Environment
We do not only shape our environment. our environment shapes us.
This was the topic of one of Ron Rolheiser’s articles a few years back.( I have not been able to find the article and I don’t remember the title.)
However, this article was truly enlightening for me. It caused a shift in my thinking. As I remember it, he demonstrated how our natural environment influences how we live, think and work, even how we pray. Looking around me, I realized how true this is.
I have a cousin who was raised on the prairies in Southern Saskatchewan. Her husband, was stationed near Prince Albert. As soon as their sons were finished high school, she then told her family that she could no longer live among the trees which were stifling her. They moved back south… And yet, northern Saskatchewan trees are not very tall!
I had a similar experience of my own. I was at a Retreat House in Quebec. The grounds were fairly extensive, beautiful and near a river. But… the trees were very tall, and I could only see a small patch of sky, even near the river. I was only there a week, but have never been so homesick for open spaces! I could never live in the mountains!
One of our Sisters visiting from France observed how small the houses seemed to be. Environment is part of the reason. It is easier to heat a small house with lower ceilings. I have also noticed that economics play a role in house sizes and architecture; the better the economy, the bigger the houses. I have observed this in cities where houses built in different economic climates are built differently.
Climate also plays a role in how we build. In Saskatchewan, we have screens on all our windows; in B.C., they are not needed: no mosquitoes! In Canada, we have our windows and homes winterized; in warmer climes, windows are simply openings and protection from the elements is likewise adapted..
Even dancing is affected by environment. A professor had us notice that dances from mountainous countries tend to occur in a small space, with a lot of foot movement. An example is Scottish highland dancing. On the other hand, Jewish dancing which originated in flat open desert land tends to take up a lot of “floor space”, using a lot of body movement.
Our thinking and even our prayer is influenced by our environment, natural and manmade. If we live in wide open spaces, our thinking tends to be more open; in more restricted environments, thought processes can be more introverted, less “liberal”.
I also believe that genetically some environmental factors and adaptations are passed on to successive generations. My father was from northern Saskatchewan, and my grandfather spent a lot of time in the far north of the province. My mother was from southern Saskatchewan and adapted well to this environment. I am very comfortable in both environments, and I believe my thinking and praying have been influenced, both by my upbringing and the milieu in which I have lived.
I would love to rediscover Ron Rolheiser’s article. He said it so much better!
