essay

It turned out that I was wrong on both accounts: being completely egocentric was neither simple nor satisfying. Although I had believed that keeping my mind focused solely on my own well-being would garner greater rewards, something always pushed me towards caring about other people. When others asked me favors, my first instinct was to oblige them. I found myself drawn towards volunteering to help people that I didn’t have any direct connection with. I developed an authentic interest in looking at the problems of our world and wanting to be a part of the solution. I realized that my intrinsic nature led me to care about others around me, even though no greater power was forcing me to.

Once I understood this, I recognized that this fundamental drive to improve humankind’s condition was greater than myself. It is this force that has created so many of the great things that we get to enjoy today. Our world could not have been built to where it is now if our most deep-seated desire was to only help ourselves and carelessly leave others to fend for themselves. I know now that human beings have accomplished so many incredible things because we are able to rely on each other to show compassion and push towards a common good. We do this not because any higher power demands it; rather, we do it because it is at the core of what makes us human.

I often still find myself debating in my mind between the path of the egocentric or the altruistic, but this innermost belief that we all must care about one another always pushes me towards compassion. It is this principle that I hope will guide me through the rest of my life. I believe that as humans, our fate is up to us. Each one of us has the power to work towards improving our world through solicitous actions or destroying it with self-serving goals. I believe that there is no god watching over humanity to ensure that all goes well. The only one looking out for us is each other, and I like to believe that we’re in good hands.