never gives up.

No Man is an Island

No man is an island, entire of itself
Every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main
If a clod be washed away by the sea, Europe is the less, as well as if a promontory were, as well as if a manor of thy friends or of thine own were
Any man's death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind
And therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls
It tolls for thee. -John Donne

These beautiful words were brought to my mind by the realization, not for the first time, that we never stand alone in humanity no matter what we believe our place is. A very great effort would have to be made for a man to never impact a single soul in his life, in fact, I believe it is impossible. I realize that every effort I make in this life is either to make connections or break them. Our efforts can add up to the greatest realization of happiness we will ever feel, but only if we reach out to others. I truly believe that hell is being left without "root [or] branch" (Mal. 4:1). I realize over and over again that my place is to form relationships that will help me return to Heavenly Father along with my brothers and sisters. I can't work for myself, that is impossible if I am trying to do what is right as well as realize the joy that is available here on earth. There are many factors that complicate the "simple" task of caring for each other here on earth while maintaining an eternal perspective, and I know that is a significant understatement too. We cannot comprehend the pain and struggles of all mankind and sometimes we believe that others cannot understand how we feel. In my self-pity I often like to believe that no one could possibly understand my situation, that I am too special to have the same problems as another, but in reality the difficulties that we face in mortality are incredibly common. I have discovered this by listening to other people. What a concept. I don't claim to have more insight about our human condition than another person might, but I just want to express in this small way that I know we all need each other. I am glad that we do. I know that life's problems are both large and small and life's joys as well. We aren't expected to carry them on our own. We need to share them with each other both to cope and to rejoice. So often I believe this is the way that the Lord can put his arms around us while he isn't here, he has someone else do it for him. I know my place is to never give up on myself or my brothers and sisters. I have a duty and a desire to care for them, this is becoming more and more apparent to me. This is where my New Year's resolution kicks in (a couple days early)...

I have one goal this year: to serve others without judging them first. This isn't the kind of thing I can figure out in one year, but I want to make a more complete effort to reach out and stop trying to imagine anything about a person except that they are worthy of being understood and cared about.