Midweek Musings...Wants and Needs

Money still doesn't grow on trees...

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Jim often talks about "The Big Four" - referring to what people want from healthy forests:

Clean air
Clean, plentiful water
Abundant and healthy fish and wildlife
Spaces to recreate, forage, and appreciate

My take on "The Big Four" in terms of what we want from a healthy society:

Peace - safety, order, respect, grace, compassion
Abundance - sustenance, economic stability, affordable access to universally needed services and institutions
Freedom - freedom to express, speak, vote, believe, religiously observe - without retribution, harmoniously
Hope - hope for change, understanding, the future, our children, our children's children

In both cases, the acquisition of these wants is inextricably linked to the need for stewardship and care. A mindful, human engagement within the environments.

Action is needed that applies universally. Not just for the principles that feel good, are easy for us, or confirm our personal beliefs and agendas.

"Need" is the verb. In order to get what we want we need to take action if we desire change. When we recognize that the want requires something from us - we get more of what we want.

One might argue that what is listed are needs - but the truth is, we don't need as much as we think we do. The forest and humans can survive on much less than what is listed. It won't be pretty or particularly fun - but survival is possible

When we do nothing, systems can limp along and maintain a level of stasis - albeit an unhealthy, dysfunctional one. The resulting environment - the consequence of no action - is a hostile, unsafe environment that is working to regain resiliency at any cost. We won't see sustainability for a very long time. Systems out of balance find ways to regain stasis - and sometimes that means killing off the host.

There is a better way.

We do best when we expand our idea of who benefits - and adjust our actions to consider the greater good - and the long term outcome of how we go about securing our wants and needs.

Headed to the garden to be reminded how to keep things simple...have a lovely summer weekend!

Julia