The Footprints Left Behind

There's no way to change some things. We can't always make things right once we've made them wrong. We can't take back the damage we've inflicted with careless words or actions or attitudes. Some damage is simply irreversible. Most of the time we navigate the world worried that our actions are more important than they are, but we also tend to downplay other actions.

We all live on the same planet, and our actions affect people we might never meet. I struggle with this more and more as I navigate a world that seems to be focused on accumulating stuff no matter the cost to other people. The people working in abysmal conditions in some factory on the other side of the world are far removed from our daily lives. What can we do about it?

 I used to hear people say "Vote with your dollars" and wonder how my little purchase could make a difference one way or the other. As I researched more, I began to see how this little thing and that little thing and this other little thing and that other little thing add up to create an effect I never intended to have on the world.

 I want to leave a footprint just like everyone else does, but I have to decide what I want that footprint to be. Do I want to leave a footprint that makes the world a better place or leaves destruction in its wake?

 I won't lie. I used to think the more I had, the better. I tried to fill the voids in my life with stuff and more stuff and more stuff. But, at some point, the stuff began to feel as empty as all those voids. The stuff smothered me in ways I didn't even recognize.

 Then I started to really pay attention to the amount of time I spent dealing with my stuff. I began to feel like that time could be better spent on things that mattered to me, on things that made a difference in the world - the same kind of difference I dreamed about making when I was younger.

 As I started making other changes in my life, I also became increasingly aware that I had a personal responsibility to improve the footprint I was leaving on the planet. Every step I take, every thing I buy, every move I make, every letter I type leaves a footprint behind for the next person to find.

 I don't want to support slave labor. I don't want to support trampling human rights. I don't want to support burning down forests. I don't to support flooding cities. I don't want to support the abuse of animals. I don't want to support the destruction of wildlife. I don't want to support poisoning the water and the air. I don't want to support pain and suffering. I don't want the things that make my life easier to contribute to atrocities around the world. I want my life to inspire and empower.

 But it takes work to not support these atrocities. It takes effort. It takes a mind shift. There are conveniences that I find it practically impossible to give up, so I make the changes where I can in my own purchases, push to support industry changes whenever I can, and encourage the government to make changes to help rather than hurt.

 While not everyone has the privilege of being in a position to make these kinds of changes, I will do my best to use what privilege I have to do what I can so that we can all live in a world that's just a little more compassionate, livable, and just. I won't be perfect at it, but I'll do the best I can.

 I just hope that the footprints I leave behind will leave the world just a little better than it was when I came into it.

T. L. Cooper is an author and poet whose work aims to empower and inspire through an exploration of the human condition. Her poems, short stories, articles, and essays have appeared online, in books, and in magazines. Her published books include a collection of short stories, Soaring Betrayal, her Silhouette Poetry Series, and a novel, All She Ever Wanted. She grew up on a farm in Tollesboro, Kentucky. She currently lives in Albany, Oregon with her husband and three cats.

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