“No, that’s not true.” I say this to myself a lot right now, particularly as we approach Earth Day.
I taught logic courses in college classrooms for many years, so I know that a statement can have one of three true-values: true, false, or unknown. Many of us get into a lot of trouble when we confuse unknown statements for true ones—something I am inclined to do when I think about the state of the planet. I convince myself that the earth my hypothetical grandchildren will inhabit will be nothing but blackened wastelands, waterworlds, underground mole people fighting resource wars in Mad Max style.
But then, I have to remind myself: No, that’s not true—if for no other reason than it hasn’t happened yet. In actuality, I don’t know what’s going to happen.
Maybe all these dystopian visions will, indeed, become “true.” But, right now, their truth-value is “unknown.” They are guesses, at best, and are informed by sensational movies and fear more than anything else.
And my mind is really good at convincing me that things are true, when in fact, I don’t know. It’s convinced me that getting a fancy publication will finally make me eternally happy, that the weird little lump in my groin must mean I have cancer, that we’re out of peanut butter. All of these have turned out to be false. We humans are remarkably bad at accurately predicting the future, but we attempt to do it all the time, often in ways that are motivated by scarcity and self-protection.
“No, that’s not true,” I remind myself again and again.
Then I come back to what I know is true about the earth: This daffodil is in bloom. The air is clear and the grass is green here today. There are fewer salmon in the river this year than there were last year. I feel scared and sad. I feel so grateful. The daffodil, the grass, the salmon are worth fighting for.
What do you know to be true about the earth? Share your answer in Mother Den.
Danielle LaSusa Ph.D. is a Philosophical Coach, helping new moms grapple with what it means to make a person. She is the creator of The Meaning of Motherhood course, and co-creator and co-host of Think Hard podcast, which brings fun, accessible, philosophical thinking to the real world. To join her mailing list, subscribe here.
© Copyright Danielle LaSusa PhD, LCC, 2021. All rights reserved.
