Book Title?

Be of Use!

Long a tenet of protestant theology, the Pilgrims sailed for America from England and founded the Massachusetts Bay Colony. The ‘be of use’ phrase was a constant reminder that if anything were to be done, each person would have to do a share of the work. Or an entire task.

The community’s health and well-being depended all of the people working together for common cause. It worked. And the phrase stuck.

Be of Use is the title of this book [still a dream in progress]. It is my attempt to set out the why and wherefore of our common humanity and community ties in modern day America.

Why do this? Obviously, I feel the need. I am certain I have plenty of company. In the time of Trump, our bonds of identity are frayed. I think purposefully frayed as in guise of leadership and manipulation.

Such only works among people who are not certain of their identity. Understand that identity is personal and earned by each of us. It is not bestowed. Our parents might have told us we were cute, bright and amazing. But that was ear candy to get us motivated.

The real work was done by each of us over years of struggle and experimentation. We slowly learned about the world surrounding us. We came to know what we were good at, individually and as a team. In bits and pieces we gained self-knowledge and comfort. Comfort in our own skin, too; an important aspect of finding one’s identity.

Projecting outward from that point into the social order takes courage and energy, but slowly we each did this important developmental step. In time we blossomed into fully functioning adults.

We found not only our self, but our role in life. Our use. And then we needed to learn how to use that to build a full and enriching life.

What I do is almost automatic. If I am authentically me, then I act according to that inner guide. My life is thus filled with actions that produce outcomes for myself and my family and friends. And my neighbors, too. The broader this interaction moves outward from myself, the larger the community becomes. My community. Our community. We define it only because we are part of it.

Perhaps I create music, or pottery, or visual arts with paint or sculptured shapes. These become my languages through which I communicate with my community.

Perhaps your language is business, or agriculture, or the sciences. So many more to choose from. Each has its place in our ever-broadening social involvement. We become as complex as needed to perform the needs of the community. Cities are more complex than villages; states less complex than nations. But each has its needs and functions. And languages.

Governance becomes a growing need to keep things organized, orderly. Most likely it is law and order that comes to the front of our attention. Or maybe it is defense against outside attack. With that function – public safety – laws are written to keep things straight. Thus, a legislature becomes necessary.

Then an executive branch is called into being to implement the laws and enforce them. A judiciary is required to adjudicate the particular cases and build precedent case law.

You see how the complex of the whole takes on functional sense and direction? It is natural.

Also natural is a proclivity of many individuals to desire control and aggrandizement within the system. We call those folks politicians. Dealing with them is complex; some are self-serving; some are other serving. In time manipulation becomes a mainstay of the political scene. And then we don’t know who to trust, who to rely on.

Seems to me that is the pickle in which we find ourselves today. So, what do we do about that?

Well, read on for more questions and hoped-for answers. We can only struggle through this together. After all, we are the community. It all begins with us. And it moves to others only if we give it away or allow the taking in silence.

I prefer we live through this with our eyes wide open. Join me on this journey, won’t you?

George Safford

December 21, 2017