Category: low-footprint living

One hears so many people saying they want a village, they wish they had a village, etc. But our mainstream society has not conditioned us to really know what the “village” really means! I would even go so far as to say that our society has actually conditioned us to forget what the village means. Let alone do most of us have any idea how to create it.

And yet, the village is the cornerstone of sustainable society.

Yesterday on my Facebook feed, I came across an Instagram reel so good that it actually motivated me to reactivate my Instagram account! Pretty drastic ha ha. (Thanks to Shanti from my antiracism community!)

It’s amazing how a really skillful communicator can say so much in just a little one- or two-minute reel.

May I present a new favorite person of mine on Instagram, Robina Khalid ( @smallthingsgrowing ).

In her first video that grabbed my attention, she says “having a village is not the same as having servants” — although in our dysfunctional capitalist culture many people equate it that way. “Having a village is not about being served; it’s about mutual service. But if it’s an effort-full way of life, it’s also one where a sense of belonging, security, and purpose mitigates the burden of that effort — and that makes life feel easier.” https://www.instagram.com/smallthingsgrowing/reel/DS2oHJYjR6-/?

In her second video I came across, she points out that “What we are missing without a ‘village’ is much more than just material help. Humans need other humans in order to build secure, resilient perspectives about their own lives! Exposure to each others’ lived realities normalizes and destigmatizes so much of the human experience.” https://www.instagram.com/reel/DSdahTyEloW/

Not on Instagram and don’t feel like making an Instagram account? Never fear, she has a Substack too! I’m going to go find that link for you right now.

OK, here’s her whole Linktree! And here is her Substack https://smallthingsgrowing.substack.com

A community-related article on her Substack that I’m bookmarking for myself to read later, and hope you enjoy also. https://smallthingsgrowing.substack.com/p/so-you-want-to-be-involved-in-radical “So you want to be involved in radical communities but you have young kids — What if you started by being radically in community instead?”

Often times we idealize village as being like-minded people in close proximity. But what I find more often is that the common concerns create the like-mindedness. Working together creates the village.

Also, there are certain things that will probably never go backwards. Many of us will probably always be living very geographically distant from many of our loved ones. There’s also a lot more moving around and there used to be. And so, for many if not most of us, online community and online village will continue to be a necessary part of the mix.

A core feature of life is impermanence, as the Buddhists often remind us. I sometimes feel that most keenly in the impermanence of social community.

Living with impermanence is part of building a personal resilience that in turn creates our village and collective resilience.

The New Year’s Eve Dharma talk today, from Brother Phap Hu of Plum Village, Was very comforting and energizing, and encouraging as in literally increasing my courage, regarding being at peace with impermanence. The two-hour talk and practice was full of gems and is well worth the watch. I will almost certainly rewatch it. You can check it out here https://youtu.be/VLMYfEltQUU?si=S9Z_HuFjb0tQR6nM , and also see lots of other good content on the Plum Village channel.

I have found the Plum Village content very refreshing and practical, extremely helpful to both my activism and my overall enjoyment of life. For those of you not familiar with it, the Plum Village tradition was founded by Zen master Thich Nhat Hanh.

And, to round out the village and community theme, I absolutely must share with you this beautiful piece by Desireé B Stephens, on the Kwanzaa principle known as Ujamaa (cooperative economics). It’s part of her excellent series on the Kwanzaa principles. https://desireebstephens.substack.com/p/day-four-of-kwanzaa-ujamaa-cooperative

In closing, on a personal note, I am very fortunate to know the number of people who actually really do know what village is about, and really create and support the village.

And to all of you reading this, I thank you for being here in my virtual village. Happy New Year’s Eve, and Happy New Year!

A friend shared the following information: “The footwear industry creates nearly 1.5 million tons of manufacturing waste annually, not including discarded shoes. Most shoe components aren’t biodegradable and can sit in landfills for centuries. Every time you choose repair, you’re actively reducing landfill waste.”

Thank you! I’ve gotten really hard-core about shoes. If I can avoid ever buying another new pair of shoes again I will be happy. I doubt I’ll be able to avoid buying new manufactured shoes ever again in my life, but it’s a worthy aim.

