As soon as I realized God wasn’t a harsh parent or a weird holy roller, things got interesting, (and enjoyable).
-me
Category: Podcast
Released on the Spark My Muse podcast
Being Content to Forage?
In the USA, a country of both abundance and excessive waste, dumpster diving is certainly a fringe activity. However, urban foraging is gaining a large following over recent years because of tougher times. Among certain folks, the urge to reuse, recycle, and of course, get free stuff, can be more of an actual lifestyle some opt for daily. It’s surprising the websites that offer tips and tricks for the habitual modern foragers. As I’ve been trimming our consumption way down, the mindset of living with less actually turns into a fun challenge. I don’t worry about the things I used to, like wearing the hip styles, and being trendy/fashionable. (I’ve set my own “trends” since the 80s out of necessity/poverty, now I’m just not so ashamed about it–on my terms.)
Doesn’t this forage business sort of bring us to a point to ponder about contentment, too? We never will find it in Things, new things, (and old things as well.) The perfect car, or shoes, or latest gadget ends up at the dump, and even the perfect meal ends up…well, you know.
Frugality can be a spiritual discipline we do, at least now and then, in which we skim away clutter that is actually internal. The crutch of things often changes us to perceive priorities wrongly. We don’t need much. What we want, and what we feel we need, get mixed up. It’s happened to me, trust me.
Without awareness or discipline, our Want matures into a monster that masquerades as a felt need that is actually internal. It is the problem that has nothing to do with external things. And it’s not a “problem,” but an opportunity for growth, and learning the ways of contentment, which brings gladness and peacefulness.
More details about urban foraging (specifically) here.
Did you ever “dumpster dive”?
(I’ve rescued some nifty items on the way to the landfill.)
photo credit
Neda, Iranian martyr for freedom
Nedo means “voice,” and this week this women who wanted freedom for her country was murdered as she cried out for her people. The scene has been capture on video, sent out of Iran, and circulated around the world. The government has forbade mourning for her, under threats of grave punishment. Her death has put a face on the cause of freedom the Iranians desire, and has galvanized their protests against the current government, and recent dubious election. They chant, “Live free or die!”
CBS article with pictures and video.
The Rut of the Insular
When the rain is coming sideways
And the fog is inching near
Many times the universal feeling is alone-ness
But if it is universal, how can it still be true, completely?
It is a paradoxical, yes?
Somehow we can be crowded and still alienated, apart.
Never touching another in the way that is the least bit beneficial (in those times).
The gap to someone else feels like miles, becuase real interiors are too protected
Fortified. Insular.
Like a walled city that starves itself into extinction, we can get into a rut like this.
What’s it like for you?
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Birds of a feather…or opposites attract?
Maybe both are true. Maybe at different times, each one is true. When I see a pack of mean girls at the mall, I think, “birds of a feather…,” or “misery loves company.”
On the flip side, in certain instances we are drawn to others with characteristics absent in ourselves, and, to me, this is a good thing. A sage/spiritual director, a mentor, a spouse, or a friend, may seem more intriguing because they posses traits and qualities we admire, but have not quite yet mastered. From them we learn a lot, when we are willing. And if they are wise, they also learn.
The comfort from being around people like us can be soothing, and smoother sailing, but it will not produce the kind of growth that healthy conflict can. The smoothing of the rough edges happens best during the interaction of dissimilar personalities. When there is mutual respect, very beneficial outcomes, personal growth, spiritual growth, and learning are the consistent result of contrasting personalities.
Reflection question:
Who has been the most beneficial in your life who was not like you, and what was the lesson from them that you appreciated most?
(feel free to leave a comment.)