You Cannot Create Alone
Think about it. Is there anything that you can create which does not, in some way involve another? As I write this, I might have an original thought but conveying it has required me to learn to speak and write coherently from family, teachers, friends, the media, etc. In addition, I am writing on my laptop, surely build overseas somewhere, using software that was coded in such a way to make the keys I press produce the letters I desire to convey the message.
Every act of creation is an act of collaboration.
Breakfast just arrived in my hotel room. I am grateful for the farmers who raised the food, all those in the system that brought it through the market to this hotel, to the cooks who prepared it and brewed the coffee; to the craftspeople who created the plates and cups and silverware; and to the friendly porter who brought it to my door.
As you go throughout your day, stay aware of all those with whom you are collaborating – seen and unseen; near and distant; present or over time.
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(“TED* Thoughts” is published three times a week [at least most of the time]. It is intended to offer reflections and applications of The Power of TED* in order help facilitate a shift in worldview and relationship dynamics from the Drama Triangle [or the Dreaded Drama Triangle] to The Empowerment Dynamic [TED*]. Please help spread TED* by sharing this “TED* Thoughts” and by contributing your own thoughts by posting a comment. To the Creator in you!)
Tags: Creator
May 8th, 2010 at 12:23 pm
David,
Yes. I believe that this mind-shift is essential into moving into creating a sustainable future. I believe that it is critical for children (and us big kids) to learn where things come from and where they go — that creating in isolation is an illusion that has become an entrenched paradigm. How wonderful it is when we begin to see the symbiosis of life and creation happening everywhere around us at micro and macro levels! When we begin to exercise our imagination muscles and see that everything around us came from somewhere — this keyboard I’m typing on, the paint on my walls, my coffee cup — we can begin to imagine things less as commodities and more as pieces of this amazing, intricate, web of life that we belong to and have the opportunity to care for.
Gratefully,
David Westerlund
Bellingham, Washington