If I have to buy new shoes, I would love to be able to buy them from a solo artisan or small workshop or something. But, there are so many existing shoes out there already, I really would rather not buy new.

I’m also not willing to own more than three or four pairs of shoes anymore. It’s just too much to keep organized lol and I prefer to go barefoot when I can.

I’m barefoot as much as possible, as long as I don’t have to go to some indoor event. (And sometimes even then!)

When I’m in my neighborhood at the beach, and don’t have any appointments on the other side of the bridge, I can go days without having to put shoes on.

In addition to avoiding buying shoes, especially new shoes, I have taken to experimentally crafting DIY makeshift footwear from discarded shoe components. Some of the experiments have not been successful, but a couple of the recent ones have been!

For example, I glued Xero soles (after the canvas uppers had been worn to shreds) to the upper part of some backless maryjane crocs (after the soles of those had been worn away) that a friend had handed down to me. Creating a weird-looking but serviceable pair of slip-ons. I probably wouldn’t be able to walk far in them, but have covered 3 to 5 miles of errands in them from time to time.

When I say glue, I’m referring to ShoeGoo (of which I purchased a tube to glue the peeling sole back on one of my two pairs of “Sunday best” maryjanes. (Empress, all the way from Australia, highly recommended.)

Another experiment that has been quite successful was making my super-warm knitted booties outdoor-serviceable by gluing a pair of old flip-flop soles onto them. (I just needed them outdoor-serviceable for short distances, like when I step outside to dump the coffee grounds in the garden or wash a dish. But if I had to I could probably walk down the block to the pub or post office in them. ) Both the flip-flops whose souls — er soles — i harvested, and the knitted booties, were items that had been thrown away on the sidewalk. For a couple of years before gluing the flip-flop soles to the knitted booties, I had already made a bunch of sewing repairs to the booties: seams, canvas sole, and so on.

OK, now that I’ve whetted your appetite with these ever-so-enticing descriptions of my DIY shoe derring-do, it would be churlish of me not to show you photos of my efforts.

PS. If you are lucky enough to have a shoe repair shop near you, treat them with all the love they deserve!! Those places tend to be way backed up, but if you’re lucky, as I have been on many occasions, you might end up getting your shoes repaired to a state better than the original.

Also, especially if you’re young, you might consider embarking on shoemaking/shoe repair as a trade.

Another anagram to add to my collection of made-up anagrams.

This one came up when a dear friend and extremely diehard supporter was not appreciating some very dark comedy: jokes about being an ineffective environmentalist.

The jokes were actually intended to be a wry commentary on our society’s twisted world-view.

Sometimes jokes are really inappropriate and not funny.

And additionally, you can’t rule out the possibility that the person delivering the jokes is simply very inapt at telling jokes, even if the jokes would be funny with the right delivery.

Other times, though, it’s possible that YANTA: You Are Not The Audience.

(Or YANTTA: You Are Not The Target Audience.)

As climate communicators / ecological motivators, we sometimes find we have to try all different approaches. Throw things at the wall and see what sticks — because the wall can be high and slick and solid indeed.

It’s not easy being a tree!

Can YOU produce a lemon or other fruit?
I sure can’t!

PS. This post is not just about lemon trees, and not even just about trees. If someone or some thing in our life isn’t “performing” to our standards, it’s probable that extending love & support is a better response than shaming & criticism.

#decolonize

Photo of lemon tree in my yard. This tree comes under constant criticism from some people who pass by. What’s wrong with that tree, why does it only have one fruit on it, why is it taking so long to ripen, why does it not have any fruit on it (asked after I told the person I had picked the fruit — yeah, that’s how picking fruit works, the fruit is there on the tree and then it’s picked).

I made a sign:

“It’s not easy being a tree! I don’t judge you; please don’t judge me.”

And in smaller print:

“Did you know? Trees, flowers, and other plants pick up on our energy. Please let’s be loving and kind to the trees and to each other.”

In closing, a piece of advice: If you’re tempted to criticize some tree (or flower or whatever), go plant a tree or flower in your own yard. The world needs a lot more trees and flowers!

