The thought has crossed my mind many times, this time I choose to share it with you. In this day of the information age it's easy to get information, all kinds, even mis-information.
When I became vegan back in 2001 I was hungry for information. This was new to me, I didn't know any vegans, I didn't even know the word exsited until months after I became one. All I knew is a conversation that changed my life. My boyfriend (now husband) told me he was a vegetarian. I thought, cool, i know what that is - i'm cool with that, and then told me why & how he became one. Compassion, health, animal issues, so many factors are involved. For he & I it was about the deep feeling of knowing this was right. We didn't become animal activists, or start flaunting our new-found ways. We started off by following that knowing and seeing where the path would go. Diet for a New America by John Robbins was the first book I read and my first step to an eco-conscious mind. As I went through the internet I found way more information then I thought I would. At times I found lots of mis-information, each time I came across something new, I would see if I had that feeling again, that is was right, I was learning to rely on my inner knowing.
To this day I continue to look for conscious voices, I know they are getting louder and stonger, yet in the past they have been few and far between. Years ago I came across
eco-nomads, a website about a family "in quest of a new tribal culture". They have a liBaware -
Library of Awareness - I highly recommend it. It was that same deep knowing, i instantly felt the connection and saw the truth shining bright through the pages. Around the same time I was given the book Ishmael by Daniel Quinn. Talk about being awake and aware, the truth of our society was glaring at me, I was finding answers to questions I didn't even dream of asking when I was younger, but always wanted to. To many the lifestyle choices my husband and I have made are "radical". I see us as conservative - naturalists. We look very "normal", people are usually shocked when they hear that I wash my hair with lemons, or am vegan, or will not be using a stroller when my little one is born. To me this is the natural way, a way that i'm comfortable with, as is my husband. Some call me a pioneer. Perhaps, I can understand why, however I am just me. A person who has choosen to see love and peace in all of the world, and make my decisions based upon my true desires.
these days I laugh when I watch tv, which is sometimes never and sometimes often - when i'm around my family. I see the commercials - information given to the public so you become a happy & willing CONSUMER. Yet in the midst of medicine-mindedness & processed foods a strong yet almost silent voice is becoming louder and louder. People are becoming more aware, and open to listening to themselves. Organic is now so popular that a new name is needed to know if something really is "organic". Green is the buzz word, with hybrids in high demand, articles and news interviews on global warming, etc. It's an exciting time to be alive, especially if you are eco-minded.
As for birth, which is going from a business to a natural part of life - you'll see. The fears people have due to what technology has done to this natural process, have brought lots of information out. Unassisted Childbirth, is a topic that brings fear and hope at the same time. In doing my research I continue to go right back to one thing - what feels right to me. Every person has the freedom to choose, what we eat, wear, who we love, and how we choose to experience the birth of our children. I honor every choose, because I know that is what is right for that person, regardless of what it may "look" like, that person needs to go through whatever they need to go through. I see it all as a process of an awakening of a global consciousness. I believe that what we label as "bad" is just another way of waking up. Take medicine for example. What happens to people when they are facing a deadly illness, or chronic medical issue? For many, i'm sure you've heard the stories, they hear the wake-up call, and make changes. For others they die, which is also a major change - a death is a new beginning. Some survive and never quite hear the wake-up call because they are still consumed by mother-culture screaming in there ears. In the end something has to change, for all of them. The more "extreme" medicine becomes, the more naturalists people become. The more technology driven our society becomes the more people go looking for answers. This is why movies like the secret, and the green movement have grown so fast in the last few years.
Are you looking to become more aware, and make decisions based upon your own inner-knowing? Or do you have people around you, like me, who you cant fully understand. My recommendation would be to follow your truth. that includes telling the truth. When we open ourselves up, and speak our needs (non-violent communication) we tap into something even greater - our truth. So do the research, ask the questions, at whatever pace feels right to you, at the same time always ask yourself, does this really feel right to me? Am i doing this because someone said so? In the end, your truth will guide you always, and the research from outside sources will no longer be necessary. In the meantime, your eco-minded friends will be very grateful that they are being understood - you can understand someone yet still have a different opinion.
The institute's work is dedicated to transforming contemporary worldviews on the relationship between consciousness and matter. The implications of our empirical research and community education efforts extend far beyond the laboratory and the lecture hall. Indeed, our work speaks to a shift involving humanity's deepest knowing and understanding of ourselves and our universe.
