acting anyway

How are you feeling, friends?

I hope you are feeling well + rested + content in so many ways...but also...this year has been traumatic. The pandemic continues to take lives. We learned that the window of opportunity to have a significant impact toward slowing climate change is closing faster than many scientists had previously believed. These two factors combined have left me feeling pretty discouraged, powerless + paralyzed at times.

Bulk items are less readily available at the supermarket. We have less access to our go-to experience-based gifts + entertainment. Even the farmer's market felt too crowded to venture into this summer. The nagging feeling that our climate-conscious efforts are too small to make a meaningful impact can threaten our desire to tackle these obstacles. 

And yet, why would we choose to enable climate change rather than to fight it in any small way that we could? Why wouldn't we want to share with our friends + family that climate-conscious choices also promote our contentment...boost our health...save us money...and come from a place of compassion toward others? 

So...I am, again, thinking through ways that I can act anyway. The new year is a great time to take stock + create new plans with new resolve.

Here are a few things I can do...even now: ​

• Eat less meat. 
• Drive less.
• Eat more vegetables + fruits (as local + unpackaged as possible).
• Quit plastic (as much as possible). 
• Choose simplicity.
• Choose less stuff, a smaller home, a smaller wardrobe.
• Use less water + gas + electricity.
• Embrace "enough".
• Practice gratitude.
• Repair, mend.
• Do without for a while.
• Frame these choices in a positive light. When people notice our choices, they also notice how we talk about them. Share the positive aspects! 

In the short term, I want to be more alert to the impact of my decisions. I also want to tackle each of these things on a deeper level...conduct some experiments...and challenge my habits + assumptions. Sounds like fun to me.  :)

Love,
Jane