With the never-ending imploding climate disasters of our world, my desires to learn more about my connection with our environment and the not so scary concept of death are increasingly prevalent. At the beginning I was a little frightened to be talking about death but as we continue the importance is ever so increasing.
The attempts to extend our human lives leaves this catastrophic effect of disorder in our life cycles. Trickling down to disasters and death in our animals and ecosystems. As we are increasing human lifespan, they’re consequences that come with the typical American lifestyle filled with consumerism and a negligent lifestyle that carelessly increases our emissions. Climate change makes our part in this world complex. Is recycling really going to help the earth? Is using a reusable bag going to stop the earth from warming? Is what I learned in church and school going to stop wildfires? Our systems have failed us when it comes to climate change, yet we need them for our sanity and to keep our minds at bay.
Humankind blankets our self from death with symbols. Our worldwide views that we assimilate into and adopt such as religion helps us manage our terror of the inevitable end. In the worm at the core there is an example from the bible “to love our neighbor as ourselves”. However even people that adopt religion don’t follow commandments and this idea of using religion to compass our morals is just another way of navigating our systems of life. Neither less our sense of worth is determined by our self esteem that emerges from our culture views imposed by our connections to our past. Religion keeps us in check with our morals, even if not everything is followed there is some justice by making us acknowledge our connection with the earth as seen in many cultures. We discussed in class how there is a disconnect in where our food comes from depending on your culture, whereas in others its seen as normal to honor animals and see where they come from. This difference in culture is also seen when talked about death.
Our culture dictates our efforts on everything we touch, from the ground we walk on to the food we take home. The acknowledgment of death pushes us to change the life we so thought we had succeeded in. Climate change touches us on every part of the earth. Mother Earth is dying along with us, even though the fight for longevity is contradicting our ecosystems. Death is so simple, yet also complex when it comes down to human’s psychological needs.
Works cited:
Is a culture of death gaining supremacy over a culture of life in today’s World? our bloggers fight it out: Flipped. ED Times | Youth Media Channel. Retrieved November 3, 2021, from https://edtimes.in/is-a-culture-of-death-gaining-supremacy-over-a-culture-of-life-in-todays-world-our-bloggers-fight-it-out-flipped/.
Solomon, Sheldon, et al. The Worm at the Core: On the Role of Death in Life. Penguin Books, 2016