Change. One of the most common words used everyday...in different contexts. "I need to change this or that," or "my boyfriend/girlfriend has to change," and the list goes on and on. But I don't intend to talk about my personal life or yours for that matter...I'm talking about our city...our country...our historical, gorgeous country, where the sun is always shining and the warm people are always smiling. Take a moment to think about that...in the general sense, people are always helpful, ready to give more and...most importantly...smiling. Nevertheless, when faced with corruption--in any of its forms--be it theft, cheating, conspiracy or lying...we naturally blame it on whatever comes to mind, among which are lack of education, healthcare, order, organization...and so on and so forth. But honestly, and don't hate me for saying this, that's not the way I see it. Ok, I cannot deny that all of the latter issues are a problem...and a big one if I may say so...but, rephrasing Epictetus, the Greek stoic slave and philosopher, as well as the Buddha, we should not mourn things we cannot change...and the latter include everything that doesn't lie within our very being...the only things we actually can change and should try to change are within ourselves...we can work with our minds, our hearts and our souls...other than that, we're just fooling ourselves. So, the first step towards any successful change has to come from within. All the flaws you point out in other people are probably ones you will find in yourself...whether it's jealousy, anger, nervousness, cheating or lying...you need to work on changing yourself first! I'm not an angel...and I don't claim to be one...and neither are you...after all, we're only human...but what is a human being? We're a combination of clay and a breath of the Divine...doesn't that say something to you? We're not just composed of matter...we're not just an earthly body...that will die, I assure you...but your soul will live on forever...you carry within you a breath of the Divine and you don't even realize it! You can do anything you want...achieve anything you dream of...your potentiality is endless...you just have to realize it and tap into it. If you're not comfortable with that idea, think of it differently...your legacy--if your reputation is a good one--will definitely outlive you...which is why we still study religion, philosophy, literature...etc. So, taking you back to my initial point...I don't think that any of us can change our country's situation by only trying to fix the educational or healthcare system...sure, do those too, but first, work on yourself...on yourself then on those around you...teach them loyalty, truthfulness, compassion, kindness, moderation and modesty...but you cannot teach anyone those things until you learn them yourself.
They way I see it, is that if you succeed in changing yourself, and then succeed in guiding and even changing others, the rest will all naturally follow...because as the person changes, so will the system.
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