Patio and Backyard Retreating
Summertime is outdoor grilling time on your patio or at a picnic site. Ponder a patio or picnic paradox: the more civilized we become the more we retreat back to our prehistoric roots. Archaeologists in South Africa discovered a cave containing a prehistoric campfire of homo erectus (who existed around 1.5 to 2 million years ago) that proved our early human ancestors were using fire not 400,000 years ago as previously believed, but at least one million years ago!
The anonymous caveman who discovered how to make fire was responsible for a major breakthrough in human evolution. Further, researchers say that since the ancient campfire site of ashes and burnt twigs also contained charred animal bones it was proof of another important evolutionary advance. Fire would have logically been first used to ward off wild animals and as a source of warmth. The unknown cavewoman who used fire to cook food made the next significant evolutionary advance, as cooked meat makes its nutrients easier to digest and so led to larger human brains. Canadian anthropologist Michael Chazan adds the gathering of clan folk around a fire helped socialize our early ancestors.
As you enjoy a summer barbeque with friends around a hot grill and fire with ribs or hamburgers, realize you are engaged in a prehistoric, million-year-old activity! Another example of prehistoric inclinations is the difficulty staying faithful to a diet. Behavioral scientists conjecture this dilemma may date back to primal times of ancient hunters and food gatherers. Since they did not know for certain if there would be any food to eat tomorrow, they tended to eat all the food in sight. This prehistoric tendency still lingers within and can unconsciously be the reason being faithful to a diet is such a difficult struggle.
Yet another example is the inclination to resolve problems in marriage or between neighbors and nations with the prehistoric solution of violent force, of which war is the classic primal relic. Every war, even if cheered on by flag-waving patriots, is always a retreat backwards to tribal primitive behavior. Sadly, this condition seems ingrained in all souls, even in those of advocates of peace. They too can find themselves inwardly rejoicing in a movie when in the middle of Main Street the terrorizing, sadistic bad guy is killed violently in a duel with the good sheriff.
So if you grow fuming angry in traffic or in a domestic dispute, don’t retreat to being prehistoric. Instead strive to resolve the problem in a civilized, peaceful manner.
The anonymous caveman who discovered how to make fire was responsible for a major breakthrough in human evolution. Further, researchers say that since the ancient campfire site of ashes and burnt twigs also contained charred animal bones it was proof of another important evolutionary advance. Fire would have logically been first used to ward off wild animals and as a source of warmth. The unknown cavewoman who used fire to cook food made the next significant evolutionary advance, as cooked meat makes its nutrients easier to digest and so led to larger human brains. Canadian anthropologist Michael Chazan adds the gathering of clan folk around a fire helped socialize our early ancestors.
As you enjoy a summer barbeque with friends around a hot grill and fire with ribs or hamburgers, realize you are engaged in a prehistoric, million-year-old activity! Another example of prehistoric inclinations is the difficulty staying faithful to a diet. Behavioral scientists conjecture this dilemma may date back to primal times of ancient hunters and food gatherers. Since they did not know for certain if there would be any food to eat tomorrow, they tended to eat all the food in sight. This prehistoric tendency still lingers within and can unconsciously be the reason being faithful to a diet is such a difficult struggle.
Yet another example is the inclination to resolve problems in marriage or between neighbors and nations with the prehistoric solution of violent force, of which war is the classic primal relic. Every war, even if cheered on by flag-waving patriots, is always a retreat backwards to tribal primitive behavior. Sadly, this condition seems ingrained in all souls, even in those of advocates of peace. They too can find themselves inwardly rejoicing in a movie when in the middle of Main Street the terrorizing, sadistic bad guy is killed violently in a duel with the good sheriff.
So if you grow fuming angry in traffic or in a domestic dispute, don’t retreat to being prehistoric. Instead strive to resolve the problem in a civilized, peaceful manner.
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