Oneness, or the one are many and the many are one...

As a parent (and homeschool educator), I find it is my responsibility to teach my children about the world outside of our little bubble, to prepare them for the journeys they take once they leave home. Because of my beliefs and lifestyle choices, this has been a process that is the opposite of what many American children experience. My children have only known environmental respect, accountability, and stewardship. As they have grown I have had to integrate the knowledge of what is happening in the ecosystem outside of their sphere of existence. Let me say this is one of the single most heartbreaking things I have had to facilitate as a teacher or a parent. Having to teach them about what they are inheriting invokes all of the worst kind of emotions; it feels like having to literally rip their innocence away ~ there’s no other way to describe it.

Through this educational adventure there are many opportunities to create a space for growth and build foundations for greatness. Greatness comes in many forms, some internal and some external. I feel an obligation to instill critical thinking skills and a focus on solutions rather than problems in the youth around me. I work to encourage the kids to dream BIG ~ anything in life is possible, one must believe in that or nothing will ever be accomplished!

@aurynthenorse and @cassidydawn have learned about the Earth Guardians, about Greta Thunberg, about the solidarity that can be found in so many peers they haven’t met yet. They have started Kids With Pinecones and are on their second year with this youth action movement here in their local community. They are leaders just by being themselves and being “naturally” sustainable, though sometimes they don’t realize it! With our geographical location, there aren’t many other youth around here that are conscious in the same ways. Most of the kids around here are into “American lifestyle” choices that are the opposite of everything we support. It’s frustrating for all of us, but especially for the teens.

Kids With Pinecones on a trash pick-up they did in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park during the US government shutdown, winter 2019.

We are extremely fortunate to live in an area that is filled with natural beauty. If you choose, you can take a moment and look around, and wonder “what is all this talk of environmental collapse?” Of course on closer inspection you can find it here ~ in pollution levels, in lack of species, in the invasive species introduced over the centuries ~ but we still do have clean water (not really in the rivers but we have a LOT of water here), trees, fertile soils, biodiversity, reasonable temperatures year round. We are so blessed here in that respect.

"Jack in the pulpit" is a lovely native find each spring on my flower hikes!

As I ramble through this post, I will wander to the inspiration for it ~ Vandana Shiva. I have already made plans for a new brainstorming session with my friend and co-creator Debbie about how we can use some of Vandana’s models to successfully reach the farmers in our area. The Appalachian folk have been historically at or below poverty levels, and we must find a way to encourage them to live, work, farm sustainably. We still have the chance in our region to move to sustainable industries and become rural leaders for the future. Now that hemp is legal in Tennessee, that opens a powerhouse of profits for those who are willing to learn the hemp industry and participate in it. Organic, biodiverse food crops are also more profitable as well as environmentally rich! The real challenge is that in finding a way to educate people who have been traditionally spoonfed the propoganda of the money machines...how do you wake them up from the Matrix??

I ran across an interview with Vandana Shiva on Democracy Now! From February of this year, and it might possibly be the best interview I have seen in years by anyone. The information contained in the half hour was inspiring, infuriating, informative, and of course impressive! While I consider myself fairly educated on the topics of oneness, sustainability, the 1%, etc, there were definitely things to learn. I posted it on another social media site with the suggestion of it being a required watching video. I was particularly pleased with her use of the word ‘cartel’ to describe the corporate conglomerates that are largely responsible for the detrimental situation we find ourselves in concerning the earth’s ecosystem. I also liked how she phrased the concepts of how we are in the feudal system today ~ I have ranted about the trickery of indentured servitude for years. The current economy is set up to extort our very lives. Here's the interview, and I highly recommend you watch it.

https://www.democracynow.org/2019/2/22/vandana_shiva_we_must_fight_back?fbclid=IwAR0L1J38LsXZQXfC2Pp1mHUhae3wsCalIL5OXJhTeksE2CmkHOFyqWlu1U4

I would encourage every single one of you to find the youth in your area that are rising up, acting to demand their inheritance is treated with respect, and support them! They are awakening in every corner of the globe and doing their part ~ it’s long past time for the adults to do the same. If they are striking, go stand with them. If they are working on local projects, find ways to support them. Go out of your way to make this happen. Encouraging my own children has forced me to hold on to my own belief that anything is possible. This is a nourishment that I think all of us who are truly aware of what’s happening in the world NEED!!! We must be the change we want to see in the world ~ and in reflection we must support the current youth that are embodying that!

If you know of any teens on this platform, please let them know about @steemagers. You can read their introductory post here:
https://steemit.com/introduceyourself/@steemagers/the-steemagers-intro

“We are of the body of the Earth
The Earth is of the body of the Stars
We are part of the circle
Of life to death to birth again
One is many and the many are one
Brewing in her cauldron”

~ chant I learned from my dearest songkeeper ~

Thanks for reading!