The Toadstools Inside U.S.

While reading Hyde’s The Gift, a few of the lead pieces, and my peers’ commentary I could not help but be reminded of the past century's run with socialism. Now, this is not a defense of the Soviet Union or other nations in the eastern bloc’s form of governing; I simply could not help but align Hyde’s argument with the good intentions, that paved the road to hell, of the socialist agenda. 

The idea that gift giving is a river that ebbs and flows and is intended to keep moving and feeding is an interesting one. The Puritans’ experience with the Native American beliefs regarding gifts and giving was like a premonition of what America would become. What do I mean? The Native Americans, before being infiltrated by the English settlers, had a culture full of norms and customs by which they lived. Following the arguably unfortunate landing of the Mayflower, their happy existence was destroyed…stolen. 

The Native American experience following the development of the colonies is tragic. Hundreds of thousands were harmed through malice and disease and being drawn into a war they didn’t ask for. And why? For ownership, profit, and greed. Imagine a past where the colonists came to the continent intent on sharing, giving, and learning from whomever they encountered. Think of the strides that could have been made through the sharing and gifting knowledge and lessons between the Native Americans and the colonists, instead of the brutal fight that ended with the decimation and displacement of the native people.

The Native Americans’ gift that could have been peacefully exchanged with the colonists and vice versa represents the river Hyde describes. But instead becoming the current that pushes the water along, the colonists "try to dam the flow, thinking that what counts is ownership and size. The effect is [now] clear: by keeping the gift they get no more. They are no longer channels for the stream and they no longer enjoy its fruits” (ch 1, loc. 319-320).

See, to me, Hyde’s gift is not only food, art, or things…the gift is also knowledge, community, and acceptance. Our country stands on a foundation bonded by thievery and prejudice; the American dream and the American way is a travesty and from the outside it is clear as day. Perhaps that is why true socialists sought to create an environment where  common goals and community overlap and giving and sharing form the foundation of life.  

Perhaps because of the gifts the country’s founders stole from the Native Americans, we as a nation are doomed to repeat their mistakes. Given the current state of affairs and like the daughters in Hyde’s story, our mother’s bread has turned to toadstools inside us.