We are the Earth

Why have we come to believe we are separate from the natural world?

When you think of the evolution of humans, we have always been directly tied to the natural world. From living in caves, to hunting and gathering, to farming – it has only been in the last several generations that we spend so much of our time indoors.

We are influenced by understandings to ‘subdue the earth,’ to buy more than we can afford, to eat more than our bodies need, or to see earth as objects that we can just take. There is a lot of ill health in these forms of thinking and behaving. We have learned to see ourselves as separate from nature, that we are somehow disconnected from and above the natural world.

I wonder how our culture might be different if when we each turned on the tap, we visualize ourselves alongside a river scooping a handful of water? If when we ate, we remember the farmers, the soil, the sun, the rain? When we step outdoors we notice the bird songs, the feel of the breeze on our face, the scents in the air? I wonder if by remembering the ways we are dependent on and connected with the earth, we may make subtle shifts in how we relate to the world. We may begin to reclaim our place as kin amongst all the beings of the earth.

---