To Serve
I just read a lovely post (link at bottom to read in its entirety), and contained within is a quote that I find key to these times, and to the work many of us have been doing for ages.
This quote also speaks to the often misunderstood Virgo trait, being perceived as trying to "save the world," though not in a very flattering way. I've never felt I need to save the world, nor fix it, but I am called to serve and frequently ask, very specifically, "How may I serve?" This quote puts into words how I feel in that regard.
"When you help, you see life as weak. When you fix, you see life as broken. When you serve, you see life as whole." ~ Rachel Naomi Remen
Excerpt w/full post at link:
Serve to honor our profound interconnection
Over time, all of those small acts, those small moments, lead to a different state of being. A state in which service becomes increasingly effortless. And as this awareness grows, you inevitably start to perceive beyond individualistic patterns: each small act of service is an unending ripple that synergizes with countless others.
As Rachel Naomi Remen puts it, "When you help, you see life as weak. When you fix, you see life as broken. When you serve, you see life as whole." With that understanding, we begin to play our part -- first, by becoming conscious of the offerings we receive, then by feeling gratitude for them, and finally by continuing to pay forward our gifts with a heart of joy. Each of us hassuch gifts: skills, material resources, connections, presence -- everything we consider ourselves privileged to have. And when we actually start to use our gifts as tools to facilitate giving, we deepen our understanding of relationships and start to sync up with this vast "inner-net."
http://www.dailygood.org/view.php?sid=148
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"The Four Agreements"
which is now a new favorite. 
She is amazing!
This clears up my confusion about my feelings around the word, "compassion"! *woot*
I can totally get behind the concept of "service". That makes a level playing field w/ no one above to feel 'mercy' for those 'lower than'.
Copied and stolen for my facebook status! 
of the long phone conversation I had with my mom this morning.
She called to thank me for being there to intervene with a troubled family member in a constructive way, repeatedly. She tends to stumble around and feed the problem, all the while trying to "fix" things.
She said she thinks my career in public service (education) gives me insights on how to deal with troubled people. She's right, of course.
I told her that, in order to spend a lifetime serving, we can't become cynical and give up, nor can we allow our natural empathy to overwhelm us; we have to be present, but separate, accept the realities of the situation, whatever it is, and open windows and doors which the troubled person can look out, or walk through...or not. We can't drag or force them through, or make their choices for them (help
we can't change the situation, make it different or make it go away (fix we can simply offer some possibilities for dealing that they can choose from. We can keep hope on the table.
thank you for sharing that.
I couldn't agree more.