When we treat social problems as emergencies that we must fix, we delude ourselves into thinking that we can control them, if we only work hard enough. Realistically, though, that just isn’t the case. I can fight and fight to make the world more just, but if my goal is “fixing” a decades-old problem or making it go away, I’m destined to fail and burn out. Sometimes, the best way to deal with those feelings of panic and guilt is to really let them wash over us for a moment, and really accept that we’re not fully in control—or fully responsible for it. This can be an immensely sad experience,
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