We need to talk

These two trees are like an old married couple. They’ve been intertwined like this for more than 30 years.

For the most part they get along pretty well. They share the soil and water, allow each other their fair share of sunlight, and are both overly tolerant of the kids (the weeds growing in their shade).

Like any couple, they have their spats. When a good wind comes up you can hear them rubbing against each other. But they have made it through many storms, including a derecho and a tornado, and they are still together.

In this way, my trees are more mature than we human beings seem to be. They can quibble, sometimes vehemently, but they make up and can still share the things that are most important.

We used to be able to do that. Talk about things that matter most, find common ground, make a decision, take an action, and move on.

But not anymore. We can hardly have a conversation about matters of huge importance without breaking out in shouting. We can hardly see people with different opinions as opponents because they are being made out to be enemies.

We cannot talk about possible ways to protect innocent people from random gun violence without shouting (hopefully not shooting).

We cannot talk about the global climate crisis that is – literally – burning up our world without tempers flaring.

We cannot talk about abortion and women’s rights – and the inevitable problems that outlawing abortion will cause down the road – without one side accusing the other of supporting baby killing while the other side retorts with accusations of female enslavement.

Rodney King asked “Can we all just get along?”

My trees know how to do that. Can we all just learn from them?

Judge not…

Please watch this 3-minute video “What’s in a Hat?” that I recorded in Sedona a while back. It will give you a new perspective on just how insidious judgmentalism can be.