I believe the most dangerous threats to wellbeing and world peace are not just issues like climate change, mass migration due to failed governments and economics, income disparities, ideological paralysis and misguided loyalties, gun violence, and pandemics. Underlying these threats is a breakdown in connection. In an increasingly digital age, we have lost a primary means of staying informed about ourselves, the environment, our values and right action.
A bridge of trust and good communication skills are foundational for healthy social bonding and solving problems collaboratively. It is important to reach out with emotional warmth that invites connection because of feeling safe and understood. This is the backbone for establishing listening and developing leadership that evolves into beneficial change. Dysfunctional patterns of communication show up in broken marriages, corrupt business practices, toxic leadership and avoidable wars, where people have become opponents, adversaries fighting each other and remaining unwilling to budge.
We are at a point in history where people around the globe are demanding having a voice and being heard, to address social injustice. What is needed is rehabilitation in thinking and acting to reduce trauma and increase community wellbeing and safety. Despite different individual beliefs and backgrounds, it is time to connect with what unites, rather than divides, us and stop destructive behaviors.
Optimal functioning requires living in a center of inner calm and having necessary life skills to connect with others. Like a flock of geese in the air, teamwork supports what is advantageous for the many. Different birds rotate as they fly to fill in as leader, while the rest save energy by staying in a V formation. They remain attentive to the nuances of each other’s movements and vocal communications for coordinating their flight pattern and knowing when the ideal moment is to change positions.
Conscious societies also have a hierarchy and structure, with community involvement, transparency, and clear substructures. If this harmony is disrupted because of wounds from past unresolved trauma or a current threat, it impairs group cohesion and handling basic needs. These include shelter and feeling comfortable, access to nutritious food, health care, employment and having hope for the future.
We are each part of a circle of connection and ambassadors for peace, within oneself, one’s immediate family, or as part of the local or international community. Options are available to repair what’s broken and shape behavior that creates a holistic self and better world, starting with oneself. Like a pebble that is tossed into a pond, the effect of your thinking and behavior will create a ripple effect for all within that sphere. A lifestyle that is morally and structurally aligned with values like truth, the highest reality, builds a foundation for health, wellbeing and establishing positive relationships.