“WE are the people you ask, because WE are the people that can do it”
“We are the movers and the shakers”
I myself am guilty of ‘later’ or ‘never’ – you know, those tasks/ideas that float in the back of your head for months or years (or even just those house chores!) that you keep telling yourself you’ll do tomorrow or the next day and just… well, they never happen.
Perhaps I am the only culprit of this dreadful habit, but somehow I doubt it. Fortunately for me, I was brought up within a family where no effort is too much. Nothing is too hard for my folks. Don’t get me wrong, my parents aren’t those wishy-washy people (no offense intended) who wish for world peace and prosperity and donate money here there and everywhere (to organisations that use the donations to buy those 4 wheel drives you see driving along with the foundation’s logo on the side).
No, my folks are those people that donate their time and effort to people and organisations in the community. They are the type of people that, if everyone was like them, the world would be a better place. And I’m not just saying that because I’m their daughter. Even though they are not formal members of the CFA (Country Fire Authority) or any other such organisation (my parents have a distinctive lack of tolerance where bureaucracy is concerned), they are still active members of the community. My father is known to help people right their upside down yachts while we’re on holiday, or go around an entire campsite warning our neighbours of an incoming bushfire a friend just warned us about. My family have been supporters of our local schools, helping to build volleyball courts and attending all of my school concerts. They have been supportive parents who consider their efforts in raising my brother and I to be the most important thing in their lives, and they believe it is also a duty to society to produce well-bred, well-mannered children, who will hopefully go on to be responsible adults.
Recently, in a fit of impatience with people who keep asking my parents to fix things for them and help them out, my mother gave me a lecture. The quotes that stuck in my mind are the ones at the beginning of this post:
“WE are the people you ask, because WE are the people that can do it”
“We are the movers and the shakers”
My mother compared our family to some other families in our locale and pointed out that not many of them are as productive as us. She said that this is why we are always so busy. Not many people can get out of bed every morning with the frame of mind that it is not the world that owes you something, but rather, that you owe the world something. My parents are rare people, and I hope they have imparted some of their passion for life to their daughter.
We are the movers and the shakers not because we have more money or more energy than anyone else, but simply because of our frame of mind. In terms of capability, there are thousands of people that have the potential to do a better job, quicker, and cheaper than my family ever could – but they don’t. And that’s what sets people apart, in my opinion anyway.
Thanks Mum. Thanks Dad.
Pollywaffle
Whys & Wherefores 