Use: the action of using something or the state of being used for some purpose.
Welcome to day “U” of Soul Blossoming A to z
Today, I write about “to be of use” as the A to Z blogging challenge continues.
In the words of George Bernard Shaw:
“This is the true joy in life, the being used for a purpose recognized by yourself as a mighty one; the being thoroughly worn out before you are thrown on the scrap heap; the being a force of Nature instead of a feverish selfish little clod of ailments and grievances complaining that the world will not devote itself to making you happy.
I am of the opinion that my life belongs to the community, and as long as I live, it is my privilege to do for it whatever I can. I want to be thoroughly used up when I die, for the harder I work, the more I live. Life is no ‘brief candle’ to me. It ia a sort of splendid torch which I have got hold of for a moment, and I want to make it burn as brightly as possible before handing it on to the future generations.” ~ George Bernard Shaw
George Bernard Shaw
That’s what I want–Thanks, George! We all have a limited time to blossom–and I would consider blossoming as a useful activity, after all, it brings beauty and inspiration to the world. I love this quote!
Marge Piercy wrote a wonderful poem, “To Be of Use”
And here’s more inspiration. You can hear Marge reading the poem herself (the poem starts at around 1 minute in–the first minute shows a useful someone preparing the stage.
And here are the first and last stanzas from the poem. You can read the whole poem here.
The people I love the best
jump into work head first
without dallying in the shallows
and swim off with sure strokes almost out of sight.
They seem to become natives of that element,
the black sleek heads of seals
bouncing like half-submerged balls.
….
The work of the world is common as mud.
Botched, it smears the hands, crumbles to dust.
But the thing worth doing well done
has a shape that satisfies, clean and evident.
Greek amphoras for wine or oil,
Hopi vases that held corn, are put in museums
but you know they were made to be used.
The pitcher cries for water to carry
and a person for work that is real.
The usefulness of small acts of kindness
I love that line “the work of the world is common as mud…but the thing worth doing well done has a shape that satisfies, clean and evident.” It makes me think of the satisfaction of small things well done. It makes me think of taking one small step. Comforting a crying child or friend, making someone laugh, making chicken soup–we can consider these all common things to do, but they make a world of difference, especially when you add them all up.
How do you make yourself useful? What brings you comfort and joy. One of my co-teachers squeezed my foot (I was sitting on the floor with a squirmy child who was trying to settle down for a nap) before she left the room today and it made me feel cared for–such a simple little gesture really touched me. And reminded me that we don’t really know what little gestures will make a difference for someone.
I hope these thoughts are of use to you.
And I thank you for stopping by. Hope you come back soon. xoxo
What a lovely post. Both Shaw and Oliver really speak to me, and I find their positions inspiring. I really like the idea of idea of living life as the everyday sacred and those small acts of kindness make it seem like everything is really okay to me. I really do believe that there is so much we do that we have no clue about how it affects others, and that it’s our responsibility to live as authentically as we possibly can. That to me feels most useful – otherwise if what we offer is distorted, it is received in distortion and passed on in distortion and eventually there is a huge wave of dissonance.
Great gratitude for all those passing on those little gestures of loving-kindness, like that foot squeeze you received. Everyday sacred.
What a lovely post. Both Shaw and Oliver really speak to me, and I find their positions inspiring. I really like the idea of idea of living life as the everyday sacred and those small acts of kindness make it seem like everything is really okay to me. I really do believe that there is so much we do that we have no clue about how it affects others, and that it’s our responsibility to live as authentically as we possibly can. That to me feels most useful – otherwise if what we offer is distorted, it is received in distortion and passed on in distortion and eventually there is a huge wave of dissonance.
Great gratitude for all those passing on those little gestures of loving-kindness, like that foot squeeze you received. Everyday sacred.
Thanks! I agree with what you said so beautifully here. The holiness of small gestures!