Know your place, Love your place
Last week, there was a sign on the side of the road vaguely announcing imminent construction work. We soon learned what the sign indicated: the bridge we travel every day was going to be closed for many months.
Suddenly, the rivers that separate here from there seemed to rear up and reclaim their rightful place as topographic barriers, unforgiving terrain that needed to be considered carefully as we, pioneer-like, plotted out the least inhibiting place to cross.
As I drew a new squiggly-line commute, I found that I was investigating local maps in a different light, asking questions like: where exactly do those two rivers meet? And, what does that mean for the watershed of this area, including the creek that runs by my house? I then wondered how the land use changes as the topography changes, and I was led to investigate many environmental connections that I am sorry to say I had not given a good amount of consideration before this imposed inconvenience.
I find this sort of knowledge is important, because knowing and understanding often lead to some measure of attentiveness and commitment. When we are open to learning about the physical place we call home, we start to claim it - not in a proprietary sense, but in a sense of feeling some level of care and responsibility for it.
Sometimes, I wonder if it is just easier to keep our heads down, not wanting to learn these things, because, if we do, knowing and caring will become a burden. We call it staying in our lane, and leave the caring to other professionals or specialists. Knowing your place opens doors to responsibility, expectations, and even commitments, all bad words in society today. My pal Wendell Berry says that,
the local landscape.... To bring local landscapes within what Wes Jackson calls “the
boundary of consideration,” professional people of all sorts will have to feel the
emotions and take the risks of amateurism. They will have to get out of their “fields,” so
to speak, and into the watershed, the ecosystem, and the community; and they will have
to be actuated by affection. [1]
Affection is a natural outcome of knowing (here I would be remiss not to quote Mary Oliver's famous line, attention is the beginning of devotion), and knowing a place well doesn't stop at ecology: it means learning the local history, understanding the economic base of your area, and befriending next-door neighbors. It means committing to a place, declaring that you are a part of things, and that you are as responsible for the community as they are for you. If we are willing to know our place well, we will be actuated by affection: motivated by our love of that place and its people, despite any shortcomings we may perceive. We will start to allow people and a place to expect things of us. We will show up and care, even if it becomes a burden to do so.
Seeking to understand the cultural, ecological, and historical context of our place also gives us a strong foundation for understanding contemporary issues, which is critical for making faithful decisions as we work together to bring forth the kingdom. If we embrace a practice of life-long learning and allow ourselves to be fully integrated into a community and a place, our actions and decisions begin to carry weight for ourselves as well as our neighbors.
So, get to know your place. Risk being a beginner, an amateur, and be curious. Don't be afraid to commit to a place and its people. Be happy about road construction, because it motivates you to learn.... ok, maybe that one's a stretch.
Love your place.
