THE 4 BEHAVIORS
INTENTIONALLY LIVE YOUR HUMAN NATURE
Stop
The 8 INSTRUCTIONS arise directly from matter-of-fact expressions of life in the natural world. Full Ecology suggests four orientations or behaviors for reclaiming yourself as one of these expressions. Each of these behaviors is fully evident in the natural world – there to show you who and what you, in your truest nature, are.
The first of these behaviors, and likely the mainstay – the most fundamental – is
to STOP.
Just Stop.
Right now.
~~
Stop everything
even if just for a fraction of a second.
Stop.
INSTRUCTION NO. 1
CONNECTION
Stop.
From here you know most directly your connection with all else.
The trees of the forest are connected to each other by means of vast underground fungal networks. They talk.
INSTRUCTION NO. 2
VARIETY
Stop.
With stopping, life’s variety is no problem. In ecologies of wilderness and in human community, variety sustains health.
Every day, evidence comes forward showing how ecosystem diversity is vital to health – health of the environment and health of human bodies. Here’s evidence related to Lyme disease.
INSTRUCTION NO. 4
RELATIVES
Stop.
You are always in relationship.
We’ve known primates recognize themselves. We know dolphins have names for each other. Recently, scientists have found self-recognition in manta rays.
INSTRUCTION NO. 5
EFFICIENCY
Stop.
Efficiency arises from stillness, from presence.
One of our favorite words is murmuration – most associated with starlings that fly by the hundreds – even thousands – in swooping intricate coordination with never a wing clip.
INSTRUCTION NO. 6
RESILIENCE
Stop.
Recovery and renewal find solid ground.
Salmon swim home against the current, overcoming obstacles like human-made dams – against all odds. We’re learning that, for humans, too, living through stress builds biological courage.
INSTRUCTION NO. 7
ELDERHOOD
Stop.
Now you can hear your wisdom.
An orangutan mother may spend five years teaching her offspring how to build perfect thatched sleeping nests in the branches of trees.
INSTRUCTION NO. 8
UNCERTAINTY
Stop.
Admit uncertainty.
Biological science has determined mystery to be a fact of life. Searching for the missing link to finally explain life on earth, scientists come ever closer, even as they become more certain there will always be things we can’t ever know.
Biological Curiosity
Co-authored with Gary Ferguson Meaning resides in the long rehabilitation.Richard PowersApril 14, 2022Livingston, MT Last winter, we ventured out to a reading by Richard Powers, the author of Overstory, and of a newer novel titled, Bewildered. By then, we all were –...
Overlapping Circles
Floodwaters barreled through the creeks and rivers the Yellowstone River Basin last month, slamming into whole communities, many of them gateways to Yellowstone National Park. Like an otherworldly steam roller, water took out friends’ homes. What’s more, the aftermath...
How We Live with Uncertainty
For a few weeks prior to February 24, I listened to reports out of Ukraine. Voices of everyday people going about their lives. In Kyiv, in Lviv, in the countryside. In the cities, street cafes brimmed over, markets were lively tangles of vendors and shoppers. One...
Reliable Rhythms – Solstice, Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwaanza
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Guest Blog: Paula MacKay on Full Ecology
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Equinox – The Balance Point
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Weariness & Renewal
Today the temperature around our home hovers near 0°. "Can super cold weather make me tired?" I ask. We talk about it. It can. Sometimes. That's why it's good to sleep in a cool room. It’s also why trees and fields and waterways need winter. To rest well. Whatever the...
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