Lessons from the Maximilian Sunflower

In a reading for my class titled "Men and Women in Search of Common Ground," Wendell Berry suggests through the metaphor of a sunflower that individuals are defined relationally.
"Some time ago I was with Wes Jackson, wandering among the experimental plots at his home and workplace, the Land Institute in Salin, Kansas. Wes pointed to a Maximilian sunflower growing alone, apart from the others, and said, 'there is a plant that has realized its full potential as an individual.' And clearly it had; it had grown very tall, it had put out many long branches heavily laden with blossoms- and the branches had broken off, for they had grown too long and heavy. The plant had indeed realized its full potential as an individual, but it had failed as a Maximilian sunflower. That sunflower plant achieved it's full 'potential' because it had eliminated all competing plants. It therefore grew extra large and broke over. But it failed because it had lived outside an important part of its definition, which consists of both its individuality and its community."

Maximilian sunflowers are known for their dependence on the flowers surrounding them. They only ever grow in large clusters. I love this concept that I am who I am because of the way I interact with people and my sense of community and unity.

So in that vein, here are some of the first people I've reconnected with post Jeru:

My first real night back in America I got to play with my FAVORITE people in the world! From left to right, please meet: Rebecca, Sarah, and Allison. (Sorry Sarah that I had to post this picture of you in your nightgown....but don't worry, we all love Yoga Bear too!) We missed Melissa! JC and NZ friends, don't be jealous that I love these girls the most. They're family. Well, we had so much fun catching up on about a million things and just being cousins. And, I don't know why we are all squatting, but I think maybe because the picture was taken on a timer and we wanted to be sure our heads weren't chopped off...
On the drive home from Smith's, we were going through an intersection when Elyse yelled, "HEY, there's Josh!" I'm like "Josh who?" remembering that our JC friend Josh Cazier (his real last name) had flown home to Washington... Elyse is all, "STEFANIE, IT'S JOSH CRAZY!" (I like to call him Josh Crazy.) So anyway, I pulled a U-ey (sp?) and ran stop signs and drove like a maniac following him for about 2 minutes into a Y lot. Then, we had a happy, happy reunion!

Okay, there is nothing like some good laughs with Marcie and Haeree :) It was just fantastic. We intended to go to an open-mic concert of sorts, but by the time we calmed down enough to head out, the concert was long over. It was so happy to just chat and sing and play with these girls. Marcie reminded me what its like to live with no inhibitions, and Haeree inspired me to maybe try hair extensions! And... Marcie killed my fish.
Kirsten is just the BEST! She is such a faithful blog follower. I always know that Kirsten loves me and truly just wants the best for me. She teases me and we joke around like nobodys business! Kirsten's eyebrows are always perfectly groomed, and Kirsten is PRO at helping me organize my backpack.

It was fun to catch up with Ali and Megan at Kneaders, and go to class with my friend Shawna. I ran into some friends from work at the bookstore... it has all just been fantastic. But along with the fun times, I am in school, and I read about Maximilian sunflowers :)

I think this notion of relational identity is a concept deserving of a little thought.