The absence of active citizenship. I think I am brought up in a society where self-centeredness is increasingly embraced. We care a lot about how we can improve our lives individually, and think little about how we can progress as a community and society. We disconnect because we value self-development more than collective growth. Apart from family violence and abuse, in recent history, divorce is commonplace to our society because it is the easy way out. To exercise active citizenship to me is to play the role of a good human being; to see that everything we do has a consequence. Persevering in all that we do, whether it is the relationships we have, taking care of the earth, being kind to animals and other creatures we co-exist with, fighting for a good cause etc. We should all learn to be more selfless. After all, the world did not exist for just one of us.
When I was young (in upper primary), my birthday wishes were similar. It was to have many friends. That could be due to the fact that I am an only child and may feel lonely at times. Thanks to my best friends (you know who you are), I seldom feel lonely. I can easily identify who my best friends are. They are people I would ask for opinions on important decisions I have to make, meet relatively regularly (at least bimonthly, quarterly) for chit-chat and my life would have been very different without them. According to Robin Dunbar , in order to maintain stable social relationships where an individual knows who each person is, and how each person relates to every other person. Friends are essentially different from acquaintances. Acquaintances are typically: #1. People whom you may have only met a few times at an event/function; #2. Classmates/schoolmates/coursemates you have encountered casually; #...
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