Heroes Not Zombies

When I look at a photo like this I think of the word “flow”, but there’s a related word which comes to my mind as I reflect on this particular photo today – movement.

I took this photo yesterday in the “source”, or “spring” which lies a couple of hundred metres from my house. The water which appears in the pool and then flows strongly off down the old Roman water channels is as clear as you could imagine.

Standing looking at this “source” I can’t help but think that I’m looking at something which is alive – or, at least, something which is at the basis of Life.

One definition of Life is that which has a “self-moving capacity”. When we see a rock we know it’s not going to go anywhere under its own volition or its own steam. But all creatures, from single celled organisms right up to complex human beings and other mammals move all the time – they move on the inside with the flow of nutrients, chemicals, electrical signals, as they maintain an internal environment – we call that homeostasis. They consume, metabolise and transform other elements. Some have a beating heart, and/or lungs which cycle through inspiration and expiration. All forms of Life show continuous movement inside.

Living forms are also always on the move on the planet too – sending seeds great distances, stretching up and climbing walls, spreading roots deep underground or walking, running, flying, swimming from one place to another.

Many creatures are migratory traversing huge amounts of land and sea every single year. Others move habitat from one place to another. All are seeking to survive and thrive.

This is true of human beings which is why I find nation state attempts to control the movement of people so disturbing. People will always move. Individually, in families or in large groups. Dividing neighbours into “citizens” and “foreigners” is fraught with difficulties and injustices. Hatred towards “the other” is counter to the human need to connect, to travel, to migrate.

It’s also true of viruses. This pandemic is often described as a war we are waging on a virus – a virus we want to eliminate. Except it’s very hard, almost impossible, to eliminate any viruses from the planet.

As we move ahead I wonder if we need to change our emphasis and change our societies and systems to make them both more resilient and more adaptable. We can’t just ignore epidemics or pandemics. We need to respond to them. But maybe we do that best when we create populations which are well housed, well fed and well educated. Maybe we do that best when we develop health and social care to successfully treat the sick, and to care for the elderly and vulnerable in our communities.

So, I’m just reflecting today on the importance of movement in all its forms – change, adaptation, resilience, growth and flourishing.