We are Creatures
Reading this article struck a chord inside me and reminded me of my experience in Denali National Park in 2020. After that trip, I reflected this: "May we humble ourselves to know we are merely a thread in the fabric of the universe ... not the needle that stitches it together."
Humans have developed an alarming superiority complex that manifests as a disconnection from our creature-ness. We ARE animals, just like each and every other creature with whom we share this planet. I believe now, as wholeheartedly as I did then, that reconnection with that - and with the beauty and power of this earth - is a remedy for so much of our suffering.
We desperately need to surrender to the harmony that results when you become a part of your environment instead of trying to control it, exploit it, and manipulate it. Day after day we trudge on through the system WE have created. Some of us are blind. Some of us just can’t see a way out. Some of us are overwhelmed by fear.
But the reality is, we made the system. That means we can make it different. We can all make a small choice that starts the ball rolling. Stop buying new clothes. Opt out of wearing makeup. Choose to hear someone’s story. Stop to notice a small bird or other creature. Even choosing to acknowledge that the system is flawed is a start.
It probably is too late, if we zoom out. But in my opinion, that’s not an excuse to be the worst version of humanity possible from now until we go extinct.
Dahr Jamail’s words in the Documentary “Living in the Time of Dying” resonate with me so much:
“And you know, once I knew, okay, my best friend Dwayne is on the way out. Do I stop loving him? Do I stop caring for him? Do I stop showing up and doing what I can? No! I mean. The opposite. I’m gonna show up and be as absolutely present as I can. And that’s what I did. And I feel like that’s where we are on this planet right now. Is it a given that that human species goes extinct? No. Does it look like that’s what’s going to happen? Very, very, very likely. It’s really hard to see that this does not end that way. But we don’t know for sure. And I don’t add the “but we don’t know for sure” to give false hope. I add it just because I think we have enough humility to say we are just a tiny speck of life on Earth. And we’ve never been here before. We don’t know what’s going to happen. … We are here in this moment where we can still love the Earth. We can still love each other and we can still take care of each other and the Earth as best we can.”
THAT is also a place to start.
