How far we've come (or gone, depending upon how you look at it)

[catherine]

I truly believe it's time to backpedal on many things, and I say that all the time. Technology can maybe push us through this awkward stage we're in, but some indicators of where we are as a society are simply ludicrous.

Case in point, two Facebook posts that turned up in my News Feed today:

Facebook Post 1: This was shared by a good friend of mine, a young mother who has chosen the SAHM route prior to being a very competent market research VP.

Nature is A Powerful Teacher, (http://m.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2013/10/nature-is-a-powerful-teacher-the-educational-value-of-going-outside/281027/) published in Atlantic Magazine, sends the ground breaking message that it's good for kids to be outside!!!! Who'da thunk?? I hate to let my sarcasm show, but really?? Do we need high-powered journalists to tell us that being outside in nature is beneficial???

Second FB post:

By Charles Eisenstein (and some of you know I'm a fan, so I "liked" his page and get frequent posts--now, more frequently because his new book "A More Beautiful World Our Hearts Know is Possible" is coming out November 5.) This Facebook post published an excerpt about cynics:


"The derision of the cynic comes from a wound of crushed idealism and betrayed hopes. We received it on a cultural level when the Age of Aquarius morphed into the age of Ronald Reagan, and on an individual level as well when our youthful idealism that knew a more beautiful world is possible, that believed in our own individual destiny to contribute something meaningful to the world, that would never sell out under any circumstances and would never become like our parents gave way to an adulthood of deferred dreams and lowered expectations. Anything that exposes this wound will trigger us to protect it. One such protection is cynicism, which rejects and derides as foolish, naïve, or irrational all of the expressions of reunion.

We talk about cynics in negative terms--as those who believe that most people are self-interested, but interestingly cynicism as a philosophy started in Greece by those who believed that the further we got from nature, the unhappier we were bound to be. They believe in no possessions... "people could gain happiness by rigorous training and by living in a way which was natural for humans, rejecting all conventional desires for wealth, power, sex, and fame. Instead, they were to lead a simple life free from all possessions." (Wikipedia)

I just think it's funny that we keep straining at the limits of what is natural, and we bite ourselves in the butt. We've gone so far as to convince ourselves that basic human functions that are effective and efficient, like breastfeeding, are somehow unnatural and/or inconvenient and/or difficult.

I think this all belongs in my I Don't Get It thread, although I do get it--we always try to outsmart Nature--but we're proven wrong all too often.

Just some observations.

[mira]

I agree, Catherine. We've really distanced ourselves from nature - and our nature - in everyday life.

We're disgusted when we see an animal being slaughtered on TV but then we gobble up our pre-packaged bacon with gusto.

We're constantly warned of the dangers of letting our kids play outside unsupervised - if they aren't abducted they're going to break a limb or get stung by a nettle (better keep them in front of the TV and let them develop a fear of nature).

The list goes on :/

[catherine]

I agree, Catherine. We've really distanced ourselves from nature - and our nature - in everyday life.

We're disgusted when we see an animal being slaughtered on TV but then we gobble up our pre-packaged bacon with gusto.

We're constantly warned of the dangers of letting our kids play outside unsupervised - if they aren't abducted they're going to break a limb or get stung by a nettle (better keep them in front of the TV and let them develop a fear of nature).

The list goes on :/

I totally agree!! It's crazy. People in my neighborhood drive their kids to the corner school bus stop in a warm SUV rather than having them walk even a half a block in the cold!!!!

They're afraid of dirt, germs, strangers, changes in weather, etc etc. No wonder the rate of allergies is exploding. No wonder there's childhood obesity.

[Rogar]

I think our disconnect with nature may very well go beyond the health benefits of playing outside to the point of being our ultimate undoing. If not physically at least spiritually. There was a time in the not so distant past where many of the great writers, poets, song writers, and philosophers would wax and wane about man's spiritual connection to nature. It even extended to the cartoons kids watched. Those times are disappearing. The new "environment" is a cubicle at work or an electronic media device at home.

I am pretty much convinced that were are becoming just another invasive species, and at some time sooner or later will become the victims of traditional population dynamics. In terms of how far we've come or gone, I think it is past the point of return. This has been my main reason to subscribe to the simple living concept.

[SteveinMN]

Rogar, I think that "distancing" has been taking place over the last several generations -- at least in North America. The mass migration away from agricultural occupations means that most kids no longer grew up surrounded by the constant presence of nature: beautiful or hazardous weather, hungry or sick farm animals and newborns, and the necessity of working hard -- sometimes against the clock or Mother Nature -- to preserve one's livelihood. The constant presence of an almost-unlimited flow of electricity has made it possible to extend short winter days in comfort and to do a lot without ever leaving one's home. Speaking for myself, there are many days when there is absolutely no external need to step outside my house.

