sustainability is a paradigm coming slowly to us humans. consumption is so natural to us in our ego-based, have/have not dimension of opposites. it’s all the wanting wanting wanting for me me me with historically little awareness of what all the wanting has done to our earth mother. we might have dominion over our planet, but that doesn’t mean we own it. we’re getting better though. our “get/have” lens on the world is broadening to include the “how” – so we’re no longer this monster eating its own tail.
“our planet doesn’t ask much of you,” a neighbor’s magnolia has been whispering.
october 2011 was tough for a lot of us in the northeast; right before halloween we got hit with an out-of-season, heavy-snow storm. because we hadn’t completely gone through all of autumn, the snow collected in little “bowls” formed by leaves still clinging to tree branches, creating weight beyond what many of them could bear. our snowfalls are historically peaceful; this one, however, was abruptly, rudely and repeatedly interrupted with the gunfire of cracking limbs, the crash of their collapse fading into a pathetic snow-muffled thud. even the sturdy oak at the edge of our driveway was no match for this assault; venturing outdoors then was determined by whether or not one had a hard hat.
many in the midatlantic region remember those days’-long power outages none too fondly. generators were at a premium and their loud rumble night after night as we tried to keep water running and heat in our homes was replaced by that of chain saws once power was restored and we began clearing debris from our yards and roadways. the trees in our area are old, weathered, like aged and experienced friends we turn to when we need solace or guidance through storms of the human kind. cleanup after a weather event is just part of daily living in our locale …in this cleanup, however, we were inconsolable.
a much-anticipated event in spring has always been the blooming of a neighbor’s huge magnolia tree. even in the non-blooming season, this magnificent structure catches the eye – the way the long, sturdy boughs open like arms inviting you to rest in the enormity of its shade, or as if to say “come! enjoy me! aren’t i just the prettiest thing ever?” after the storm, you could feel it weeping, its enormous heart broken, limbs split from the sturdy trunk like string cheese being peeled great chunks at a time by a little child eager for a treat. for weeks and now months after the snow melted and the immediacy of the event had mellowed into a community conversation topic, many of us wondered what the owners of the magnolia would do with it. replace it? see what could be salvaged? trim it so it’s not so “obvious” in its brokenness? driving past the brown, dispirited skeleton became a sore spot in our winter days, its stooped, sad shoulders a weary shadow of its former majesty.
until spring.
intention - in all its determined, creative, resilient glory – unfolded in that magnolia. hundreds of little red sprouts popped up everywhere on the now-downed branches still clinging to its trunk. pink and white blossoms followed several days later... opening everywhere in the sunlight. once again, our magnolia called “come! enjoy me! aren’t i just the prettiest thing ever?”
with just the faintest of heartbeats from this frail and struggling life, the universe’s unstoppable power fulfilled its intent for creation and expansion and abundance and beauty. this magnolia is a portrait of the strength of our planet and our species: sturdy, resilient, regenerating, deep in its resources for life and…sustainability.
mother earth isn’t asking much of us. quite the opposite. she’s telling us with a little light, air and water, we have all we need to live and thrive together. we can sustain ourselves and our home with a little mindfulness of the products we buy and create, the institutions we support, the people we elect. our paradigm is shifting…from the love of stuff to the stuff of love
mindful consumption. we can do this. collective intention in harmony with the universe’s power. our sun will be brighter, the air will be cleaner, our water more pure. then, when we listen to our planet – really listen – soon we’ll hear her tell us all - “come! enjoy me! aren’t i just the prettiest thing ever?”
love to all,
marie
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( 2.7 / 15 )today is easter. and while the metaphors of spring and rebirth are everywhere, the particular event being celebrated this day can get obscured or lost in all the social and cultural happenings: easter egg hunts, stores closed, kitchens in high gear.
one of the cores of the christian faith is the death and resurrection of jesus. modern science and technology have been trying for the last two thousand years to explain exactly how this bedrock event could have taken place, and even if we cannot definitively recreate the circumstances that formed such a pivotal moment, we know something happened.
i believe that “something” was the culmination of what jesus lived, taught and demonstrated in his brief time on earth: life is eternal, and love is the foundation for life. i believe our modern proclivity for proving everything through science and technology before we can understand can diminish the wisdom at the base of our spiritual teachings. one of the tenets of buddhism is the finger and the moon: if i’m pointing to the moon, don’t worship my finger.
if we can keep just this one message from jesus of love and eternal life uppermost in our awareness in all our choices and decisions, if we can see the gift of our lives in our life situations, if we can allow ourselves to live the intent of the teachings of this one quiet, reformed rabbi-coach who lived and died two thousand years ago, there will be no mystery of easter needing “proof” before we can comprehend.
while the physical manifestation of exactly what easter tells us took place will probably never be resolved through science, the imagery is clear: death is just the opposite of birth; life is eternal and love is the foundation for life.
no mystery here.
