INTERDEPENDENCE
I have always been intrigued
by the concept of interdependence. We
live in a culture that values and covets independence and has a fear and abhorrence
of dependence.
We seem to polarize on these with little concept of what interdependence even means. Yet interdependence is the reality of how everything works. We are all interdependent in a myriad of different ways.
We seem to polarize on these with little concept of what interdependence even means. Yet interdependence is the reality of how everything works. We are all interdependent in a myriad of different ways.
In earlier cultures
interdependence was the way of survival, acceptance and belonging. It was how a
community thrived. It was about the
common good. What was best not for one
but for the commons, the community.
I am recognizing the need for
a deeper understanding of what this means and the need for new skills to really
live into the value of the common good.
As in most co-op housing
arrangements, our chosen decision making model is consensus. This requires deep listening, a willingness
to consider options, striving to understand.
It means examining our own perceived needs, our biases, our judgments
and expectations.
It seems there should be a
familiar and unconscious rhythm to interdependence; as life fundamentally lives
that way. Yet we seem to have moved away
from this. We draw our lines in the sand
and keep our deal breaker clause in our back pocket, hoping for the best. Wanting to be understood, accepted and
valued.
What if there were only us, I
wonder. No way to opt out. No place to go. What if leaving the community was to be alone
in the desert? Would living
interdependently be different then?
Would we find the lost rhythm of community? Would we know enough to sit in circle and
wait patiently for our own wisdom?
Wonder-Bird
