We all have voices in our heads. None of them say the same thing, and that’s okay. We don’t have to care about the same things to care about each other. If you tell me what matters to you, and I can respect that—regardless of whether it matters to me—then we can care about each other. The reverse is also true. And, if I share with you what matters to me, and it also matters to you, then that is how we can build community. I spend much of my time and energy sending out these signals.
The words in Cary Leibowitz’s painting Please Don’t Tell Anyone You Saw Me (2018) make a statement. Structured like a request, if we take him at his word, we would say nothing. But in reality, he (like all of us) probably wants the opposite. In describing the Zulu greeting sawubona, Seth Godin explains that it means: “I see you. I see your hopes and dreams and fears.” And more than anything, I know I want to be truly seen. Not only is this the greatest gift we can be given, but it also lets us know we are not alone.
