Interdependence Day Revisited
Six years ago I wrote this post, Interdependence Day: Time for a New Celebration that begins:
This July 4th morning I woke, contemplating why Interdependence Day resonates more than Independence Day. I believe interdependence forms the foundation for a brand of independence that leads not to war and consumption, but to global cooperation and a kinder world that values kinship with all species.
Now on July 4th of 2025, I wake to rumbling thunderstorms, the gift of good rain, Mountain Chickadees feeding their young, and a Rufous Hummingbird– like a whirling dervish of feathered sunrise — hovering above our tangle of a bird and bee-friendly yard.
And this morning, I am heartsick and grieving for what is happening to our country. When the forces of greed, corruption, cruelty, bullying, and disregard for Mother Earth have become monstrous, what still gives me a sliver of hope are the fine people and communities exemplifying interdependence.
They are the farmers I buy local produce from at our Farmer’s Market; the biologists, botanists, and ecologists seeking to understand the biodiversity that is central to our survival and our spirits; the environmental activists giving up so much to protect our wildlands, climate, and wildlife; the growing number of people rewilding their yards; and all who are practicing gratitude, reciprocity, and simple kindness to one another and to the other than human world.
What gives me a slip of hope are the birds and native plants flowering in my wilding yard. What gives me a feather of hope is that we as people can rise up from the grassroots–neighbor to neighbor, community to community, and bioregion to bioregion. We’re seeing the rising already as millions of people protested on No Kings Day.
It is time for us to reflect who we are at the heart–kind people who rush to help an elderly person who falls down, shovel each other’s yards in a snowstorm, care for those who are hungry, sick, and fleeing danger, and go to great lengths to rescue wild animals in distress.
Let’s revive Wendell Berry’s longtime call for living simply at the local level, and to be good neighbors to each other and to the Earth. It’s far past time to heed his wisdom: “To cherish what remains of the Earth and to foster its renewal is our only legitimate hope of survival.”
Where do we go from here? There are so many ways to commence. We could begin by turning again to young poet Amanda Gorman on President Biden’s inauguration day reading The Hill We Climb and her rousing ending:
In every known nook of our nation, in every corner called our country,
our people, diverse and beautiful, will emerge, battered and beautiful.
When day comes, we step out of the shade, aflame and unafraid.
The new dawn blooms as we free it.
For there is always light,
if only we’re brave enough to see it.
If only we’re brave enough to be it.
On this 4th of July when people are picnicking with neighbors and families, we have the chance to be our best selves–to listen, to be tolerant, giving, loving, and to thank this Mother Earth and give back to her.
Here is the 2019 Interdependence Day post in full (when my mother was still living–I miss her warmth, smile, love, and her progressive politics too–she was always mystified why people could ever vote for Trump).
This July 4th morning I woke contemplating why Interdependence Day resonates more than Independence Day. I believe interdependence forms the foundation for a brand of independence that leads not to war and consumption, but to global cooperation and a kinder world that values kinship with all species.
Reflecting on our trip East these past two weeks, every act of kindness, generosity, compassion, and care we received, witnessed, and participated in flowed with the spirit of interdependence woven with the sparkling riffles of independence.
I offer these photos and captions from my trip East to salute a few of the many people who act on principles of interdependence.
