My poodle mix puppy likes to steal my bra's and underwear out of the hamper and leave them strewn about in my upstairs hallway. It's inconvenient when company comes over and happens to see the results of his labors. Why does he do this? No, seriously, why does he do this? I wish I knew. Sometimes I think that it's because he has some ingrained part of his DNA that makes him carry stuff around and put stuff in different places. Do they breed for this trait? Are there dog's all over the world that carry around women's underthings as a profession? There are a lot of dogs that work, bred into their DNA is the ability to herd animals, pull sleds, sniff out game.
It got me wondering if there are things that are built into our DNA? Are there things that we do unconsciously over and over that has no purpose? Are we making piles of women's underthings in the upstairs hall way of life? Why do we envy each other? Why do we care about gathering wealth. Most people agree money doesn't buy happiness. If we are already rich what is the purpose of getting even more rich? Does it make you that much happier? Does your happiness coincide with the dollar amount in your bank account? I know so many people who are so stressed out, work so hard, have no time with their families. Is it in our DNA? Hunting and gathering.
Is this where you think I will have an answer, I don't. Is the gathering of material things built in, and is the envy people feel for those things built in. Is it human nature? If this is true then communal living is destined to fail. There is always someone who has more and someone who has less. For people to live in harmony working towards a common goal there has to be a whole lot of we and very little me. Is that possible in this society? We do it when we become parents. We put aside our own needs to take care of the little ones. Can people do that in day to day life? I don't know. I'd like to find out though.
My dad used to be a communist back in the day. He was very disillusioned by his experiences with the communist party, he felt that it was a failed experiment because human nature is too greedy. I used to hate to see the look on his face when he would talk about those experiences. It's so painful to believe in something with all your heart and have it fall short. I've been there. Dad admired those societies that exist still. The Amish and The Mennonites to name a couple. He admired the Shakers (I admire the furniture!) Utopian society is what we should aim for.
If we fall short, we fall short.
What do you think America would look like if the if the haves shared a little more and have not's had a little more? It may not be in our DNA.
1 comments:
I love watching the Waltons. I study them more than watch them, I suppose. I realize it's a TV program, but to me, it's more than that. It's a moral compass and a fine way of living.
They remind me of a lot of my neighbors.
I met a guy named Darrell when I first moved out here. He, his wife, and two sons lived in a trailer in the middle of a field, next to a dilapidated barn. They grew corn and raised hogs. They were poor - dirt poor.
Every time we visited those folks, we ate well and left with food. They would give us venison, pork, or whatever they had a little extra of. If we tried to not take it, they pushed it on us harder. That's just the way folks around here are.
One would think that the less one has, the more that stuff would mean to him. Yet, people in need are always helping others in need. I love that about the rural midwest.
On Darrell's road, everybody who wasn't family was still a part of the community. They all worked together for the common good. It seems as if that's one good thing about poverty - it keeps us closer. Seems as if having more has made some lose touch with others and their needs.
Isn't that why we have a health care crisis in this country? Isn't that why we debate the solutions to global climate crises? Doesn't it all come down to money?
I guess it's like they say, "Money isn't the root of all evil, the desire for more money is."
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