800 Words
Several years ago, I was asked to officiate at the wedding of friends of mine at the Lost Creek Ranch in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. It was my first experience with the regal Tetons; an amazing, guided tour of Yellowstone Park, complete with a Grizzly sighting; and opportunities to encounter and photograph the majestic Aspens.
The Aspens are native to cold regions with cool summers. Aspens are all medium-sized deciduous trees reaching 15–30 m (49–98 ft) tall. In North America, the Aspen is referred to as “quaking” Aspen or “trembling” Aspen because the leaves "quake" or “tremble” in the wind. This is due to their flattened petioles which reduces aerodynamic drag on the trunk and branches.
Mark Nepo, in his New York Times best seller, The Book of Awakening, offers an illustration of compassionate love using the Aspen as an example. He writes:
“Another powerful way to realize our interconnectedness is to imagine the human family as a stand of aspens growing by a river. Though each tree appears to be growing independently, not attached to the others, beneath the soil, out of view, the roots of all the trees exist as one enormous root. And so, like these trees, our soul’s growth, while appearing to be independent, is intimately connected to the health of those around us. Our spirits are entwined at center, out of view. Once realizing this, it becomes clear that we have no choice but to embrace the health of our neighbors as part of our own health.”[1]
As human beings, we are all interconnected, whether we like it or not! Though we appear to each be independent, living inside our own brains and bodies, “out of view” humans are as connected to one another as the Aspens.
Steve Taylor Ph.D. senior lecturer in psychology at Leeds Beckett University, Great Britain, wrote in Psychology Today, about the interconnectedness of humans.
“The first - and most common - is ‘interconnectedness of feeling’, or ‘empathic connection.’ Empathy is sometimes seen as a cognitive ability to put yourself in someone else’s shoes, and imagine what they are experiencing. This is certainly a type of empathy, but only what I have called ‘shallow empathy.’ There is a deeper kind of empathy which stems from actually sensing - rather than just imagining - what another person is experiencing. In this ‘deep empathy’ our consciousness seems to expand outwards, and merge into other people’s. We seem to enter into other people’s mind-space, and share their feelings. If they are feeling sad, we sense their sadness. If they are hurt, we sense their pain. We want to alleviate other people’s suffering because, in a sense, it is our own suffering.
“The second type of experience is ‘interconnectedness of being.’ For many years, I have collected reports of what I call ‘awakening experiences’, in which people experience a more expansive and intense state of being. One of the most prominent characteristics of these experiences is a ‘transcendence of separateness.’ It’s very common for people to sense that they are deeply connected to - even one with - the natural world, other human beings or even the whole universe. There is a sense of sharing one’s being with other phenomena, a sense that we share the same fundamental essence as them.
“The third type of experience - which I admit is more controversial than the previous two - is ‘interconnectedness of knowing.’ There are many anecdotal reports of individuals spontaneously communicating with each other without any direct interaction. Common experiences are thinking of someone you haven’t seen for years and then receiving a phone call from them and bumping into them on the street. Other examples are having a ‘strong feeling’ that a friend is pregnant, has been diagnosed with a serious illness or has died without being told this.”[2]
From a spiritual perspective, if every human being is created in God’s image, there is the capacity for connectedness. Saint Paul writing to the Church in Ephesus paints a picture of that connectedness stating that the members of that faith community are “being rooted and established in love.”[3]
When an Aspen puts roots into the ground, those roots take in water and nutrients, and the glorious tree begins to come to life. More importantly, as the roots of many Aspens come together, the forest can withstand wind, storm, and whatever comes against it. In the same way, human beings are rooted and our souls are connected and nourished in the love of God. It is my belief that the most powerful way forward in these chaotic days is the path that Jesus, and other spiritual masters, have laid before the global community through the centuries: the way of love. In this way, I look out for your best interests as you watch out for mine. By doing so, interconnected, we become a community like the Aspens – strong, joined, and majestic.
[1] The Book of Awakening, page 190.
[2] Connectedness - Are we really Separate Individuals? Posted Nov 04, 2016, Psychology Today.
[3] Ephesians 3:17
