Just the Beginning

Learning about the world and world change has been an enlightening, exciting, and sometimes frustrating endeavor this year. What I do know is that each of us can do an incredible amount individually in making the world better for man and beast. I'd like to offer some simple ways to do that this coming year:

Recycle everything. This is so simple to do. You save money, as well as saving limited resources.

Switch to compact fluorescent light bulbs. They start out costing more and end up saving money.

Buy food locally, either through farmers markets CSAs. CSA stands for Community Supported Agriculture. Look around and see if there are any local organic farms that take part in this. It is one way to get fresh, organic, local food and keep the farmers growing.

Turn your thermostat down a degree or two. This can save a lot of energy over time.

If you are going to replace an appliance, buy energy star rated appliances. Like compact fluorescents, they cost more at first, but save in the long run. We are going to replace our hot water heater soon, and we are replacing it with an on demand water heater. This will save energy, space in our home, and work much more efficiently.

Before you purchase anything, consider where it is made, grown, or manufactured. If it is coming from places that use underpaid labor, unknown materials, food products or additives that can't be accounted for, don't buy it.

Consider walking, riding a bike, or using public transport. Doing this even one day a week can save many resources.

Stop voting for people who do not have your best interests at heart. Make it clear to those who represent you that they are working for you, and let them know what you expect from them.

Work for peace in the world. War does nothing but create more war.

Join others in creating the world you want. Take a few minutes to look around in your local area, or check out national or global organizations, and get involved.

WE CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE!

Happy New Year!

Marquita

We Can Change What is Bought and Sold!

What would happen if everyone bought only organic, recyclable, renewable products? I mean everything from toilet paper to clothing, from food to houses. What would happen?

It's simple, goods are sold by supply and demand. That's what we have always been told, when the price of gas goes up in the summertime, and down in the winter. The global economy and large corporations have used this to their advantage, and now is the time for us to do the same.

If everyone bought only certifiably organic, green, renewable products, the demand for those things would go up and so would the supply. In the reverse, as less people bought products that were not renewable, that were full of hormones and pesticides, and God knows what else, the demand and the supply would go down.

I have been challenging myself to do this of late, and have found some great products, from bamboo picture frames to locally grown organic blueberries. Yes, it does at times cost a little more. Yes, I have to dig a little deeper and ask more questions. Yes, there is not as many choices as the mainstream items.

And the big YES is that I feel so much better about how I am living. In my household, we have gotten to where we recycle almost everything, and leave little garbage in our wake. We have stopped buying unless we can find good quality and we recycle everything we replace.

Please join me in a revolution of change by starting right now to only buy organic, recyclable, renewal, good for the environment products. We can do this!

Love and Peace,

Marquita

Signs of Hope

Today as I was taking my morning walk I passed a spot that has been intriguing me for a quite a while. This spot is in the road that winds around the hill where I live, and where a tenacious group of ants has decided to build an ant hill. The road is not well traveled and consists of a pavement made of oil and crushed rock. Apparently the pavement had a couple of small holes in it, about 1/8 of an inch wide, and the ants figured it was perfect and they moved in.

The first time I noticed this was last summer, when a fine dust could be seen around these holes, along with ants, coming and going. I enjoyed walking by checking their progress throughout the summer. During the winter they didn't seem to be around. I don't know whether ants go somewhere in the winter, or hibernate, I just know I didn't see them, and began to forget about them. A few weeks ago, I could tell they were back. It was a warm sunny day, and there seemed to be a lot of activity, and the dust and debris of their home was again evident on the road. There appeared to be a round head of something poking out of one of the holes. I wasn't sure what it was, but pointed it out to my husband the next time we walked together. Right away, he said, "Look there's a horsetail growing out of the hole." The horsetail is a plant that grows in the Northwest in the spring. Today as I walked again, the ants were busy going about their day, and there were several horsetails attempting to break through the pavement.

Seeing the strength and determination of nature to throw off the pavement of man got me thinking about where I and the world are going right now. It led me to the comparison of civilization as the road, and the ants and the horsetail as the parts of the earth that refuse to give up and give in to the weight of what we deem civilization. I can see this in myself as well. I have slowly been pushing and pushing at the weight of social self and the constraints of the society I live in. I see now that I, along with many others have been paved over with thoughts and things, but yet that wild part of us is still there. The ants of my creativity and strength, and the horsetail that is built of my courage and heart, have been working hard to burst through the pavement of my social being. Much of that pavement is cracking away, but it is not easy to keep pushing. I am struck as I write with a thought about looking for the holes to find a way. So I am going to ask myself as well as you:

• What holes have opened in the cement of your social self?



• What ways have your pushed through and opened up?



