Tribes

Call them what you will – family, circles, parties, clubs – we all belong to many groups, or tribes. We gather, spiritually or emotionally, if not physically, around things shared: family, ethnicity, beliefs, political views, neighborhood, state, region, nation, language, sources of shared experiences or values such as school, college, work, military and other public service and myriad activities – politics, study, sports, art and pure fun. We usually gather around what makes us feel comfortable, or at least right, including what we value, what we reject and, seeking support, what we fear.  This is completely natural.  However, these choices, like so many others, are worth examining. 

What is more important to me: comfort or growth?

Does what binds me to one person require separating myself from another?  Why?  If it is my value system, what is the source of that system?

When values conflict, how do I decide what is most important – what yields and what prevails? Is this process working for me? How does this process – conscious or not – affect my relationships with others?  How does it affect my experience of my own value? How does it affect my stress level?  My productivity?   
Are my values and their dynamics – my priorities among my values – working for those I love?  For my community? For the health of the planet as a habitat for humans and other species?  

Concerning public values, also known as public policy, am I willing to distinguish between what I want for myself and what I think is best for society – from my town to all of humanity?  How willing am I to seek to understand others and to accept others’ views, including other tribes’ views of values that are important to me, as worthy of respect?  Am I willing to stand up to members of my tribe when I believe they are mistaken, let alone acting irresponsibly or unethically?
 

In relationships between tribes - between people and nations - is it more important to be right or to be happy, or at least at peace?