Mr. C

Inspiring. Absolutely. If you want to see a superhero in action, a modern day Bible disciple, check out this link.

Also check out this link to a video of Mr. C. He makes all his own clothes. From scratch. That alone makes him slightly heroic in my mind. . .

He's crazy, wonky, and absolutely in love with all he believes in. He's also written a fabulous book, "The Irresistible Revolution: Living as an Ordinary Radical". This is the book I mentioned a few weeks back--I finished it in about four days, but needed time to really absorb it. . . I'm not sure I really have done that fully.

It will be added to the Green Lending Library. If you'd like to read it, email me and I'll mail it to you.

Today, I wanted to write something inspiring. Something hopeful and fresh. But I feel sick today and am having computer problems--two things that don't pair well with happy, inspirational posts.

So instead, I will talk about my new writing friend, Peggy. We met at a writer's conference a couple of weeks ago. It was a wonderful conference and very informative. But the part I liked most was meeting other writers. Sometimes writing can feel very much like a big bubble, like I'm alone on a desert island of writerdom.

But getting back to the inspirational theme of this message. Peggy has the awesome fortune of writing for Guideposts and Positive Thinking magazines, two publications which I love for their positive messages. She also has an adorable dog who is her diet partner. Check out her blog to learn more. I bet you will come away from your computer feeling inspired.

On Creativity and Saving the World

Sometimes it's rather easy to let one's creativity fall by the wayside. Like many "do gooders" I tend to let my worries about the world get away from me. In fact, it can feel downright frivolous to want to "waste" time painting or playing with my art supplies.

It's been months since I last had a creative project. This is in part because I was transitioning into my new career as a writer (finally, work that I love!). But it's also partly because I feel a little guilty spending time on creative stuff when there are so many more important things calling my name. Volunteer here? Donate there? Could I swing a short-term mission trip?

But I've been reminded that without replenishing my well with some creative endeavors, I will run out of steam. I just re-started reading Julia Cameron's "The Artist's Way" I'm not sure if I can follow her full 12-week program, but just reading the introduction this morning helped me unclench my stomach and take some deep breaths. "It's okay to play now and then," it reminded me. "It's not going to make less for someone else if you run a paintbrush through watercolors or tear some paper scraps into a collage. It's okay to do some self-nurturing."

That's a message I really needed to hear.

It's Easy to Forget

It's easy to forget in our day to day lives, that people elsewhere are dying of hunger. It's easy to forget when we have enough in our cupboards, that cupboards in other kitchens are bare. It's easy to take for granted the warm bed we slept in last night, hot shower we had this morning, the fresh cup of coffee, the relative safety of our homes.

When I stop and think about everything I take for granted in a day, everything I believe I'm "entitled" to, it's mind blowing. Things I don't think twice about (ibuprofen in the medicine cabinet, shoes on the closet floor, blankets if I'm cold, a fan when I'm too hot). These are things that I feel are a necessity (ok, I do realize and freely admit I have too many pairs of shoes on the closet floor), are things that people in other countries may have never had. Never. Had.

I am reading a great book which I'll tell you about later. The author, who worked for a summer in India with Mother Theresa, one of my heroes, spent time with the sick and dying, the poorest of the poor. And what he took from the experience was how lucky and fortunate he was to be there. Not because he realized all the stuff he had back home and felt grateful for it, but because the experience changed him. The sick and dying and people with leprosy gave him more than he had ever thought was possible.

One of my dreams has always been to do mission work. When I was young I wanted to go to Romania and work in an orphanage. I still do.

But what's the long-term solution? My volunteering for three weeks or three months will help, but it won't change anything really, in the long-term. What will? Donating money? Starting a new non-profit? Working with an existing non-profit? Selling all my possessions and giving money to a charity?

I don't know the answer. Do you?

The Joneses

The term "keeping up with the Joneses" is certainly not new, but have you ever thought about the "other Joneses"?

We think of the Joneses as people who are better off than ourselves. They have cooler cars, a bigger pool (or a pool anyway!), they take fabulous trips and wear the trendiest clothes. Their houses l0ok ready for magazine photo shoots. All the time. And they're always on the move, shopping, improving things at their house, planning for their next world-wide adventure.

Often though, in our jealous peeks over the fence, we don't see the whole picture. We don't see the stress that the Joneses marriage suffers when another fight about money erupts. We don't see how neglected their kids feel when Mom and Dad shove toys at them to make up for the overtime they work to buy all that expensive crap.

But what about the other Joneses? These Joneses have much less than us, but for some reason we never think to compare ourselves to them. In the book "How Much is Enough?" by Arthur Simon, I found a passage that really sank in this morning.

"Which Joneses are we trying to keep up with? Almost always the Joneses who are ahead of us. Perhaps we should stay behind those Joneses and compare ourselves with the Joneses who lack food, clothing, and medical care."

Simon goes on to explain our desire for things that others have. This is a natural in children, the author explains, and seems to follow most of us right into adulthood.

