Most of
us have grown up in a world that is constantly moving; once one task is accomplished
we are already looking for the next thing to be done on the list. Through this
class and learning about I-thou and I-it relationships I have come to realize
that a lot of the time I do not let myself dwell and instead I constantly tread.
There has been one place, though, that I seem to find myself dwelling and
thinking in quite frequently. It is back in the woods with a lake right in the
center, and around this lake is a graveled and somewhat sandy path. It is
better known as The Noland Trail. I did not used to think much of it besides as
a place for me to get away, to relieve stress; as an advantage to me. This
place is of great importance, but what about when I am not there?
The
trees still sway, the roots still grow deeper into the soil, and the water
still runs and ripples. Rain quenches the ground’s thirst and helps the trees
and plants grow. The woods still live and go on without me there. It was not
until one special day that I encountered this place instead of just experiencing
it. Buber says “only were all means have disintegrated encounters occur”
(62-63). I had been to the Noland Trail multiple times before and I just always
thought of it as my object; it was there to serve me, for me to experience it.
I had it all wrong.
I was doing my
usual run along the trail when I stopped to acknowledge a sign which said “overlook
this way.” Normally I would have kept running but that day was different: I told
myself I was going to leave everything behind me and pay attention to the
beauty of the trail. I was no longer experiencing the breathtaking scenery of
this place such as recognizing yet again another striking sunset. This time I encountered
the essence of what was happening here: “it is in encounter that the creation
reveals its formhood; it does not pour itself into senses that are waiting but
deigns to meet those that are reaching out” (77). I broke the barrier of my ‘superiority’
to nature and saw the trail as a thou. I realized this place is not a means to
an end; the trail cannot be defined because growth and life continue to happen
even when I am not there.
Similarly, Buber’s ideas can be
related not to just nature experiences but to people as well. His discussion of
the I-it relationship and the quote when man says “You, he means: You, my
ability to use!” (109) made me recall a topic of conversation in my leadership
class. My professor spoke about a time when his boss introduced all the employees
by their title and names. However, he forgot to even mention the kitchen and
janitor staff. The boss was treating those whom he thought to be “higher value”
as subjects and the kitchen and janitor staff as objects. While the teaching
staff may have a project to teach students, however, the kitchen and janitor
staff also had their projects to cook food and clean the building. Our
professor’s point was that you can tell a good leader from the way he treats
and addresses others. His boss was a man who saw his cleaning and cooking staff
as objects; he only wanted to use their abilities to improve his life: to have
food and a clean place to do his work.
Buber wants us to treat each other
as subjects: we are all human beings. We cannot have relationships if we
continue to treat others as objects - “relation is reciprocity” (58). It is the
truth; to have a relationship we must give for a mutual benefit, meaning we
must treat others with the same respect and same value with which we treat ourselves.
No comments:
Post a Comment