by Sneha

There comes a time in our lives, whether it is a catastrophic event or just a hurdle you can’t seem to jump, which forces you to re-evaluate. I have hit that point in my life. Was it a treasured friendship that fell apart, feeling stuck in a particular profession, the sudden loss of a loved one, or maybe just a delayed realization that forces you to stop and ask: what are you doing and why? Is life just passing by? It really doesn’t matter how I came here, but I’ve finally accepted the fact that my life is not just about me; what I do and say has had and continues to have a rippling effect that I had happily but selfishly ignored until now.

So it got me thinking about my life and my recent choices, and then I spiraled into what I like to call an intense psychological and emotional peer evaluation about the human race. Regardless of who you are, where you come from and who you pray to, I truly believe we are all connected. Some say it’s a connection based on energy, others may say a powerful spirit, or maybe it’s a religious force (say reincarnation, we’ll discuss at another time) but you can’t deny that each one of our lives affects people on a much larger scale than we think.

Obviously, what we do affect those in our day to day lives, such as family, friends, and colleagues. Personal and professional relationships also bring us together, but what about everyone and everything else in our lives. The strangers you see, the random casual interactions that we immediately dismiss or that good looking stranger who flashed you the perfect smile making you giddy all day.

We are a huge part of nature. Sadly though, we seem to isolate ourselves, not just from each other but from our true foundation: Mother Earth. She serves as a pure and perfect example in how she is vital in our lives as we are for each other. Think about it, how we interact, the decisions we make and the sacrifices we accept have dire rippling effects. You don’t tell a joke to make yourself laugh, you don’t inconvenience yourself because it helps you and you don’t sacrifice your happiness because it makes you feel good. No. You do all these things for another. Why? Because ironically, we parallel nature: we too act as the sunshine to a sad soul, and have the ability to act as a fruit to a bitter situation and even act as a river to clean a new slate for a loved one going through rough times.

We all have a purpose and not just to our personal circle we call “our life,” but to everyone because the human race is bound by much more than just blood. We live, empower, and grow from each others’ failures, triumphs and risks. We as the human race learn, achieve and evolve; but the moment we fall apart, so does our future.

We’ve all heard of the stories where just one kind act changed a person’s entire day, view on life or even the contemplation of suicide. I realize I act and think based on first: what I want and what I need. Is it selfish or just the way we live life today? Is it acceptable? Absolutely not; so when will we seriously take into account those ripples and who and where they reach before it’s too late?