i haven't quite "jelled" the concept fully in my mind yet, so please forgive me if i seem vague... i seem to remember something that either ra or seth said about our human concept of "service to others" being either flawed or incomplete. this has had me pondering ever since. if sto is more than just "doing stuff to help", then what else is there? i think it may include something along the lines of not interfering with the path that others walk, since each path is a journey of experience and learning, each path is correct in its time and in its way for the evolution of that soul...therefore, each path and each "person" are perfect. granted, we interact and we are part of each other's journey in this state of illusory separateness and therefore we have some influence...but i think that perhaps a key point is learning to recognize when another needs to progress on their own and should not be "tampered" with; be it via ideas, material things or whatever. i think sometimes, it may be as simple as just stepping aside and allowing another to walk their path, even if it means harm, discomfort, or hardship for us personally. aditionally, some people are not ready or are unwilling to hear "the truth". as you can't force anyone to listen, neither can you force them to learn. i find a certain kind of beauty in that...to see in another the potential for growth, and thereby, see the same in myself. i had a 7th-grade school teacher who taught me a very valuable rule, one which has stuck with me all these years and served me very well as a guide to maintaining balance: "my rights and freedoms end where your rights and freedoms begin. your rights and freedoms end where my rights and freedoms begin."