This is a short post where I reflect on some of the things that were discussed in Matt Brown’s podcast below. This is one of the first shows published on a new podcast called Squiggly Lives that I’m co-hosting with my friend Helena.
This podcast was like going on a truly fascinating journey into not just Matt’s thoughts and experiences, but that of the ancient Indus Valley Culture, which is the subject of Matt’s current research.
I’m not going to talk about the Indus Valley civilisation now — definitely listen to Matt’s podcast for that. But, after recording Matt’s podcast I thought a lot about purpose in relation to society as a whole and our relationship to the natural world.
I think a lot of the time, when you think of purpose, it’s this very individual thing. We’re taught to follow our passions, pursue what we believe in alongside having what can sometimes seem like endless choices.
This wasn’t exactly the topic of Matt’s podcast, but learning about ancient civilisations makes me think what might be said about the era we’re living in today. Everyone seems to be doing such vastly different things now; people aren’t tied to one location; families are spread out all over the world; and there seem to be endless options for everything from what to do for a job or career to the kind of toothpaste you buy.
When I was pregnant I read a book called the Continuum Concept by Jean Liedloff. The author had spent several years living with a stone age tribe in a South American jungle. This experience goes on to completely transform her views on how we live and bring up our children in the western world.
She observed how babies were often carried in sling wraps everywhere — rarely put down at all; they also shared the same bed as their parents and were very much a part of the community at large.
I think about western culture and how we now raise children in these little family units, but in vastly different ways to one another. Just where I live alone, everyone’s raising their kids differently.
The tribe that Jean Liedloff observed probably didn’t think about whether they were going to co sleep with their babies or sleep train, or how they were going to live or raise their children — it was just what was done where knowledge and traditions would be passed down through the generations.
Nowadays, you see things drastically changing just in one or two generations, where people might bring their kids up in a completely different way to the way we were brought up.
I actually think there are a lot of pluses to having choice and we shouldn’t just instantly jump to the conclusion that the tribe Jean lived with had it universally right. There’s a danger the moment any of us start to idolise a lifestyle or believe there’s a right way to live over another way
Nevertheless, having so much choice and living in a time when it can feel at times like you just don’t have the rulebook for so many things, can make things feel hard, but it’s exciting too.
So, these are some of my own thoughts after reflecting on Matt’s podcast, I’d love you to check out the full episode below
