Cancer, AIDS; there are many diseases and sicknesses that plague our world today. Yet when I look around me I see that the worst disease of my generation does not have a medical cause. It cannot be cured by a doctor and affects all types of people. This disease is apathy. This is a poem I wrote about the ways in which I see apathy infecting the world around me.
doped up
drugged out
passed out
numb to
the world
disillusioned
emotionless
high as the sky
smashed to
the ground
passion is
within your
grasp
burned out
buried
light up
you’re still in the dark
the disease
of passivity
is infecting your life
slowly spreading
numbing
firewater fills
all your insides
all but the
God shaped place
light up
don’t blow
your infection
in my
direction
The stark reality of this spreading passive attitude has come sharply into focus for me lately. A few days ago while out to lunch with my friends we were discussing my recent decision to become a vegetarian. I explained that my reasons mainly involved animal cruelty and health reasons. I simply decided to educate myself about what I am putting in my body and be more conscious of where my food is coming from. There is some weird stuff in a lot of food….but I digress. After discussing the hormones and chemicals often found in meat one of my friends shrugged her shoulders simply saying, “I just don’t really care.”
This is what really got me thinking about how apathy is infecting our world. People aren’t bad; my friend is a wonderful person who really does care about her fellow human beings. However, some people have that same attitude towards everything in life; this is where the problems commence. We commit sins of ommission. We float through life every day, barely aware of our neighbors, of those in need. We don’t do anything mean to the homeless man on the street; we just walk by him. We don’t do bad things, but often fail to perform good deeds.
According to dictionary.com the definition of apathy is, the “absence or suppression of passion, emotion, or excitement.” I don’t know about you, but I think a life without passion or excitement would get boring really fast. I have a fire for life that I want to share with everyone!
The cure is simple really. In the words of The Beatles, “all you need is love”. Love is the remedy we need for this disease of apathy. Jesus told us to love each other and I have a feeling he knew what he was talking about.
writerwithacause.wordpress.com 
I agree with you wholeheartedly- most of the significant problems I’ve seen could have been avoided entirely if people had just shown a reasonable degree of empathy. I hope your readers take your words to heart because there is a certain wisdom behind them that belies your age. Well said. =)