13 de setembro de 2009



We are here on Earth to do good to others.
What the others are here for, I don't know.


W. H. Auden (1907 - 1973)

Everyone thinks of changing the world,
but no one thinks of changing himself.


Leo Tolstoy (1828 - 1910)

To accomplish great things,
we must not only act, but also dream;
not only plan, but also believe.


Anatole France (1844 - 1924)


Back in the early 80's (a glorious decade!) Freddie Mercury and Brian May wrote a song called 'Is This The World We Created?'. The simple lyrics, the poignant (and always up-to-date) thematic and soothing 12-string guitar music made it a success, specially on festivals such as the memorable Bob Geldof's 'Live Aid'. Summing it up, it's a song about the state of the world, with a focus on poverty, deseases, indifference and injustice. It was a good effort as a 'heads up' call and, back then, I believe it had the effect they hoped for - innitiatives such as those were fairly new and got widely accepted. I can't remember a time where so many songs about Africa were made, with all who called themselves 'artist' doing some 'African' work. Time proved Us, once again, that it was a trend and, as such, it was fleeting. By the end of the decade, no one even remembered where that little skinny-hungry-with-a-big-'waterbelly'-boy's country was... At least it left Us good tunes! (at least for me, who really enjoy most of the 80's music.) 20 years later, everything's the same! The recent technologies, which, supposedly, should've helped Us getting closer to each other, only got Us more and more inside Our small little cocoons. I don't know if you've already saw the "wall-E" movie, from Disney. I did and, despite it's obvious excellent quality, it made me noxious. Not only because of the way the Earth was like but because of the way the surviving humans were aboard the "Noah's Ark" - for them, other humans only existed on their personal cart's screens, their world was restricted to a screen in front of them. They didn't even look sideways to see there was other people! Everything was done for them. If they needed food, they inputed on their cart's they wanted to eat. If they wanted to talk to other people, they'd talk through video-call. It was a freak-show - and dangerously close to what We are doing nowadays. Obviously, doing that for generations in a row, the Human being became physically as distorted as its soul was. Don't even doubt for a second that that kind of mental laziness would drive Us either to extinction, or the loss of Our essence as Humans.

A question that has always crossed my mind was (and is), 'Why don't People actively seek to be better?'... doesn't it cross their minds, even from time to time, to do a little better everyday?... (It's not just a boy scout thing, you know?...) Why leave all the action for other people - whom we think will do better than we normally would?... It's amazing the epic amount of energy that we normally waste, energy that could be put to far better uses! I'm not saying that one should immediately get out of the house and start giving food or shelter or trying to heal the poor soul next to us (not that it wouldn't be a good idea - it is! - but it would be too much, for a start, and - most probably - dangerous...); I'm asking why not to be good, to do our best, to think the 'extra mile' in the small things that make our daily life. Start by yourself, then your own micro-environment and you'll manage to suggest others, through your deeds, that it's so simple and so much better. Why to do it? Simply because it's good, and that's a lot, it's really important for us to feel good! You'll feel good (guaranteed!), everyone around you will feel good - at least feel better -, and you can't even imagine the impact of your good actions, how far can they go, how deep into someone's heart they can go.
Imagine, for instance, that you think about doing some exercise. 'Well', you think, 'it's been quite a while since I've done it. Probably I'll feel sick afterwards... Maybe I shouldn't go...'. But then you see someone, who began doing it some time ago, and now seems that his whole life looks like a lotto jackpot - one breathes health, sweats health, looks absolutely positive, seems there's no problems at all in his life. You decide to get up and go ask that person, if his life is as cool and stress-free as it looks, if everything goes as smoothly as it seems. Surprisingly, one says to you 'Yes!', with a one-million-euro smile and a shine in his eyes that seemed to go as deep as his soul. On that smile, you can feel that everything is really going smoothly with him. Then you ask why, and that person says to you 'I really don't know! But, you know?, one day I decided to do something good for me, to make me feel deeply good, relaxed, feeling cool with life - and I decided to do some exercise. I can't say, at first, it was easy. It wasn't and I even thought about quiting, but something within me made me go on. After a while, the 'pain' was gone and it was getting better every time. Soon, I felt flowing with good vibrations and it wasn't just when I was doing exercise, it kept on going through the day. At the same time, everything seemed clearer for me, simple, and problems sometimes also seemed to solve for themselves. It's almost like magic isn't it?', widely smiling.'Then I felt like giving that good feeling to other people around me - I started to help people, to make them feel as good as I was feeling. I can't say that I was 100% successful but most of the people I got in touch with got the message and are now thing the same thing for themselves.' After this conversation, I bet that you'd do the same thing - be deeply good to yourself.
Skeptics?... Oh, there'll always be skeptics, as long as the Earth turns with two Humans on it (even one, I recon). It's not your problem, obviously - everyone is free to think the way they want and act accordingly - as long as they "restrain" themselves to the 'annoying' level, naturally. If someone's criticizing you for doing what you feel as right and, no matter what it costs, you stick to your plan, then it's OK... As Martin Luther King Jr. once said:
In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies,
but the silence of our friends.
Remember it, all times!... But if you start believing in others and not on yourself, then you'll have a problem - you're leaving hold of yourself, to become a projection of others in your body. And, believe me, 'Body' (anyone's Body) doesn't like to be ruled by others!... So, be attuned with your body, thinking by yourself, properly. BUT, don't forget those around you and beyond...

We are not alone in the Universe, on Earth. And We are all connected in more than one way... most of them, We probably don't even know... but nothing can keep Us from trying to see them, can't it? And I bet the most certain way to do it, is with Good, Kindness - Love...

1 comentário:

Anónimo disse...

Nos tempos q correm cada vez mais temos menos pessoas a preocuparem-se c os outros e cada vez mais metidos na sua concha...é mt triste e quem ainda se preocupa sente se um autêntico "freak" porque as pessoas ficam a olhar e sabemos bem o q pensam....irrita me a indiferença q anda no mundo, parece q está tudo meio zombie....limitam-se a viver a sua rotineira vidinha e realmente a "humanidade" do Wall E é bem capaz de estar para mt breve....MALTA ACORDEM E REAJAM! Sejamos humanos!!!