The Ecology of the Mind...the edge effect
On my morning walk I noticed the beauty of the the sea meeting the shore. The ecotone, that defined space where two habitats merge. That threshold where water meets the shore, where the forest comes to meadow, or where woodland ends at a cultivated lawn. It is the edge habitat where everything — soil content, vegetation, moisture, humidity, light, pollination — changes. It’s also where species from both sides converge, rendering it a place of complex interaction and diversity. The edge...
Things are always happening there. The small sea birds as they scramble from the edge of the waves, poking their beaks in the sand looking for that bite size crustacean. The Osprey as they break the edge of the water then towers to the sky with their next meal. Life just seems to happen on the edge.
It is a place of constant change and unexpected appearances. Such a distinction can be helpful when you are trying to distill a nebulous idea into a handful of words, or just in reflecting on a memory from our past. It is nothing more than noticing that space where broken sea shells become the sandy shore... just a glance is enough to remind us of the intensity and yet simple complexity in these places of transition, where one thing manages to become another. Edge walking with our mind and bodies.
We are all edge walkers when you really think about it. Always looking at the edge for our inspiration, our thrill our transition. Looking outward at the horizon or inward trying to discern the edge of our soul. That edge between depression and happiness, between control and freedom. The edge between love and hate, compassion and resentment. Life happens on the edge and we all are just edge walkers between life and death...make your distinctions well my friends...Doc
