In Mathew 9:36 “When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them because they were confused and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.”

That may be a difficult thing to picture without insight into sheep and shepherds. The trusted shepherd is a safety for the sheep. Without protection, the sheep can find itself targeted as a meal for many predators.

 

Tonight Connor and I watched a movie, Patch Adams. I’d seen in some time ago, but it was Connor’s first time seeing it. It centers on health care, the function of doctors and treating patients with compassion.

Patch Adams blazed trails in the health care system.The website offers, in part, 10 questions to ponder.

  1. If no one wants to end up in a nursing home, what kind of community can celebrate all ages together and honor elders?
  2. Could you choose at least one child you’re not related to and give them the time and care they need?
  3. If compassion and generosity were the measure of success that money and power are now, how would your life change?
  4. In order to bond your neighborhood in healthy interdependence you would need to host weekly potlucks. Would you?
  5. If being publicly joyful, even silly, were beneficial for our society, would you participate?
  6. If you have rooms at your home, why not take in single parents as a gift?
  7. How can we move to an economics of friendship?
  8. Could you do ten or more volunteer hours each week to make a healthier world?
  9. Do you dare to be universally friendly to end violence?
  10. Can you match the cost of everything you buy with a donation to an environmental sustainability project?

What does this man with a vision have to do with agriculture? “What the majority need is an engagement with life. This is why we fully integrated medicine with performing arts, arts and crafts, agriculture, nature, education, recreation and social service, as essential parts of health care delivery. We knew that the best medical thing we could do for the patients was to help them have grand friendship skills and find meaning in their lives.”

Community. Health. Agriculture. It’s heartening, especially in light of troubles, to see others far smarter than we see a connection.