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By David Magallanes / Guest contributor
David Magallanes
American sociologist and author Robert Neelly Bellah (1927-2013) wrote something intriguing in his book Habits of the Heart: Individualism and Commitment in American Life (1985): “Leaving home in a sense involves a kind of second birth in which we give birth to ourselves.”
Certainly, exiting the womb is the ultimate “leaving home.” All the comforts and protections we enjoyed therein were precipitously and violently taken from us when we were born. Suddenly, we were vulnerable to all the dangers that menacingly lurked in this terrifying yet beautiful world. It’s no wonder, then, that even the thought of “leaving home” can seem so potentially traumatic to many of us.
But now that we’ve adjusted, to one degree or another, to life outside the womb, maybe it’s time we consider, as Mr. Bellah intimated, “giving birth to ourselves.” Now that we have something to say about our destiny, perhaps we should ponder the choice: remaining in the sac of amniotic fluid that by our hand we’ve created for our comfort and safety and that envelops our current existence; or leaving, of our own free will, this complacence that threatens to lull us into mindless routines, or that stifles the creative god that was born along with and inside us as we were entering this plane of existence. We were born to be released into the world and to express—in a way that is uniquely ours—something precious and valuable and stunning in its capacity to support humankind through its tumultuous journey on earth.
Sooner or later, the moment arrives for us to be born again.
— David Magallanes is a writer, speaker and professor of mathematics. You may visit his web site, dedicated to honoring daughters and keeping them healthy, at www.roses4daughters.com. You may contact him through e-mail at dmagallanes@roses4daughters.com.
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Renacidos
Por David Magallanes / Columnista invitado
El sociólogo y autor Robert Neelly Bellah (1927-2013) escribió algo fascinante en su libro Habits of the Heart: Individualism and Commitment in American Life [Costumbres del Corazón: El Individualismo y el Compromiso en la Vida Americana] (1985): “Dejando atrás el hogar, podría decirse, involucra una especie de segundo nacimiento en el cual nos damos a luz a nosotros mismos” [mi traducción].
Por supuesto, saliéndose de la matriz es el último “dejando atrás el hogar”. Cuando nacimos, todas las comodidades y protecciones que disfrutamos ahí adentro se nos fueron precipitada y violentamente arrancadas. De repente, fuimos vulnerables a todos los peligros que amenazadoramente quedaban al acecho en este mundo a la vez espantoso y bello. No es de extrañarse, entonces, que hasta la idea de “dejar atrás el hogar” puede parecer tan potencialmente traumática para muchos de nosotros.
Pero ahora que nos hayamos acomodado, en mayor o menor grado, a la vida fuera de la matriz, quizás es hora de pensar en, como el Sr. Bellah sugirió, “dando a luz a nosotros mismos”. Ahora que tenemos algún control sobre nuestros destinos, tal vez deberíamos contemplar la decisión: quedarnos en el fluido del saco amniótico que con nuestras propias manos hemos creado para nuestra comodidad y seguridad y que envuelve nuestra existencia actual; o dejando atrás, por nuestra propia voluntad, esta autosatisfacción que amenaza dejarnos convencer que deberíamos seguir una rutina aburrida y sin motivo, o que sofoca ese dios creativo que nació junto con y dentro de nosotros cuando llegábamos a este plano de existencia. Nacimos para soltarnos al mundo y para expresar—de un modo que sea únicamente nuestro—algo precioso y valioso e imponente en su capacidad para apoyar a la humanidad en su jornada tumultuosa sobre la tierra.
Tarde o temprano, llega el momento de renacer.
— David Magallanes es un escritor, orador y profesor de matemáticas. Usted puede visitar su sitio cibernético, dedicado a la honra y la salud de nuestras hijas, en www.roses4daughters.com. Se puede comunicar con él por e-mail a: dmagallanes@roses4daughters.com.
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