One too many…

I have a friend who wants to change ‘the’ world. I have asked him to change ‘his’ world for starters. Many of us strive for change, and feel a need to initiate it, especially as youngsters. With time, and as practical realities dawn upon us, we often become cynical and soon a sense of apathy takes over. Walking a tightrope every single moment of our adult lives, we seldom have the privilege to extend our sights beyond our own narrow personal domain. While a majority of us settle down to languid domesticity, a rare few manage to rise above all, to initiate and spearhead change that each generation experiences in some form or the other.

I feel lucky in many ways to have witnessed many changes that others fail to see in eons: from the fall of the Berlin wall to the break up of the Soviet Union, the changing of the millennium to the very recent change of guard in Nepal. I have seen more than a normal share of change, but I am still to see my kind of it. I understand when my friend gets frustrated at the pace of change, and the way the masses do not react, as he would have liked them to. He wants to change the world, but he often feels helpless and lonely when faced with the reality of things.

My friend wants to change the world, and he wants the world to change with him. There are the rare few who successfully move the masses, but just how many manage to reach such a position? Does change always come in groups? Does ‘one’ really make a difference? I have discussed in length with many people about this, but have failed to come up with any concrete answers.

A few months back on a trip to Bangkok, I refused to have shark fin soup. I felt it a very harmful indulgence, and though a few detractors scoffed at my stance, I was able to wean the other members of my family away from the delicacy. One person staying away from shark fin soup will do no good for the world shark population, but if every person who says ‘no’ to it convinces at least one other person to do so, it will definitely make an impact.

Change does require the masses, but it starts with one. We can wait for change to come: an end to poaching, an end to CFCs, an end to discrimination, and end to… Or we can start with one.