October 1, 2011
Today the weather reflects my feeling.
There is the sound of thunder in the distance, but the sun is shining and fluffy white clouds scatter the light in constantly changing patterns.
I imagine the courageous people in Wall Street (and Bolivia and Greece and Ecuador and so many, many places in the world) standing up for justice and freedom and the protection of the planet. I visualise the courageous people of Japan seeking and speaking about the truth of the nuclear disaster and calling for change. I see African mothers carrying their children in a desperate search for food.
I can hear thunder, but I take the chance in enjoying the beauty of the moment – the last chance of unbridled joy before running to take cover…Pacha and I chanced the risk of the storm this morning and went riding in the forest together (see photo)…it was the right decision.
It has already been 2 weeks since the Living the Good Life festival in Iluka (photo included is of some recycled fashion parade entrants). It was a beautiful weekend and everything went smoothly, thanks to wonderful people who came in and gave their time, energy and talents to share with the community who participated. Organising the event was exhausting and it takes time to recover, yet being so ‘busy’ was a kind of satisfying distraction. Now the challenge is to convince myself that it was all worthwhile and an effective way to shift minds and hearts to a more happy, healthy and sustainable way of life.
I learnt so much more about the resistance most people have to change and to new ideas. Do you remember the story from last year about the cautious reaction from the PTA (P and C committee) about using banana leaves instead of disposable plates for healthy vegetarian snacks? Well, this year I tried to encourage other Iluka community groups to raise money for their causes by selling this kind of food – but none of them took up the offer. (In the end it we ourselves did it, raising over $600 for the school food gardens by selling healthy vegetarian food.) Recently I heard that the idea of using banana leaves to serve food was one of the reasons why…All we can do is continue, with good heart, with truth and enthusiasm and with love – whatever happens at least we know we are full of good intent.
So now it’s time to reflect, re-energise and refocus on the most effective, sustainable and joyful ways to be of service. It’s time to give some more attention to Pacha and Yani - we’ve been singing, dancing, surfing and playing the guitar together, talking and sharing about the important things in life, engaging and interacting with the beautiful nature around us. One of our chickens (Olivia) has gone ‘clucky’ so we’ve put some fertilised eggs under her and Pacha and Yani (and their friends) can help nurture and observe the full circle of life.
The thunder has passed by for now, we live in the moment and are ready for when it returns another day…
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