Someone recently sent me a post that she had come across by way of a poet that she follows online. I had to read it a couple of times to let it unravel and sink in. When it did, its profundity stopped me in my tracks. It goes like this:
Today. I learned
that we were never built
to carry this much.
The body still reacts
to a headline across the world,
the way it would to a threat in the room.
We worry about everything
because we’re shown everything,
a mind made for one village,
handed the whole planet at once.
Maybe that’s our task now, with children.
to give them a village,
before we give them the world.
If you are like me, you had to read those words a couple of times to fully grasp what is being said. Basically, it is reflecting for us that we live in such a connected world today that every conflict, every natural disaster, every moral failing of the famous, every criminal act in every corner of the world, is being shared with us via the news or any social media platform. A plane crash in Russia, or gang violence in Haiti, are packaged as “breaking news” (with all the bells and whistles that accompany that phrase), and beamed into our homes, or through our phones and computers, whether we want to hear about them or not. As a result, “we worry about everything, because we’re shown everything.” To use another analogy, instead of sipping out of the tap of current events, it feels like we are being forced to drink from a firehouse, as we try to absorb story after story.
It is well documented that human beings are feeling overwhelmed these days and are showing the physiological symptoms of nervous systems that are on overload. Again, as the poet says, “a mind made for one village, is being handed the whole planet at once.” If adults are feeling overwhelmed, think of what it is doing to our children.
I have always believed that good citizens have a duty to be informed about what is going on in their governments, their community, their world. Information is power, and when we are informed, we have a greater ability to make good choices. BUT, sometimes the best choice we can make is to step away from the news of the world and give our nervous systems a break by focussing on what can nourish our souls. Knitting, reading a book, going for a walk, building a model, cooking a meal, attending a church service or a community concert, can ground us again. They can take us out of the world and plunk us back in our village.
Our nervous systems will thank us!
As for our kids and grandkids, we surely have a responsibility to “give them a village before we give them the world.”. Allowing our kids to be feel secure, and safe, and loved, and accepted, will do far more for them in the long run, than exposing them to a steady stream of the world’s ills. Family game’s nights, bedtime stories, hikes and adventures, will create the kind of strong, secure, resilient people that will be ready to take on the world when the time comes.
Today is Remembrance Day. A day not only to remember the past, but to commit to the future. Our children are our future. One day they will adopt this planet, but for now, let’s let them enjoy the village.
