Look at your body. Every part, every organ, every cell has a specific function that benefits the whole. Divided, your body parts are useless, but together they form a complex machine. When a body part is unable to either complete its designated task or work harmoniously with the other parts, however, its incompetency is labeled as an illness. Our physical illnesses, whether genetic or acquired, may only start out in one portion of the body but in the end affect it in its entirety.
The common cold, for example, may start with a runny nose. Eventually you’ll acquire a headache and a cough…maybe you’ll get a fever. Your sickness, however, is not located only in the head, but it begins to drain your energy and affects your entire body. This one little cold takes a huge toll on your physical machine. You are tired; you are stressed; you are short-tempered. This little cold actually comes with large side effects.
Now imagine what a legitimate disease could do to you. Multiple sclerosis, for example, is a condition where the body's immune system attacks the body itself, specifically the nerves. Multiple sclerosis, or MS, can cause overwhelming fatigue, visual disturbances, and an inability to move. Obviously when one contracts MS, the entire body is put into danger, facing paralysis and possibly death.
These illnesses that can be found within our own bodies (maybe not MS, but we’ve all had a cold) perfectly illustrate the machine-like nature of the human species. A hand without an arm is as useless as a person without a neighbor. We have to work together. We have to collaborate. We have to realize that not everyone is the same, and if everyone were a hand, then we would not be able to see anything, walk anywhere, or taste anything. We all are different, but it is our ability to unite and create a harmonious machine that creates and fosters a true sense of humanity and sameness.
If someone fails to act in the way that they specifically are supposed to act, then the entire human species is affected. What might start out as a dirty habit or a harmless deed quickly opens the door for other illnesses to infiltrate human life. As people continue to act unjustly, to show no mercy to their brothers or sisters, to flat out perform acts of inhumanity…we begin to attack ourselves. We go to war, fighting against those who are supposed to help us. We go to war against our own human machine.
Currently, there are no known cures for the common cold, MS, or hate. Our world is plagued with injustice and inhumanity, and if we do not take a stand against it, then it will only continue to get worse. When you’re sick, you take every action you can to ensure a quick recovery. Why don’t we do the same when it comes to hate? When we see people, when we are the people who are putting our own selfish needs before others, why don’t we stop and put someone else first? There's no set formula for being a decent person; there’s no pill that anyone can take which will expel wickedness from one's life. We have to constantly work to help ourselves and help those around us get better. Tend to the sick! Tend to those who hate you.
