Heroes Not Zombies

Do you remember TINA?

That was one of Margaret Thatcher’s slogans. Well I’m not sure she ever used the acronym but she sure believed the statement which led to it – “There Is No Alternative”.

What she meant, of course, was that she was determined she was right and would entertain no criticism.

I hated that from the first time I heard. It struck me as both arrogant and ignorant.

At best it was a delusion, and at worst, a deliberate lie.

Almost a couple of years ago the ancient, high stone wall separating the garden from our neighbours’ property fell down. A huge, sudden crash and down it went. If you look back through my blog you’ll find lots of photos of the wall….or more specially of the glorious false vine which grew on it. Some experts have blamed the fall on the ivy, and maybe it did contribute but it was beautiful all the same.

The wall still hasn’t been repaired (don’t ask!) but the neighbours did chop down the remains of the ivy plant to stop it regrowing.

Well look at this – it hasn’t given up yet!

I listened to an excellent episode of the onbeing podcast the other day. It featured an interview with the forest scientist, Suzanne Simard. I recommend it. Her work on the interconnectedness of trees and fungi in the forest is mind expanding. Yet she had to fight to have it accepted as the dominant orthodox model was based on Darwinian competition, not collaboration and cooperation.

In that interview she says

You know, I’ve learned through my work, in studying how systems work, that they are regenerative systems. You know, they’re built that way. They’ve evolved that way — that the old help the young, that the large helps the small, and it’s reciprocal, and that this network, this system, will grow. And out of it emerges incredible stuff, like the ability to sequester carbon in our ecosystems, for example; the productivity of a beautiful cathedral forest; the sense of wonder and health and vitality and health you get — that we get when we interact with that incredible place.

You know, even in our own societies, look at what we’ve achieved, and look at the joy we’ve developed, listening to the symphony, watching our children grow. It’s just full of joy. And we’re built for that. And that’s what gives me incredible hope, and honestly, hope is the only way to go, right? And it’s also — that hope is based on understanding. It’s an understanding that our ecosystems are meant to heal themselves, and yes, there are tipping points, and yes, we do — if we don’t make changes, they can collapse, but they can also go the other direction. The system will respond, if we make those choices, and it will rebuild and re-self-organize again in a way that is going to be healthy for maybe even the human population, the human society, right? I think it’s all there. We have all the tools. We have all the fundamental building blocks. We just need to make the right — make good decisions.

So I look at this photo again and I see resilience, re-growth and the ability of Nature to find another way.

I love that.

Be wary of those who claim “there is no other way” – there always is.