"In order to make a difference, we must be involved in the lives of people. We must be present with them, walk with them, and journey with them"

Making a difference is not an abstract ideal or a set of distant intentions; it is a practice rooted in proximity. Real change grows out of relationships where people are seen, heard, and accompanied. Presence is more than being physically near. It is a deliberate choosing to notice, to listen, and to remain when situations are complex or slow to improve. It means learning the stories behind the statistics and allowing those stories to rearrange our priorities.

Walking with others rejects the posture of the fixer and embraces the stance of the companion. Walking implies pace: slowing down enough to move at someone else’s speed, to take their route rather than imposing a shortcut. It also implies endurance. Many issues that harm communities, poverty, isolation, trauma, do not yield to quick interventions. They demand patience, reliability, and the kind of trust that only time creates.

Journeying with people highlights process. Outcomes matter, but they are healthier when formed by shared discernment. The repeated emphasis on “with” signals equality: not doing things to people or even merely for them, but alongside them, in mutual vulnerability. That “with” prevents both paternalism and performative concern. It insists on reciprocity, on letting ourselves be taught, challenged, and changed.

In practice, this might look like a mentor who shows up week after week, a neighbor who organizes rides to appointments, a teacher who visits families and co-creates plans, a policymaker who spends time in the communities affected by the policies they draft. Such involvement moves solutions from theoretical to contextual, from generic to particular.

The fruit of this posture is not only improved conditions but restored dignity and belonging. When we accompany one another, we create spaces where burdens are shared and joys multiplied. Difference is measured less by headlines and more by the steady formation of trust, agency, and hope. To make a difference, choose presence, keep walking, and stay for the long road.