The Universe is Speaking

Ever since returning from Brazil I have been feeling overwhelmed and cramped in my apartment. My home looks like a library and a clothing store threw up...seriously. I know that I consume way too much and that this consumption addiction has impacted my emotional, physical, spiritual, and emotional well being...it just has. So for the upteenth time I have been cleaning a purging. Eac time I do so I get a little better, so I am not discouraged...I just knew it was time to act. This next school year is critical for me, and I need to bring my "A" game. SO does my son. So cleaning house is crucial.

I want to commit to living the lifestyle that I see as ideal for me; one that is serene, wholistic, natural, balanced, yada yada yada....the funny thing is, I saw this lifestyle as the ideal many years ago when Sarah Jessica Parker played a woman with real breasts dating Steve Martin (I don't remember the name of the movie) I just remember her saying that they were real and that she had this "nature girl" type of mentality. I saw her and said to myself "that is how I want my life to be when I grow up". Even now, when I envision my life, that is what I see. The funny thing is, in my own urban, black America, hood way, that is how I grew up. My family was all about simple living, healthy foods, exercise, appreciating nature, and saving money (daddy is a miser when it comes to most things). I am just trying to get back to that for myself and my son.

Which brings me to the universe speaking to me this morning. Well, it started last night. As I was cleaning, I came across a package that I had ordered months ago from an animal rights group. It was free, so I ordered it; that is what I do (did). I opened it, and out pops all these pro vegan stickers and pics and a cd. My son comes to look, and begs me to let him watch the cd on his computer. I didn't want to, cause I was worried that the documentary would frighten him. My eleven year old exasperatingly assured me that he would be fine, and sat down to watch it. It disgusted him for a bit, but you know the attention span of kids in this era....after a while, it was just playing while he watched t.v., fiddled with my old pda (another thing I bought and never used) and organized his room (show off). But the movie stayed on my mind....

So again, this morning. I opened my inbox and saw a weekly newsletter from yogajournal (no I have not been consistent with my yoga practice) and a monthly newsletter from vegmichigan (yes, I do eat meat). I opened yogajournal and read an article about veganism. Then I opened vegmichigan and read an article by Saul Williams (whose books I rediscovered while cleaning....see the universe at work???) You can read his words on veganism here: http://www.ecorazzi.com/2008/08/12/saul-williams-makes-a-hearfelt-argument-for-going-vegan/

They really got to me in a way that cries to go vegan have not really reached me before. I feel like I am being called to revist this path....well at least being vegetarian. I have lived that lifestyle on an off since birth (my parents remain vegetarians to this day...I told you we were hood rebels). I don't like labels, so I don't want to claim that I am now going to go vegan on vegetarian, but I am going to continue to make conscious choices about my diet and perhaps slowly move into that direction. I need to watch that movie too...I think I am afraid that Iwill have nightmares....

Why Do What I Do?

I started this blog to give myself a space to discuss things that I am doing in my life, outside of my academic work. I am a busy graduate student, and my research and teaching takes up a lot of my time. But I am also becoming more and more green, leading a healthier lifestyle, training (sort of) for a triathalon, starting to do more yoga, and developing my spirituality. Here I will blog about my experiences in each of these areas. Doing it here will allow me to collect my thoughts and things in a central location, instead of writing things on jibbity pieces of paper that I lose throughout my house. I know a lot of the things I am doing are very trendy right now, but I don't care. I have been playing around in each of these areas for over a decade, and I just want to focus now. I don't really plan on sharing this with folk, but if someone happens to come across it, great. I will be out of the country for a number of weeks this summer, and probably will not be incorporating many of these things into my day to day until August. But I will start, and I may share my overseas experiences here in the interim...we will see.