The 100 yard walk
The little boy got up, and he and the rest of the runners linked their arms together and joyfully walked to the finish line. They all finished the race at the same time.”
I know were I in the stands (and I imagine you reading this) would have joyfully joined everyone as they “stood up and clapped and whistled and cheered for a long, long time.” And you will not be surprised to learn of Rogers’s message: “What really matters is helping others win, too, even if it means slowing down and changing our course now and then.”
In these troubled times, you may feel an urgency to find ways to bring people together, but you know that many will not listen. They may see themselves in competition, insisting their politics ‘win.’ You can acknowledge their point of view and at the same time (it may take courage) to invite them to build community where everyone values and supports one another.
Learning to cooperate builds trust, respect, and belonging. We may not be willing to “link arms” with each other, but we can come to see ourselves as human beings worthy of one another. We will be giving each other a gift.
