Having worked my way through the first year’s planning for this blog, at times I still find myself wondering what EbbSpark actually is. I mean, seeing as I came up with the idea and clearly felt it worthwhile pursuing, there must be some sense of what this is about and why it might be of value for individuals or society. And there is in a way, although it may not always be entirely clear.
That first year mainly served, in my eyes, to stake out some ground for a conversation to take place. Working with the Themes I developed initially, my posts have attempted to look deeply at some issues that seem important while also looking for connections or common principles between those more specific interests or concerns.
Some of the ideas that came up towards the close of the year began pulling that together more clearly for me: those posts that sought a more comprehensive view of society, community, and our place within the world (see Notes One); and, very much building on that, those posts that looked more to our role or responsibility in understanding and contributing to that world we all share (Notes Two).
Which, thinking about it, may be what this writing most easily boils down to: the sense of trying to understand both the complex nature of reality and the importance of our position and participation within that. “That” being all those settings, all those choices we face and decisions we make in how to act and relate to one another and all we find around us.
And that also tends at times to dip into musings around thought, reality, consciousness, and other more philosophical concerns I personally find quite intriguing and motivating (Notes Three). That undertone of trying to map things out in the realm of thought is, I suppose, another fairly central part of this project.
Then, in terms of why I might consider all that worthwhile, there’s simply the fact that I believe all of this matters. Understanding the society and the world we live within, seeking to comprehend others’ experiences of that, trying to craft constructive ways forward from where we might find ourselves, and believing in the importance of every human life.
For me, as intelligent beings we are able to understand and find reasonable responses to what we see; and as compassionate ones we are also hopefully able to reach mutual understanding and cooperation. However difficult those paths might be I simply don’t believe one life is worth more than any other, but that we need to work our way onwards together.
What that might mean on a personal or social level is far from straightforward, as modern life often seems as complex as it does precarious, but I’m not convinced there’s another way to address things. As explored in “Ecological Intelligence”, “yes and no are the two most powerful words in the vocabulary of a species that has become capable of deciding what to do about its future.”
Notes and References:
Note 1: Human nature and community life
Note 1: Economy & Humanity
Note 1: Nature speaks in many ways, do we listen?
Note 2: The web and the wider world
Note 2: Ideas around education & responsibility
Note 2: Whether there is hope for change
Note 2: Responsibility in shaping this reality
Note 3: David Bohm, thoughts on life
Note 3: What is real?