RSS 
E-Mail2 comments
According to “Integral Philosophy,” a person doesn’t move up the spiral of greater consciousness (and thus begin making necessary course corrections) until their present stage of development becomes unlivable. By ‘unlivable’ we mean that there are recurring incidents – disasters, if you will – that no longer allow them to remain with the status quo. It becomes evident that something has to change, and quickly!
We might even think in terms of being ‘extruded’ – forced out under pressure.
As I look around the world these days, I see plenty of evidence telling me that things are unworkable. Just name a sector – government, religion, business, education – that isn’t chock-full of disasters.
While I sympathize with the need to reform the entire health care system, the way we’re tackling the problem doesn’t exactly instill confidence in me that things are/will be done well. The partisanship over the entire process was enough of a disaster to make the entire nation wake up, rather than join in… but will it? Probably not, which is too bad, because the disaster we call government is too great to ignore.
And what of religion? You know what…I don’t even want to go there. Too much of a target and too easy to hit. Disastrous. Simply disastrous.
And then there’s the business sector. Way to go Wall Street! Keep it up and soon you’ll all have homes surrounded by armed security guards, bars over your windows, police dogs roaming your yard trying to keep out the people who used to comprise what was once called ‘the middle class’ of our country. But not anymore… or at least not for long. Your companies have screwed them over so bad and so across the board in the name of the almighty buck that there’s little left for them to do but continue downward toward the poverty level as you continue climbing the ladder of wealth by walking up their backs.
And what of our educational system? How’s that working?
My daughter teaches third grade in a public school. Kids are great, parents are a mess – so much so that the other day one of her students drew a picture of her shooting one of her classmates with whom she was upset. My daughter asked, ‘Why are you acting like this? What is wrong?’ The little girl explained, ‘My parents are getting a divorce and it’s all my fault.’
And if it isn’t the children or parents acting out, it’s the school board or the teachers or ‘you name it.’ Everybody, it seems, is focused on pretty much everything other than teaching and giving our youth the best opportunity at an education possible.
Add it all up and there are plenty of good reasons to see that very little in our world is in good working order these days. And so I hope that many of us are, indeed, adding it all up. I hope we’re taking note of the disasters and pointing them out to others and possibly even discussing creative ways to change things.
Disasters, though trying and difficult, can also bring us the hope that change for the better just might be inevitable. But then again, if we waste our disasters and/or continue to produce greater numbers of them in multiple areas, it’s possible that we’ll just be left coping with an entire collapse.
Today, I’m going to be hopeful that such a collapse does not await us. But only if you’ll join with me in working toward the greater good! So, what do you say… shall we start making these disasters count?
2 comments to “Are We Wasting Perfectly Good Disasters?”
-
This is brings exposure to the heart of what needs changing. It is in our breakdown that we see the Love that breakthrough. I often wonder how long will we keep doing the same thing in face of what is failing us.
Change, as we know it is often forced resolve rather than a willingness to respond to the call to love.
Your post is completely on the money! It, strangely enough, brought to mind your “Happy Easter Mess” post. The context of Warren’s message not withstanding, it helps to frame some mainstream churches’ since of urgency. “Their present stage of development” is rapidly ‘becoming unlivable’ in such a way that they lament all that they see is wrong with the world and seek answers. If things continue on their present course Armageddon & apocalypse are certain in their current thinking. As events continue (they always do), we will hope their paradigm will have to change. It will be interesting to see who will do the right things for the “greater good” because of their faith and who will join the tea party (chuckle).
You may be familiar with The Dark Mountain Project @ http://www.dark-mountain.net. Basically, civilization in its current form is their beef. Interesting stuff. Check it out.