Friday, December 7, 2012

The End of the World


As we rapidly approach the supposed end date of the Mayan calendar I find myself vacillating between two things.  On the one hand, I feel much like I did about the whole Y2K drama.  Basically; *yawn*; this is silly, nothing is going to happen, anyone who thinks so is nutty.  And on the other hand, I find myself thinking; OMG WE ARE ALL GONNA DIE!  Actually that's not true, I've not considered the fact that I could die.  Instead, I am finding myself focused on the possibility of a severe lack of the creature comforts that I have known my whole life.

And when I dig down a little deeper I am able to determine what it is I am really afraid of: people.

All of the history that I have ever been taught is filled with stories of conquering, fighting, war, taking land, and flat out aggression.  All of the history, filling textbook pages, is the writing of one society conquering another.  Hitory is told from the vantage point of the victor.  Where are the stories of peace, community, and co-creation?

This leaves me asking myself; what is in the true heart of people?  Deep down are humans solely looking for more power?  Are we williing to take what we want no matter what?  Are people just wired to be aggressive?

These questions hurt my heart.

I want to believe that if the world, as we know it, falls apart, we would band together as members of humanity and change the way we deal with each other.  I want to believe that deep down people are good and want to see others survive and thrive.  I want to believe that if the world as I know it ends, my neighborhood would band together, help each other, and find a way to create a new and better world.

So although the thought of no running water, no central heating, and no Internet bums me out; what I am really worried about is fear of scarcity, aggression, isolation; and what this would do to people's reactions.  These are my real concerns, real worries, and they go well beyond the looming date of December 21st, 2012.  I know that I can't trust the infrastructure of the world that I am used to, but can I trust the people?

Every single day I pray that I can.

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