Footprints

You will change the world. This cannot be helped. As you move your actions alter the course of events, events that would have transpired differently in your absence. You will leave footprints.

Your influence is a given. The question, then, becomes what kind of footprints you will leave behind.

Footprints, in many ways, are bad. Treading roughly on the surface of our planet has implications in this modern world that never concerned our forefathers. Excessive burning of fossil fuels, irresponsible dumping, careless contamination, and decadent consumption commingle into a kind of footprint violently stomped onto the face of our world.

Similarly, our impact in the human world can be less than admirable. Our attitude and conscientiousness impinges on the people in our lives, be they loved ones or strangers. The metaphor carries pretty well. Are you responsible for your emotional dumping? Do you mindless of your affective contaminants? Fill your soul with vitriol, and you will find your infulence on others tend toward the caustic.

What to do? Reduce your negative impact! Use fewer resources. Rely on more renewable energies. Simplify your needs. Reuse things. Recycle what you must be rid of. Be nice to people. Blow off your stem in constructive ways. Avoid coercion. Foster love.

In fact, if you get good enough, you will start noticing that you still leave footprints, but that your influence has been for the better. Instead of leaving trash, you inspire others to pick up trash. Rather than burdening your fellow humans, you enable them to become great.

Pay attention to your consumption. Tread lightly with soft shoes and dainty steps. But when its comes to doing good... skip rambunctiously and dance with abandon in the clompiset boots you can tie to your feet.