Reflection of I and Thou

Erica Gamester

24 September 2014

Dr. Kip Reddick

            Growing up in suburban community, naturally rooted forests accompanied by wondrous wildlife was a task to locate. Sure, there were sidewalks bordered by shrubs that landscapers were constantly grooming, along with the occasional tree whose leaves crisped to a bright orange in the fall.  Though, a plot of land contaminated by pesticides and covered with turf isn’t what I yearned for.

As I was following a concrete path on the perimeter of my townhouse neighborhood, I spotted a secluded, forested area that appeared to be undisturbed by humans. I instinctually ventured into the natural refuge and noticed the life around me. The surrounding tree branches swayed with ease, gently shedding their crunchy souvenirs. The creek’s water tenderly swished over the pebbles and carried the tadpoles to their next destination. The sun peeked through the naked branches to communicate with the seemingly infinite wildlife below.  The plants absorbed the sun’s succulent energy and swung their limber bodies in its praise, appearing to respond with “thank you”. I return to this spot time and time again only to witness the fluctuating relationship between the sun and the wildlife occurring as the seasons change. Reflecting upon my past experiences at this location, I am able to better understand the idea of I-It and I-Thou.

Martin Buber states that, “Relation is reciprocity” (58) which I truly felt in this environment. Although unspoken, the sun responds to the plants, which responds to the insects, which responds to the squirrels and so on. There are thousands of subject-to-subject interactions within the natural boundary of the secluded environment. I say subject-to-subject because each possesses a project of which they communicate. For example, this creek flows towards the east in order to erode the land to deliver minerals to other parts of the land. The creek also allows the tadpoles and other organisms to briskly follow the created path in order to complete their project of finding food for development. The project of the creek and the tadpole intertwine, creating a subject-to-subject interaction and relationship. As long as one is helping the other along their project and vise versa, a relationship is reciprocated from both subjects.

Some fail to realize that there is life sustained within even the tiniest of organisms. I spent time standing within the wild weeds of the environment. I noticed the ants passing over my toes and extending, latching on to a blade of grass as it met the ant on the other side. Each blade of grass has life and so does every ant. Martin Buber states that, “all actual life is (an) encounter” (62) which rings especially true in this example. The temporary project of the strand of grass is to assist the other perceived subject, being the ant.  The ant’s project could be to protect the by swarming any predators. Both the grass and the ant are proven to be living organisms with assumed projects, thus creating a subject-to-subject encounter rather than an experience.

The entirety of this environment is my own personal proof of the existence of a subject-to-subject encounter beyond human interaction. However, one can choose to see these natural entities as simple objects rather than subjects with a project. For example, the ant could be the subject while the blade of grass is simply a prop rather than a helping hand. Encounters and experiences are subjective to the subject. Therefore, the ant is the only one who can really tell us how if it encountered or experienced the blade.