Thinking Anew

Thinking Anew: We are the children of our history

Our environment and the things that happen to us have a huge influence on our lives, and the damage done can last for generations

A Ukrainian woman cadet holds an artificial flower in the colour of the Ukrainian flag in Kyiv. Photograph: Sergei Supinsky/AFP via Getty Images
A Ukrainian woman cadet holds an artificial flower in the colour of the Ukrainian flag in Kyiv. Photograph: Sergei Supinsky/AFP via Getty Images
Michael Commane
Sat Jul 15 2023 - 06:00

The moment I got off the train in Tralee on the first Sunday of July it began to rain. I was heading for a week’s holiday in west Kerry. And that was disappointing, especially after the June heatwave. It rained most days but the sun shone too, which meant I could swim, both in the sun and in the rain.

While I was annoyed about the rain the local farmers were glad to see rain as they badly needed it for their vegetables.

Because of the wet and cold it meant I spent more time reading newspapers.

Sunday’s Gospel is the well-known parable of the sower who goes out to sow the seed (Matthew 13:1-23) The seed that is sown on rich soil naturally produces the best crops, while that sown on less fertile soil is a far poorer product. It makes perfect sense.

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There is always the discussion about what makes a person do what is good and behave in a way that adds to the general wellbeing of society. What role does one’s environment play in how we live our lives? Of course there is individual responsibility but surely all our actions are heavily loaded by our environment.

Since Joe Biden became US president there’s been background noise about his son, Hunter. Martin Wall in the Weekend edition of this newspaper on July 1st reported on the saga. It’s not within my remit to know the specific details of the rights and wrongs of the life of Hunter Biden but reading Martin Wall’s story I was reminded of Sunday’s Gospel. In spite of Hunter’s wealth and privilege the dice was stacked against him from an early age. He lost his mother and baby sister when he was three in a car crash in which he and his older brother, Beau, were seriously injured. In 2015 when his brother Beau died of cancer, Martin Wall writes: “…He seemed to go off the rails completely.”

Hunter readily admits to abusing alcohol and drugs. He’s done it all, placing much emphasis on the bad stuff.

[ Thinking Anew: Learning not to judge ]

[ John Lennon was wrong … religion endures and is more important than ever ]

The story of Hunter Biden certainly brings home how we are all influenced by our environment and the things that happen us on our life’s journey. I’d go as far as saying that the moment we are conceived in our mother’s wombs the pathways of our lives begin to take shape and that is something neurosurgeon and author Henry Marsh comes back to in his books recalling his career as a doctor.

It is often said that the Irish obsession about land and property can be traced back to how we were treated by the British; also that the famine has left an indelible mark on our psyche. Scratch the US surface and the shadow of the Vietnam War becomes ever so real.

However and whenever the war in Ukraine ends, the damage being done today will last for generations. Whatever about the dictatorship of Vladimir Putin, the Russian people have not forgotten the horrors of what invading armies unleashed on their country. Putin is not slow in reminding the world of that.

We are the children of our history. Our past is marked all over our DNA. And in a similar way our environment plays a great influence in who and what we are.

That’s why it is essential for governments to make it their business to go that proverbial extra mile to support and nurture the less well-off in our society. The fragile, the marginalised, those who feel hopeless deserve special attention. And guess what, it is also the message of Jesus Christ. Read Sunday’s Gospel; indeed, scroll through the New Testament and observe how Jesus spends his time in support of those less privileged.

I’m just thinking, isn’t it odd how we can so often miss what is right in front of our noses and how we use every conceivable excuse not to face up to what needs to be done?