Changing the world.

I used to want to change the world. I was naive of course but still it’s true. When I was a teenager I told people this when they asked what I wanted to do. I didn’t know how I would achieve this but I knew that it would be spectacular.

When I did my leaving certificate didn’t get my first choice, Psychology, in the first round offer. Instead I got offered a degree in Communications. However on the third round of offers I finally got offered Psychology. This gave me one of those “forks in the road” moments in my life. I received the offer on a Friday and could start whichever course I choose on the following Monday. I had an interest in both. On the Sunday at mass, as I drifted in and out of paying attention trying to pin down a decision in my head one of the Prayers of the Faithful read as follows; “We pray for those who help others out of the darkness”. My light bulb moment. I enrolled in Psychology on the Monday morning.

And I did. I helped people who were walking dark paths. I made changes in their lives. I did a post-grad in Education. I taught children to write and read. I played with them and sang with them. I impacted on their life-long learning. I brought two children into the world and my lives and those of my family are immeasurably changed because of them, for the better. I have seen sides of my siblings that I have never seen before, they adore them and spend hours playing with them. They brighten up our home and the homes of our families. They will continue to brighten peoples lives as they grow.

We all help to brighten the world. We all help other people out of the darkness. We are all changing the world, every day that we are in it, and some amazing souls change it even after they have left. Do not underestimate your impact on the world, look around you and at all the lives that yours has touched. I am changing the world. It’s not in the dramatic sense that I once thought I would. I haven’t cured cancer or ended hunger, but I will continue to change the world, one day at a time.