Change The World: 30 Ways in 30 Days

I recently asked what you think that you can do, this week, right now, to make our world one that’s filled with more acceptance, empathy, and wonder.

Our Land is always, but especially this week, a multitude of  voices, stories, and perceptions, each hoping to inspire both thought and action. Empathy. Wonder. Today’s Our Land is simply a compilation of brief thoughts on how we can change the world. Today. This week. Now. Here’s what you came up with. Thank you.

Change The World: 30 Ways in 30 Days

1. Have the humility to listen first, think next, and talk last.
   Rachel, Tao of Poop
   
2. Love myself.  Tatum, Ain’t No Roller Coaster
   
3. As a preschool teacher, I will encourage my students to play with children who are alone on the playground.
   Elizabeth Bradt, Rocks, No Salt Mommy.
4. Not hit anyone, no matter HOW tempting.  My IRL friend Sara

   

5. Wear the shoes of compassion myself since I’ve gotta bring the change within to see a happening environment.
   Ruchira, Abracabadra
6. “She’s got bite marks on her tongue from all the things she never said.” (not an original quote from me, but I love it and don’t know whom to credit)
   Nancy, Calibama Mom
7. Tell the people I appreciate just how much I appreciate them.  IRL Friend Jennifer T
8. Be empathetic with mean people – something had to have ‘bitten’ them to make them that way. So, “hug a meanie” would be my action for the week.
   Michelle, They Call Me Mummy
9. Go above and beyond the things I normally do to try to alleviate someone’s hardship this week.
   Lizzi, Considerings
10. Help a person to smile. Whether it be a simple light hearted comment or a matter of polite friendliness, alleviate the pressures of the day by helping them take their minds off their problems by smiling.
    Rich, That’s Life…Sometimes
    
11. Listen the way I want people to listen to me.  Eileen, The Fierce Diva Guide to Life
12. Instead of rushing about my day I am going to take time to smile and say hello, even engage with people if the opportunity arises because it’s possible that just one person may need that personal, human interaction.
    Sandy, Mother of Imperfection
13. Share a smile and a ‘have a good day’ with a stranger.  Joy, Evil Joy Speaks
    
14. Live life intentionally, ALL. THE. TIME.
    Maybe that’s too short- idk. Have a heart that is open and loving all the time, so that when I encounter ANYONE- I embrace who they are with open arms immediately.  Chris, The Mom Café
15. Show my daughter how good forgiveness feels. Teach her to forgive and have empathy instead of ill will towards those that may have hurt her.
    C Lee, Helicopter Mom and Just Plane Dad
16. I can empathize with someone who is dealing with a situation that isn’t familiar to me in a way I may not understand.  Angela, Writer Mom’s Blog
    
17. Read to my kids many wonderful books full of love, compassion, diversity, and kindness.
    IRL Friend Maria F.
18. Remember this quote by Ralph Waldo Emerson: “What you DO speaks so loudly that I cannot hear what you say.”
    Lisa, The Golden Spoons
19. I can step back and appreciate the opportunity I have to be a stay at home parent, which is easy to forget during the day-to-day challenges.
    John, Smack of Ham
20. Go to a shelter and adopt an animal – cat, dog, bunny or even a rat or hamster that would otherwise be destroyed without ever knowing the empathy of human beings…
    Kate D, IRL Friend
    
21. Remember that others might be having a “terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day.” Not just me.
    Blog about a busy family with special needs.
    Gabrielle, Whac-a-Mole-Life
22. “Caution yourself before passing any judgment and get educated on the topic before you speak…”
    Mike and Phoenix, Past My Curfew
23. Have perspective and empathy. Period.  Beth, Writer B is Me
24. Stop working and spend time talking to my family.  Piper, Talk About Cheesecake
25. I can practice patience with those who do not seem to deserve it on the surface. I do not know what they are dealing with in their hearts.
    Erin, Musings by Mama
    
    
26. I fill the world with wonder every time I leave the house.   Don, Don of All Trades
27. I will remember that it’s easier to be negative than positive and choose to act cheerful towards loved ones and strangers.
    Jean, Mama Schmama
    
28. What I’m about to say is kind of banal, but what’s really helps me is putting myself in other people’s shoes, be it my kids or anyone else. When I get frustrated with things not going my way, the way they’re “supposed to” I ask myself what is the other person driven by. What is their motive and it’s almost never malicious. Being reminded why they behave the way they do makes me feel a lot more empathetic.
    Katia, I Am The Milk
29. As the mom with a kid who has Sensory Processing Disorder I try and remind myself that even though he seems completely typical, he is not. And when he is yelling, there is something I am not seeing that is setting him off. And then I try to project that outwards. To not judge the mom with the child who seems out of control, because we can’t possibly know what is going on inside that child’s mind and within that home.
    Jen, Jennifer Kehl
    
30. Act like the person you wish to be.
    Me, although I think there’s a real quote out there that I couldn’t find

So what do you think? If every one of us did one of these suggestions each and every day, don’t you think the world will be more full of empathy? And do you have other suggestions for raising empathy?