and the next week she was in the local paper, dead from a heroin overdose…
We were talking about what is the best way to make a difference, and we came to the conclusion that each and every one of us can make a difference every day…
Just by acknowledging someone, smiling at a stranger, speaking to someone at a bus stop, getting to know neighbours, taking a bit of time to start working towards building up communities again… It really can make a difference…
I spoke to someone in tesco’s yesterday that I recognised from the park, and we had a lovely chat – she said I’d made her day – that made my day too!
And when I got home from work this morning, there is a big piece of vegan chocolate cake from our neighbour! What goes around comes around! If we all start doing a little thing each day to make a difference, we can make the world a nicer place <3 <3
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“We can begin by doing small things at the local level, like planting community gardens or looking out for our neighbors. That is how change takes place in living systems, not from above but from within, from many local actions occurring simultaneously.
We never know how our small activities will affect others through the invisible fabric of our connectedness. In this exquisitely connected world, it’s never a question of ‘critical mass.’ It’s always about critical connections.” – Grace Lee Boggs
A B Counselling 