Securing the Good for All

The good we secure for ourselves is precarious and uncertain until it is secured for all of us and incorporated into our common life.

Jane Addams

Thanks to Henry Iles for sharing this lovely quote with me. Jane Addams founded Chicago's Hull House, a place for low-income women to find social and educational opportunities. Addams also researched poverty and worked to win the vote for women. She was born in Illinois, 153 years ago.

What I like about this quote is its good common sense. We each are tempted to grasp what we can - to behave as if there is only so much good to go around - dive in and get our hands on a piece of the action.

But much of what is valuable in life can only be achieved by a collective willingness to ensure that everyone gets what they need. In this way we can properly secure our needs - not because we've grabbed our little piece - but because we can all look out for each other and ensure that each has what they need, without fuss or nonsense "incorporated into our common life."