On the eve of this historic Inauguration, which will be held on January 20, 2009, everyone is so excited about President Barack Obama and his Administration, and their own expectation of the fulfillment of his campaign byline “The Change We Need.”
There is no doubt in my mind that President Obama has brought, and is bringing, change. And to further achieve this goal that we all want (which is why we exercise our right to vote for any candidate), we must do our part.
We must also keep “change” in perspective.
Change does not, and will not, come about until WE change. You cannot sit back and expect someone else to take the reins. “Community” is about People. It is made up of people, it thrives off of the social interaction of those people, and it is characterized by the behaviors of those people. Therefore, “change” does not, and will not, come about until YOU change.
You change yourself from the mentality of “each man for himself” so that you can help someone else, thereby effecting change – “The Change We Need” – in the community, and in the world as a whole.
Because when it is all said and done, what have you done? When you think of “Change,” how did you contribute? We should make it our business to not just be a Passive Partaker, but rather an Active Contributor to Change. Ten, twenty years from now, when you look back at this historic time, what will you be able to say that you did? What positive change did you bring about? What did you do, besides jumping on the bandwagon and groupie-ing yourself to DC to party and get drunk. How is that any different from what you did before? That’s not change.
Okay, I know, you are going because you wanna “support” the President. But really consider and ask yourself what this Inauguration means to you – is it a social gathering or is it a Call to Service? Is it a time to see and be seen, so you can say that you were there, or is it a chance to demonstrate Love to one another, no matter if we know them or not and no matter if they reciprocate it or not.
Who will take a stand, and live to help other people, with no regard to, or desire for, personal gain? Who?
That is The Change We Need.
