Ripples
We all know the analogy of ripples in a pond, radiating outwards from the entry point of a stone throw, and the ‘chaos theory’ that when a butterfly flaps its wings in the Amazon, it can change the weather half a world away (there are lots of versions of this one, take your pick). We understand the concept and may frequently use the illustrations in day-to-day life. It’s something entirely different, I think, to actually grasp the concept, which is that pretty much everything we do has consequences - for us, the people who surround us and ultimately, the whole planet. When you put it like that, it sounds ridiculous, doesn’t it? Surely my personal - and what we often think of as ‘private’ - actions don’t do anyone any harm, or benefit come to that. Well, actually, yes, they can and do because - ‘ripple effect’! However alone and isolated we may sometimes feel, we are connected, whether we want to be or not; we are part of a self-contained eco-system of humans and animals and plants: commerce, agriculture, creativity. All our various human activities impact the world we inhabit.
OK, so if I pick my nose whilst watching TV, apart from upsetting my husband, it’s probably not going to be too devastating to human-kind (apologies for the gross quotient). However, what I watch, wear and eat does have an impact. Films and books can actually change lives because they can galvanise people into taking actions, doing things they might not have done otherwise. Images are powerful. Words are powerful.
Every item you buy has been made or grown by someone somewhere and the choices we make as consumers are extremely powerful. They can force companies to change the way they do things, or they can endorse the positive things that companies might already be doing. Buying ‘Fairtrade’ for example, guarantees communities have safe practices and fair wages, whilst supporting certain global concerns might ultimately be destroying the rain forest. Look at the palm oil problem. Consumers and third sector organisations have raised awareness of the issues palm oil production can cause (habitat destruction etc) and we now have ‘sustainable’ palm oil production schemes which we can choose to support, simply by checking the label on our food stuffs and rejecting anything which is not listed as ‘sustainable’. We can choose to boycott plastic packaging and put pressure on supermarkets to change how they package food. A plastic bottle from the UK can easily end up in the ‘Great Pacific Garbage Patch’, so if we choose to use our own drinks containers, buy glass bottles and so on, we can have a positive effect.
This isn’t a lecture on sustainable living, simply a convenient way to demonstrate that pretty much everything we do has an impact somewhere - often somewhere we can’t see - for bad or for good.
Often the impact of our actions is unseen: the ripples spread far beyond view, out into the world. We often don’t know what impact something will have - a smile or kind word could have a disproportionate consequence. The same is true of impatience and unkindness. The impact could be devastating. If someone’s having a bad day, our lack of patience, curtness, or plain unkindness, could be enough to tip them over the edge- the ubiquitous straw that breaks the camels back. We don’t see it, but it happens. Think of some small, everyday incident, where a stranger has made your day in some way; complimented you, paid for your bus fare, or even just smiled at you. I’m sure you can think of the negatives too, where someone has unnerved or upset you by being brash or rude: taken your parking space, barged past you, closed a door on you or scowled at you in passing. It’s easy to wreak damage when we don’t think about our actions and easy to bring positivity when we do.
After a recent blog, someone got in touch to tell me that the article had resonated with them. We had a brief and positive discussion, on-line, about something deeply personal. That doesn’t often happen, but it doesn’t mean that what we say and write doesn’t affect people. It might be a fleeting feeling of connection, or a longer musing on a particular subject, or some helpful information. You won’t always know the impact you are having, but you can be sure you will always have one. The ripples always radiate.