What is your gentle action today?

Take a deep breath if you are feeling powerless.

If you think you are only a drop in the ocean, without the ability to influence change in the larger world, that your will and action will be diluted.

Breathe.

Know that as you breathe in, you are breathing the air that connects you to others, the environment and all living things.

As you breathe out, the cycle continues.

As we begin to understand the nature of chaos and complexity science, we realise that we are intricately connected and interwoven to everything.

The smallest and the biggest event is all connected and creates change. This is explained by the 'butterfly effect' that theorises that a "flap of the wings of a butterfly in Brasil will create a Tornado in Texas".

All living systems such as eco systems, human systems are complex systems. An ant colony and a the stock market is a complex system. There are patterns and structures in complex systems, where there are multiple interactions between many different components. Therefore even small changes can have far reaching and unpredictable impact.

This is heartening, because if human and social systems are complex systems, then even a small action by a single individual could have far reaching impact. This also means we have to take 'responsible action' because of the way a single individual can influence a system.

Often we imagine that to make a change, we need large external interventions. Actually this can destabilise the system. Instead, if you are within the system, you have a bigger impact. Because as you change, and act, the system changes from within. When the system changes you change, because you are an integral part of the system. So the cycle continues, in small and often unpredictable ways.

Make a gentle action.

A 'gentle action' (as suggested by Complexity Theorist David Peat), is an action that rises from within you, wholly connected to the environment, the situation, rather than a fragmented external intervention. A gentle action is in harmony with everything.

If you are beating yourself up that your actions are puny in a large complex system, stop! Remember that you are part of the system and therefore have all the possibility to make change.

Take heart. Be powerful. Be gentle.

You count.

Breathe.

Act.

Gently.

Wishing you powerful gentle actions.

Mihirini