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Lately I’ve been reminded of what powerful forces chain reactions can produce. The current devastation in Japan is also a grim reminder that despite all we know about the earth and its processes – we really know very little. The current “advancements” proceeding that tragedy did detect that an earthquake was eminent, and the resulting tsunami was also forecast, but the timing and the magnitude of these forces was anyone’s guess. Remember that experts in the field have been predicting “the big one” in California for years, and similar fault lines are known to be ticking away – rock shelves resting precariously on rock shelves, waiting for the slightest stimulus to start a chain reaction. In the mean time, what are we left to do? Wait and worry? Move into outer space? Research the “10 safest places on the planet to live,” and move the family to one of those places? Maybe. In all honesty, one of the reasons I like living in the Northeast is the lack of natural disasters that occur here. Horrible, long, grueling, depressing winters aside, it’s a great place to be! In my opinion, long winters beats hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes, regular flooding and/or tsunamis hands down. So this is where I’m staying.
Chain reactions are really scary. And the “natural” ones seem to happen really fast! If you have ever watched a video of an avalanche going down a hill, or the rapidity of a wildfire consuming everything in its path, you know what I mean. In the past few weeks I have been researching more human based chain reactions. One of the schools I was invited to present at recently asked me to kick off an annual character education program titled: “Rachel’s Challenge”. It is named after Rachel Scott, the 17 year old student who was the first victim of the Columbine Shootings on April 22, 1999. Before her death, Rachel had written an essay about starting a “chain reaction” of kindness and compassion among students in her school, and in the world. Rachel’s parents also found some journals she had kept that contain incredibly inspiring and beautiful writing about making a positive influence during her lifetime.
For a 17 year old, this young woman was extremely astute. We human beings seem to operate in “chain reaction” mode much like the natural forces around us. Next time you are in your car during a busy commute, and two lanes of traffic are merging together try this experiment: let the car that is trying to merge in – and make it blatantly obvious that you are allowing the car in. Then observe what the car behind you does. In all likelihood, that car will let the next “merger” in. And the car behind that car will follow suit. Here’ s another test: next time you are in a supermarket, and the light at the cash register you are in line for starts to blink, signaling that assistance is needed and that you are going to be delayed, DON’T START COMPLAINING. Even if others in the line are. Say nothing. Pick up one of the magazines in the aisle “you know you want to,” and read through that while you are waiting. A variation to this experiment is to say something like “well, it’s not life or death,” when others try to bring you into a negative and pessimistic outlook about the situation. Negative energy is a very tempting way to give in to “chain reactions”. I know I am prone to do it. I don’t like to be inconvenienced. I don’t like to have my precious, valuable time taken up by things that I don’t view as enjoyable, or fun, or productive. At those times, I am more susceptible to “mouthing off” or “acting out” than when I am going through the day getting exactly what I want out of each and every situation and person I run into. When I am getting what I want, I’m a joy to be around. A real happy guy. And that is the energy I put out for others – “Happy Guy Energy”! Unfortunately, the statistics are not in my favor when it comes to getting everything from everyone every single day. And this drains my “Happy Guy Energy” supply. So I’ve realized – again – that I can’t wait around for the perfect conditions to be supplied with this energy from others. I need to create the energy and start the reactions myself.
If you haven’t watched the video at the beginning of the blog, I hope that you do. It demonstrates more clearly than my feeble words ever could how one small action can set off an amazing, colorful, wonderful chain of events. And we are all responsible for that energy. Like it or not, we all influence others. The great poet and clergyman John Donne said it best in his words; “No man is an Island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the Continent, a part of the main…” Gandhi knew this too, he phrased it slightly differently though: “Be the change you want to see in the world.” And Rachel Scott knew about the energy and the power that we each have to start changes through small acts of kindness and compassion that might influence others to do the same. Here is a link about the Rachel Scott project. Hopefully it will give you some positive energy to start a chain reaction in your life this week…
http://www.rachelschallenge.org/
I like to think we are all islands in a common sea.