• What can we learn from both the ants and the horsetail, about the resilience of the earth, and her creatures including ourselves?

I love this analogy and the questions! I am ready to keep pushing and growing. How about you?

Peace and Love,

Marquita

What About February?

I would like to tell you that I have been off on a trip to Africa where I was working to save the world. Or maybe I was so busy recycling that I couldn't write anything. However, I am finding that truth is the most important thing I can give to myself and to others.

The truth is I have been getting clear on my vision for myself and how I am in the world. This has been eyeopening and both joyous and painful. What I have found is that most of the world I live in is based on falsehood. Now, I don't want to suggest that this is necessarily something that is put out there by any one institution or that there is some big conspiracy. What I'm saying is we have become a country of sound bites and beliefs based on many inaccuracies. We believe we are supposed to get up, (the first falsehood), go to work, (another one), get married, (you see where I'm going), have children, (I like them too), and live a certain way. The real truth is every single thing we do every day that doesn't directly affect our survival, (think instincts), is a choice, not a mandate. We have become a society living to keep that society going, even if it doesn't work any more. I think it is time to look at that idea. Just consider it a little, let it rattle around your head for a while and see where it lands. I personally am doing that a lot these days. I am finding that it stands a lot of my beliefs on their heads, and that is a good thing.

Now I did do a few things to coach the world last month. I attended a wonderful free lecture by Michael Meade. Look him up on the internet. He was amazing.

I was asked to share my experience, strength and hope with young women about sexual assault prevention, and really loved doing that. They were a great bunch of girls, and if what I said helps even one of them, I will be most grateful.

So for March, I want to ask all of you to consider each thing you do every day. Ask yourself if it is something you are doing because it fosters the change you want to see in the world, or is something you do just because it is what your social self thinks you should be doing?


Peace and Love,

Marqutia

Light Bulbs and Paint, Oh My!

Hey World,

This is Marquita, just checking in to report on my light bulb promise. This was actually a little harder to get right than I thought! I did go and stock up on compact fluorescents and have begun replacing them in my home. I found that they look different. Some seem brighter, some seem dimmer, and the cost is big at the start and pays off in the end. I am following through on my promise, but may need to make another trip to have the type of light I want in each area!

Hum, this sounds like some relationships I've been in. Oh wait, that's my other blog.

The other thing I did while buying my new light bulbs was to buy paint for my guest room. This was another place where it was easy to find a way to help the environment. Instead of buying the usual brand of paint I get, I opted for a brand that has no VOCs, which stands for Volatile Organic Compounds. These are gases made up of things like aldehydes and ketones.

So by buying paint without them, not only will I not pollute the atmosphere, I will keep myself and others safe from being gassed at home!

I would love to hear how the rest of you are doing as we brave this new world of change and better options for living.

Peace and Love,

Marquita

The Path Forward

Happy New Year! Today is the beginning of a new year and the world is ready for change. In my life I am not sure I have ever felt so certain of that before. Why do I feel this way. Let's look at a few facts:

For the first time in a long time people in the United States of America worked together and said they wanted change, and made it happen!

As we work out how we can solve our economic issues, it appears that we will do much of it by changing to green energy and more fuel efficient transportation!

We are also looking at making sure everyone has healthcare as a human right!

Locally, more and more organic farms and farmer's markets are providing food that is healthier, more nutritious, and often cheaper!

More and more of my clients want to focus on what is important to them in their lives, and it is not all about money!

People are recognizing that doing work that is full of passion and purpose is far more happiness provoking than big automobiles and gigantic houses!

These are just the things I personally see going on. I believe that at a deeper level their is an actual new stage of development happening to humans that we haven't reached before. This is a level where we understand how our energy and thoughts not only create our personal reality but have a direct effect on the rest of the planet. Last month I asked all of you to begin visualizing abundance in all areas of the world, not just at home. I want you to continue that this month and on onto the year. See it, feel it, taste it, and live it.

To help create change in the world it takes commitment to change at home, in your community, and on a global level. For the month of January, I am asking that you find one thing that you can change at home this month to make the world a better place. For myself, I am committing right now to changing every light bulb in my house to the best compact fluorescent I can find. This is something I have wanted to do, but haven't. It may seem like a small change, but for me it will be the beginning. I will report back here when I have accomplished this task, and I want you to do the same. Please comment on this post telling me what you are going to do, and when you have accomplished it.

During January, begin thinking about community, because in the next month we are going to start looking at how you can build on your visualizing and your personal changes and take that out into your community. You can start by telling all your friends and acquaintenances about this idea and this blog. I would like to hav as many people writing their ideas and hopes and dreams here as possible. If you would like to guest write a blog, email me and we will get it done. This is not about me, this is about all of us. We can make a difference!


Peace and Love,

Marquita