An invitation to care
Irrespective of data, what is your motivation?
Every nature, every modeled form, every creature, exists in and with each other. — Mary 2:2
If I were to have a super power, it would be the ability to speak any language in the world. Whether in this vastly diverse country or abroad, I could listen, understand, and connect with others fluently. Initially, when I imagined this possibility, it was with other people. However, in reality it comes from a deep desire to communicate with all beings. By that I mean all that is non-human. The seed of corn, the currents of wind, the sap from Boswellia, the hawks that live in the cottonwoods to the north, my two cats, and even something a little more nuanced, the tender murmurings of my heart. So in a sense it’s knowing all language, silent or spoken, sensed or sung.
What would I learn? What would they share with me or I with them? What would we experience together? What would the steady, constant call with spirit or my heart disclose?
In considering the above quote, and how with all our differences, visible or intangible, we already, to a significant extent, communicate. In case you’re wondering, the line is from the Gospel of Mary Magdalene. Sadly a gospel that was hidden and partially destroyed out of fear, power, and control. However it’s still with us. It’s alive. Thankfully. I’ve only begun reading Meggan Watterson’s book Mary Magdalene Revealed, (the book where this verse was plucked) and know that I will be forever changed. Because it touches on something. This wish of a super power that may already be within reach.
I find myself hearing a far off rumble of ecstasy, yet it’s not something my ears detect. It’s a mix of grief, joy, love, and union coming from somewhere within. I sense my heart trembling, like when the earth quakes and its tremors linger until every last shock is released. For those who know, you know.
Writer, artist, and technologist, James Bridle shared in one of their insightful talks, “We simply have to understand that we live in a world in which all the beings around us are sensing and sharing... And that what strikes me as being extraordinary, is there’s an ongoing relationship and communication through the sensory world.” Words happen to be only one tool by which a conversation and connection is formed.
Therefore I must revise my super power. May I access a kind of universal language to listen, understand, and connect with all beings. It’s not as wildly unattainable or inconceivable as you may think. For many humans, myself included, words aren’t necessary to understand something, love someone, or even extend care towards another. Think about it…we live in a world web where all beings, in some shape, form, or frequency are communicating. I’d wager you talk with your dog or cat. You may know what kind of bird is singing outside your door. I know when my step-son is telling a joke, even though he’s non-verbal. (He’s a rascal with a great sense of humor.)
We as humans can stretch our capacity and remember a world that connects via love. And love has many ribbons of frequency and means to be felt. In some instances words are of little consequence and in some scenarios a limitation. Within the sensorial language of sound, touch, sense, smell, sight, and taste other realities may be experienced. I also believe there are languages which reside even beyond the senses. Yet, still many choose to simply nestle into perceiving a very narrow slice of time and space. Remember, my way, your way…is not the only way.
Though I’m a product of generational western enculturation, where the longstanding belief is that non-humans are inherently silent, mechanistic, or non-intelligent, I simply don’t subscribe to it. The world is animated. Nature is animated. I am. And I’m in constant wonder. I’d rather touch and smell and listen to my surroundings rather than stay immersed in a state of inattentiveness and distraction. I don’t know why roots move towards vibrations or how plants respond to sound, inferring that they can in fact hear. But they do and all I know is that I find that very comforting.
Now, if we have the capability and thankfully the interest to learn another language, say Portuguese or Romanian, which can crack open parts of ourselves and expand relationships, then why not extend that same grace to everything else. Wouldn’t it be sensible of us to embrace the fact that everything in nature senses—senses a reality. Plants, animals, organisms, or the litany of elemental molecules that move intelligently exhibit a level of sophistication that is awesome. Perhaps this is why I don’t find it ironic as much as it is interesting when I noticed the coming together of the vibrational tone that brought the wise revelations of Mary Magdalene, James Bridle’s lectures, and my desire to know and speak all languages. Every creature exists in and with each other. We share a common aliveness.
Yet I have a question. Many others may be asking it too. I know James Bridle is one of them. If AI can begin to decipher and codify the language of whales, for example, into something we’d understand, would the world even listen? James doesn’t think all the data matters as much as giving a damn, as caring. I agree. This from a recent conversation with Emergence Magazine and Rebecca Gibbs and César Rodríguez-Garavito, “We do not need to understand one another in these ways in order to behave in the way that we should—rightly and justly.”
We already know we are polluting their waters. We already know that sound pollution from human-made vessels and machinery causes severe stress. It’s likely we already know what the whales may say but we don’t want to hear it: please, stop. We haven't. Can we graciously ask for forgiveness? Care, communion, and a generous extension of love and grace have to be the motivators, irrespective of data.
In another talk James Bridle explored this further, “when we talk about these things they're not just a change in practice, they're essentially a change in consciousness. Like if you are not radically changed by undertaking this kind of work, then you're not doing the work. Because if one is not changed by this work then the work itself is not going to change the world. The ‘work’ they are referring to is regenerative and ecological design, which may seem entirely unrelated, but it’s all connected. Regenerative design is a fancy way of saying, living with love and walking softly. Whatever is done has an effect.
I find that this is where trust comes in. I have to trust because I don’t know nor have to have all the answers. I trust because it’s a pursuit worthy of my energy and attention. I tend a garden so that I may trust. Its ecology reveals a truth, a system so grand, complex and dynamic, ancient and intelligent most of which is beyond my understanding, but not outside my ability to love and experience. There is no hierarchy, only a web-like spark ignited again and again. I find myself listening and perhaps one day may wake up fundamentally changed, super and powerful.
Yours, Erin
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