The Gift

They say that all challenges provide us with an opportunity to learn and grow. If this is true, there must be an awful lot of learning and growing going on in the world right now. This pandemic, if nothing else, has certainly has got us thinking. You can't throw a rock without hitting a wide range of opinions and emotions these days. What has this crisis brought up for you?

In my household the conversation inevitably circles back to sustainability.

Should we be relying on chain grocery stores for our food when toilet paper can become as rare as gold overnight?

Is it sustainable to be purchasing food from far flung foreign lands when boarders can be closed at any time?

Is it ok to be spending thousands of dollars annually on electric and gas bills to run a home when income could be cut off or reduced in an instance?

Upon examination of the source of my hyper focus on sustainability, I realized that it is born of the vulnerability that the pandemic has dredged up in me. I don't want corporations or government to hold so much power over my life. Period.

Once identified, I noticed that I really liked how much lighter the thought of relying less on traditional systems made me feel.

Look at how much healthier the world is right now!

Imagine if I was able to generate much of my own energy?

What would it be like if the bank didn't own half of the equity in my home?

What if my hobbies consisted mainly of spending time in nature and that nature was at my doorstep?

How much more secure would I feel in this time of uncertainty if I grew my own food or sourced it locally?

To be fair, all of these thoughts have been bubbling, just below the surface for a long time. As I carried on, sleeping walking through life at times, nothing made me uncomfortable enough to truly consider immediate, drastic changes to my lifestyle. I've been planning for future change, but that no longer feels enough.

So, I've created a list of things that I have begun to change immediately.

1.Rely on locally sourced meat and produce as much as possible –I have signed up for a local delivery service.

2.Look to spend less on transportation – I've start saving for my electric car and my e-bike!

3.Reduce my monthly home energy consumption – This is something I've been planning for some time! I am building a small home development at McKinley Beach called LIV. We have solar panels and electric car chargers. The small footprint home size consumes less energy. My goal is to move into my home at LIV asap!

Has this pandemic stirred up a deep knowing for you? I truly believe that our earth and our society as a whole are going to emerge from this crisis stronger and healthier. My greatest wish is that sustainability and health are the gifts we receive after enduring this challenging time of uncertainty and change.