Tonight my internet wasn’t working properly. Sometimes it does that. It’s amazing how much we’ve come to rely on wireless internet in our homes when a few years ago the idea of it seemed far fetched. We were so accustomed to being tethered to our telephone lines if we wanted to go online that the dream of walking around the house checking our e-mails on our laptops was a far off fantasy. I’m grateful to have a system in my house that allows me to do just that–surf the internet, check my e-mail, video chat, etc. from any room in my house, including the bathroom if I were extreme enough to use my computer in there. So when it acts up I can afford to be a bit more patient when I think about what a luxury it is to have wireless internet.
It occurred to me as I trotted downstairs to reset my router how very fortunate many of us are. I was watching something about the Occupy Wall Street folks and I got to thinking about what it means to be one of the 99%–not one of the 1% of Americans who own a big chunk of the nation’s wealth. Even though I’m in the 99% here in America, I am in the 1% for much of the rest of the world. And while I don’t want to downplay the frustration that many of us have about all the perks that seemed to be aimed at keeping the rich richer and the rest of us in whatever economic categories we happen to fall into, it does give me pause when I think about how very well off I am when taken outside of the US context and expanded globally. I am definitely having my share of financial struggles, but I am blessed beyond measure when compared to folks right here in the Bay area, across the country and certainly around the globe. I am grateful for the combination of circumstances, opportunities, and hard work that have brought me to a place of relative abundance and ease. I am still unemployed, under-insured in terms of health insurance, and like a lot of people I usually have more month than money. But I am still blessed.
Today we served people non-stop at the Berkeley Food Pantry. At one point we had so many clients coming in that we couldn’t keep up with them all. We kept running out of our prepared bags and had to scramble to put more together. It was unusually busy today–busier than I’ve seen it in the months since I first started volunteering there. More and more Berkeley area people are needing food and the resources of the pantry are stretched to the limit. Some of us in the 99% have more access basic resources–food, shelter, warm clothing–than others. And while for some people their place is gathering with members of the “Occupy” movement across the country, protesting and standing up for economic justice for all, for others of us, our place is working in the food pantries or other agencies and organizations providing direct services for people needing assistance. Still others find themselves in the political arena trying to make changes from within the system. It takes all of us operating from our places of power and passion working together to begin to effect change.
I’ve never considered myself a particularly political person–I do my work for change in fairly quiet ways. I am grateful to have taken the opportunity to serve people by working at the food pantry for these last few months. It gives me perspective on the world around me and gets me thinking well beyond my own woes. As I continue to learn and grow through the things I’ve taken on in the past six months, I continue asking the Universe to create opportunities for me to make positive contributions in the lives of people around me. I may be in the 99% according to some folks’ reckoning, but that doesn’t prevent me from giving 100% of myself–my time, creativity, and energy–in service to others. I look forward to seeing how this all plays out in the days and weeks ahead. It’s going to be good.
© M. T. Chamblee, 2011
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