SHIFT
I read an article today that told of an old Mohawk belief. It goes something like this:
You were born with a gift inside you, given to you by the creator. But the thing is, you can’t see this gift. Nor can your parents. Only the people in your community can see it. And it’s their job to help bring it out of you. Why? Because your gift doesn’t belong to you. It belongs to the community.
I am really moved by this concept for a couple of reasons. First, it gives ownership of our gifts/talents to our community. And second, it makes us think outside of ourselves. If we could embrace the idea that the talents we have should be used to lift up our community, then we would live in a much different world. A culture of caring would develop. We’d look for what connects us, rather than what divides.
I think a lot about the winner-take-all mentality and how destructive a concept that is. I’m reminded daily that this is the way the world works. I see it everywhere I go. Greed is one of the most American of qualities. Why? Because greed creates demand. Demand creates wealth. Wealth promotes growth. Growth consumes resources. Resources create new products. New products create greed. It’s a hideous feed-back loop. Everything in our society is set up to perpetuate this belief. Americans dream of getting rich. They want more money than they know what to do with. They want to consume massive amounts of resources because they can afford to. And society, rather than shun them for taking more than their fair share, rewards them with power and celebrity. It tells them that they “made it.” That they are a “success” and others should emulate this success. All we’ve ended up doing is creating a global parasite, incapable of sustaining itself. And we all know what happens when the parasite kills its host.
Clearly, the Mohawks knew what they were talking about. In order to sustain their lives, they had to find the gifts within one another and share them. The guy with the most objects didn’t help them survive. But the woman with the best tapestry skills, or the guy with the best hunting skills, they were the most valuable. We need to apply that thinking to our society. Those that do the most for the community are the most valuable. We shouldn’t use wealth to measure value.
Our current system is broken. I think we’re all starting to recognize that. It requires non-stop growth and we’re now reaching a level that’s unsustainable. So something has to give. We have to change the system.
There’s a movement happening. If enough of us jump on board, then that movement becomes a shift - a shift in consciousness, a shift in power, a shift in the rules. It’s our time to destroy the status quo and take our community, our country, and our planet away from the profiteers. This planet is too beautiful to waste it like we have. And our community is too important to ignore. Give yourself to your community and discover who you truly are.