ways in which I make the world more beautiful

yes, yes! it’s a wonderful list of things that I’ve done that I think are making a difference. With no guilt, ego, or negativity associated.

1. stopped eating meat
2. appreciate immensely public transportation, even if I fail to use it now
3. read books and watch movies and write poems and listen to songs about hope
4. read books and watch movies and write poems and listen to songs about desperation
5. donate to intl development and AIDS prevention in tandem with consumer purchases
6. refuse to accept the rationale that we are meant to succeed and they aren’t
7. refuse to accept the tyranny of the majority (my phrase of today, repeated three times) is always correct
8. an undying devotion to the betterment of our world.
9. an undying devotion to the improvement of every system, every panel, every poem, every story, every painting, every moment we waste away in front of american idol or don newman’s politics
10. relentless analyzation of all that is
11. a hope for positive outcomes, because while it’s not needed to fulfill this voyage, we certainly enjoy heartfelt melodies rather than somber trampling through life.
12. a recognition that all is not here, inside me, to allow the cures, but all may be out there, in each of us
13. the strength to wake up each morning, acknowledge the prior day’s defeats, and carry on
14. an new-found ability to see things beyond the pale, beyond the black, beyond the white
15. a love for discovery and understanding and heartbreaking moments of honesty
16. a friendship in so many with so much to offer myself for personal development and inspiration
17. a devotion to ending fear, ignorance, hostility and flagrant abuse of all that are human rights.

Are these enough? Certainly not. but for tonight, to shut this book down and to launch myself into tomorrow, I feel I’ve defended my own 23-year-old accomplishments enough to satisfy my guilt trip, ease my emotional reaction to poverty and build up courage to rage tomorrow.

Ah, they rule me out as an idealist, one who just hasn’t quite gotten it yet. but secretly, I know, they revere how determined I am.