The Biggest Lie We Learn
One Person Doesn’t Make a Difference
Anthropologist Angeles Arrien, creator of The Four Fold Way, describes what happens on a busy highway when a single car breaks down or the effect on others of a stranger whose bright mood brings smiles to those around him. It may be that not enough attention is paid to so many who do make a difference; yet, our culture has honored persons throughout the ages because of their stories of inspiration. Think of Helen Keller, who overcame blindness and deafness to become a great advocate for peace and human dignity or Rosa Parks, who with a few quiet words, refused to give up her seat on a bus and ignited a long-needed revolution.
Ordinary People Do Something About Contemporary Slavery
How do people continue the tradition of appreciation in their own lives? It takes intention and focus to become aware of ordinary people who act charitably without the need for recognition or the promise of fame.
Part of the Oprah show agenda is to acknowledge people who have felt moved to make a difference. Recently, the story was told about Pam, an American woman from Missouri, who saw a story about enslaved children. She researched it until she was able to find out how to release the child whose picture illustrated the story. She also learned what was needed to make sure released children would have a way to live, with family or orphanage. In some cases, the organization that arranged their release was able to give some education and financial assistance to the children, the family who sold them, and the owners who bought them. Pam and her husband Randy decided they could afford to assist seven children.
A Slave Brought to the United States Finds Freedom
In another contemporary story, Jean-Robert Cadet, creator of the Restavec Foundation, came to America as an enslaved child from Haiti. His owners, a Haitian family who used him for domestic chores, got him into the country by pretending he was their child. They abandoned him when they learned he was required by law to attend school, feeling no obligation to care for him now that he was no longer of any use to them. He would never be anything but a bootblack in their eyes. With the help of a teaching mentor at school and Cadet’s own optimism, he eventually earned a bachelor’s degree in international affairs.
Not all stories may be so dramatic, yet to the individuals who are helped, something as ‘small’ as an encouraging word can change the course of a person’s life.
Inspiration--Growing Your Own
The people who help and those who are able to receive help have kept a sense of their essence. Dr. Arrien extorts everyone to do three things that keep a sense of meaning alive:
• Set a life dream or sacred intention
• Express gratitude, which keeps the heart open
• Take a life-affirming action each day that expresses the life dream.
Inspiration comes from watching, reading and noticing. It is a reminder of the resiliency of the human spirit and, once noticed, will remain there to help us heal when we need it.
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