Oak Trees, Blue Jays, Grandmothers, and UU’ers

Do we ever think about oak trees?  Maybe occasionally.  How about blue jays?  Again, maybe every once in a while. We probably do think about grandmothers more frequently.  But do we ever recognize that all of us, all the above, are interrelated?

Darwin not only introduced the idea of evolution to our awareness but he also stated a  second idea, the relatedness of all life forms, that, I would guess, few of us have ever heard about, let alone considered. Yet Indigenous people around the world have believed in the relatedness of all life forms as part of their heritage, accepted its validity, and acted accordingly.

It is my hope that most UU’ers, along with future inhabitants of Congress and the White House, will believe in this reality and act accordingly.

Dick Smythe is an entomologist retired from the research division of the US Forest Service. Throughout his life he has maintained two dominant interests: first, his fascination with the natural world — our non-human environment and endless source of wonder; second, his abiding interest in religion/theology — a subject of continuing education and challenge.