Sustainable Me

“It’s not material things that count, and people are finding that out. It’s the heart’s satisfaction, the soul’s satisfaction of making your contribution to the ongoing process of the universe…” Rabbi Wayne Dosick.

Sustainable living is a standard for the earth and needs to be for us personally as well. We hear all the time about needing to live a sustainable life. We need to live so that we do not deplete the resources of the earth. The Earth is a mirror of the human being. Just as our planet is in crisis, so are we. We need to look at how we can sustain ourselves while we are sustaining our planet. This list contains words that describe sustainability as well as depletion of resources. Do any of these also illustrate your life?

• Global Warming- Are you close to a meltdown?
• Energy Crisis- Have you run out of steam?
• Economic Recession – How is your household budget looking?
• Depression- Why do you think there are so many medication commercials on TV?
• Recycle – Are you throwing out what is usable in new ways? Are you throwing away dreams and ideas that did not work out the first time instead of retooling and refreshing them to a new version?
• Restoration – Are you getting enough sleep and relaxation time?
• Green Efforts – Are you using healthy products in your home?
• Organic Lifestyle – Are you eating right and taking care of your physical self?
• Maintenance for peak performance- Are you getting physical exercise?

We need to stop working late, remove our nose from the grindstone, stop running on fumes. Leaving some energy for later or keeping a reserve supply of calm is essential to our well-being. Just like putting money into savings or in a retirement account, or preparing for a big storm by making sure there are enough essentials to sustain us when the lights go out. We need to be banking our personal reserve and saving some for later.

Change is not easy. It is best to take small steps to make the change. When making the choice for big change in our lives, it is wise to move into the change slowly. When we make big changes slowly, it allows time to form new habits and to adapt. If we try to make big changes all at once, we are setting ourselves up for a big failure. Trying to do it all, can accomplish just as much as doing nothing.
Start by learning. Reinforce learning by doing and teaching.