love to all,
marie
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( 3.1 / 18 )i am filled with great joy and hope when i see our planet’s youth running with unfettered gusto toward that most undeniable birthright of all human beings: freedom. freedom to be, to create, to express, to join, to explore, to make mistakes, to learn and run again.
all great human strides toward living the truth of our existence – evolution through expansion – resulted from young people reaching and breaking beyond the old ideas of confinement and structure - ideas held in place through the force of unchecked egos. our own country was founded on these principals, and today we’re watching a number of countries in the middle east and africa grapple with this same human imperative to grow, leaving those in leadership positions who are slow to learn to their small-minded, exiled selves. the egos of past generations rooted in the belief that might equals right are facing the stark reality that their time is up. mother earth’s younger, smarter children are living what more enlightened beings and governments have long known: violence and force do not work. the inevitable evolution of the human spirit is taking over our planet. we have reached our tipping point, and it is humanity’s young people who are doing the tipping.
twenty-first century technology is the universal accelerant allowing the heat of these passionate young people to reach every corner of the globe with one message: let my people go. we’ve slipped the bonds of geography – the hundredth monkey has met twitter. philip howard, associate professor in communication at the university of washington states “our evidence suggests that social media carried a cascade of messages about freedom and democracy across north africa and the middle east, and helped raise expectations for the success of political uprising.”
ghandi said “when i despair, i remember that all through history the ways of truth and love have always won. there have been tyrants, and murderers, and for a time they seem invincible, but in the end they always fall. think of it …always.”
truth, love … and evolution.
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( 3.1 / 49 )a lot of us are watching the republican race for the 2012 nomination with different degrees of interest. republican, democrat, liberal, conservative, independent – we tend to put labels on the direction our postures and intentions take. i fall somewhere in the middle of all of it: fiscal conservative but social liberal. it’s all in the management, attitude and intellect of the politician.
i’m more convinced than ever, though, that the difference between a politician and a statesman is the politician shows us who he or she is…the statesman shows us who we can be.
hearing, reading, watching these people use issues as launch pads for their nastiness and mean spiritedness shows me who they are, and reinforces who i don’t want to be. i can’t imagine seeing some of these candidates on my television and on my home page every day, as they will be if they are elected. their “take-no-prisoners” positions on gay marriage, right to life or right to choose, immigration reform, global economy or protectionism are pitting us against each other on a battlefield, instead of asking us to engage in conversation in a forum of respect for differences. these are important subjects and i’m really glad they’re in the public discourse, regardless of our agreement or disagreement with the positions taken; my concern is with the humanity of the candidate himself or herself and how, if elected, they will navigate us through these waters of conflict. if they have their way, who will we be at the end of their administrations?
the way i am deciding who should be in the white house the next time around is based in substance, not form. the substance of the person: the wisdom of knowing our place in the world as leaders, not occupiers or dictators. how his or her humanity leading to sharing and inclusion is reflected in bringing people together instead of instilling fear and separation. it is courageous to reach; it is cowardice to withdraw.
maybe a good way to get started thinking in this direction is to change the name of our “department of defense” to “department of war” – that’s how it started out, and i believe that’s a more accurate reflection of the way we're being told to think. if we're sensitized to what we call it, maybe we won’t be so quick to use it - individually or collectively - reminding us of who we really want to be.
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( 3 / 58 )i’ve been watching the unfolding process of selecting a republican nominee for the 2012 election with moderate interest…i’m not obsessing, but i am following enough to see the platform, intent and practice of the candidates.
i’m one of those independent voters everyone seems to want to register “for real” in their camp. i’m a fiscal conservative and a social liberal – not an uncommon profile for a lot of independents. i do my best to hold myself open to hear all the real issues, leaving out the mudslinging. the mud isn’t so much the issue, as the slinging is. i’m not sure any of us is in a position to really know all the details about the mud. but we know slinging when we see it.
there’s a lot of good stuff about this country – the freedom, the opportunity to pursue happiness, whichever way we define it. watching the republican nomination unfold brings into sharp focus what we can agree with and what we can’t as it relates to freedom and the pursuit of happiness, as individuals and as a culture. and i think that’s what is most appealing about this whole process: it’s asking us to have conversations with ourselves, each other, in groups or one-on-one examining who we are as individuals and as a nation, and how that expression gets translated into a vote.
i continue to listen for the candidate who most reflects my global view of where i believe our country could be culturally, socially and morally in the world. my position of who we are as creations asks for inclusion and support; it reflects sharing and lifting up. it strengthens through respect for all religions, races, sexual persuasions, geographical and cultural histories. my position is one of empowering all others to do their best, to stretch individual and collective limits of creativity, expansion, abundance, kindness – all that love- and courage-based energy. shutting down, shutting off, building walls, and promoting aggression so we’re “protected” (an illusion, in my view) comes from fear, pure and simple.
the choice is always ours.
so when i listen to the candidates, i ask myself if that person is asking me to be afraid? or to be creative? to pull in and protect? or to reach out and expand? the conversations are important in the social discourse in our 24/7 news cycle, and in our quiet moments of self reflection. the results will be taken into the voting booth in november.
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