Meaningful actions

I was just reading the Saturday Globe and Mail talking about popular revolutions in Egypt and elsewhere, about the Big Society movement in the UK, about Raj Patel preaching how to make a better world, and thinking about how do we make a better world. My whole master's thesis talked about how to change youth's thinking and behaviour to more environmentally sustainable ones, the key I found being have youth talk to youth about doable actions. But what is meaningful? Last week I listened to the CBC debating the most important novels of the decade. Interesting, but not life-changing (though perhaps if I read the Canada Reads finalists, would that be life-changing?) Reading is meaningful. Writing, creating is meaningful. So is chatting and bantering with my daughter Rowan tonight before sending her off to bed, or snuggling with Tegan, my younger daughter home sick with the flu. Last week I also ripped apart and reassembled the kitchen after a plumbing failure, reconnecting with my homeplace, sustaining myself. I also read my teacher evaluations from my students, and realized that, despite my frequent doubts and insecurities, that I did connect with many of them and perhaps even influenced them to be better people, more self-aware, more capable. That is my goal, that is meaningful work.

Will it change the world? I hope so. That is why I teach. I hope that my efforts will positively influence our future leaders. I see it already in the social justice activities at my school: kids only 13 or 14 spearheading an anti-bullying week, raising funds for a school in Nicaragua, looking out for themselves and the greater community. Committment and passion for action inspires more positive action, especially when it comes from one's peers.

I keep on thinking I should do more, volunteer more, join organizations, write letters, and I should. I don't want to devalue my role as parent and teacher and the meaningfulness of those actions. I do feel everyone should give back to their community however they can, not because it is government policy or because one has been told to do so, but because it comes from the need, the desire to contribute. The overthrow of Mubarak in Egypt is inspiring because it was a popular movement, mostly leaderless, just citizens voicing their opinions, courageous in such a repressive society, idealistic, perhaps people with nothing to lose, but isn't that how we all are? We may have material things to lose, but so much to gain by acting to improve our world.