The little things that make a difference.

Language is one of humanities greatest achievements. With it, philosophies have been written, people have been moved to war and to peace. Words have caused people to fall in love and and grow apart. Writing has allowed us to know what people long gone had to say and think, as well as allow us express our feeling to others around us now.

Why I bring this up is due to an event that occurred to me a few days ago. Chances are that most of you have been to a drive through of a fast food restaurant. This usually means that you are in a hurry to get your food and return to what you where doing. Some times the result of this is that ones language is....brief and sometimes lacking manners. I however do my best to be understanding with them as I use to work fast food. The whole thing happened like this

"Welcome to Wendy's, How can I help you?"
"Good afternoon, Can I please get a full size salad," pause for them to acknowledge item, "also a medium drink," again I pause, "and finally a small fry."
There was some noticeable surprise in the employ's voice and behind her I could hear the manager repeating my order. "Umm, Ok, your total comes to $14.36. Please pull around."
"Thank you."

While I drove around and waiting for my turn at the window I wondered about the tone of voice the teller had. Maybe I imagined it. Then I got to the window. Where the manager was waiting for me. She proceeded to express her appreciation for being so nice. She was on the verge of tears, and the 2 other employees nodded in agreement.

Has being rude become so normal that just treating a person as another human being is seen as something so far above and beyond? Has the world come to a place where those that work are expecting to be treated with disrespect and kindness is the extreme rarity? This is where I think we as Jedi are needed. Being the example, showing others that everyone needs to be treated like they matter. If we do this enough and show enough people that it can make a huge difference in peoples lives the world can improve. Be that better person, not for your sake but for others.

In the rush of today's society, people tend to forget that those they come into contact with are enveloped in lives as beautifully complicated as our own. They have dreams, wants, needs, and a right to be respected. And, unfortunately, many tend to forget that. They're just drones that pass through their life, getting in the way, and they treat them as such, rather than with the respect and care that all human beings deserve.

I'm glad you could make that person's day just a little bit brighter. I've worked in fast food before, and I would work through a hundred shouting customers just for the joy that one amazing customer would bring.

Simplified, in a nutshell, people for the most part do not care. This is something many do not want to admit, acknowledge, or remotely look in the eye, but if you've lived in a city, where people are living on top of each other and hard wired into a routine that involves getting up, clocking in, clocking out, making time to shove empty calories in your mouth and fall unconscious only to rinse and repeat in the morning, it's quickly becoming the norm. I argued about the mental health of social media using this as a starting point on cantina chat last year, and is my primary reason for quitting my job and attempting to make a living as an artist full time...

I hate to serve as Morpheas in the Matrix, but welcome to the "real world." Try not to let it taint, or poison the good inside of you, because it's all too easy to give in when it seems the world thrives on chaos, drama and destruction. It doesn't really, we just are acclimating to the media's coverage of what grabs the attention span of anyone willing to plug in, turn on, and tune out...

The good news is this, this only represents half of what's out there, there's people like the rest of us who refuse to see the world in the way those controlling the media would like us to perceive it as, and have taken the time to create our own "rose colored goggles" if you will and choose to create a better world than merely accept what's put out in front of us...

THIS is why Jedi are needed in today's world, and it is this reason Jediism is catching on. People are acknowledging the problems arising with the mental state of modern consciousness within the majority of people around them, and wish to do something more about it. Sounds as if you're off to a great start, let this path and those who share it lift you in times of stress and turmoil, as no Jedi should walk it alone...

Truly , just a small application of compassion and a dash of understanding yields a very great thing that can reciprocate to our loved ones, strangers and sometimes , ourselfs!