A preview of the unpublished book A CIVILIZATION WITHOUT A VISION WILL PERISH: AN INDEPENDENT SEARCH FOR THE TRUTH by David Willis
LESSONS LEARNED BY THE AUTHOR (Part 4)
Poor agriculture has led to the demise of civilizations
My final job was with the American Farm School in Thessaloniki where I learned that the lack of a sound agriculture has led to the demise of civilizations that were advanced in other respects. If a society does not have sustainable agriculture, even though it may be blessed with ample resources initially, that society will ultimately fail. There are many who are critical of our current farming practices which are reviewed in the chapter on Farming. Masanobu Fukuoka, in The Natural Way of Farming: The Theory and Practice of Green Philosophy, tells us: “Natural farming is based on a nature free of human meddling and intervention. It strives to restore nature from the destruction wrought by human knowledge and action, and to resurrect a humanity divorced from God.”
Sustainable agriculture
For me, sustainable agriculture is defined in the American Farm School creed as follows:
I believe in a permanent agriculture, a soil that grows richer, rather than poorer from year to year
I believe in living not for self but for others so that future generations may not suffer on account of my farming methods
I believe that tillers of the soil are stewards of the land and will be held accountable for the faithful performance of their trust
I am proud to be a farmer and will try to be worthy of the name
The qualities of the man I was working for
My American Farm School experience deeply affected me. Just as important as learning about agriculture were the qualities of the man I was working for – Bruce Lansdale. Rather than state my version of the unique qualities of both the institution and the man, I will use the words of the President of the Greek Republic to be found at the end of this essay. Bruce was the best role model I had found during my working life of a man with his feet firmly planted in this world but also closely in touch with that higher world that beckons us all. Best of all, he was the first and only boss that I could really trust. Living on campus as a close knit community, I realized that building community is a very important, and grossly under-rated, facet of our lives. We need meaningful relationships outside the family and work. Building community is a major goal for my wife, Christine, and me.
Trust
I have placed a very high importance to being able to trust people. There have been a number of occasions in my life when I thought I could trust someone only to find that they were fair-weather friends. Much of the advice given to us, even from government sources, cannot be regarded as reliable, because of the overwhelming influence of vested-interest groups.
RETIREMENT
The ways of big business
It was later in life that I learned about the ways of big business and that American corporations contributed to the German war effort and even provided the gas that killed six million Jews in the Nazi gas chambers. I can do nothing to bring back those lost lives but I can make sure that I never buy a product or service from one of those corporations and certainly I will never invest my money in them. Some of those companies that provide eye-popping gains for their investors are acting unethically or are up to no good. It is sad but every now and again the high and the mighty need to be reminded what Judas Iscariot learned the hard way; that it is not a good idea to sell your soul for thirty pieces of silver.