" It takes two to speak the truth, one to speak and one to hear it. " – Henry David Thoreau.
I am finishing a 40 day fast and feeling so grateful and open. I did this fast because I felt the need to deal with some of my negativity, anger and ego (along with a gluttonous few months of summer fun). The last two weeks was spent in silence, which may have been harder than not eating for a fortnight. At first I resisted (like my cat at the vet), but I am now feeling energized and a lot more hopeful. I am feeling a lot of love and that’s what it was all about. It was a journey into the heart and for the heart. I am now ready to be the VoiceYourself steward that you all deserve.
I greet you from Maui on a splendid sunny day with an expansive 180-degree view of the beautiful Pacific stretched out in front of me. Mother Earth is really strutting her stuff today, reminding me of how important it is to preserve and nurture her. I realize it is not my job to save Her as she has survived through many tough seasons and will keep on keeping on. My job is to be a part of the movement that helps us save ourselves.
I heard Ted Turner believes the apocalypse won’t be from killing off too many species or from nuclear devastation but from viruses, which, when their hosts go extinct will simply jump hosts to the one with the weakest immune system. Guess who tops that list? Anyway, there you have a bit of my cynicism. But I have found my hope again and I believe that the moment is now for change.
We need a paradigm shift from the corporate mindset of "it's fine to lie, cheat and steal if there's a dollar in it for us" to "how can we help one another so we all succeed". We need to put the "we" back in "We the people" because only together will we make a difference. How do we accomplish what seems to be such an enormous task? It's simple. As Gandhi said, "Become the change we wish to see in the world." We must stop looking at Mother Nature as a resource (like corporations do) and start respecting her as a precious gift handed down through the generations. Each one of us can take steps towards becoming stewards of the environment and all of the creatures that inhabit it. We need to focus on self-sufficiency and sustainability, because we can't help anyone else until we help ourselves.
Change is going to come from you and me.
We share one very basic, very important trait: we are all consumers. If we all get together and educate ourselves about how to survive as a species without raping or poisoning Mother Earth, proactively buy the ìalternative productsî (green, eco-friendly, organic products which don’t require poisonous, toxic chemicals and pesticides) from mom and pop stores (instead of the multi-national conglomerates) and harness the power of boycott we will be well on our way to a viable future.
As we look towards that future – what do we envision? Do we feel inspired and hopeful or are we feeling the dream of our children's future slipping away? It's understandable as the media bombards us daily with reports of war, poverty, natural disasters, glaciers melting, ozone depletion, growing pollution and a declining economy. While the mainstream news keeps us focused on what's wrong, we tend to lose sight of all the good happening around us.
Good things are outweighing the bad things ninety-nine to one. Did you know... three species of whales are rebounding, ethical coffee is helping save the Peruvian Rainforest, farmers are "going green" to help prevent further global warming, and a Liberian leader forgave his fathers killers, while asking his countrymen to do the same? These are just a fraction of the good stories that should be shared to give us all hope and inspire a positive outlook on the future.
A few weeks ago, Laura and I had the opportunity to meet Barack and Michelle Obama. Despite my tendency towards skepticism as it pertains to our political system these days, I was deeply impressed by the honesty and character of the man. He spoke candidly about the anxieties of the American people rather than rant on and on with empty campaign promises. It was the first time I’ve ever heard a presidential candidate talk about biodiesel, solar and wind power as answers to our energy problems. He called on community effort to bring about change, which resonates deeply for me. The very concept of a man in the oval office actually caring and not just enriching himself and his buddies is mind blowing. But I think of Barack and Michelle as a beautiful wave in a sea of change that is sweeping the nation and the planet.
Laura & I believe, as a community, we can help bring forth REAL change. That's why we created Voiceyourself - to enable you to share your thoughts & ideas with like-minded friends and to bring hope and inspiration into our collective communities. At Voiceyourself there's already an amazing group of inspiring people who we proudly call our SolMates. Our SolMates are environmental heroes like contributing editors "Granny D" who at 90 walked across the country for campaign finance reform and John Passacantando the executive director of Greenpeace, and from Green Mountain College our student advisor professor Ron Steffens and campus editors Joe Bossen & Jenna Castos who are eager to share their experiences on how they're greening their campus.
So come along with us and become part of this growing community by sharing your stories and together - we can forge a better future for generations to come.
Thank you for being a part of the solution.
