Come Together

So many times we feel we must master so many things.  There is a push to be good at school, sports, work, parenting, home repairs, yard work, cooking, cleaning, ect.  The do it yourself mentality is that you can learn anything and do it yourself without being reliant on someone else and this is how you gain independence.  But humans are social animals so we were never meant to go it alone.  A solitary animal may have to master a variety of things to survive but a social animal doesn't necessarily have to do it.  Instead a social animal has to master working together with others and then they can let their natural skill set shine through and help out the group.  There independence comes not from doing everything themselves but instead from feeling comfortable being themselves within a group without feeling like they have to lose their identity within the group or dominate the group.  Everyone has a niche to fill. The differences brought to the table and the ability to coordinate them are what makes the group strong.

Wolves are a great examples of this idea of everyone being comfortable within a group and coming together to each play their role.  Although you hear a lot about the omega and alpha roles there are really a myriad of roles that wolves can play within the pack.  We are only now beginning to understand these roles.  For instance an alpha male and female lead a pack of wolves.  It is their job to lead hunts and come up with the strategies for the hunts.  They are also responsible for keeping up territorial boundaries.  They set out general policy for the pack as well.  In a small pack they may take on other roles but in a larger pack this would pretty much be the extent of their duties.  They are not necessarily the biggest wolves they are wolves that set out on their own to brave what was out there to find a mate and start a pack.  They have natural leadership skills and strength of will.  But the other members are just as important to the sustainability of a pack.  Betas are the largest and strongest.  Their job is to enforce and keep order in the pack.  They enforce the policies of the alphas.  Then there is the nanny a special wolf that is selected for this very important job to take over the care of the pups and look after them after the wolf pups are weened so the alpha female can go back to her duties.  There are the mid-ranking wolves whose job it is to confuse the numbers of the pack and make it seem larger than it really is to deter enemies.  They are also wary and help alert the pack of any potential dangers.  Other wolves have jobs of teaching and disciplining other wolves. There are speciality positions such as runners that are fast to outrun prey.  Still other wolves are specially talented to take down prey for the kill.  And the often misunderstood omega is not a lowly member of the pack but a very vital member of the pack that diffuses tension and calms situations by taking a lot of the aggression out of the pack.  Also they move members of the pack around a carcass.  Certain parts of the animal provide certain functions for instance vital organs provide a strong scent for the alphas.  When the omega is chased off the carcass it allows the wolves to change positions so they can eat what best suits their role.  But after the other wolves have finished the omega is allowed to partake of some high quality piece of the carcass saved by the beta wolves.

Wolves are highly social animals just like humans.  They know they can't all be alphas or omegas or nannies. They each have a specific skill that comes naturally to them and they bring that skill to the table and they allow others to bring their skills too.  They each stay within their role and execute it to the best of their abilities.  They work together and cooperate knowing that their own weaknesses will be covered up by other's strengths just like their strengths will cover up other's weaknesses.  And what happens when they do this?  Where does pooling their strengths and each playing their part get them?  A wolf pack is formed which is one of the most formidable forces of nature.  It can take down large animals that only larger predators should be able to take down, it can fight bears off, and it can change ecosystems.

When social animals work together and cooperate amazing things can happen.  What things do you bring to the table?  What amazing feats have you accomplished working in a group?  Humans often come together for finite period of times to create things such as buildings or movies.  Not everyone is an architect, a plumber, an electrician ect. but when everyone works together huge skyscrapers can erect.  Same with movies not everyone is an actor or a director or a writer but when all different people with different talents come together a great movie is made.  Imagine if humans worked together and each played their part in other areas of life.  Imagine what we can all accomplish when we see all that a wolf pack can accomplish.  Humans can come together and create strong bonds together to forge the life they want and achieve great things.  The potential is there and it is great.  Remember a lone wolf howling is calling out to other wolves but a group of wolves howling is a declaration of solidarity and strength crying out to the world the power of each individual coming together to form something greater than they could ever be by themselves.