The Great Divide of Our Times

The great divide, in our context, is the one we created or inherited. 

Isn’t it interesting that we categorize part of our world as developed and the other as developing. Some even call the developing world, the third world or the global south. 

And what does developed even mean apart from wealth, consumerism, access to food and resources?  Let’s not forget the great divide between the ‘haves’ and the ‘have-nots’—the people who are very wealthy and the people who are very poor.

Somehow the collective dream became one about purchasing and consuming material items.  Many of us separate from nature by believing we are progressive and modern. 

And what we are discovering is that some of what we call food is making us sick. There is a great divide between healthy food and junk.

A headline from the Daily Mail reads: ”Toxic compounds used to make industrial tubing and rubber gloves are found in 80% of McDonald’s, Burger King and Pizza Hut food. Dangerous chemicals are linked to asthma, infertility and smaller testicles, study finds.”

Nature is Asking Us to Pay Attention

We also treat the natural world as though our natural resources will never end and we have became masterful at creating waste. This is not a criticism but an observation. 

And countries report on GDP and other economic indicators that become another great divide. Conscious decisions are not always made as we produce more disposable products made of plastic, oil and whatever we believe we have a right to own.

Many of us are waking up from our collective nightmare of environmental collapse, hardships, struggle, scarcity and conflicts with some unicorns and rainbows sprinkled in between. It takes time to not only observe the separation and, at the same time, decide whether we want to be consumers or architects, designers and creators.

Pioneers like Joe Brewer are building communities to regenerate the land with their children. And there are people everywhere bridging the great divide by being on the ground and living authentically. 

Dreaming Beyond the Great Divide

The best news we have is that our dreams can change. We have within us a power source with an enormous capacity to dream, imagine and create. 

Indigenous people suggest that “No one is healed until we are all healed.” In many senses, our natural interdependence is one of the biggest opportunities facing us when we move toward wholeness.

No one knows what we each dream and no one is going to create a healthy dream for us. No one, apart from each of us, can become conscious of what we consume. After all, we’re the only one who can honor ourselves and our natural environment. 

If we learned anything during the last few years it is that we are more the same than different. Each one of us faced major changes in our lives that forced us to literally pause. It was different for every one of us. But there is an increased focus on our quality of life, which includes every aspect of our lives.

Here is the deal. When we are in alignment and harmony with nature, we understand that we live on a beautiful and abundant planet. The Earth is inviting each of us now to become more conscious of our footprint; not with more proclamations and judgments. When we choose to walk quietly and softly, we find stillness.

Choices Are Abundant

There is no need to take part in drama that people create. Making sure the people who we have given our trust are trustworthy is a first step. And believe me, people show us who they are through their actions. Both the beautiful parts and the broken parts. But many of us don’t need fixing by anyone outside ourselves. No matter how much we are told someone else has our answers.

When we see people engaged in their own drama, we can make choices. And sometimes the healthiest one is to step out of their chaos and honor ourselves. When someone questions our integrity, most likely they are justifying their own actions or lack of.

This is a time to step out of the great divide and focus on self-discipline and self-knowing that frees us from unhealthy attachments. Leaving the past behind and asking ourselves, what are we walking towards? Not everyone will come us on this journey. And that’s part of the transformation.

Release what doesn’t serve. It’s no longer about judging the right and wrong. It’s about our health and that of the earth that sustains us. What if we are all developing?

This is a time of deep initiation, experimentation and freedom, What if we allow ourselves to listen to our heart and hold firm our soul’s calling?