I am leaving for the United States in a few days. And while my usual self will be flying off with a list of must-buys and must-haves in an ultimate shopping spree, I was pleasantly and surprisingly stopped by Jon Symes and Therese Necio-Ortega of the Pachamama Alliance in a symposium dubbed “Awakening the Dreamer, Changing the Dream.”
The former was a business consultant from the UK who, after listening to the same seminar, shifted to promoting this advocacy full time. Therese is a Filipino wonder-woman, working with Peninsula HK as communications and promotions manager, shuttling back and forth for this and other meaningful advocacies. They are recruiting people around the world to commit to “bringing forth an environmentally sustainable, spiritually fulfilling, and socially just human presence on this planet as the guiding principles of our times.”
Nearing the end of the three-hour weekend workshop (a week prior to my trip), they have convinced me to completely change my agenda. Instead of burning plastic buying the latest gadget, cosmetics, perfume, bag, and fashion, I decided we will spend more time visiting relatives and friends, renewing relationships, and exploring the natural bounty America is also known for.
Mother Earth’s Vitals
Jon asked the mixed crowd from four years old to maybe 65, what they thought was the greatest challenge facing the world today. My daughter’s best friend Sandra Zialcita, 13, quickly said global warming. Two dads volunteered environmental degradation and hazardous waste while a mother softly said the world is becoming weak spiritually.
In so many pictures and videos, reminiscent of Discovery Chanel and National Geographic presentations, Jon shared that Mother Earth’s vitals are not healthy. She is under severe stress. Yearly 1,300 scientists check the earth’s vital signs, and the prognosis is not good. All the polluted rivers, animal extinction, over-fishing, increasing rates of cancer (and premature incidents, I should say), erosion, deforestation, and so many other environmental problems are distinct signs of this bad condition.
What gives the world hope, Jon said, is the growing number of committed individuals, families, and communities aware of the problem and in their own ways, practice small changes that contribute a lot to saving the world for future generations. Sustainability will be attained when the present generation fulfills its needs without undermining the earth’s capacity to supply for the needs of our future generation.
Well, the key word there is need. In today’s society, growing in an era of plenty, we were trained to buy according to our wants, not needs. The same confusion actually leads to obesity. We are confronted with a buffet of choices. We do not need to get everything in the buffet, only a balanced meal that will make us full. Then again, “being full” has two dimensions — the physiological and the psychological. It may only need a plate of food to satiate us physically, but nay our brain dictates that we should maximize the opportunity and eat more. We completely bypass and even ignore signs that we are full and continue to consume more and more.
Same goes for shopping, sometimes we may only need one new blouse, but I like it so much and there is a sale so I will buy all the colors. It may be necessary to buy a new pair of shoes but not a dozen only because there is a sale. I remember that in a Bruno Magli sale in Chicago after buying half a dozen pairs, the staff said that there must be something about us Filipinos and shoes because the Filipina before me also bought a dozen pairs. Then what? They just go to waste. They sometimes go forgotten and even unused.
Why are we such hoarders? Why are we too gullible, buying more than we need during a sale? Pachamama Alliance invites us to rethink that practice and just to buy what we need.
They also beckon us to evaluate all our seemingly innocent daily actions. I should use my coffee tumbler because although the paper cups are recyclable, each cup I use means a need for trees to be cut. I should just e-mail my memos rather than print them out. I should stop using a lot of plastic and disposables that I keep on throwing away. Where is away? It is not enough to assume that the government and other people will do the cleaning up for me.
The Beauty Of Simplicity
Basically, the invitation extends to a balance of positive relationships with one’s self (spiritual fulfillment), relationship with Mother Earth (environmental/sustainability), and relationship with others (community and social justice).
At the end of the workshop, awakened dreamers ready to lessen their excesses are asked to cement their commitment by engaging in daily practices that hopefully will develop an altered lifestyle.
I saw myself committing to: designating a regular daily practice such as meditation, prayer or yoga, changing conversations to be of possibility and inspiration to others, as a radical act — want less, buy less, use less, breathing deeply, reading a page each day of something that inspires, stretching the body, taking a nap, being grateful, remembering to play, taking care about what you put in your mind and heart, smiling as you walk down the street …
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Check out www.newdreamnextsteps.org, www.awakeningthedreamer.org or www.pachamama.org for more.
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Post me a note at mylene@goldsgym.com.ph or mylenedayrit@gmail.com.