"A child does not expect an ice cream bar for lunch. But if a sibling gets one, then having an ice cream bar suddenly seems not just desirable but a dire necessity. A child does not instinctively long for a particular brand or style of sneakers, but if "everyone" in his class starts wearing them and commenting on those who don't, lack of those sneakers will make him feel deprived and inferior. Kids want what other kids have. In this respect, they are strikingly like adults."

Hmmm, kids want what other kids have. This is true for us "big kids", too. Throw in a multi-million (billion?) dollar marketing industry showing us what "everyone" else has, little suggestions that we need to "treat" ourselves to something special, and it's easy to see how not only keeping up with, but surpassing the Joneses becomes our goal in life.

But life is so much more than things. I remember when I was small breaking some jars that my mother told me not to touch. I stood their crying, feeling terrible that I disobeyed and that they'd broken. She wiped up my tears and held me. "They're only things," she said. "They can be replaced."

That is a message we should all learn. All these possessions are just things that can be replaced. Relationships, helping, loving, caring, teaching, learning, compassion--those mean more than any physical object, and they can never be broken or taken away.

Greedy about Giving

Here's something who don't give regularly do not know. Giving can be addictive.

Have you ever had a cleaning binge and just marched into a closet or room with your rags held high, declaring war on the clutter and grime? I do this once in awhile (not as often as I should, to be honest). I start by making piles: Keeping, recycling/tossing, giving away. Something funny happens as the space gets cleared out and the "giving away" pile grows. It's like something loosens up inside. I can breathe a little easier. I feel a little less anxious. I feel happy that someone else might be able to use that one-of-a-kind item that some well-meaning soul gave me for Christmas last year. ("Oh thank you. It's, err, lovely!")

But happiness at giving doesn't have to stop with castaway objects. You can give of your time. Of your money. Of yourself.

Starting to give might scare you. "If I give X away, will there be enough for me?" or "What if I can't think of anything to say/do for someone else?" These are valid fears. Growing up with three sisters, made me a little--shall we say "possesive" of my things. But if you, like me don't like that part of yourself, give something away and see if it doesn't make you feel better, happier and more calm.

I started this by giving a tithe when I started my new career. My logical side was saying things like "Hhhmmm, it would make more sense for you to wait until you were making enough money for the household budget before you start tithing." But my feeling side said, "Give. Just give. You'll be okay." And I have been. I have been more than okay. Money has come to me in odd, strange ways. Ways that I didn't expect it to come at all. But I'm okay with that. I just trust that it will keep coming, that I will have enough for my needs to be met. That's not why I give, but it's a pretty awesome side effect.

For the past six months I've been a "big sister" to a little sister that has a ton of troubles and heartbreaks in her life. I was scared when I volunteered for that, too. "Am I cool enough? Will she hate me? Will she talk to me?" We had a few uncomfortable patches, but I learned a lot from the experience. Mostly, I saw how great I felt that I was giving myself to her. I'm not sure how much she gained from our time together (I hope something!) but I know I got a wonderful benefit. I gave of myself and I felt blessed.

Lately, I have been wanting to give in new ways. There are so many options out there, it can be overwhelming. Should I volunteer at the local food shelf? Sign up for another mentoring program? Should I deliver hot meals to the elderly or volunteer with the local humane society? I'm not quite sure yet what it is I'll end up doing, but I'm pretty sure whatever it is, it will make me feel good. Sometimes in fact, I feel so good about giving, I feel a little guilty about it.

But it's a good guilt.

A Few of my Favorite Things

Remember that song in the Sound of Music? That movie was one of my favorite things growing up. I memorized all the songs and most of the lines and would watch the movie while pretending to be Liesl, the eldest Von Trapp girl. I think I wanted to be her most because of the scene where she and Rolf sing and dance around the gazebo--that dress!

This week I came across the blog, Walk Slowly, Live Wildly which I absolutely love. It follows a family of three who are vegan, raw food, crunchy environmentalist Christians who sold or gave away most of their possesions to travel the US in an RV run by veggie oil. Sara, the mom, is an absolute inspiration. Check it out ASAP.

Finding a new blog always gives me goosebumps and that "ahhhh" feeling. I get so excited-0so many new-to-me posts to read and so much great information to soak up.

It got me thinking about some of my other favorite things: All are simple and they all make me happy. Here are a list of some of them in no particular order:

• Reading
• Being in nature
• Sushi w/ lots of wasabi
• Saturday mornings
• Baking
• Talking with someone funny
• Getting a compliment
• Playing with art stuff
• Watching my animals
• Campfires
• Writing
• Strawberries, fresh off the vine
• Seeing my garden grow
• Fresh eggs
• Putting clothes out on the line
• Walking
• Traveling to someplace new
• Traveling back to some place I've been and haven't seen for awhile
• Laughing so hard I cry
• The smell of lilacs
• A clean desk
• Flannel PJ's
• A good book/magazine/blog
• Swimming
• Annual family camp out

What are some of your favorite things? Stopping to think about them really makes me feel grateful for all I have, even on those days when the world is feeling dark and gloomy.