And by observing them compassionately, we can start to understand how they put their hearts into what they do, and what a gift they are.

Our bodies and minds, central nervous systems, need darkness to recharge. Humans are part of nature. We forget that sometimes and then we don’t realize why our health goes awry.

At my little urban house by the sea, which is also a noncommercial eco hostel and day retreat, I try to show how it’s possible to create a pocket of refuge even in a tiny space. A big part of that is being able to have darkness at night. Despite being surrounded by a flood of extremely aggressive bright-white street lighting.

This here is just a screenshot because TikTok videos don’t always “share pretty” across Facebook. But I’ve posted the actual video in the comments section of the Facebook post.

And here’s the original TikTok link if you’re on TikTok.

A friend asked on his page, what are our criteria for unfriending and/or blocking a person?

Since I use social media so much for work, I come into contact with a wide variety of people and prefer to keep it that way.

As some people pointed out, many people will choose to toss us in the bin, often for differences of political beliefs or other beliefs. But I rarely block or unfriend.

That’s pretty much my approach. I’ve definitely been tossed into the bin more than on occasion, and I suspect it’s often because of political differences.

I can’t say I haven’t blocked/unfriended anybody, but I rarely do. My criterion is if I’m feeling persistently abused or disliked by the person, and I’m not able to find a way to get the person to talk things out with me.

Now, as for choosing connections on Facebook, that is a pretty wide field.

It can be old friends I know in real life.

It can also be new people I meet in real life who seem cool.

But most often, it tends to be colleagues or just people who are in community activism circles and/or entrepreneurial circles, and we have information and resources to share with each other.

That makes for an extremely wide field! I am happy that I have rarely found a reason to have to unfriend or block anyone, despite it being such a wide field of personalities.

And — to look at it through a permaculture design lens, edge is where the life is.

Edge is any place where different ecosystems come together; where divergent ideas come together; where different people come together.

It’s no accident that food and other resources tend to be most abundant at the edges between forest and meadow; between land and river (or ocean); and so on.

The best ideas, too, tend to emerge from the “edges.” Even though it’s not cozy and comfortable there, it’s very fertile.

More important now than ever. If we want to address evil in the world, we have to be willing to look at our own shadow.

This recent post (December 9) from Caitlin Johnstone spoke very deeply to me.

“How To Heal When the World Is On Fire.” https://www.caitlinjohnst.one/p/how-to-heal-when-the-world-is-on

“… The thing about healing is that it leaves only an absence of something, so it doesn’t make a big deal about itself. … The more you do this though, the more the noise in your head dies down, and the real world begins to emerge. You become less reactive and less likely to inadvertently cause drama in your world, and in yourself you become generally happier and lighter. But you also see  — and this goes back to the nub of your question – that in this new light the world becomes a much less scary place. You can see that the monsters who rule our world aren’t so much monsters as just little kids with far too much power unconsciously acting out their defense mechanisms. The suffering they cause is real and horrifying, but at the root of it, they are humans playing out a very human pattern. In this context, it’s comprehensible. You’ve found similar things in yourself, so it’s not an alien threat which defies understanding. …”

On a related note, I really liked this piece by Genny Harrison on Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/share/19veiwHWx2/?mibextid=WC7FNe

“When societies begin to fracture, they do not fail all at once. They fray … When we reduce complex failure to a single villain, we trade understanding for relief. …”

“When we reduce complex failure to a single villain, we trade understanding for relief.” That last sentence expresses something I’ve had on my mind for a long time.

There’s no such thing as a single villain. And we all need to be willing to look in the mirror.

A community leader in Daytona Beach, Rev. Dr. L Ronald Durham, once said something to the effect that if you are not the biggest sinner you know, you’re not looking hard enough.

Based on my own experience, that certainly is true!

Other relevant tidbits: Here’s a favorite quote of mine:

“I tell you one thing — If you want peace of mind, do not find fault with others. Rather learn to see your own faults. Learn to make the whole world your own. No one is a stranger, my child; this whole world is your own.” — Sri Sarada Devi

Best practices/programs I know of, based on my experience, for owning and integrating one’s shadow: 12-step program; and The Avatar Course.