There are two wonderful projects that anyone can do to improve our community. They are both very difficult and no one will give you an award or acknowledge you at a community gathering. In fact, they’ll think you’re nuts.
The first community improvement project is to sit still. As a Zen Buddhist would say: Don’t just do something, sit there! This twist on the hurry-up action attitude is necessary to stop the frenetic rushing toward surface solutions and to focus on the root cause of suffering in our midst. As you sit, in silence and contemplation, consider your own wish to be free from suffering. Then, consider the same for a loved one, a neighbor, a total stranger and then someone you dislike. You will find they all seek relief from suffering.
Mother Teresa, a bodhisattva of the Catholic tradition, once said: Find a person who thinks he is alone and convince him he is not. This second project flows easily out of the sitting meditation. In our community and around the world, there are those who feel alone and separated from others. This causes suffering and they may act out from this suffering and bring pain to themselves or others.
When you notice a frightened elderly neighbor, a co-worker struggling with an addiction, or a homeless person weeping alone at a park, convince them they are not alone. When you help alleviate the suffering of just one person, you benefit our family beyond measure and our community will thrive.
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