Off Leash

Here you are again. You have persisted through my last two posts, and you are probably wondering about incipient dementia. Not yet, I hope. It has been my clumsy attempt to stretch my mind and yours in preparation for some difficult issues. I have issues, ranging from the spider (2) that just fell out of my hair onto the keyboard, to whether our congregation (3) can survive without a church building, to living in a country with one of the highest per capita carbon footprints in the world. (1)  The simplest of these problems can be dealt with quickly in a variety of ways. The most complex will take all the time and mental resources I have left.

The spider on the keyboard is like the birds, rats and dogs in the earlier articles. Because I share space with these animals, I instinctively label them as friend or foe, then squash them, feed them, poison them, or pet them depending on the label. On reflection, I question the label and may respond in a more nuanced way. The spider was harmless, not something nasty that came with the bananas. I Googled banana spiders (2)  just to be sure. Apparently, they aren't as bad as I thought. What happens after I deal with the spider? A world without spiders would be broken, while a world without people would begin to repair itself. The spider wins, and I have not lost. I let it go to fend for itself outdoors.

So, you can trust your gut and stomp on things, or you can hold off, take a second look, gather information, make a plan, imagine the consequences and then stomp or catch and release. 

We are tethered to our evolutionary past by a leash woven from survival instincts. In the long run, those same instincts may cost everything including survival. However, we have evolved competences that give us a choice. We can be off leash and thrive: a bit scary, less certain and more work, but much more fun.

Andrea tethered to Callie who wants a treat

1. Carbon footprint by country

2. Banana Spiders

3. How Many