Tuesday, June 21, 2011

Exploding Watermelons and Decision-Making

For some of you older (and wiser) readers out there, the term exploding watermelons may have you conjuring up images of the comedian known as Gallagher, who was famous for taking a sledgehammer to fruit while doing onstage shows. That is not, however, the subject of this post. The subject matter is much more serious--a problem of watermelon crops in China actually exploding because of the misuse of growth hormones. The way I see it, the exploding watermelons in China are actually a concrete example of what is wrong with the world's thinking today.



The Chinese farmers apparently applied the growth chemical forchlorfenuron to watermelon fields too late in a very wet season. The result was the destruction of a large part of the crop due to growth so rapid it literally exploded the watermelons. They understood the chemical would accelerate the growth of their crops, allowing them to market their products more quickly. What they didn't understand was that the extra rainfall and the late application of the hormone would have catastrophic effects on the crops.

How is this an example of the world's faulty thinking? In our world today, people think largely using the wisdom of their minds. What I mean by this is, they gather together all the knowledge they have about any particular subject and make decisions based upon what they know. Why is this a problem, you ask? (You may use this strategy yourself!) The problem is, no matter how much we think we know about any particular topic, there is inevitably a lot about the subject we don't know. When we base decisions on limited understanding, the best outcome you can hope for will have limited results. Clearly, problems easily show up when you do not have all the information.

"But it is impossible to know all the information about any given subject", you say! You're correct, if you come from the standpoint of using the limited resources of your mind. This is the wisdom of your separate self--the part of you which walls itself off from the rest of the world, or at least parts of the world. The key is to base your decisions on the unlimited wisdom of the heart.

What is the wisdom of the heart? It is known in different cultures by many different names: intuition, Holy Spirit, Allah, God, the still small voice, etc. In a nutshell, it is the place within ourselves where we access our connection to the entire Universe. It is from this place we acquire unlimited insight. While we may not comprehend all the details personally (sometimes, you just don't know how you know, but you know), the Universe does have all the information. When we base our decisions on the wisdom of the heart, the full knowledge and understanding of the Universe comes into play. We can truly make decisions which are for the best of all concerned.

Now is the time to begin re-learning how to access your intuition--this wisdom of the heart. Find the method of accessing the Divine that works for you! It may be through meditation and/or prayer. It may be through music, or art or walks in nature. The method does not matter as long as it helps you make that Connection within! The world's problems can only be solved through accessing all the information available. Learn to become part of the solution. Learn to become part of the One. Otherwise, our problems will continue to explode, just like those Chinese watermelons.

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