The True Meaning of Companionship

I was so moved by this photograph by Mark Stucker, that I had to write a blog on it.  I changed the title many times.  I started with ‘Are We Doing Enough to Feed the Homeless?”  Then I changed it to “Are You Lonely in a Crowded World?”  And then I decided to call it the True Meaning of Companionship.

We recently surpassed  7 Billion people on this planet, and yet, is it possible that more people are lonelier than ever before?   Have you ever watched people speed by each other in the mall or on the street and do you notice few people make eye contact anymore.  If our total communication depends entirely on the Internet (as I sit here writing a blog), is it any wonder so many people are lonely.  I have been blessed with many wonderful friends and a great family, and I encourage everyone to take time with their friends and/or family for some real face to face time.  Talk to each other if you can.  You’ll be making memories, believe me.

And although we have surpassed 7 billion people, study after study show us that there is enough food to feed everyone on the plant.  The World Health Organization says that we produce enough food to feed everyone. World agriculture produces 17 percent more calories per person today than it did 30 years ago.  That’s approximately 2700 calories per person.    The main problem is that many people in the world do not have sufficient land to grow, or income to purchase, enough food.

Back to the photograph.  In my New Year’s blog I wrote that ‘If you want to feel rich, count all the gifts you have that money can’t buy.”   The man in this photograph probably has less money in the bank than you or I, but in so many ways he is richer than most of the people I passed in the mall this afternoon.  Embrace your friends, your family or even your pet and experience the joy of true companionship.

Thank you Mark Stucker for a photograph that I hope, in some small way, will change someone’s world.

Darlene