[Picture of text that reads:]
Years ago, anthropologist Margaret Mead was asked by a student what she considered to be the first sign of civilization in a culture. The student expected Mead to talk about fishhooks or clay pots or grinding stones.
But no. Mead said that the first sign of civilization in an ancient culture was a femur (thighbone) that had been broken and then healed. Mead explained that in the animal kingdom, if you break your leg, you die. You cannot run from danger, get to the river for a drink or hunt for food. You are meat for prowling beasts. No animal survives a broken leg long enough to heal.
A broken femur that has healed is evidence that someone has taken the time to stay with the one who fell, has bound up the wound, has carried the person to safety and has tended the person through recovery. Helping someone else through difficulty is where civilization starts, Mead said
Me: Reads this and feels temporarily good.
Comments: This isn't a meme, it's fake, healthcare is expensive, murder exists.
Maybe the person with the broken leg got it from jumping off a cliff to kill themself, but survived, and was kept alive by another because they were their favorite sex slave.
And thus, civilization was born
You pretty much summed up my entire experience with this post. Thank you. I see you, and appreciate you.