I get requests from time to time to reblog a photo(s), sometimes people can’t recall the name of the previous blog and the photo they’re looking for but in describing it all usually ends well.
Posted these some time back in a series I called Communion for what I consider obvious reasons.
I made the below comment on another blog, someone near and dear to me asked that I blog it and so I have adding the last couple of paragraphs:
Many a night in the woods by a campfire, embers glowing just outside the circle of light- some moving, some stationary for a moment or two.
Rustled leaves, cracking twig, timid, unsure as they gaze at man, once a friend, now a potential enemy, usurper of territory, befouler of water, of air, tainted bait and traps of steel, bounties on their hair as later we also were to experience.
In the beginning as a people the nations had agreements with all that walked, flew, and swam.
They would sacrifice themselves that we might be nourished, fed, clothed, and housed.
In turn we would honor them and the agreement taking no more than necessary while respecting the land and their nations, calling on their spirits for wisdom, strength, and as helpers.
No “dominion over all things” as we were part and parcel of all that was, not master, but dependent as were others in the symbiotic ecology of life, having a niche within the circle as they did…. belonging.
A niche, a place, whose duty was to live within the circle, within the balance – now furtive embers in the night calculating a safe distance and perhaps wondering how this all came to be.
It is a great sadness, a shameful thing.
Now it is man lives beyond the light within the circle – not furtively but with great arrogance, sense of importance, and the belief of having dominion as he stumbles about in the dark.
No gentle rustling of leaves nor cracking of twigs, the heavy thud of leather clad feet, gps to find his way in the unfamiliar landscape of what was once home, earphones to quell the silence, pre packaged energy bars and selfies, beer cans and litter tossed from the window of passing cars or left as remnants of his passing along trails and campsites, a testament, a commentary that man has been here, and if not now then in time nothing will be as it was.
Nothing exists independently in itself-nothing-all things share a common origin in the land-rocks and mountains are formed, erode, and become something else, plants take root, grow and die to return to the land as nutrients, animals exist as predator and prey in an intricate dance of balance.
Trees take in carbon dioxide and replace it with oxygen. All connected, all dependent, and more to the point, all related. Water evaporates to form rain ladened clouds then to return to cleanse, slake the thirst of all things, and to renew.
In all of this great epic of Creation and life-this intricate interconnectedness, it is only man who takes all this for granted, claims it as a right, and imperils all things.
Man, the apex predator, who is never satisfied, and in his arrogance disrupts the balance attempting to improve, to acquire, to dominate, to have more and do less, and in these pursuits breaks the circle, and ultimately, even in denial, pays the price.
Everything that has life begins in a seed-whether it be man, an insect,a plant, or a bird-all singularly encapsulated in a single seed, and begins in the process of germination- every fiber of who and what they will be lies dormant awaiting only the opportunity to be sown, to take root and flourish.
In this commonality is a great responsibility-one none of us should ever forget.
The land in part is composed of our ancestors who in their passing returned to it-in our coming and going we stride across the place they lay, a place they have become a part of, and we are honor bound to be respectful and attentive to the things we do.
It is scared ground-we should not leave abandoned cars, piled up trash, the remains of oil changes, beer or any manner of alcohol container, needles, toxic waste, or any such refuse upon the place where they rest, and then speak of honoring the ancestors and the land.
These things are a wonder and a mystery we may never understand-and it need be no other way.
There are as many ways to say what I have said as there are people- but it is enough to know that they are and that it is a simple truth.
This is not a concept I have originated-it is one we have known for as long as we have existed- I encourage one and all to personalize it and write it upon their heart and their spirit-and above all to remember what they already know and may have forgotten, or chosen to ignore.
When future archeologists/anthropologists sift through our remains they will refer to it’s location as the Styrofoam and plastic layer, one laced with a deadly concoction of toxins.
That may be a fitting designation but a sad legacy to leave behind.
There seems to be some attitude that science will catch up-that it will provide the answers to solve the problems they have helped to create and which we all must face and endure.
I fail to see any wisdom in this as science IS playing catch up and at the same time creating new problems-so I ask, how does that work?
Humanity has existed for millennia, and yet it is only within the context of a mere speck of that time that we have befouled everything to the extent that our very survival is threatened-would any call that progress, or civilized?
So called civilization has produced the greatest of wars and the most horrific of weapons-it has routinely destroyed entire cultures and subjugated others under the guise of bringing
religion, knowledge, and cultural advancement. But the core of it has always been about greed, resources, and power.
Humanity has survived all this, as well as ice ages and devastating plagues long before there was such a thing as modern science, or modern systems of government-now the challenge is to survive what science and it’s bedfellows government and technology have created- and it is the greatest challenge we have faced to date.
I am reminded of concerns leading up the initial test of the bomb-the fear that it could ignite the atmosphere and incinerate the earth, and yet such concerns paled in the
unfettered quest for “knowledge” and what was assumed the power it would bring-a quest that has apparently always considered the welfare of humankind to be of secondary
importance- a risk worth taking.
Some would argue that an increased “comfort” level and longevity balance the scales-but in many instances these are directly associated with status and finances, and that will
increasingly become the way of it as we see all too clearly presently.
So an argument is made that population challenges well being, there’s some truth to that but it is related to the approach we take-whether an emphasis is placed on sustainability,
education, or the the “benefits” of every man for himself and eugenics.
There is enough wealth existing in the hands of the few to radically alter the life of all people-to assist them in developing sustainable agriculture and infrastructure. Monies spent on wars and armaments could if redirected to such an effort as well and have a profound impact.
Yet we know this will never be the way of it based on greed, religion, and the thirst for power.
In my opinion there should be a reset regarding all debt, large and small. It should be declared null and void on a global basis and all start anew.
A radical concept for many but one I believe that has serious merit when examined- of course banks, corps, and their crony economists would squeal in denial and offer up all manner of doomsday scenarios, but I believe it is a simple and workable solution.
A person, a nation, has X number of dollars and debt far in excess of that, do the math, you remove the present debt and still have the same amount of money. It could lead to a boom in housing, jobs, start up small business, and consumer spending.
In discussing this with others some have said it is a communist or socialist approach-I have to kind of laugh at that as I think it is neither, more a commonsense one, and point out that being a member of a capitalist society has it’s own pitfalls.
If I had to assign myself some political designation I think it would be equalist-if such a word exists-as I desire only a level playing field for all people, equity and equality. Not the separate but equal fallacy of past Supreme Court rulings and the reality of today, but real equality.
If that were the way of it we would solve many problems and all things would be placed in their proper perspective.
As the Penan of the Borneo rainforests say:
“The land is sacred. It belongs to the countless numbers who are dead, those who are living and the multitudes yet to be born.”
How many of our own dead share in this ownership, and what of us and those yet to come? What will we leave them? What is our responsibility?
Don’t buy into this I am only one person what can I do mentality-there is a great deal each of us as individuals can do, movements are composed of individuals who coalesce in a common awareness-strength is found in unity and common cause.
It is an obvious formula-two can be more readily heard than one, ten more than two. Two can lift a heavier burden than one, ten more than two.
An expression of solidarity in social networks serves a purpose, but it can never take the place of actual involvement within our communities- that’s something we need to understand-that it should be an adjunct to involvement, not the extent.
Indifference, acceptance, complacency, never moving beyond a comfort zone, and lassitude are thieves that steal this ownership from us, our dead, and our future-none of us should contribute to that.
Everywhere more and more is being stolen from all people-the land, the air we breathe, the water we drink, individual rights, resources, free speech, privacy, even our health.
At what point will it be enough-when there is nothing left?
