Awakening the Dreamer

A fellow sangha member sent me a link to this organization called Awakening the Dreamer. (You can find it at awakeningthedreamer.org). It so fits well with my plan this month. Here is what they suggest for personal practice:

My Relationship with Earth/Environmental Sustainability

• Identify habits in the way I live that are unsustainable for me or the earth, that I intend to do something about
• Eat less ? _______ and more? _______
• Carpool, bicycle, take public transportation or walk ___ times each week in lieu of driving my own internal combustion vehicle
• Begin to investigate "one-earth" methods of transportation, heating, & refrigeration at home & work
• Purchase only items whose packaging, ingredients and methods of production are sustainable and support life. (Note: This may require research!)
• Spend some aware moments outdoors, in nature every single day
• Plant a tree, a garden
• Clean up a beach, trail, field, path, roadway
• Pay attention to and track the natural cycles of the moon, sun(light), stars, plants and animals

My Relationship with Others/Community/Social Justice

• Regularly initiate conversations about a sustainable, socially just & just human presence on the planet with friends, family, and the world at large
• Go online & investigate 10 "civil society" groups and/or initiatives that intrigue me & join at least one
• Investigate the current topics in my local community with regard to politics & environmental/social issues
• Write/email letters to:
• Buy only what I need (food, medicine) for a specific time period. Invite others to participate.
• Notice the times when society/the culture relates to me primarily as a consumer
• Make a micro loan to a third world entrepreneur and establish an e-mail relationship with him/her on kiva.org.
• Take a workshop on unlearning racism
• Set aside a percentage of my monthly income to support organizations working for social justice
• Open myself; educate myself about privilege/oppression
• Stay connected with participants from the Symposium

My Relationship with Self/Spiritual Fulfillment

• Designate a regular daily spiritual practice - meditation/yoga/prayer/other
• Investigate & watch for examples of interconnectedness everywhere
• Consider & pay attention to dreams, daydreams & visions as possible messages from another dimension of reality. Let the wisdom of Earth speak through me.
• Manage my conversation (internal and external) to be one of possibility and inspiration to myself and others
• Be compassionate & forgiving with myself, even when I don't do everything I think I should
• As a radical act: want less, buy less, use less
• Consciously read, listen to, watch, & engage with things & individuals that empower, uplift and/or have me be a more effective agent for Changing the Dream
• Read one page of something that inspires me each morning or evening
• Explore what is "enough" for me.

These are just a few examples, to get you thinking. Keep in mind these practices are meant to create an opening in our habitual way of going through life. These are guidelines, beacon lights, not sledgehammers. Compassion begins at home. When you notice you have gone to sleep, let go of the self-judgment, awaken, and renew your practice. Find partner(s) to support you in your practice. Have a great time with this!

Much of this I find inspiring. Sometimes it makes me feel like even when I'm committing myself like I am this month, that I am not even coming close to what I should be doing. I guess I'm just one girl trying to change her assumptions and her actions one baby step at a time. I am very much an American girl. Unlike many of my friends, I am very bought into the consumer culture, and it will take a long time for me to reformat my hard drive.

On another note, I did go shopping with my friend today and didn't buy a single thing (except an iced latte in my own to-go cup). Going into the stores knowing I wasn't going to buy really helped, and I didn't feel the urge to buy anything that I normally would have purchased. This just goes to show how important it is to set intentions.

However, I did have an interesting moment of clinging when I was at the check-out counter at Michael's with my friend. Ya' know how they have those impulse shelves by the check-out? Well, I can see why they do that. I suddenly felt the need to buy a set of four Sharpies, a note pad, and some gum. I wanted them. I really wanted them. Especially the Sharpies. How dumb is that?

Adios!