Happy Interdependence Day America

I recently received a kind email from a Linda Anderson Krech who works with the fascinating ToDo Institue. The institute addresses the mental health issue from a Buddhist, alternative view which is something I'm very interested in as I live with a brain disorder myself. That being said Linda sent me a link to a wonderful article on the American Independence day and INTERdependence. It is a fairly long article so I will just copy and paste a section of it here to wet your curiosity to read it it in full--it really is an excellent piece:

But freedom is different from independence. Independence implies that we are not dependent on others -- that we are autonomous, able to act on our own. But that couldn’t be further from the truth. We are completely dependent on others and we can do nothing on our own. The recognition of this truth could be more accurately represented in the celebration of INTERdependence Day.

Think about how dependent we are on each other. In order to drive to the store I am dependent on

My car
The mechanics who keep my car running
My eyeglasses
Gasoline and oil
The people who build and keep the roads repaired
Electricity (provided by a battery for ignition)
The people who operate the store and keep the shelves stocked with food
The people who truck and deliver the items to the store
The bank who issued my credit/debit card or the US Govt Printing Center that printed the currency I would use
My employer who pays me so I have money for buying what I need.

[...] The freedom I have to bake my own bread is the end result of a complex network of people, machines, energy and planetary resources. So the eye doctor who examines my eyes and the machine that grinds the lenses in my glasses are part of this "bread-baking freedom" that I so much enjoy, though I mostly take it for granted.

Click here to read the entire article.

Thank-you again Linda for sharing this article with us.

~Peace to all beings~