Two of my favorite mantras are “be the change you want to see if the world” and “practice cautious optimism.” Each time I think of these mantras, in the context of what I want to do in my life, I am filled with the desire to do great things. I want to create change in voting rights or environmental activism that will positively impact many people. I want to work in the federal level of politics, helping to elect politicians that help America the way I believe it needs to be helped. I want to do big things but I forget the ways that these mantras can be applied on a smaller scale.

I think that I am worried that scaling down will not make the impact that I hope to make. However, the “Impossible” reading was really inspirational on this aspect, especially the Danusha Veronica Goska chapter. She made me remember that people can make an impact at every level of life because connecting and helping individuals directly can be so much more impactful than trying to make widespread change. While others may perceive you as more virtuous when you have a larger role in an organization, that is not the point in the mantras that pointed out earlier. Working with people directly can make the change that I want to see in the world.