Gettting involved

I have a tendency to be a bit of an anti-social hermit. It’s just so easy to tinker in my workroom or sit behind a computer and design things. Or grab my pack and disappear into the woods for a while. But that is tempered by a sense of compassion and concern, and a desire to get involved on some level. That’s the odd dichotomy of me. On the one hand I’m a perfectly content loner, and on the other hand I quite genuinely like interacting with people, and I think I can establish a rapport with most. While I’m perfectly happy wandering far off into the forest, I also care about the neighbourhood I live in, and take small steps to make sure it’s safe and liveable for all its inhabitants. It’s where I live. It’s where Anand goes to school. It’s where my friends live and work. It’s where we walk and garden and shop and play and socialize. It’s important.

Getting worked up about the environmentally unsound practices of a human rights abusing dictator on the other side of the world, strikes me as well intentioned but futile. While the results of simple actions in one’s immediate environment may not seem as profound, I think ultimately those are the things that do have real ramifications for the world at large. You know, that whole “think globally, act locally” maxim.

I recently got involved with a local guerrilla gardening group, and think that is great fun. I recently made the suggestion that if the idea is to make neighbourhoods more attractive and foster a sense of community, perhaps we could volunteer to help some seniors who can’t really do the physical aspects of gardening anymore. Everybody thought that was a swell idea.

I’ve been to some of the meetings of my local community council. I’ve sent info to them a few times. I’ve chatted with some of the members. I like what they’re doing. I got an email from them last week, asking if I’d like to join the council, as a member at large. No huge time commitment, no daunting responsibilities. Come out once a month and discuss things that are pertinent to the neighbourhood. Which I did last night. And thought it was a very worthwhile thing. Good group of people, interested and committed, and taking pro-active steps to making our little corner of the world better. And it just feels nice to be involved on some level. My contribution may only be a small one, but it’s still far better than doing nothing. I already somehow got roped into coming up with a logo. I think I can do that.

I can wrap my brain pretty easily around the area I can walk in a day. I can communicate with the people around me. I can contribute my time and energy to making a positive change. I can very easily see the positive and negative outcomes of peoples actions. I understand the desire to try and address all the worlds ills. But it just ends up leaving you frustrated. I’ve come to the conclusion that doing small things in my neighbourhood to make it a better place is more immediate and controllable. And I guess it all boils down to Gandhi’s “be the positive change you want to see” adage. 

So I got off my butt to try and do my bit. And it feels…pretty darn good.