The Costs of Silence

I think the quote is very true, and something we will definitely be learning about in this class. As Loeb mentions, we can all choose our own actions. We can either choose to help enrich our community to make it a better place, or we can sit back and watch our community fall apart. Not taking a stance does not necessarily mean that you are a bad person, just that you have not discovered how to make a difference. So while shrinking away from the world may cause our souls to shrink, it is not an irreparable damage. Like Virginia, we too can make a difference in our community, even if we do not know where to start. We just need to look inside ourselves and see what it is we think we can do. This can be a difficult thing to achieve, because many service tasks seem daunting when being faced alone. However, like athletes, we must challenge our souls and go outside of our comfort zones in order to truly make a difference in our world, and in ourselves. However, also like an athlete, we are not alone. We have teams in many different places where we can look for support. Whether it be our family, our friends, or our newly acquired SLICE teams, support is never far away, as long as we are willing to accept it. Like Loeb mentions "You get alot back when you're with a good group of people taking a stand on something that matters." Fortunately for us, we all have teams that we will be embarking on a journey with together. Once we complete our services, we will all have a better understanding of not only what it takes to help our community, but a better sense of who it is we are. This helps to emphasize the statement that Loeb made, "none of our lives are entirely our own making." We are all going through this together, and are going to help each other shape the people we will ultimately become. So while our souls may have shrunken earlier in our lives because we "shrunk" away, we can still restore our souls by making a difference in the community. If we can leave this world feeling that we made a difference, no matter how big or small it may actually be, then our souls will be fine.

There are plenty of times when staying silent can be beneficial. The main reason that comes to my mind personally, is when you are not 100% clear on the facts. I know that I feel much better sitting back and listening about a hot topic that I am not well educated on, as opposed to speaking my mind on the subject. The reason for this is because I do not want to sound ignorant on topics I don't know about. I think that listening is an important skill that we must all have. We must be willing to listen to what others have to say, in order to educate ourselves, then we can speak our minds. I think speaking out is important. If Muhammad Ali had not spoken out about his feelings for the war, then he would have had to live with the fact that he took a part in something he did not believe in. Like Loeb says, silence has some repercussions.