an endeavor fueled with a passion like feeling BR#1

Passion is a widely used and rarely understood word. Passion is an emotion so overwhelming that your soul shakes with anticipation. I have not yet discovered a true passion, likely because I have not experienced nearly enough in this world through my 19 years of existence. That being said a certain social movement that I was recently introduced to strikes a cord ever so close to passion. Lovebot is something that I follow on Instagram and regularly check online. A lovebot is a concrete robot with a red heart placed in various locations to remind a population so caught up in consumerism and materialism that time must always be made for good deeds and positive thoughts. My main goal in this life is happiness, whether that be for myself or for the ones I love, and in this case the close to home community of Toronto.

Personally I have not been involved in any protests and the marches I have participated in are restricted to a jump rope for heart marathon in grade two and a 5 k run for heart and stroke that I got too tired to finish. What I do involve myself in is volunteering. Over my four years of high school I accumulated over 500 hours of community service ranging from placements at Joseph Brant Memorial Hospital to the Burlington Animal Shelter and a trip to the Dominican Republic to build a house. Although not directly, my volunteering is a contribution to a more caring community against capitalism. The only thing stopping me now that I am in university is my time. I play for the Brock rugby team and am looking to finish my degree early, which calls for most of my time being consumed by practices and extra classes.

Although social media has been an extremely influential tool in developing movements, groups and general emancipation, I find it creates a somewhat false reality. Social media while linking people into a global community creates a belief that people can simply like something and their work is done. There is so much more that must be done to create some sort of impact, but we are now being told that all you need to do is click a button and the problem can be solved. I believe this degrades an individuals drive to go out and actively engage in a march, protest or some other activity that may be unmeasurably more influential.