As a result, we've gotten out of the rhythm of the seasons and we try to minimize what are perceived as "drawbacks" of them in modern life. People I worked with used to leave their house in the morning by walking into their attached garage and getting in their car; driving until they reached the inside parking ramp at work, and walking inside the building to a cubicle nowhere near a window (never mind one that actually opened). In such an artificial environment, day or night become almost arbitrary designations. That urge to hibernate that some feel when the weather gets colder? Written off as an affectation of our forebears, not something hardwired in us.

All that is one reason I like living in Minnesota -- the weather varies enough and, at times, demands attention. There still are many people my age who grew up on farms (even here in the Twin Cities) and understand that rhythm (their (sub)urban kids likely won't). We're not quite so far removed from nature here. Yet.

[ToomuchStuff]

There has always been those that say we should backpedal (ah, the good old days). No different then common sense (not everyone has it), and it is about what you do with it. (or teach to those your responsible for)
From abduction (BTDT) to growing up in the culture that started from playing outside to having gaming systems. Larger house on lots where you had lots of yard to play in, to houses where laundry was hung on the lines, you knew who was doing who and kids played in the street, and to visiting a couple of friends farms. I've been exposed to quite a lot. Now, parents are choosing to live, not within their means, but always buy more (so they both have to work), and due to time constraints, want to put their kids in "safe activities",(not always) where the kids are in groups and the adults take turns driving them to them.

Life is what you make of it. Exposure can, but doesn't have to be, and isn't always and cynicism is something you obtain from that exposure.
Some just choose to plow their head in the sand, while some look only forward (and forget what lessons can be learned from the past), and yet others become more rounded, and less, naive.

[Rogar]

Rogar, I think that "distancing" has been taking place over the last several generations -- at least in North America....
All that is one reason I like living in Minnesota -- the weather varies enough and, at times, demands attention. There still are many people my age who grew up on farms (even here in the Twin Cities) and understand that rhythm (their (sub)urban kids likely won't). We're not quite so far removed from nature here. Yet.

I agree, Steve. I am in the middle of the book, "One Summer, America 1927" which seemed to be on the wish list of many in the reviews forum. I suppose it goes without saying, but it is an interesting look back at things not that long ago. Not only were we more agricultural, but more rural. Radio was just coming into it's own and still considered something special. Something like a third of all furniture sales were radios...when radios were actually furniture. There was no highway system that would get you from one coast to the other with out getting on dirt roads for parts of the trip.

Not to pine away for times in the past, but it takes more effort these days to connect. As I see it, it isn't just farming that is giving up our connection to the land and weather, but there just are not as many opportunities to take a walk down a quiet country lane, or a stroll through the woods, or a picnic under a tree somewhere away from people and traffic. Plus the temptations of electronic media.

[rosarugosa]

I do know that if I don't get out in nature for a good walk in the woods (or similar activity) at least once every two weeks, then my psyche suffers for it. I feel a definite mental "itchiness" and by now I've learned exactly what causes it and what will cure it.

[catherine]

I do know that if I don't get out in nature for a good walk in the woods (or similar activity) at least once every two weeks, then my psyche suffers for it. I feel a definite mental "itchiness" and by now I've learned exactly what causes it and what will cure it.

Me, too. I do market research and spend a week at a time in an office building, and often it's a dark room (to keep people being interviewed from seeing people behind the one-way mirror). I get home and I'm just grabbing my dog and insisting she goes for a walk with me. A LOOOOONNNGGG walk.

[SteveinMN]

Not to pine away for times in the past, but it takes more effort these days to connect. As I see it, it isn't just farming that is giving up our connection to the land and weather, but there just are not as many opportunities to take a walk down a quiet country lane, or a stroll through the woods, or a picnic under a tree somewhere away from people and traffic. Plus the temptations of electronic media.
Ironically (?) I believe electronic media enables connection. At least to other people. Given whatever degree to which the participants want to engage. With a smartphone and the right mobile carrier, I can email and tweet and post on Facebook and update blogs as much as I want any place I want. Now if you mean that electronic media can preoccupy us so we spend less time being mindful outside, I'm with you on that. It all comes down to how one defines "connection".

And I think we bear some responsibility for engaging with nature the way we do. My wife and I knew we were giving up locales like the ones you mentioned by living within the limits of a city of almost 300,000 in a metropolitan area of almost 3,000,000. But there are benefits of urban life we enjoy that we value higher. There are places within walking distance of our house which will accommodate a picnic under a tree with a low likelihood of encountering others with the same idea. And while there are no quiet country lanes or woods to stroll through within walking distance, it's only a fairly short drive (or, in some seasons, a bike ride) to some very nice country lanes and woods (remnants).

Our newest poster, Seth, has commented about how he and his wife want to move out to the country and have some land and more breathing space. That choice will make some aspects of life a little more difficult. But they've evaluated and they're making the choice that works for them. So long as people strike the balance they want, it's good. Are we getting away from nature in general? I think so. But we can make some choices that shade us to the side of that fence we want to be on.

