COMMITTEE MEETING
Dan Schmidt
INTERCONNECTED



I have heard about how we are all INTERCONNECTED for years. I understood it to mean people are INTERCONNECTED and I could understand that. I have recently read a marvelous book called The Invention of Nature by Alexander von Humboldt. I had never heard of him but, oh my, he was a brilliant scientist naturalist, environmentalist, teacher, author, on and on. He was born in 1769 in Germany and spent his life traveling, writing, exploring connections, mountain tops, volcanoes, tiny plants, insects, tropics and forests. His writings and descriptions influenced famous people like Thomas Jefferson, John Muir, Charles Darwin, Goethe, and many more. He was a true visionary and environmentalists today regarding him as the ‘founding father’.

This man was focused beyond the norm, dedicated and devoted to uncovering the mysteries of the planet. I was totally inspired to read about his awareness of INTERCONNECTEDNESS and how important it is for all of us today to NOTICE. It can be so overwhelming to think of EVERYTHING being INTERCONNECTED, but I’m seeing that it is true. I was particularly impressed with his intuitive feeling and knowing that when there are forests destroyed it interrupts and harms all the vegetation around the trees and the wildlife. (I clearly remember many years ago in California driving on the freeway and seeing this whole swath of land cleared for homes! I promptly burst into tears.) Oh! It was so insightful and revealing what he discovered and foresaw.

I felt a deep appreciation for the ways things were before machines and industry. I have taken so much for granted in my day and age but it has taken its toll on society. I for one would not like to be living with no running water, electricity or cars but at least I will pay more attention to all the conveniences I enjoy and minimize where I can even more.

The book also made me realize and appreciate my love of plants and gardening. That is a way I give to the world. It satisfies me and brings pleasure to whoever sees it. It is comforting to me when I realize how any effort to creating beauty and order contributes to the whole.

Humboldt realized:
”that colonies based on slavery, monoculture and exploitation created a system of injustice and of disastrous environmental devastation, so we too have to understand that economic forces and climate change are all part of the same system”.

It is reassuring that there are people who knew, know that all is INTERCONNECTED and it gives me a ‘hook to hang my hat on’.

“There is in fact no distinction
between the fate of the land
and the fate of the people.
When one is abused.
The other suffers.

            Wendell Perry
Farmer and poet




BLESSINGS

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Image
PLEASURES BLEEDING HEART When I look around the VILLAGE, I find more and more scenes, activities, support and people that give me PLEASURE. It’s so easy for me to experience new aspects of my life at the Village. So much is available here and I’m open to more adventures everyday. There are several activities I want to try. One PLEASURE I have done is watercolor painting and I intend to do more of that. The activities I enjoy every week are exercise classes, swimming, gardening, meeting new people, writing my blog, teaching classes, my garden and generally enjoying each day to see what comes up. Every night when I get into bed at night I give thanks for a most rewarding and surprising day!  Remember, you can rotate activities, or stagger them and you can rest whenever you want to! I love this new attitude I have adopted because I no longer fret and plan each day to the fullest. I derive much more satisfaction from being free and spontaneous a great deal of the time.
Read more
Image
Easter Lily RISING We all know the feeling of RISING; An uplift, an awakening, an experience of   a breakthrough and the opening of the heart. Even thinking about the sun RISING can be an uplift. It is also the Phoenix RISING out of the ashes. That is such a powerful image for me. I have just experienced a RISING, a huge avalanche of experiences that have been profound. My daughter and her fiancé visited me that was wonderful. It was a sort of mission that we were all on that was truly amazing.   I also sold my car to a very lovely woman that appreciates it and it was so effortless! As I was about to leave an appointment Friday, the power went out from the storm. I could not access the Village to come get me, nor Uber. I met a woman who was so wonderfully friendly and kind and offered me a ride back to the Village. I was stunned. We talked like we had known each other for years. We had lunch and have become friends. Again effortless. Somewhere in the mix, I had
Read more
Image
DELIGHT This is one of my favorite words! The sight of it, the sound of it and the meaning of DELIGHT . . . DELIGHTS ME. I begin my day by opening my blinds and looking out to the trees and the lake, every morning! Then I see the ducks waddling about and the magnificent egret(s) prancing around. Lately I’ve watched the Whistling ducks, I saw a mama, daddy and 3, yes 3 tiny babies running then swimming together! Such a DELIGHT! More and more I am enamored with NATURE. I can always fine something that makes me NOTICE something that is present that perhaps I never NOTICED before. Sometimes it is as simple as a limb on an old oak tree, or the markings on the Muscovy ducks. A DELIGHT is more than just in Nature. I have recently had a few conversations with people that were completely DELIGHTFUL! It makes me feel so uplifted and grateful to know them and share in some special conversations. It stays with me for a long time. The key for me is to listen to them
Read more