We can learn a lot from nature. After all, we are part of it. And yet the general consensus seems to be that we are somehow separate. This is wrong, and perhaps it’s why we face so many challenges as a species.
Our collective ignorance about the very nature of being human fuels widespread destruction of our environment.
This isn’t a mystery, though.
If a tree tried to be something it wasn’t, nature simply wouldn’t allow it. Humans across the globe are forgetting their true nature, and thinking that somehow the problem lies elsewhere.
Let’s get one thing straight. The problem likes within. And while that might seem harsh, like a tough pill to swallow, guess what else is true. The solution is in there too.
Why is snowfall beautiful? There’s got to be a reason why we perceive the myriad of white flakes falling from the sky as peaceful, especially if you’re not used to seeing it regularly.
We’re all taught from a young age that each and every snowflake is unique. In fact, there cannot be two identical snowflakes, ever, in the past, present, and future of all snowflakes that fall out of the sky.
Combine that with the fact that within our minuscule vantage point of witnessing snow fall, we’re only seeing a fraction of the snow in the area, which is only a fraction of the snow on the planet. And yet, despite millions and millions of unique flakes, they’re all coexisting harmoniously, falling peacefully to the ground.
No snow flake tries to take the shape or position of any other.
Imagine witnessing snowflakes exhibit human behavior. They would begin to fight, turn on each other, ultimately causing their own destruction. We probably wouldn’t even see them before they came into our view, because they’d have destroyed each other on the way down, trying to prove one was better than the other.
Instead of carrying out their peaceful journey according to their nature, they would rather try to prove their worth, and in doing so, disprove the worth of others.
Now, you might be thinking, “Well hello, humans have free will, we have intellect, we have brilliant minds which separate us from everything else on this planet.”
While this is true, that can’t be the only thing we have.
And that’s the problem. Most of us are so far out of touch with our nature, that we think our only assets are our minds and bodies. And while many other creatures have minds and bodies, how many of them know they have minds and bodies?
How can you possibly think that you’re not connected to the flow of the universe, to the events that led up to now? You have no problem believing that your actions will affect the future, yet you don’t see how if the planets, stars, gases, molecules and everything that ever existed didn’t unfold exactly as they did, then you wouldn’t be here?
That should be the starting place for any human being. We cannot ever forget that at a fundamental level, we were put here from forces out of our control, and we will leave the same way.
So while we’re here, how can we make the most of it, without disrespecting the greatest truth of all - that we’re not in charge? How can we recognize our true nature, just like that of a snowflake, and live in harmony with that, rather than in destruction?
If there’s anything the current state of our world can teach us, is that we’ve strayed from our fundamental nature. We’ve over-indexed on our intellect, and in turn that’s made us the most ignorant species on Earth.
Let’s be real with each other. We don’t know anything, because we’ve been too caught up in our thoughts and emotions. Now let’s work together to revisit our true nature, shake hands, and learn to coexist again.
Live with substance!
Gabe Orlowitz
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