The world is made up of elements that connect with one another to form something bigger, hopefully in the case of human relationships the something bigger is a better world. In fact the whole universe works that way. This process, connecting smaller elements together to build a bigger structure describes a term called scaling. You can scale connections to make things bigger, stronger, or both.
Whether speaking of math, finance (i.e. stock trading), human relationships, or molecules that make up the universe, we can see connections that can be made to form a bigger or stronger product greater than the original components. Often we call this scaling "up". Scaling "down" is also possible by subtraction, but that is a negative effect and is not what this article is about.
With the foregoing as the basis let's delve into human relationships that can be developed for greater unity and accomplishment. Today's world is filled with so much distrust and hate that those negative human qualities are making connections and amplifying to such an extent that sometimes there can be no agreement between people on even the most obvious truths. Truths that have been recognized for centuries.
On the matter of building trust between people we see that positive connections can be made so that a relationship can be built that provides strengths greater than that of the individuals originally involved. Marriage and family is the result of the trust developed between just two people who connect and raise a family that can grow (scale) to be stronger than either of the individuals that made up the original couple.
Consider that two opposite human creatures, a man and a woman, can come together in trust to form a relationship that let's them take on all of life's challenges together. Homemaking, child rearing, building a family business if that is ever desired, and most of all the decades long efforts to overcome the challenges of the marital relationship itself. Building a family is a wonderful example of scaling in the realm of human relationships.
Why consider this subject at all?
As previously mentioned relationships between humans today are so damaged by distrust and suspicion that agreement is hard to find even on matters that previously were accepted as the most obvious truths. "All men are created equal" … "do unto others what you want them to do to you" … "there is only so much food that one belly needs" … "there are more things that connect us than separate us".
These truths were written down, handed down, and accepted by eastern as well as western cultures but today are marginalized in favor of selfish distrust of others who may be deemed as different than we are.
What can be done to make a change. Scale trust. That's done by accepting one truth and building on that with another truth. The body of truth and belief will grow stronger in a positive way so that distrust and hate can be challenged, minimized, and eliminated by the trust that is scaled "up".
Where to start?
There was an old admonition that said "walk a mile in another man's shoes and then you can better understand him". Essentially that means imagine yourself in other person's circumstances so that you can see where they are coming from, and thus be able to better understand them rather than distrust them. In this way empathy and compassion can scale up to trust and love.
Humans are wonderful creatures. With the correct goal (or motive) any effort made at understanding - no matter how small the effort, or how great of an understanding that is being sought - will result in a compounding effect that can lead to success at reaching that desired understanding.
We can all be a part of the human element that makes up a society and culture that seeks the good, builds the trust, accomplishes the greater goal of building a better world together.
None of us on his or her own can come up with all of the answers to the questions and challenges the world faces. In fact there are some challenges that humans alone cannot solve (such as changing a hateful heart that refuses to change). But as each willing individual continues to search for and accept the truths that really are true about other people and cultures, then we can be a part of a world made up of people who get along and cooperate to accomplish the things that are beneficial to people everywhere.
Is this really possible? Can it really be done? You be the judge.