Recently my dear friend, Black Pete, wrote of the killing off of one of his most precious local stores - a neighborhood butcher - who has been forced out of his calling by the big box/bottom line mega-stores. (check out his insight @ http://redwineandgarlic.blogspot.com/) One of my daughters has been a part of this "slow living" movement on and off for the past 15 years - leaving the rat race and reclaiming her calm center and deepest values - and she has been a prophet to me, too. For their gentle witness to a deep alternative, I am grateful.
Recently, a friend and colleague from church turned me on to this up-coming event: The Slow Living Summit II. Their vision statement cuts to the chase:
The Slow Living vision is for a world where humankind is rooted in community and organized around the paramount importance of the common good in all human activity.
We envision a world where we are mindful of our place in nature and community and where we recognize that quality of life, community and the future matter greatly.
It is a world where our basic connectedness to land, place and people is appreciated and celebrated, and where we take the long view that builds a healthy, fulfilling way of life for all generations to come.
Slow Living is living within our means and living within the means the earth provides. It is more time for family, community, and self. It is a simpler, better, richer, more prosperous life in terms of human happiness and fulfillment. It is vibrant communities with strong economic and social resilience connected to other like-minded communities in a worldwide network of mutual learning and support.
It is new ways of doing business, commerce and investing, getting the food and energy we need, and making the decisions that govern our lives based on the common good. It celebrates and rewards socially and environmentally responsible entrepreneurship and activism for each one’s innovations and contributions to community.
This vision is already in the process of creation all over the world by an amazing array of people who are working on sustainable agriculture, community building, renewable energy, reforestation, social justice, new economic models, energy and resource conservation, and more.
They come from all walks of life and live in rural areas, small towns, and large cities. They are young and old, wealthy and struggling. They are all looking for a better way, a saner way, and a happier way to live and organize our lives.
(Learn more @ http://www.slowlivingsummit.org/)
Two days ago, I visited one of the former active members of my congregation. Her body is strong and her health is good, but her mind has been changed by dementia. As we sat and visited, and she rambled through incoherent stories from a muddled past, at first I thought, "I need to cut this visit short because there are other people and things I need to get done today." But after about five minutes another truth bubbled to the surface: "there is NO more important place to be than right here - with this new/old friend - just as she is." This is where I belong right now, so I stayed... and it was a part of my healing and a joy to share time with her.
Today I listened to all the politicians dump on the President because he wants to take more time with diplomacy before rushing to yet another war in the Middle East. Their voices are so pumped up with stress they sound like meth-addicts. And then, while coming home from yet another visit to a nursing home, I heard a man on NPR speak of learning to wait when it comes to Iran. Why not wait - and learn to live with reality - after all, we have learned to wait and negotiate with a totally "wild ass" nation like North Korea, yes? And we have learned to wait and help mediate with both Pakistan and India, too. Yes, Israel is worried but Israel has become its own worst enemy, too.
Like Cathleen Falsani wrote in another posting from today: the time has come to do absolutely NOTHING for Lent. The era of slow living seems to be dawning in my soul...
It is a world where our basic connectedness to land, place and people is appreciated and celebrated, and where we take the long view that builds a healthy, fulfilling way of life for all generations to come.
It is new ways of doing business, commerce and investing, getting the food and energy we need, and making the decisions that govern our lives based on the common good. It celebrates and rewards socially and environmentally responsible entrepreneurship and activism for each one’s innovations and contributions to community.
This vision is already in the process of creation all over the world by an amazing array of people who are working on sustainable agriculture, community building, renewable energy, reforestation, social justice, new economic models, energy and resource conservation, and more.
They come from all walks of life and live in rural areas, small towns, and large cities. They are young and old, wealthy and struggling. They are all looking for a better way, a saner way, and a happier way to live and organize our lives.
(Learn more @ http://www.slowlivingsummit.org/)
Today I listened to all the politicians dump on the President because he wants to take more time with diplomacy before rushing to yet another war in the Middle East. Their voices are so pumped up with stress they sound like meth-addicts. And then, while coming home from yet another visit to a nursing home, I heard a man on NPR speak of learning to wait when it comes to Iran. Why not wait - and learn to live with reality - after all, we have learned to wait and negotiate with a totally "wild ass" nation like North Korea, yes? And we have learned to wait and help mediate with both Pakistan and India, too. Yes, Israel is worried but Israel has become its own worst enemy, too.
Like Cathleen Falsani wrote in another posting from today: the time has come to do absolutely NOTHING for Lent. The era of slow living seems to be dawning in my soul...
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