“We hold these truths to be self-evident…”

We come into this world completely dependent on others to keep us alive.  When we reach adolescence, we learn a healthy independence from our caretakers.  When we grow up, we come to realize we have been interdependent all along.

Dependence – Independence – Interdependence.

As our country marks this year’s celebration of independence, there’s a lot to be discouraged about.  I’ll not make a list.  However, one of the great joys of conscious creaturely existence is the possibility of ever-increasing mindfulness of our interdependence.  To be a part of rather than apart from makes all the difference.  Breath-awareness is a great place to start (each day).  Contemplating our food sources and ancestors and friendship/kinship connections and microbes and star-fusion and watersheds takes us further along. 

Jesus said something about “abundant life,” and something about “the kingdom of God is among you.”  It’s time to move beyond cultural adolescence, grow up, and declare interdependence.  Once you start down that road, it is self-evident in a joyful, liberating way.

Joel