You Will Be Met
Jan. 9th, 2026 02:03 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
thatsjustjennaMaking the world a better place is not for the faint of heart.
It is not for loud people, or people who expect to be respected from the outset. Making the world a better place is not for impatient people, or for people who always have somewhere to be. It is not for instant gratification or dopamine hits or adrenaline rushes.
Growth is slow. Change is a trickster god beholden to no one and no thing.
Destruction, plight, greed- these things are all blink-and-you-miss-it lightning fast. They take no time at all.
One wrong move can tear the muscle you spent years strengthening.
I once knew a man who broke his back after a sneeze. He laid in his driveway motionless for two hours before anyone noticed.
So keep in mind- if you are someone who has set it upon themselves to try and leave this world a little bit better than you found it- it is slow, monotonous, thankless and tiring work.
But my god. Is it worth it.
You will always be the tortoise to the hare. You will have to move silently, often in the shadows of the noisemakers, stealthily so stealthily- like a thief in the night. A thief that leaves you the keys to the cell you have found yourself in by chance or circumstance.
You will have to be alright with being called 'redundant'. Repeating your solemn oath like a mantra until people finally understand the shape of the words your mouth has been making for centuries.
You can lead a horse to water but you can't make it drink. But you can splash it in the face until it gets the message.
My dad likes to say, "You can lead a horse to water but you just can't drown the sumbitch."
You have to wear them down with unwavering gentleness. No bully can stand up to silent confidence.
It will feel sudden, like it happened overnight, even though you know it took much longer than that. But finally, they will be on your side. They will see what you have seen; feel what you have felt; and know what you have known. You will be behind them, ushering them one aching foot step in front of the other, across the finish line. They will cheer and jump for joy and think they did it all themselves. You will get no recognition from them.
But you will also not need it. You will have it from the daffodils and orchids, from the bees that come to kiss your hand every summer under the apple tree. From the children who run toward you even if it has been long since they've seen your face or smelled your calming scent. You will get it from the animals- the cats who extend their chins for scritches, the horses that come to you at the fence without being called, the dog who wags his tail at the sound of your car pulling into the drive.
You will want to be met with love and understanding and recognition. And when the time is right, and only then, you will be met.
The small man
Builds cages for everyone
He
Knows.
While the sage,
Who has to duck his head
When the moon is low,
Keeps dropping keys all night long
For the
Beautiful
Rowdy
Prisoners.
-- Hafiz
It is not for loud people, or people who expect to be respected from the outset. Making the world a better place is not for impatient people, or for people who always have somewhere to be. It is not for instant gratification or dopamine hits or adrenaline rushes.
Growth is slow. Change is a trickster god beholden to no one and no thing.
Destruction, plight, greed- these things are all blink-and-you-miss-it lightning fast. They take no time at all.
One wrong move can tear the muscle you spent years strengthening.
I once knew a man who broke his back after a sneeze. He laid in his driveway motionless for two hours before anyone noticed.
So keep in mind- if you are someone who has set it upon themselves to try and leave this world a little bit better than you found it- it is slow, monotonous, thankless and tiring work.
But my god. Is it worth it.
You will always be the tortoise to the hare. You will have to move silently, often in the shadows of the noisemakers, stealthily so stealthily- like a thief in the night. A thief that leaves you the keys to the cell you have found yourself in by chance or circumstance.
You will have to be alright with being called 'redundant'. Repeating your solemn oath like a mantra until people finally understand the shape of the words your mouth has been making for centuries.
You can lead a horse to water but you can't make it drink. But you can splash it in the face until it gets the message.
My dad likes to say, "You can lead a horse to water but you just can't drown the sumbitch."
You have to wear them down with unwavering gentleness. No bully can stand up to silent confidence.
It will feel sudden, like it happened overnight, even though you know it took much longer than that. But finally, they will be on your side. They will see what you have seen; feel what you have felt; and know what you have known. You will be behind them, ushering them one aching foot step in front of the other, across the finish line. They will cheer and jump for joy and think they did it all themselves. You will get no recognition from them.
But you will also not need it. You will have it from the daffodils and orchids, from the bees that come to kiss your hand every summer under the apple tree. From the children who run toward you even if it has been long since they've seen your face or smelled your calming scent. You will get it from the animals- the cats who extend their chins for scritches, the horses that come to you at the fence without being called, the dog who wags his tail at the sound of your car pulling into the drive.
You will want to be met with love and understanding and recognition. And when the time is right, and only then, you will be met.
The small man
Builds cages for everyone
He
Knows.
While the sage,
Who has to duck his head
When the moon is low,
Keeps dropping keys all night long
For the
Beautiful
Rowdy
Prisoners.
-- Hafiz