It Takes a Village- A take on how to make society a little better

 An old woman sits upon the curb, haggard and withered. Her clothes are ragged and torn, and her skin is covered in dust and dirt. She looks at the passerby's, pleading with them with her sad eyes to give only a dollar. She’s numb- the hunger which had been gnawing at her for days had finally subsided only because she had grown used to the pain. 

    Most of us heard the phrase "It takes a village to raise a child" but we leave it at that. In this fast paced aggressive society, we forget about those around us. We forget about the poor woman on the curb, needing help. We forget about the young man who just lost his vehicle. We forget about the whole family who just lost their home and security. Better yet, we shake our head, think "Oh what a shame but it isn't my problem" and we go about our business. 

    You see, however, it is our business. It is our problem. It takes a village goes further than raising a child- it should remind us of community. A group of people who, without question, help on another. And it should be without expectations of reimbursement. Why, you may ask. What does the stranger sitting beside you, in their own silent fight, have to do with you? Simple- one day that could be you. It takes one incident- the loss of a job, the loss of a loved one or the loss of your home to take your situation and mirror those who you shrugged at and walked away from. 

    What we should all visualize is this: what if that was me or one of my family members. Would you hope someone helps you if you were on the curb instead of that woman? Would you hope someone helped your parents if they lost their home? The next time you see an opportunity to help someone, I implore you to do so. Believe it or not, the person you help will remember it for the rest of their lives, and through that one act of kindness you will change the world. And if we all did this? How many lives could we change? Every step forward is a step in the right direction. We should all take this step forward, and remember, it does, in fact, take a village.