open to discussion

Posted by Ligi Kosuong on October 11, 2002 at 16:16:27:

"ask what u can do for the community and NOT what the community can do for u"

a very thoughtful phrase which we all should apply in our daily lives.....but it is also a very open topic for discussion....to be honest how many of us really contribute to the community without actually hoping for something in return for ourselves....either directly or indirectly? look deep into our hearts n minds.....honestly what is the answer?

for example if the bidayuh community in miri wants to organise an annual charity dinner to raise fund, are we (in kuching or elsewhere) willing to contribute without having much thoughts like "whats in it for me?" or "hey i don't live there! what for?"

another example.....if we contribute to the church community to build a new church, then we expect the church community to manage the fund properly and build us a church with the money!

ok here is another very good example....DBNA (which is a legal entity and also a community by itself)......now how many of us join DBNA without asking ourselves first what DBNA can do for us and the bidayuh community as a whole? i for one wants DBNA to look after the welfare of the bidayuh people in all aspects such as education, social and economy, to lead us all in this new millenium and prepare for globalisation, IT etc! (the bidayuh community includes me, thus indirectly i gain something for my contribution to DBNA). most bidayuh i met said "what for joining DBNA?" or "why should i join?", well then if the above phrase is what we all should follow then how many of us jabbers are members of DBNA?

call me selfish or narrow minded but how many of us actually just give or do something for our community without expecting something in return? some people say they don't expect something in return.......they just feel good doing it.......well isn't that "good feeling" a reward for their contribution? some may argue it is just a "feeling" - not physical and as such is not a good arguement but will we do something if we know that at the end of the day we will feel bad about it? well don't get me wrong, cos i really admire these people who contribute and expect nothing in return except for the good feeling...... so in this imperfect world while we can't really follow the above phrase religiously, why not just expect something lesser in return like the "good feeling" which (come to think of it) is actually more rewarding cos good deeds will not go unnotice to the Father who will reward us when the time comes, well just don't contribute bad things to the community! such as allowing mini casinos to thrive at kampung shops and expose the young ones to such wasteful activities (hey they are suppose to be studying!).....for those adults who can't get rid of that habit, why not ask permission to open a casino on bung bratak or some other mountain top and rival Genting, perhaps in the long run when it is successful then they can contribute back to the community, provide jobs etc

well....... moh kowok tia tongan itih naip....mupok oku...over to other jabbers for discussion...i m open to positive criticism