In my garden, all that I can see through patches of snow and ice are seed pods and mulch. It is a perfect reminder for me that the seeds of next summer are already here–and I hope not too many are weeds! This is the time for cultivating vision, another form of seed.
Vision is my antidote to all the bad news swirling around us. This is the vision that I am focusing on:
Vital communities. I want us all to be healthy and happy. Let’s all have enough energy to fully engage with the world – including the magic energy of money. Let’s have it be renewable energy.
Connected communities. I want to live in a world where every person’s life matters–in which we use our differences to bring out the best in each other.
Regenerative communities. What if everything that we did increased the fertility of our soil and strengthened our ecosystem? May we all be born and die gracefully. In such a community we would each know and celebrate our interconnection with the cycle of life.
Meaningful communities. We all need lives of meaning and connection to the transcendent.
I try to ask myself how each thing that I do contributes to this vision. There are so many distractions and opposing forces. (Remember those weeds in my garden?) And sometimes my vision and hope just seem ridiculous against such huge systemic problems. But there is nothing like having a health crisis to clarify:
- Healthy community begins as soon as I tend my own health.
- Connected community begins as soon as I dare to share my full self (oh, I hesitate here!) and listen deeply to others.
- Regenerative community begins when I realize my creative power.
- Meaningful community begins as soon as I live a life of purpose.
My favorite conclusion from all this is that we all need to dance a whole lot more. Traditional dances, having grown out of the need to survive, are some of our ancestors’ wisdom for how we fit into the cycle of life, cultivate vitality, strengthen our community, and tap into the spirit realm. My qigong practice, rooted in Taoism, is another path to this wisdom.
You may have your own practice. Do it. May it feel like a dance party, whatever you are doing.
I’m curious to hear from you. What’s your vision for our collective future?
Love,
emily
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