The Universe Story

Last weekend, I went to Genesis Farm in Blairstown, New Jersey to see a talk given by Jennifer Morgan, author of the Universe Story trilogy for children. She was discussing the mythological implications of the story of our cosmos, and how this can and should inform our parenting. One of the central ideas of her work is that within crisis is the force of creativity, and (much like in our personal lives) it pften takes a huge disruption in the status quo to set the stage for the next big step forward. Morgan discussed the oxygen crisis of 2,500 MYA and how it led to the evolution of oxygen-breathing organisms, and how the extinction of the dinosaurs was necessary for mammals to emerge. Now, she claims, we are in the midst of another such earth-rocking crisis.

Unfortunately, we cannot know ahead of time what the next phase of life on this planet will be. We cannot know if human life will continue, and if it does, what it will look like. Many of the participants in the seminar asked questions that revealed their discomfort with the idea that we cannot know if, or how, the story of human life on Earth will end. They wanted to know what people think our future holds on this planet, and what we can do to ensure our survival. To be sure, it is terrifying to imagine the pain and suffering that could occur if civilization as we know it were to come to an end.

However, there is also something liberating about the idea that we are constantly evolving, and that each planetary upheaval leaves the door open for the emergence of something new and previously unimagimable. I've often wondered about the movement towards sustainable, mindful living, thinking that it might represent a huge evolutionary step for humans, along the lines of walking upright and developing agriculture. It seems that I am not alone in this thinking. Perhaps the technological leaps that have been taken in recent centuries, and that have drained the resources of our Earth, were necessary to give highly-evolved, simply-living and ecologically-conscious humans the tools we will need to take this next step.

As I considered the implications of Morgan's talk, I began to see the "Save the Planet" movement as the ultimate in human hubris. The planet does not need saving - it will continue if and after we are gone, no matter what we do. It will surely not take the same form as it does today because of human activity, and it may already be too late to undo most of the problems and destruction that we have wrought. However, though our species may have a catastrophic impact on this planet, in the framework of geologic time this crisis will be short-lived and, even if it spells the end of human life as we know it, the planet will rebound and fill the void with new life. Many people view humans as the crowning achievement of evolution, but in fact, we are just one species among many who have inhabited the planet during its long and ongoing history. While there is no question that we have done a great deal to reduce biological diversity on this planet, there is not one person among us who knows what this really means. Humans or no humans, the bioshpere will change, and continue to change, forever. That is what Earth does. Polar bears or tigers may not be around forever, but there will always be life.

So, then what does this mean for us as parents and as human beings? Does it mean we should simply throw in the towel, and surrender our fate to the Universe? Should we just live it up today, and who cares what happens tomorrow? I don't think so. However, I think it does mean that we need to give up our attachment to our ideas about how things should turn out. Obviously all of us, especially as parents, want to see human life continue with a minimum of war, poverty and pain. But none of us know what will happen, and we can waste an awful lot of emotional energy worrying about things that may or may not come to pass. This energy would be better spent working towards the future that we would like to see.

Accepting that we just do not have a crystal ball that will show us the future does not mean that we should stop working to ensure that humans will have a long, prosperous and peaceful stay on this planet. In fact, I would say that surrendering to the unkown is very freeing for the socially conscious among us. We no longer have to end our days wondering, "Have I done enough to save our biosphere from human destructiveness?" since that responsibility is off our plates. Who can live with that kind of pressure for very long, anyway? Instead, we can simply look at each day and ask ourselves, "What have I done to make my lifestyle more sustainable today?" That is a much more productive way of thinking, since every day we can easily do something that will help us move towards that goal.

For some of us, a contribution to the sustainability of human life on Earth will be local and personal, such as getting a hybrid automobile, installing solar panels on our homes, eating local foods, and minimizing our consumption. Others of us will take a more active role, enlarging our circles to become educators or activists. Some among us will be drawn to a hands-on approach, helping to educate children or build a well (or wind turbines?) in poor communities around the globe. All these contributions are important as our species necessarily moves towards a more cooperative, rather than a domineering, way of living on this planet. Instead of taking an all-or-nothing approach that can be a big turn-off to people who are not ready to take a big leap, seeing each small step as a contribution that moves the curve towards the sustainable end of the spectrum allows everyone to take a part in the movement to end the suffering that is being caused by humans on this planet.