Telling

Among others humans, a nine-year-old and a five-year-old boy live in my house.

The phrase “I’m telling!” is occasionally shouted from another room. Perhaps you can imagine brothers acting in this way.

When they shout, “I’m telling!” the idea is that, “When Mom and Dad find out what you’ve done, you’ll be in trouble.”

But it’s not always the case. “Telling” doesn’t always prompt action to be taken.

This happens more broadly, too. We think, “If only they knew about this problem, someone would do something.”

And yet. Hunger, inequality, injustice, and corruption persist. We know about it. We see it. Someone has told us. We’ve told someone. But action isn’t always taken.

So many times in our world, knowing isn’t enough. Telling isn’t enough.

Said another way, when major problems exist and action needs to be taken, “telling” is not sufficient action. It’s a necessary first step, but it’s only the beginning.