Worth Dying For? Worth Fighting For?

There is a difference between "worth dying for" and "worth fighting for."

Something is worth dying for if we believe the person or cause is precious beyond expression. We die for things we love. We die for things that we can't imagine living without. We give our lives in desperate hours when all other hope is lost, all other options have been tried, or when time runs out. The martyrs blood wets the mortar used to build a better world.

"Worth fighting for" can mean a few things. If by fighting we metaphorically mean struggling, then anything worth dying for is worth fighting for. But if by fighting we mean actual fighting, violence, and killing, then we have something completely else.

To kill for a cause is to say that the life of the individual we are killing is less valuable than our mission. It is to cast away the worth of another for the sake of what we consider greater than them. It is to fail creatively, to throw away the hopeful project of vision, and to live in a bitter world of zero sum scenarios.

I contend many things are worth dying for. Our loved ones. The fate of the environment. Justice for all people. Attention for the unattended. Hope, healing, and mercy.

I simultaneously contend that few, IF ANY, things are worth killing for. I cannot imagine the road to a "better" world paved with the bodies. I do not believe justice can ever be achieved without mercy. No life, however vile it may appear to us, can ever be cast off because we have plans.

In times of trouble

Know this:

When history looks back at these troubled times, it will remember that those who first changed themselves were the ones who changed the world... and history will call them nothing less than heroes.

Not Yet Enough

Disaster strikes, and we stand paralyzed.

Or perhaps we try to help, but our labor is for naught.

No one would fault us. No one would say that we were evil or wrong. Instead, they'd console us, saying we did everything we could. We tried.

But at what point are our competencies under our control? Sure, the first time a problem happened, no one would expect someone to be ready. But what about the second? Third? Worse yet, what about those problems we know exist? Are we to blame if we stand in perpetual impotence?

When did we decide to believe that our power to do the right thing was static? When did we conclude that we were as fit as we could be to serve the world?

I'd say, instead, that we are not yet enough. Not yet the people we need to be to solve our problems. It's not that I'm a pessimist. Notice the "yet."

Take a look at the problems in the world around you. Consider your gifts and resources. Then systematically hone your abilities.

Training

Ok, I'm thinking:

CPR

AED

Lifeguard

EMT

Class A Drivers Licence

Fire Extinguisher Training

Caregiving

Nurse Assistant Training

Conflict Negotiation

Critical Problem Solving

Health

Recycling

Mechanics

Marketing

Fundraising

Public Speaking

Logistics

Electronic Communication

Home Maintenance

Disaster Relief

Certified First Responder

Hexiyurt Construction

Wilderness Survival

outdoor Emergency Care

Construction

Leadership

Non-profit Management

Counseling

Swimming

Running

Flexibility

Social Networking

Writing

Photography