HopeFul Reflections

As a doctor and engineer, I’ve noticed something quite interesting about this world. While we’ve made fantastic progress in terms of technology and medicine, we’re missing something very important. Consider this – we have solutions for creating structures, institutions, and ideas, but what are we making them for? What wakes us up every day? What drives our ability to use what people 200 years ago would have called almost unimaginable powers? We have A.I. at our fingertips. We can buy almost anything with Amazon. We have access to almost any knowledge we desire with the internet, but why should we?

Despite our amazing advancements, we are more separate. Of course, the world is improving by many metrics, but I think many innovations have caused us to feel justified in not knowing our neighbors. How many of you regularly speak to your neighbors? I don’t mean simply watching their stories on Instagram. I mean, how many of you have asked them how they are today? What happened over the weekend? We have the ability to connect with people, yet we only connect with those thousands of miles away or celebrities on screens, but never the people in our own towns.

The technology in our hands should motivate us to help others, feel connected, and stand up for each other. Sometimes we really do, and it’s beautiful – like when we start GoFundMe pages for those in need or spread awareness about important issues. However, I’d argue it’s not enough. While we are well-trained in studying scientific advancements, we are not as thoroughly advanced in studying humanity. How many of us feel well-equipped to handle grief and comfort loved ones? How many of us feel ready to teach children to be better than ourselves? How many of us can not only admit our flaws but describe them with brutal yet kind honesty?

In recent years, I used technology to connect with my friend. I spent time with them all the time using my phone. However, when they lost a parent and I was the only one there to console them, I felt lost. I felt useless and terrible that I didn’t know how to be there for them. Now I journal and blog to reflect, hopefully learning what I needed to be in that moment.

I read books about others’ personal journeys to glean what I can from their lives so I can improve. I take notes about what worked for others I think know better than me about this life, so I can know more than myself. I try to actually feel my experiences rather than simply being there. I expose myself to difficult situations so I can learn.

Part of this self-improvement blog is meant to cover the portions of my journey focused on learning to be human – a hard thing to do well. I want to know how to be there for people. I want to hear from readers and learn what’s important to them. I want to learn from others.

Please pray for me while I pray for you.

-JG