1Now the whole world had one language and a common speech.
This is a turning point in history. Not only is it the point where languages diverge because of the Lord’s intervention, but also the single story of history seems to fall apart. That is implied in the second phrase, a common speech. I hear this kind of story so often in homes that have gone through divorce. As the divorce is finalized the children get split up, some going with each parent. That is where the stories of the families become very different. Each set of kids has a very different view of family life. Their experiences of life and family have very different stories. There are a few stories that they share in common, but those get replaced in the memory by the more recent ones involving the new family. They begin laying down a new set of memories, one event at a time. Years later when the kids get together they seem to have so little in common. Their experiences at different schools, cities, vacations, struggles and usually subsequent divorce of their parent and step-parent are each very different from the other half of the family. Even with siblings who grow up in the same house and move out, get married and settle down, stories of their lives create separate worlds of memories. Without remaining in the same area and continuing to share significant portions of their lives around common experiences, lives tend to become less and less alike. We share fewer and fewer things in common. This is what happened to the earth’s population following the Flood. What started as a family spending time in a boat, ended up as a family spread across the globe experiencing very different lives in very different parts of the earth. Over time the memories of the past faded and began to separate rather than join various branches of this one family. When God sees their efforts to join together and establish themselves as the highest authority He steps in and splits them for good.
The Arnold Journey 