For us humans, language has become the principal vector of imagining, perceiving and sharing beliefs. Language is laden with intentions and beliefs, whether the speaker is conscious of it or not. Since our kind has become disproportionately powerful in relation to most other kinds of earthly beings, human language is strangely essential to the future for life on this planet. To truly live in “harmony with nature,” which still seems to be desired by many of us, we extraction-dependent people would have to change our beliefs and habits. So changing our language is a logical first step. Might our language be part of a feedback loop that keeps the curses of capitalism and human supremacy steam-rolling along?
We have found that being mindful of our words is a constant reminder of–and action for–how we start to co-create and share the story of the world we want to live in. Regardless of how slim are the chances of ever seeing that world expand beyond our minds, love is the driving force behind using language consciously, and love doesn’t ask “What’s the point?”
We think of this conscious awareness of our language as thoughtful talking, and see it as subversive to the languages of science–or big name and New Age religions, depending on your journey–being the default narration of human relationship with the living world. But we do it mostly in order to reflect our love more fully. We also like that language is one of the few things over which we have agency–changing it is doable!
Here are a few examples of how our language has come into alignment with our hearts:
Land – Land and life are often synonyms for us. We experience land to be made of more than stone, soil, trees, and waterways. To us, every being is inseparable from the place they live, from whom they consume and where they are consumed. Land is the full set of relationships present in any given spot on terrestrial Earth. And land is a “who” (see below). Intact, self-willed land is the textbook for how to live respectfully with that place. But any component of the natural world may also be a source of knowledge.
Nature – Calling the other-than-human world “nature” while referring to the civilized world with the language of mainstream religion, politics or science further separates us from the source of our creation and well-being, and ignores that for most of our kind’s existence on Earth, we apparently knew ourselves to be inseparable from the rest of creation where we lived. As the word “nature” has become “what we are not,” aligned with the belief that humans are separate from or above the rest of life on Earth, we are trying to steer clear of its use.
Our – Using this word rhetorically or uncarefully can too easily convey a sense of entitlement to use, manage, proclaim and destroy. To make sure that our language matches our intent, we might have to use more words to be clear. Do we want to leave it up to the listener or reader to interpret “our” to mean ownership? Sure, when it actually means that, but the word can be a double-edged sword. A common example these days is “our oceans.” This easily implies the right to manage the fish, drill for oil, or harness the waves’ energy. Since the oceans consist of millions of living communities and billions of beings, all of whom are both autonomous and symbiotic, just like we are, how can they be ours? Not being clear on this can sustain the mindset of exploitation and domination. The same goes for all self-willed lands, forests, woodlands, rivers, butterflies, skinks and so on. They are all our kin, but none of them are ours. They very likely all have the same desire to live unfettered lives that we do.
People, Persons, Kind, Beings – As modern science is making clearer all the time, the degree of relatedness amongst most living beings is staggering. So instead of saying species, we sometimes say people, persons, kind or beings, as in tree people, coyote person, our kind, fungus being, etc.
Resource – Originally, this seems to have been a lovely word: from French resourse “a source, a spring,” noun, use of feminine past participle of Old French resourdre “to rally, raise again.” By 1779, the word had evolved to its present meaning, which is basically something that can be used for your benefit. In a capitalist society, this usually translates to exploitation and extraction. Life itself is perceived a commodity. Capitalism converts life/land to economic profit for a few individuals. Seeing life as “resources” displays the separation from the natural world that is now nearly ubiquitous among the society-at-large. This way of experiencing the world is instilled into nearly everyone born into industrialized society, so from an early age most “first world” people have a worldview that is incompatible with living in a genuinely sustainable manner. Capitalism is considered a given, a necessity. Rivers so clean you can drink from them are not. All land is a community of life who functions like a complex being. Humans have shown they can live beautifully as part of this being, but not when we think of the rest of the world as a resource separate from us.
Steward – This heavily used term is seen as a positive word these days. But to us, it is habituated language of the story of separation which has lead to rampant and unquestioned human supremacism. It is born of the story we industrialized peoples are taught, the story of progress, of individualism. It says we humans have the right to treat the rest of life indifferently so long as our intentions are good, so we can manage the Earth to our liking. Ideas/words, like “manage” and “steward” come from this old story. Let’s look at their Merriam-Webster definitions.
Manage
1 : to handle or direct with a degree of skill: such as
a : to make and keep compliant can’t manage their child
b : to treat with care, husband managed his resources carefully
c : to exercise executive, administrative, and supervisory direction of manage a business manage a bond issue manages a baseball team
2 : to work upon or try to alter for a purpose manage the press manage stress
Steward
1 : one employed in a large household or estate to manage domestic concerns (such as the supervision of servants, collection of rents, and keeping of accounts)
2 : shop steward
3 : a fiscal agent
4 a : an employee on a ship, airplane, bus, or train who manages the provisioning of food and attends passengers b : one appointed to supervise the provision and distribution of food and drink in an institution
5 : one who actively directs affairs : manager
So, to manage is basically to be in charge, and a steward is a manager. The origins of steward come from what the one who was the ward of the sty was called.
Fans of the word may wonder what’s wrong with “managing land as a steward” if you love the land and try your best to help maintain or increase biodiversity?
We answer that with a comparison.
The old way: As a person lucky enough to steward this land, I work hard to keep native trees protected because their presence usually ensures a more biologically diverse species mix.
The new way: As a person who has made living among oak woodlands a priority in my life, I spend much time observing the land, waiting for clues or ideas, which are gifts from the land, to guide me in how I might participate beneficially.
Our old way of thinking and acting and speaking is driven by valuing working, accomplishing, knowing, having goals and using data gathered through science as a measurement of success.
The new way is driven by trust in the intelligence of the other-than-human world. And faith that what is best for them (the soil, the trees, the bugs, the lizards, the toads, the water, the air, and so on) is best for me.
The old way is linear and is attached to accomplishments within human life timeframes (usually less). The new way trusts that every being, every place, every community of beings, operates at their own pace. Our role is to find our niche within that pace.
The old way is driven by one’s own thoughts. The new way is trying to understand the natural patterns through observation and curiosity.
Does all this seem like nitpicky semantics? We don’t think it is. Management is about control over. A managed relationship is one based on that. Knowing that you and the land are part of each other leads to a different kind of relationship, one where you feel guided as to when and how to take action for the benefit of the whole. People who live in the story of separation like to see former and current indigenous cultures as “managers” and “stewards.”
We’d rather see humans think of themselves as students. And those places/beings who have claimed them are their teachers.
Who – Since all of natural creation might be sentient and symbiotically-willed, we prefer to describe them as “who,” not “it,” “that” or “which.” Even ideas and stories who have persisted for eons have a type of life, a persona, and so are called “who.”