WE FIRST: Stories We Live, and Could Die By
What are the stories we tell ourselves about the world we live in? What do we believe? We need to take a realistic look at these stories and beliefs so that we are not deluded into thinking everything is okay, or will be okay if only. . .
It's about WE. ALL OF US. My inspiration for this exploration comes from an article about David Korten’s New Year’s Resolution, in which he focuses his, and our, attention and intention on coming together as one people. We know things are terribly wrong these days but we hardly know where to start to address the problems. It helps to begin with what we are telling ourselves that prevent us from making necessary change.
Here are some false stories and beliefs that many of us have that prevent us from moving forward for the benefit of all Life. We might believe. . .
We are not interdependent and interconnected with all life and the ecosphere.
We humans are somehow “above it all,” and don’t need to seriously consider the impact of what we do on anything or anyone else.
We can feel free to satisfy our appetites for material wealth, as well as our desire for power over other lives.
We humans are a superior species; and some of us even consider ourselves superior to others of our own species.
We may feel a sense of entitlement, with unlimited rights to go after all we desire. We may live within our personal or family budget, but we don’t think we need to live within Earth’s limits.
We can go ahead with whatever practice or innovations we create (like cloning or artificial intelligence, gene editing or robots) without consideration of the consequences.
We live in a democracy.
Speaking of myths, Dave Korten says, “It is deeply deflating to realize just how much of what we call Western civilization is built on deceptions: The myth of the lone individual; the myth of freedom without responsibility for our neighbor; the myth that societies built on the exploitation of people and nature are advanced civilizations morally superior to the peoples they devastate; the myth that rule by the richest among us is a form of democracy.” He goes on:
“The problem isn’t me. It isn’t you. Nor is it those folks over there. The problem is we. The big we, humanity: What we believe, how we live, how we relate to one another and Earth.”
It's time to put WE FIRST!
Our time starts now!
My February Newsletter, "We First! Changing Together"
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