When Gandhi said “we must be the change we wish to see in the world,” he might not have realized how many people would be inspired by his brave words. If anyone had the right to make such a statement, it was Gandhi. He was so bent on making his country free of British rule that he was willing to undergo torture, threats, and poverty just to bring changes to the world. Although his words have been somewhat diluted by their popularity, they still strike people today. Even the cheesy be the change bumperstickers might, now and then, make people stop and think.
Stopping and thinking, however, was not all that Gandhi had in mind. Just thinking about changing the world does not really do anything to help anyone. In order to be the change, you must be willing to give up everything including your sense of identity. You must tie yourself to your beliefs so that there is no difference between your ideas and actions. This is what it means to be the change.
Although Martin Luther King's “I have a dream speech” is more popular, Gandhi's words seem to have inspired a far greater range of causes. Nowadays, people use the words be the change to express support for Healthcare reform, urban renewal, environmental sustainability, and many other causes. Basically, everyone who is out there working to make the world a better place can, to a greater or lesser degree, link their struggle to these famous words.
Most of the leaders, young and old, who are really working to make the world a better place are not very flashy about it. Usually, the people you see running for office or sporting political pins and bumper stickers are not the ones who are really out there, day in and day out, doing the work. The true heroes are often unknown. Although everyone has heard of Gandhi, few people know about many of the other activists who were also working to get the British out of India. They were content to work in obscurity, hoping that one day their dreams of freedom would come true.
It does not matter what you are working for. If it is important enough for you to give up a safe, secure life to work for change, it has value. Don't worry about being recognized for what you do. It is enough to be the change and let the world feel your compassion.
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