Many hands make light work.
We all need help from time to time. Some tasks just require more of us than we are able to provide. So we team up. We join together. We pool our resources. We become a collective to take up a challenge.
We, as a group, succeed where we, as an individual, might not. As a community, we rely on each other. Lean upon and learn from each other.
When faced with dire flooding, ant colonies will lock limbs, creating a floating ball that rotates above and below the surface of the water—ensuring all members share the burden of risk and oxygen—until they reach a spot of safety to rebuild the colony.
Wolves hunt in packs. Dolphins hunt in packs. Hawks hunt in packs. That's cooperation on land, sea and air. Meerkats, rabbits and prairie dogs work together taking turns, keeping watch out for predatory attack from above or behind. (Possibly from those pack-hunting hawks.)
Birds of a feather flock together. And not just for the rhyme—it makes sense. The lead bird in a formation faces the strongest wind-resistance and tires faster. For the long seasonal journeys, bird flocks will rotate who leads. As the lead bird tires, another will take its place, letting the exhausted individual take it easy back in the rear of the formation where the wind-resistance is greatly reduced.
We are well-accustomed to helping and supporting each other. We wouldn't have made it this far as a species if we hadn't. What else can cooperation build?
Comments