rip steve jobs

This is post isn't going to be about what you might think it is going to be about.

I'll be the first to say I don't use Apple products. I find them too expensive, and hard to upgrade and keep upgraded without a lot of hassle. I like my pcs, like my generic mp3 player. Oh, and my phone from 2004. The last time I did use an Apple was probably 5th grade, when the computer lab had Macs. I remember being enthralled by the logo, this rainbow apple that I hadn't seen before. I also remember my computer freezing a lot when I was trying to play games, but that probably wasn't related. They were rather ancient systems.

I know Apple has a following, and since Steve Jobs passed away last night, that following has come out in full force. My facebook and twitter feeds are full of RIP messages and quotes he said. Some really, really good quotes. I've been writing them down. Almost all the blogs I follow also have put up posts by now, and I am sure if they haven't yet, that by the end of the day they will. This show of support and messages is unprecedented from anything I have ever seen on the internet before. And that made me think. And when I think of something, and think it is important, I will do one of two things. I will write about it, or I will rant about it to my mom. Today, my mom is being spared and I am going to write about it.

I don't want to diminish the fact that Steve Jobs died by writing this post. But I want people to consider something. There wasn't this much noise made on the internet when the earthquake hit Japan. There have been other disasters too, which haven't received near as much attention... disasters that have taken far more than one life. And while I know he was important and has changed the world, he is just that. One life. One person who happened to make decisions and happened to do things that changed the world.

I don't know much about Steve Jobs other than he fact that he made Apple what it was. Maybe he went to other countries, maybe he did humanitarian relief along with being a genius. I don't know. I am choosing to not google it, because I think for this post, it really doesn't matter. What I want people to consider is this. I think we are so in awe of him, and mourn him, because of what he accomplished. We look at him and think, "oh, what a great man! He changed the world! Made a difference." If he hadn't done that, we wouldn't have cared that he died. If Steve Jobs had died homeless and on the street, would we have cared? No. We look up to him because he was great.

But what about that homeless person on the street? Is his life not as important, just because he isn't known? All life is of the same value, regardless of what we do or do not accomplish. Don't get me wrong, accomplishing things is good! We should work hard and strive to find opportunities to make a difference in other people's lives. That is what each of us is supposed to do. And it's okay to be inspired by all that Steve Jobs accomplished. But if we chose to make our businesses our priority, we should be looking for other ways to change the world in addition to that. There is so much that is more important than financial success. Pick a cause, something you believe in. Mine happens to be orphan care. My focus, aside from photography, is very much that. What is yours? Have you sponsored a child? Worked at a soup kitchen? Donated clothing? Raised money for someone fighting cancer so they can pay their bills? Given your time and your talent to something bigger and more important than your success?

Steve Jobs will be remembered because he changed the world, but at the end of the day, he was just a man. What are you, as a man, as a woman, doing today to make that kind of impact? Whether it is remembered or not is inconsequential. What are you doing today, so you can make the world a better place tomorrow?