[gimmethesimplelife]

This topic has really made me think.

I remember there was a time during my college days when I was working a thirty hour week and going to school full time and basically handling it OK even though my stress levels were going higher and higher and higher over time. One morning I woke up and it was like my body just said - Nope, not doing it today. I really had a hard time getting out of bed and that was a new one for me as I had always just charged ahead most days. I was living up in the mountains in Flagstaff, AZ, at the time and this was a beautiful Spring Day and I took off a whole day and called off to work and went hiking through the woods alone. Amazing how much that one act there made me feel so much better and I do believe there is a connection to nature that humans need on some basic level and too many of us are mostly cut off from nature these days.

This is why I am holding onto the lot I inherited in Douglas, AZ - not totally out in the country but also not very far away from it. It soothes my soul to know that land is there for me and is mine and the taxes are no big deal at $8 a year.

I remember from my days in Portland, OR, where I headed to after graduating college, the one aspect of living there that worked for me was that I did not feel cut off from nature there. I feel the same about Tucson, AZ - even in the middle of the city, you are not far from hiking and opportunities to leave the urban hassle behind and get out into nature.

Rob

[ToomuchStuff]

Ironically (?) I believe electronic media enables connection. At least to other people. Given whatever degree to which the participants want to engage. With a smartphone and the right mobile carrier, I can email and tweet and post on Facebook and update blogs as much as I want any place I want. Now if you mean that electronic media can preoccupy us so we spend less time being mindful outside, I'm with you on that. It all comes down to how one defines "connection".


That is one thing I have had a few discussions about in the last few years. Yes it enables connections, but they tend to be "remote" connections (people farther away). They can have ton's of "friends" (aka Facebook or the like), but not know their neighbors to save their life.

[ApatheticNoMore]

Last week I reached near total burnout on these urgent projects and just went outside and lay in the grass in front of an apartment building near work (pretty secluded not anywhere where it would be considered invasive of anyone's privacy) just staring at the sky, incapable of much more in that moment. Connection to nature is good for me, but most days I'm not going to get much, it's dark by the time I get home. I miss it, it makes me very directly and immediately sad when I have to leave a sunny morning to head for the office (which has no natural light), whatever else is going through my mind about not wanting to go to work as well, there's just that bodily craving for the sun.

It's pretty funny even when your just resting on a park bench somewhere suburban and well off like I was this weekend, people will always ask you when you are resting anywhere "Is something wrong, do you need help, are you hurt"? No, I'm resting, taking in life, at peace (often very deeply so - or at least as much as I get), observing nothing, the sky, the leaves overhead. I come up with bizarre paranoid theories for why people ask this like it's a reaction to urban homelessness (even though I'm in areas where there aren't a lot of homeless, oh and I might like to think I don't look like a bum but ... :)).

As for distance connection on social media, well it all depends, is the distance somewhere you might reasonably drive? Well then, that's nothing.

[SteveinMN]

They can have ton's of "friends" (aka Facebook or the like), but not know their neighbors to save their life.
I don't have a ton of friends anywhere :) , but life has evolved pretty much half and half for me: I know my neighbors and have shared meals and snowclearing and the like with them and do manage to keep up with a core of people on Facebook. But, agreed, Facebook, garage-door openers, crazy schedules, disappearing front porches -- all can inhibit getting to know your neighbors.


It's pretty funny even when your just resting on a park bench somewhere suburban and well off like I was this weekend, people will always ask you when you are resting anywhere "Is something wrong, do you need help, are you hurt"?
I've encountered that myself. Usually a beatific smile keeps those questions away. But apparently just "be-ing" in a park or such is rare enough that you often won't run across a horde of other people. Almost hiding in plain sight.

[Gregg]

I've enjoyed reading the responses to this thread, and generally agree with the trend. I was raised in about the most rural, agricultural setting you can picture so always felt that we were (or should be) connected to the world as a whole. It was standard knowledge that as soon as you weren't paying attention to all things natural you were likely to be in trouble. It was almost innate behavior. My life these days is far less directly connected. I'm rarely very far from shelter, can simply come in from the cold, don't have hundreds of animals dependent on me for survival, don't view my plot of city ground as a legacy that needs protecting, etc.

I am about the least sentimental person out there and don't wax rhapsodic about bygone days, but I can see that we are suffering the effects of a fading connection to the larger world. The term "nature" always strikes me as ironic. What does that mean exactly? Its just like "natural" on the label of highly processed foods...meaningless (in terms of policy that is, not individually). Anyway, we are part of a system that is much larger and more complex than we are. The human ego allows us to think we are the master and commander of that system. We aren't, but that's not to say we can't screw it up. As we lose sight of that and lose the connection to all the other lives in that system its easier for us to feel apathetic when our actions harm others. If you don't know something is there how can you care about it? To me that's the real problem with the disconnect from that larger world. Its just too easy to dump all our crap somewhere out of sight, out of mind.