Consumerism, Life, Choices

This morning I spent hours talking with a friend, on topics far ranging. We spent some time talking about consumerism as it lives in our culture in America, and how we as Americans are actually somewhat unique in the world in our relationship to consumption and national economics.

I have found that as I wind up 2007 and begin to transition to 2008 I have been thinking alot about money, about my use of energy, and about the choices I have made and am making every day in the manner in which I conduct my business activities as a yogi, with a determination to be conscious and responsible, and meet my obligations and commitments from that place.

I was pleasantly surprised to find myself listening to this excellent podcast this afternoon, a conversation between Bill Moyers and Benjamin Barber, the author of Consumed. Bill Moyers is a genuine gift to our culture, and to the hope we retain for dialogue and intelligent discourse to contribute to our progress towards becoming better human beings.

I invite you to listen to the podcast, engage with the issues they discuss. We are in a unique position as yoga teachers and practitioners to engage with these cultural issues. We have, as a profession and an avocation, chosen to engage wholeheartedly with issues of significance around 'stuff and money', and with the nature of health and wellness. While we often engage personally, we are frequently challenged by our teachers to expand beyond our smaller worlds and engage with our communities. While this can be daunting on many levels, calling for us to look deeply inward and examine the real nature of our relationship with 'stuff and money', it is a worthwhile inquiry. And beyond the inquiry, if we can engage others in this dialogue, we can be supportive of our culture as we 'tangle' with detaching from this extreme consumerism we seem to have been born into.

Time, Balance and Focus - Sadhana and Blogging

As I've written before, when I started this blog, I was told that when I stopped writing for awhile I had to 'pick it up again', and that over time I had the chance of getting more regular in my writing, through this practice of stopping and starting again.

In some ways, this reminds me of my starting to practice yoga and learning to incorporate meditation into my life.

I wanted to enjoy the benefits of meditation (sort of like wanting to blog), and some days I actually did meditate. But it was only after I finally began to genuinely practice sadhana that the full benefits of these practices were available. I had made a choice, and I began to live within that commitment. And I only made the choice when I was ready, and I became ready by learning what I could by observing my experience over time. I learned in a deep way that my time spent in practice was time of the highest value.

As for blogging, for months now I have been busier in many ways - certainly in new ways, and in ways that have required me to grow, expand, and shift who I am as a manager and business person. While I have 'wanted' to write, I have also needed to maintain my balance as best as possible in a very expansive time. I found I was simply not available to write...I couldn't bring the focus necessary to do justice to something I would express publicly, so I didn't write.

Today this has changed, and I am glad to be back writing. In many ways I am different, my business activities are changing, the team of extraordinary yogic business professionals I work with has changed and grown, and as we start to wind up 2007 and move into 2008 I am curious and inspired by the possibilities that are present.