Seek and ye shall find…
Randomly happening upon ideas that then refuse to let go. Via GLH, I found Yi-Fu Tuan’s site, and a series of what he calls Letters to Colleagues that is a good place to park for a while. But in a brief letter on the loss we encounter–and what is gained by the sharing with others, this:
The second feeling of loss is paradoxical. How can receiving—taking someone into your life—be felt as a loss? Well, the obvious answer is that you lose your privacy. You get the feeling that cracks are developing in your carefully-constructed world of habits and routines. The cure is two-fold. One is to understand that your carefully-constructed world needs shattering. Being made aware of that need is one great service that the person who enters your life can perform. The other is to see all the riches the other brings in, riches that unfold slowly over time.
(Tuan, Yi-Fu. "Dear Colleague: 1 May 2006." Yi-Fu Tuan.
19 Nov 2004. http://www.geography.wisc.edu/~yifutuan/dear_colleague.htm.)
This: "One is to understand that your carefully-constructed world needs shattering." is what brings further thought. My first question would be "Why?" Why does what we build need to be broken apart; is there no value given to the farmer and tender of the plot on which he was seeded? I understand fully the desire and good nature of expansion and doubt of dependence, but windows and doors are a given. While some may need to be constantly challenged to change, some may need to be the foundations, to build onto in additions rather than formed anew. A lot more here to think about than the elegant simplicity of the thought.
Another of his letters caught my eye as I read it quickly, regarding networking:
Networking gives one power—the power of belonging. What an individual says, even if it is important and powerfully said, may go unheeded. What a group says, even if it is trivial and confusedly said, may be not only heard but acclaimed by, first, fellow members, then, the members’ own connections.
Networking empowers an individual, but it also weakens him, as the expression "being caught in a net" suggests. Being caught in a net—even being a willing part of a net—implies a loss of agency and mobility. A scholar in a tight network forfeits his right and ability to think for himself.
Tuan, Yi-Fu. "Dear Colleague: 9 April 2006." Yi-Fu Tuan.
19 Nov 2004. http://www.geography.wisc.edu/~yifutuan/archive/20060409.htm.
This I would tend to agree with and need research further, especially in this day of corporate teamwork and rah-rahs and backpatting that doesn’t necessarily work very well in all situations.
But I am impressed by Yi-Fu Tuan and will go back and read more. He would be a great man to know as a friend.
The Lost Children: A Charity Anthology