Saturday, November 1, 2008

The Changing by One Man

Yesterday I heard a rhetorical question that I am sure has been asked around the country as we approach Election Day. "How can one man really change things, anyway?" The cynical, apathetic side of me agrees. But then I think of a video that is on YouTube. 

It talks about the greatest people in history and the changes they made in society that changes our world. Each of these people were taunted, told they couldn't do what they want to do. The video shows Michael Jordan, Thomas Edison, Walt Disney, Lincoln and Lucille Ball as several examples of people who were told to give up. They were told that they were stupid or couldn't achieve. Lincoln ran for senate EIGHT times before he actually won. 

Then I come back to the question, "How can any one person change anything?" Ask that to Alexander Graham Bell, without whom we would not have phones, cell phones, text messaging, etc. Ask that to Einstien, who revolutionized physics as the world knew it. Ask that to any of the people who have changed our world forever, and although I doubt they realized the impact they were making, I doubt they let the voices of the cynics rule their thoughts and actions. To be sure, there were those who were trying to do the same thing, and so they were not the very first ones to do it (Walt Disney was not the first animator to put sound to his films). They were just the first ones to stand up to the opposition and spoke up louder than the others. Their message was the clearest and the most meaningful to the most people.

Yes, one person can make a difference. Yes, one person can change things. The changes are often not seen for years, if not decades, but yes, one person can change the world. They are the ones who fight and don't listen to all of the naysayers. They are the ones who believe in themselves, even when no one else believes in them. 


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