“To serve means to give, to help, to do something for another”
In 1750 Alexander Fraser Tyler wrote about the Cycle of Democracy: "A democracy cannot exist as a permanent form of government. It can only exist until the voters discover they can vote themselves largesse from the public treasury. From that moment on, the majority always votes for the candidates promising them the most benefits from the public treasury, with the result that a democracy always collapses over a loose fiscal responsibility, usually followed by a dictatorship. The average of the world's great civilizations before they decline has been 200 years”.
He determined that the cycle sequence goes from: Bondage, to Spiritual/Emotional Faith, to Courage, to Liberty, to Abundance, to Selfishness, to Complacency, to Apathy and back to Bondage.
Where are we now? I would say – that despite all our technology, the amazing innovations and abundance; we are in the very heart of the cycle between complacency and bondage.
I really believe we can avoid or weaken this part of the cycle by focusing much more on the Spiritual, the Emotional part of our being.
In the world where most people are time poor, where we are too busy to stop and think about the consequences of what we are doing, what we are saying, what we are thinking and trusting others with our future – there is a light.
And the light is reverence, benevolence, compassion – the giving to others for their good and not ours. In this lies the fulfilment, the emotional force we are basically looking for, as individuals and as a society.
Making the time to volunteer - to give our time, money, wisdom and support to others – without expecting any return – is what gives us fulfilment and happiness.
Over the past 4 decades we have allowed ourselves to be swamped with technology, with the need to have more, to be more, to rely on others (especially Governments) to provide and to blame someone else for our troubles, challenges, situation and the perpetual assault on our social order.
We are stretched, stressed and cynical about our lifestyle, our society (of which each of us is a part) our leaders and our leadership. We can be so focused on success that we ignore and become complacent and apathetic about the real issues – friendship, support, time to share and to care.
To volunteer - ignites The Noble qualities of Reverence, Benevolence and Compassion - the most powerful forces to rebuild and refocus our community and our society.
Mario Calanna.
CEO Calanna Pharmacies
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