That Necessary First Step

There is a unique beauty in simplicity. When an important issue is expressed in a simple phrase or sentence you can be sure that a lot of careful thought lies behind it. It is far easier to make your point by expanding it than by compressing it. The ideas that remain with us over time and help focus our thinking on an issue of importance are normally to the point and simple to remember. We’ll never forget Ronald Reagan’s, “Mr. Gorbachef, tear down this wall,” or David Farragut’s “Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead,” to say nothing of  Patrick Henry’s, “Give me liberty or give me death.” Clarity and simplicity: Long live the happy pair!
       The other day I read a statement that caught my attention and has been circling around in my mind ever since. It was Mahatma Gandhi’s, “Be the change that you wish to see in the world.” His challenge was not simply to say it, but to do it – or at least to start it by taking that first step. There is a distinct difference between the two worlds of theory and practice. It is one thing to recognize the need for change, and, in itself, that is good, but it calls for action. In the long run, if the challenge for change remains acknowledged but inactive, there has been no progress. 
       Everyone recognizes certain changes that should happen in their world. On a personal basis it may be a change of attitude about some relationship. In a community setting it could be the need for something like a larger park system for the expanding needs of the populace. On an international level is could be, and should be, the reduction of nuclear armament across the board. All good changes that we see, but each seems to be immobilized by the lack of necessary and appropriate action. The question is, How does one get from the “should be” to the “has been?” Every now and then we make it on an individual level, but what about change in a larger setting?
       What Gandhi suggests is that change is less a corporate activity than a personal responsibility. All change begins with someone taking that first stip. Developing a list of rules or expectations will rarely move a project off center. Individuals are the change agents of society. The problem of the “first step” is crucial. Unless someone steps out the train of progress remains stuck on the tracks right where it is. The real futurist is not the dreamer who spends his life absorbed in the “what ifs” of life, but the less prominent doer who seems to recognize that to arrive at one’s designation always requires a first step. 
       To “be the change that you wish to see in the world” is a call to active involvement. It is wise in theory, beautiful in its simplicity, and effective in its appeal. Repeat aloud with me a slightly modified version of the quote: “I will be the change that I wish to see in the world.”