So many signals are telling me that the world is in turmoil. That the culture that many of us live in, the environment, and its inhabitants are suffering and decaying. Whether it's everyone I know (regardless of geographic location)
talking about how
crazy or
extreme the
weather has been, the
political strife and
factionalism, scapegoating of the
poor/
disabled/
minority religions/ or
other disenfranchised people, or natural disasters striking the
U.S.,
Haiti,
Japan, and elsewhere- people are getting antsy and uncomfortable with how things seem to be going.
Is it any wonder the
fundamentalist Christians assume it is the
end of days? I can't say I blame them.
Many people are talking about these issues and what can be done, as they seem omnipresent in so many of the communities I travel in.
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This is why I am personally so attached to the idea of having a home with a little bit of land and raising my own food, chickens and bees. One of the reasons why I am so passionate about DIY: permaculture, sustainability, crafting, and learning the survival skills of our ancestors. And why I intend on group schooling my son myself- ensuring he actually gets a decent education,
despite us not being wealthy. And so many people I know are automatically doing the same thing. It feels like we are tapping into a collective unconscious that is telling us to start doing the work of building the new world- right here, right now while the old one crumbles at our feet.
I met with another Witch friend the other day for tea, and she said that she feels that the recent baby boom that she is seeing is likely a part of that clinging to survival. So many "alternative" type people (be they artists, pagans, queers, or otherwise) are starting to have kids. And she feels that this is tied to the state of the world right now. She talked about how other disasters, be they natural or human-made had a corresponding baby boom- a human survival mechanism is clicking into place and influencing so many to want to start a family. I find that idea interesting, frankly. And I can't say that I disagree.
What do you think? And what are you doing, if anything, on this issue?
Very thoughtful and peace-full post. I'm thinking that a good reading of the signs of these times offers us the option to live consciously, which is exactly what you describe, or not. I enjoyed reading this as an alternative to so many clamoring voices.
ReplyDeleteI have been on a mission to simplify and downsize. Getting rid of things. Eating more simply. Making space in my life ... for life itself.
I've been feeling this pull for a few years now, complete with apocalypse dreams on a weekly basis (and I am not even close to being religious). My husband is very emergency-minded as well and we have been hoarding foods and picking up survival skills here and there. More and more of my friends are getting into sustainable living too, buying land and building self-sufficient homes. My mother has said to me once when I was little that she could feel that a great change in consciousness was happening. Now more than ever I can feel the truth of her words.
ReplyDeleteInteresting.. and not, I think, wrong.
ReplyDeleteI'm continuing to build my family.
It is interesting to see the undertow of Earth-Wise living pulling through this tidal wave of negativity and destruction going on in the world today. More than ever before I have noticed many people getting 'back to basics'--ie--growing their own food, shopping locally, staying close to family and friends, going green and learning the 'lost' arts of preserving food, knitting and raising animals. My family is also on this bandwagon. We grow our own food and preserve it, we shop at the local farmer's market, shop at thrift stores and garage sales, know our neighbors and are working on a multi-gererational household off of the grid. For every story of disaster and heartbreak I hear in the news, I am seeing families coming together and people helping one another towards a common goal of sustainability in my own backyard.
ReplyDeleteExcellent post.. came to your blog by discovering it on that top 25 list. ;)
ReplyDeleteI too am moving toward a more sustainable lifestyle, growing our own, getting rid of what we don't need. We'd like more than one kid but it's not wise for me to get pregnant again, so we're considering adoption.
There's so much going on, it is wise of us to learn all we can to take care of ourselves.