We in the United States, in the early throes of a presidential
election, are hearing the word "change" again and again and again,
but what is meant by this gets barely a syllable. There is
virtually no discussion about what we want to change from or to.
The assumption seems to be that we all know what we are talking
about. But do we?
In AWAKENING WITH MOTHER EARTH, Gaia tells us repeatedly that if we
don't want to be aliens on our own planet, we must change and evolve
with her. So what does THAT mean?
1 -- At the most basic level, it means a shift in our thinking so
that we consider the planet in all that we do, from light bulbs to
driving habits to the length of showers to reawakening our
imaginations. A week ago I was at a lunch with a fellow who advised
me that yes, global warming is occurring but it's not our fault: it's
the Sun that is doing it. Proceeding along this line of thought
means that we don't have to do anything since it's not our fault and,
since it's the Sun's fault, we can't do anything anyway. Beyond this
fallacy and that of reducing all earthly problems to global warming
is the underlying attitude that we humans are separate from what goes
on with the Earth. Part of the basic shift is the clear recognition
that we are part of our ecosystems, not simply observers of them.
2 -- The above-mentioned attitude may contain elements of an
imprint, a subject addressed in an earlier blog. I reiterate it
here: keep your mental eyes and ears peeled for those personal,
cultural and global assumptions of how it is and release those that
no longer serve. (And it's probably good to be wary of the ones you
decide to keep!)
3 -- As consumers, we can DEMAND that the cars, appliances, toys,
clothing -- everything -- we buy be energy-efficient, long-lasting
and made to have a minimally harmful impact on the environment.
Recently our dishwasher went kaflooey and we called a repairman. He
told us he could probably replace a part or two and we might get
weeks, months, maybe even years more use, but we'd basically be
better off just buying a new one. "But it's only ten years old," I
protested. That, he told me, was unusual; appliances normally don't
last that long anymore. Let's demand that they do.
4 -- Let's also demand to know what our politicians have in mind
for dealing with this environmental crisis called Earth. It passeth
all understanding, or mine at any rate, that not a single
presidential candidate has spoken seriously about the environment.
My guess is that either they think we don't care that much or that
it's not a sexy enough issue to get them elected. We can let them
know otherwise. While I still believe that change comes from the
bottom up, some strong leadership would be much appreciated.
I have more to say on this subject but I'll save it for another
time. Meanwhile, I heartily recommend Julia Whitty's book, THE
FRAGILE EDGE. Ms Whitty impressed me with her articles in MOTHER
JONES and she is even better in this book. If you love the ocean --
any ocean -- you will find this book fascinating. One part that
caught my attention was her description of being in the water when a
humpback whale was singing and how that felt in her body. It
reminded me of musings about cross-species healing in
AWAKENING . . . and of an idea floated at a party I went to over
the holidays to get a group of people together and just howl.
Soooo . . .
Keep singing!
Fran Gatins
www.satolahsingularities.com
www.polkadotbanner.com
http://awakemotherearth.blogspot.com/
You do not have to be good.
You do not have to walk on your knees
for a hundred miles through the desert repenting.
You only have to let the soft animal of your body
love what it loves.
Mary Oliver
