In 2003, an international consortium known as the Human Genome Project published a complete draft of humanity’s DNA code. This was a phenomenal accomplishment that laid the foundation for today’s…
In 2003, an international consortium known as the Human Genome Project published a complete draft of humanity’s DNA code. This was a phenomenal accomplishment that laid the foundation for today’s revolution in medical research and drug development. There’s now tremendous optimism that ruinous diseases—from cancer to Alzheimer’s—can be conquered.
Contrast this with what we see happening in the worlds of politics and international relations, which resemble a massive dumpster fire. I “doomscroll” on my phone along with everyone else, but in the midst of the ongoing shitshow, I see an overarching reason for hope: my grandchildren.
It’s time for a new consortium with a new goal: revealing the basic building blocks of what it means to be a good person. What I’ll call the BBGP code.
We’ve become very focused in our society on intractable and foundational problems. Yet the reality is that there are also foundational solutions. If we can discover the BBGP code—with elements such as kindness, helping others, and being civil and respectful in the face of disagreement—I’m convinced it will lead to a new and transformational epoch for our world.
When I was doing research for my Good Grandpa book, I talked with grandfathers from all walks of life to hear their stories and ultimately gather and share their wisdom. The totality of what I heard from these men (plus my Aunt Lois and the Dalai Lama) gave me at least an inkling of what the BBGP can become: not one single idea, but rather a constellation of North Stars to live by.
My late father, Bill Page, is a central character in Good Grandpa. I mention him here because he was a proponent of what’s known as the Epigenetic Rules. He believed human behaviors are guided by genes. For example, behaviors like reciprocity (one of the rules) are hardwired into our genes—and for a reason: if we return favors done for us, it helps us survive. Dad believed passionately that if we could fully understand the Epigenetic Rules, we could better manage our behaviors.
When my dad passed on in 2011, we kept his office chalkboard writings intact. He’d written out a whole series of great goals for humanity and a methodology for achieving them. One sentence stands out:
THE FUTURE IS FRIENDLY BECAUSE IT IS US.
Notes written by my father, William R. Page, on the chalkboard in his office in Vermont.
In a very uncertain world, I’m 100% certain of two interrelated things:
- if we understand the basic building blocks of what makes for a good person, and
- if we nurture our families with these principles in mind,
it will lead to a world so beautiful that it is presently beyond our imagining.
Actually, there’s a third thing: my wonderful father was right. The future will be friendly.
Me with my eldest grandson, Henry, on top of the world.
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