Budding in Community: Perspectives from Kripalu's CEO

“There can be no vulnerability without risk; there can be no community without vulnerability; there can be no peace, and ultimately no life, without community.” — M Scott Peck 

At this time of year, we are seeing the budding, Spring is in full flow, and we may notice that energy is us, in our lives, in our places of work. It can show up balanced or chaotic. The rest of nature has its ways of weaving balance into its growth and budding. We humans go off kilter so fast, so often. 

The context of our lives right now feels like an ever deepening of complexity and uncertainty, which many of us are struggling through, yet nature seems to know exactly how to move through complexity and uncertainty, in fact this is how nature thrives. Just look at the abundance that happens in a complex and diverse forest or wetland or even your garden. 

When we humans do not simplify the natural world and her expression, often she thrives. How do we learn from nature to find more vitality in our lives at this time of year and in this time in history?

1. Observe nature
   Watch how she finds her way to grow, to pause, to start and turn back to find another path if needed. Watch how she expresses herself at this time of year, vulnerably budding and showing her beauty to us. How might you show more of your beauty to the world? Through kindness, through your art, through your philanthropy, through your love?
    
2. Community
   Nature is one of the greatest teachers in how to build and sustain community. Just look at forests, hundreds or thousands of years building relationships to support mutual thriving.  How are we building community in these times? We often get isolated in stress, what if we found a community to help us through? Community can be hard for many of us, humans do not always show up very well (we have way too much evidence of this), but nature does not give up on the concept of community and its power, in fact she turns towards it over and over. 
    
3. Empathy
   We risk losing the magic that enables us to be in community with each other and with nature if we lose our empathy. Right now, empathy is a priority, we are becoming more fragmented and divided, as we tend to our own needs and ask for support from community we may find the inner space to be asking “From what point of view does this make sense?”...this question has helped me understand people and views that are so different to mine. It does not mean that my mind changes, but it does change something in my heart as I try to understand, as I try to keep a sense of community that includes rather than excludes. 
    
4. Keep an eye on the long view
   Nature can teach us so much about long range living. Our dominant culture loves us to focus on the next quarter, which brings up a sense of urgency and often scarcity which nature does not seem to live by in the same way. How can we tend to these times and have a long-range view of our life? How can we be in such uncertainty and complexity and think long into the future to imagine what world, community, neighborhood, family, life we want to live in.  

“The greatness of a community is most accurately measured by the compassionate actions of its members.” — Coretta Scott King  

At Kripalu, we are encouraging ourselves to be in nature and attuned to her rhythms, balancing what we take into our bodies, minds, and hearts during this time.  

I look forward to next month when we can look at the power of the approaching summer, her passion, and her blossoming.