He gave a bit more
Original Medium Post HERE
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How to respond based on the four adaptiveness levels
A poem for the future [1]
An acre for wheat, hops, cacao, milk, and eggs,
and all that I eat and drink in a year —
rather than food for others or leaving the trees.
I can eat more greens, consume less dairy.
May I take a bit less and give a bit more.
— —
How much warming each year
from my wagon, heat, flights?
Instead of a cooler, less extractive world,
I can choose cleaner, greener, offset, and vote.
May I use a bit less and give a bit more.
— —
Dressy and t-shirts, sweatshirts, and free shirts;
shoes, soap, phone, TV, more stuff than I need —
delivered to home for my comfortable life.
I can research to buy, wait to buy too.
May I buy a bit less and give a bit more.
— —
With kisses and/or hugs —
wife, kids, kin filled with love,
rather than keep good feelings inside to themselves.
May I love more freely and visibly too:
may I show more love and give a bit more.
— —
Teaching for learning from pre-school to grad school
so I can learn, grow, earn, thrive, and know,
rather than other uses for our shared dollars.
I can use it in service to our land and people.
May I take it to give and give a bit more.
— —
Good schools, roads, health, child care, water, food too —
for my kids, fam’ly, hometown and others we know;
far from all kids and places are assured the same.
Grateful is not enough — we must do, ask for, more.
May we ask for all kids and give a bit more.
— —
Our land saved our lives, taught us, helped us be free;
far from perfectly yes — striving toward liberty.
Our journey, our endpoint are not guaranteed.
We can organize, vote, we can serve on juries,
reaching across divides loving and humbly.
May we strive together and strive a bit more.
— —
When it’s all said and done,
when I’ve passed through death’s door,
if you could stop to tally and measure the score,
it’s far from certain, but I hope you can say:
Yes — he took from this world,
but he gave a bit more.
— —
Our motto at East Boston Social Centers is “When all give, all gain.” Our early education teachers and staff — and our legislators and state leaders — give so much to help our children learn, thrive and be joyful. And our children give so much joy to all of us in return!
[1] Since there’s not point in guilt for the past. We can just take what we’ve learned, but take less guilt, so we can give more.