I’m reading a report on women and poverty which includes a discussion of the topic of interdependence. We’ve explored this in prior experiments, and it seemed worthwhile to revisit it, this time with an emphasis on how the present moment is comprised of countless elements that co-create what emerges in our experience. For example, in this present moment, I’m writing on the computer, preparing an experiment to make available to all of you. Without the contributions and efforts of who-knows-how-many people and resources, we wouldn’t be able to be in touch in this way. And, as I sit here with the computer, I’m dressed in clothing that has come to me as a result of people and resources I will never meet but without whom I wouldn’t have the clothes on my back.

The specific focus for this week’s experiment is to take some time to be aware of the many elements and contributions from others that go into the experience you have in this moment, right here, right now – and the recognition that none of your present moments would be possible without the countless contributions from others. We are never without some element of interdependence operating in our lives.

Sometimes, a recognition of the depth and breadth of the pervasive fact of interdependence can make us feel momentarily vulnerable, as we realize that we couldn’t do our lives if it were just up to us. Even if we lived in the wild, with no other people around, we would require the help of the bacteria that reside in our digestive systems, and of nature to provide food, water and air, in order to survive. As you explore this week’s experiment, be sure to check in with how you feel as you acknowledge more consciously the inevitable and inescapable interdependence at play in your life and invite and allow whatever mixed feelings may come up along the way.

Along with the recognition of interdependence, this week’s experiment offers an additional opportunity to experience and express gratitude for the many sources of support that fill our lives. The other day, I was sitting in the oral surgeon’s office, having a procedure done, and I found myself filled with gratitude that he and his assistant were available to help me – and to do so with kindness and without pain. Later that day, I felt immense gratitude, as well, for the people who made available nourishing juices I could have as a meal, as I couldn’t easily eat solid food that evening.

And so, for this week’s experiment, I invite you to pay attention to the fact that everything in your life is available to you as a result of the contributions and activities of other people and other resources than yourself. And, just as there are many unknown sources of support in your life, you also are part of the play of interdependence, contributing what you emerges from you. Even the fact that you breathe, that you take in oxygen and exhale carbon dioxide contributes to the atmosphere around you, as plants take in the carbon dioxide you exhale and use it as nourishment.

Also notice what happens to the quality of your experience as you bring an active sense of gratitude into your play with this experiment. Often, a conscious recognition of support, and a conscious and mindful expression of gratitude, can have a positive and energizing, or settling and calming, effect on your state of mind. Notice what happens for you.

As always, have fun with this experiment and remember to bring along curiosity, as well as a willingness to have mixed feelings, as your constant companions. The goal isn’t to experience anything in particular – it’s to notice *your* experience as you explore the presence of interdependence.