Fly For Brighter Shores
Fly For Brighter Shores
Enlightenment Prompt #14
Winter canal ducks,
dirty water, poor food, cold-
fly for brighter shores.
Put any animal in surroundings that are too far removed from its natural environment and it will become physically and mentally ill.
For the enlightened among us, any environment is fine. For the rest of us, an imbalanced, unnatural environment can take a devastating toll.
You only have one life, so try to create an environment around you that allows you to build a life that gives meaning, fosters inner contentment and allows you to share these things with others, especially an environment that gives us even a small space of time each day to look within, and connect with our inner lives.
Keep in mind, everyone is different. In the photo above, these ducks do not look like they are enjoying their life on the Kensal Town canal, but the geese shown below look like they're doing just fine.
If you have people you are responsible for, curating your environment has to include a negotiation to ensure everyone's environment contains the elements they need for space and harmony.
This is not the same as saying that you should neglect yourself.
Big changes can mean physically moving to a different location, especially if your current environment is dangerous, unhealthy, or running contrary to basic human survival needs (clean water, clean air, connections with loved ones).
You may not be able to physically fly for brighter shores but there are things you can do immediately that will make a positive difference.
Small changes can include:
better diet: in France every snack food commercial must state beneath it: make sure to eat your 5 portions of fruits and vegetables per day. I recently heard a radio show that said cases of scurvy (symptoms include bleeding from the eyes and teeth falling out) were on the rise in Sydney. In the modern world, with the fast pace of living and a cost of living rising, eating fresh fruit and vegetables can be put off for fast food or quick, cheap snacks but the price to our health is incredibly high.
more sunlight: we need sunlight not just for the vitamin D that's created in our body when we are exposed to it, but also to ward off depression.
quality sleep: early the bed, early to rise…don't go to bed too late or you'll face the following day feeling run down and exasperated.
device-free time: lock all the phones and tablets in a box for a set period of time each day. After some initial anxiety from those who are most addicted to the screen, some space and peace will naturally arise. After a few days, everyone will learn to enjoy the disconnection time.
building positive relationships: start with ten minutes daily meditation. This will build a mental and energetic buffer that will allow you to manage relationships with others from a calm center. Improved relationships and clear seeing starts with yourself.
Everyone has a right to a healthy environment, and often it only takes a few small changes to start improving our immediate exterior world as we cultivate the interior one.
