Years ago, my dear friend Alix Taylor (who is Michele in my novel, Vision of the Grail), and I were talking about the incredible innovative energy that is evident up and down the west coast. This area is a hotbed of creative thought and vitality, very much linked to the unsettled nature of the earth here...still in a dynamic stage of formation.
We were talking about how different things are on this coast, especially centered in the S.F. Bay Area and north to Washington. In looking at the reasons for this, other than those tied to energetic landmass, the roots of new thought come from a people who were always on the cutting edge of pushing the envelope to the outer limits. The pioneers who came to America continued west as they felt the restless urge to go further, and explore more. As the eastern part of the country was "civilized", traditions developed and thought became more entrenched in a worldview colored by expectations of the community. For those who were uncomfortable with this view, movement westward continued.
Coming to the edge of the Pacific Ocean, there is no place left to go from a standpoint of movement within the continent. It is here where the pioneering spirit has to be directed into a different movement...and so we have exploration and pioneering in the world of ideas and in spiritual or expanded focus. Traditions are sparse in this area. Things are always in a state of change. It is not a particularly comfortable area for those who want to retain the status quo. However, for those who are interested in being part of the push towards the unknown...the West Coast provides that potential.
Much of this conversation came about as a result of a comment Alix made about how often people in America seem to be lonely. In Europe, that is not the case. As a native of Paris, she commented that when she went back for visits she realized as she looked at the buildings that people walked amidst the comfort of history. They were strongly rooted in the past that had endured through hundreds and thousands of years of living. Therefore, they had every reason to believe that they belonged to something substantial, and that as a result there was every reason to believe that there was a future to be part of as well.
In our country, and on the West Coast in particular, that is not always apparent. Because things change so rapidly, we do not have the comfort of knowing where we came from. Once we identify a site as being familiar, it is often torn down to make way for something more modern or economically attractive. There is no luxury in going back to a house your family occupied for several generations. Perhaps in the east, but not in the west.
Alix commented that once when she was young, she was with her father (an American Quaker living in Paris) at the Louvre. There in front of them was a workman in overalls with his young son, standing in front of a magnificent painting. Alix's father turned to her and stated..."That is the essence of the French. The man is a laborer, but he is passing on the richness of his heritage and culture to his son." How many of us can say that about what we give our children?
On another outing, they were coming to a main road that made a very abrupt circular turn to go around a piece of property. Alix's father stopped the car and pointed to the wall separating the property from the road. "You see", he said. "In America they would cut right through that person's property to make a straight road. In France, the property of a family who owned it for generations is respected. The road goes around it."
Talks such as these add texture to our lives. In focusing only on the mundane, we lose something soul edifying. When I reconnect with a soul filled friend, I awaken to the heritage that is meaningful to me. There may be no grand traditions, or magnificent buildings representing human evolution where I live, but there is essence in sharing deeper concepts. This is my heritage. This is what makes me know that there is a rich history, and therefore a vibrant future. This is soul!