Gil Gildner

I’ve got an observation that probably applies to our psyche in some manner or the other, and most definitely applies to our morals. I tend to jaw on about idealism a lot (it’s my theme song, bear with me!) and I think it has to do with idealism as well.

Freshman year of college, I knew a girl. The politest way to describe her would be to say she was naive. The most accurate would be to say she was pretty straight up ignorant. Anyway, she got it into her mind that students were being very rude and inciting and bitter. Aw, that’s sweet, you might say. She didn’t think it was sweet. She thought it was a major issue, and she set up an appointment with the president and then asked him if he could help make the students nicer. Straight up, I lie not. I wish I could have heard his response.

I don’t think you can just change things.

We like to think that we can change the world. And by that I mean change the world. There’s a difference between wreaking an influence and actual change. The word change means metamorphosis: it’s a total three hundred sixty. It’s making something different than it is. It’s magic.

Idealism says that we can change the world, whether it’s removing tyranny or whether it’s eliminating poverty or whether it’s solving world hunger or whether it’s making others be nice to you. The fact remains, I think, that this is just the way it is in a fallen world.

I see three options of handling hard facts. First, we could ignore it and retreat into an ideological enclave in which there is no pain, roadkill or meth. This is escapism: a retreat into a perfect but incredibly unrealistic world. Second, we could acknowledge it, and determine to change it all and go down into the history books as those who changed the world. This is idealism: inflated self-worth. Third, we can acknowledge hard facts and realize that ultimately we can only hope for the best and work within our limited immediate sphere of influence to make things work out as best as possible. This isn’t fatalism, and it’s not surrender. I think it’s merely practical and realistic.

Change only happens through something that far transcends us. I don’t think any man deliberately set out to change the world and actually succeeded. Things like that just happen. We’re not in control.

It boils down to two words, I think. Most things in life do. Forget manners and customs and tradition and laws.

Just be good. That’s all we can do.

Be good.

This entry was posted on Monday, August 8th, 2011 at 10:50pm and is filed under Essays. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.