I will be bliss

Taking a moment to enjoy this picture above, I can’t help but wonder… what is Barley thinking about in this exact moment, gazing into the horizon of the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of my new favorite barrier island in North Carolina?

Could, perhaps, he be thinking about the diversification of our modern day energy supply? Or, maybe, he’s contemplating the effectiveness of multimodal transportation? Or, quite possibly, he’s wondering about the perfect policy mix that will squelch social strife and propel us all towards a future of material and ethereal abundance? And if so, maybe then he’s actually wondering about the exact balance of anthropogenic systems and public discourse needed to help steer behavior towards the kind of cooperation and altruism that begets this marvelous utopia… maybe?

I haven’t consulted a pet psychic just yet (although, please send recommendations), but I do know that Barley is thinking about something in this moment. He’s a conscious being, and conscious beings think… perceive, imagine, learn.

I believe it intuitively obvious that Barley thinks a lot — his inner gears of cognition turning, twice, thrice, or maybe even four, five, six times before tasting a fresh-baked treat from Guglhupf, sniffing a newly built snowman in the local park, or attempting but failing to relax while the dryer runs in our apartment for the trillionth time because it makes a loud, scary noise that could indicate a dangerous threat.

I’m sure of it: he thinks a lot. And maybe he’s a mind reader too — intermittently tapping into the collective psyche and mulling over society’s latest pop culture, from Labubus to Love Island to environmentalism and the uncertain future of our beloved Mother Earth. My empirical proof of his consciousness is that, without fail, he seems to know my actions before I take them. He’s reading my mind. Sensing and anticipating what I do, so that he can respond accordingly, like when he runs into his crate 20-minutes before necessary because somehow he knows that I’ve begun my getting-ready-to-leave-the-house routine.

Barley has an apprehension for subtle, oftentimes energetic, shifts in his environment that can only come from an overactive mind that feeds one’s nervous system and whispers… be alert.

So, of course, in this comfortable, non-threatening oceanside setting, I’m assuming his thoughts are free flowing and at their best, and moreover, that his mental chatter is quite surely echoing Governor Josh Stein’s and Jack Jirak’s sentiments at the 2025 NC State Energy Conference of an “All of the Above” approach to future energy production. And because it sounds fun to add: he’s probably also thinking about public infrastructure, statewide legislation, and social cohesion, too. How could he not be?

Anyhoo, if he’s not… I certainly am.

And I’m also wondering about the diversification of the workforce, of neighborhoods, of communities, of entire place-based yet global societies — the very locations where we live, work, connect, and play, together. And I’m wondering if all industries are reaping the benefits and seeing the beauties of choosing an “All of the Above” approach. Or if they’re stubbornly, decidedly, choosing homogeneity.

We know that functional medicine has certainly turned the corner towards whole-ism when it comes to healthcare, where practitioners are considering interventions that address the root cause of illness in addition to offering treatments.

The health food industry is similarly supporting a vibrant microbiome through fostering a consortia of good gut bacteria in the belly by incorporating diverse whole foods in the diet.

Urban planning and real-estate development are teaming up on the proliferation of multi-use and mixed-income developments.

Social good organizations have encouraged philanthropists and government agencies to consider intersectoral investments in order to avoid projects funded in silos.

Spiritual teachings from the Dalai Lama and Desmond Tutu highlight the benefits of adopting an array of perspectives in light of interpersonal struggles, stating that this variety “leads to serenity and equanimity,” along with “creativity and compassion.”

The OG key players in the financial industry have also acknowledged for quite some time that diversifying your portfolio will definitely lead to more stable returns on investments over time.

Diversification even shows up in the nuanced ways that we embrace personal identity, where individuals are finding more resonance with a multitude of “I Am’s” versus identifying with the label of a singular box.

To put it simply: diversity is not a bad thing.

And when it comes to a few core pillars of society — healthcare, the built environment, spirituality, government, and economics — we are embracing variations of diversification. Yet, we somehow seem to have a problem when certain institutions find similar benefits in an “All of the Above” approach. We can see its beauty in energy resources, the microbiome, and even supply chains, but perhaps we fail to see it when it involves interpersonal engagement. Perhaps one day we won’t. Perhaps we’re just in an even-numbered baktun headed towards the Thirteenth Heaven and we just need to have patience while the speed of light keeps speeding up so that the mirage of duality can fade.

Perhaps one day, when we scream for excellence, we will realize that excellence is in the diversification — from lived experience, to scholarly achievement, to individual perspective and opinion. One day we will know, and feel, that the sum is greater than its parts and that diversity is how the whole system flourishes — not just in the realm of thriving natural ecosystems but in all facets of the human-made ones too.

---

As a little island-rescue mutt enjoying seaside contemplation, I wonder if Barley sees the excellence in his natural selection. A natural selection that only occurred because of the grand diversity of genotypes in all of his predecessors.

I do wonder.

But I do know that this isn’t a biological problem. Perhaps, it’s an ideological one. Maybe it’s a psychological one. Perhaps it’s a silly problem. Perhaps it doesn’t need to be a problem at all.

And while I don’t believe every solution begins with a policy, the Lady of Justice reminds us that one virtue of the law is to balance. Sound political structures have the power to level out what presently remains unbalanced in the human psyche.

Yet, we’re living in a world where the natural way of our economic (and other) systems is to unbalance. To create extremes. While unbalance isn’t to be avoided at all costs, a resilient system can balance itself back organically, with minimal frictions.

Which leads me to ask: can our current anthropogenic systems do this? Are they resilient? Are they connected? Diversified?

I don’t know. I don’t know if they all are. Yet, the point of this is not to critique them.

Perhaps the point is just to know what my dog is thinking while sitting on a beach tied to a metal pole anchored into the ground on the edge of the Atlantic Ocean.

Perhaps it’s to look to ahead, to what happens to systems and people and livelihoods when we just eat all of the M&Ms out of the trail mix, and we don’t enjoy the protein from almonds and cashews. When we don’t think about the long-term impacts of our decisions, like how clean energy isn’t just about a less environmentally polluted planet, but it’s also about efficiency that leads to affordability that increases access, and ultimately, can be an influencing factor that stabilizes supply and demand.

Perhaps the point of this is: All of the Above.

In any case, the point is not answers. The point is questions. For, perhaps, asking questions is the tangible success of a healthy, national educational system.

And perhaps the answers reveal themselves when we make decisions.

And when it’s my turn to decide, je choisis toute.

XXOO,

Court & Bar