Me to We - Part 2

Yesterday I highlighted the idea of working with poor people, expecting them to be sad because of their circumstances and finding that they were happy instead. Their focus was not 'me' (predominantly western thought), but rather 'we' (non-west) as community plays such an important role in their lives. What stops us from making this change?

“If Me to We is so wonderful, why hasn’t everyone already embraced this new approach to life? Research tells us that the answer is both incredibly complex and astonishingly simple: fear. The fact is we’re afraid. A lot of us have grown up with the belief that if we don’t look out for ourselves, no one else will. We worry that notions of community are idealistic tales from the past, irrelevant in our cutthroat, mile-a-minute world. We’re concerned that if we think in terms of We, then Me will suffer. The good news is that nothing could be farther from the truth.”

If you are anything like me than this fear also includes failure. The task is too big and if I mess up, how many people will I disappoint? What's happens if I totally lose myself in trying to help everyone else? I don't want to be the biggest hypocrite around! Thankfully, I am learning that these are utterly irrational fears and have no place in my life or the work that I do. I have never heard of one person, going out to help other people, that didn't also help themselves. Giving is contagious and when we pay it forward, it never comes back empty. And yes, the task is HUGE. OVERWHELMING. DAUNTING. And I am only one person. . .

“I am only one, but still I am one;
I cannot do everything, but still I can do something;
and because I cannot do everything
I will not refuse to do the something that I can do.”
~Helen Keller