Hope's Edge_ The Next Diet for a Small Planet - Frances Moore Lappe [96]
I hope that the testimonies in this chapter show that getting involved—taking on the challenge of “what can we do?”—can bring extraordinary satisfaction.
But, after reading a draft of this chapter, Cathy Lerza, a founder and director of the Washington-based National Family Farm Coalition, protested: “Frankie, you make it sound too heavy and serious. Actually, I’ve had a great time the last ten years! I want to come to work each morning.I love the people I work with. How many Americans can feel that way?
“You make it sound like working for social change is harder than the lot of most people. But no, it’s the people who feel that they have no reason to get up in the morning who are in worse, shape. If I weren’t doing what I am, my life would be so much less interesting. I think I’m pretty damn lucky!”
What everybody wants is what Cathy’s found—something she feels passionate about. That’s the common thread uniting the people I’ve quoted here. My central hope for this book is that it’s given you some clues as to how others have made that discovery—so that you might make it for yourself.
But, so many say, what difference can one of us make? The problems are so enormous. And they are right. Nothing any one of us can do will make a big difference. Yet, the irony is that the world is changing every day in response to individual choices; and that is the only way it can change—by individuals making up their minds to act.
When we realize that no one individual act will make much difference, when we appreciate how many things have to change at once, self-doubt and despair come in the door. I believe this is inevitable. But the door is also open to another realization: if it is true that many things must change at once, we can put behind us the futile struggle to figure out the way to change the world and get on with the work right at hand—the injustices, the needless suffering, the destruction of resources right in our own communities.
And once we grasp how profound the problems are, we also can let go of our futile efforts to overcome our despair once and for all. The people quoted in this chapter may seem basically satisifed with their lives, but their satisfaction does not come from protecting themselves from uncertainty. They accept periodic uncertainty, loneliness, and self-doubt as facts of life. Their satisfaction comes in knowing they can face those feelings and go on. So, more than a guaranteed recipe for action, more than perfectly formed analysis, we need courage—courage to face despair and go on.
And remember: we don’t have to start the train moving. It is moving! Our struggle is to figure out how to board that train, bringing on board all the creative energy we can muster.
* Published by the Institute for Food and Development Policy, 1980.
2.
How to Plug In
TAKING THE FIRST step is easier today than it was two decades ago when I first wrote Diet for a Small Planet. Literally thousands of citizen organizations have emerged, addressing both immediate problems in their communities and global problems of historical impact.
But how can you find out about them? And how can you choose those through which you can learn and act for positive change? Instead of including a list of organizations here as I have in earlier editions—one that of necessity must be partial and impermanent—I suggest the following:
First, I’ve noticed that most of us get involved through someone we know. So look around. Turn to friends and acquaintances who are already involved in something they care about deeply. This may mean seeking out new friends. Whom we choose as friends can be among the most important