Conscious Humanity, No. 126

Welcome to the 126th edition of Conscious Humanity — it’s so good to see you here!

If you’re new here, my name is Emily and I’m a writer, photographer, teacher in higher education, home gardener, single parent, and all-round creative soul. I am in the midst of figuring out how to extract myself from the capitalist-driven, digitally saturated, artificially “busy” life we’re told we must live in order to survive and “succeed.” And I’m helping you do the same.

Below are seven positive things that have entered my orbit in the last two weeks, all chosen as inspiration to slow down and unearth a more creative, nature-connected life. They’re formatted so you can scan through and dive deeper into those that resonate most with you. I offer these things not as noise, but as nourishment. May at least one thing brighten your day, inspire you to take action, or help you return to what matters most.

Firstly, I listened to this episode of the Planet Critical podcast featuring David Farrier speaking with Rachel Donald about how we can learn from nature, through art, and how absolutely critical the arts are in the poly-crisis. David is a professor in literature and the environment at Edinburgh University, and the author of Nature’s Genius: Evolutions Lessons for a Changing Planet (UK version, US version).

Rachel introduces the concept of the arts (in all forms) as being essential for pushing boundaries and helping us to imagine what could be possible and how the world could be. I think the way David explains what the arts can do for our collective imagination is absolutely beautiful, and so compelling:

“We’re at a time, I think, when we most need spaces in which to encounter possibility, and complexity, and ambivalence, all of which I think is what the arts can offer us…

…it just creates the space in which to hold and be held when we are confronted with difficult, challenging, frightening issues, but also to find possibility. I think one of the things that is at the root of the poly-crisis that we find ourselves in is this urge to simplify. This drive to simplify things, simplify relations, simplify our sense of ourselves… really what lies at the root of this is the urge to simplify what it means to be human. Down to certain appetites, certain drives, and a profound separation from the rest of the living world, and I think art is a remedy to that because art can foster reconnection. It can introduce complexity, but in a way that helps us process that and sit with it. So yeah, I think it’s vital.”

David goes on to quote Amitav Ghosh (related article here) who famously said, “the climate crisis is a crisis of culture, and thus of the imagination.” And David agrees that we need to address that crisis in imagination to address the structural crisis we’re also facing.

So, how do we do that exactly?

Embrace the arts: yes!

And also, look to nature as our mentor (as Janine Benyus campaigns for with biomimicry) to explore all the wonderful possibilities of the different ways we could be, and different ways we could structure our societies.

This conversation between David and Rachel is truly beautiful and covers a lot more ground than what I’ve mentioned here, so I highly recommend listening to (or watching it) in full.

Speaking of remaking worlds, our digital world, and our relationship with it, is ripe for transformation. I randomly picked up Don’t Burn Anyone at the Stake Today by multi-award-winning author Naomi Alderman at the library this week (random fact: she also co-created the gamified running app, Zombies, Run!).

It’s a clever, short (easy to read) and clear-eyed account of how the digital era is reshaping our world and what we can learn from history to help us live through this information crisis (which is not the first information crisis in human history).

After explaining the history of other major information transformations, like the advent of the printing press, Naomi goes on to explain what today’s problems are, and the things worth valuing, like public libraries and IRL conversations and communities. She quotes Neil Postman who said the information glut of today can be extremely damaging. For example, the only meaningful and truly actionable item in the daily news is the weather report because it can tell you if you need to take a jacket when you go out today. But most news is inert; being constantly surrounded by information we can’t act on makes us feel socially and politically powerless. Not only that, but most online information is “designed to hook us into an endless outrage-and-hype cycle.” At the opposite end of the scale, public libraries offer information without trying to sell you something and force you to stay on their site for as long as possible. Naomi also reminded me about some fabulous free online resources like Project Gutenberg (75,000+ free e-books that are out of copyright in the US) because she’s not anti-tech; just asking us to think about how we can use technologies for all the wonderful opportunities they offer, and not be sucked into a void of corporate influence at the expense of our autonomy and happiness.

In the final chapter of the book called, What am I supposed to do? Naomi suggests questions that could guide us through this age of information overload - there are too many to share here, but one of my favourites is:

“How can we make the new version of the public library or the textbook that guides me through what I need to know online? What are the simplifying forces which will help me feel that I am accessing the information I need without becoming overwhelmed?”

As I mentioned last week, a simplifying force for me is spending less time on social media (as in, barely any). I’m swapping my scrolling time for drawing and offline reading. I have turned off all social media notifications and only check them manually once per day. I still slip into the Reels feed occasionally, but my kids usually pull me up when I do that! As Naomi says at the end of the book, we have choices in how we navigate through this information age/crisis:

“It’s not my favourite thing to realize that I’m living through another information crisis. If I had a choice, I’d probably prefer to have been born in the dawning of another Enlightenment. But this is also a rare, once-in-several-centuries experience: to witness a new mode of thinking as it emerges. We get to see the egg crack. Actually, it’s more than that: we get to feel our own minds crack open. Let’s just try not to let it topple us into the kinds of madness that recur in information crises. No burnings at the stake. Just lighting more candles, driving away more darkness.”

Perhaps one way we can look to nature as our mentor, and drive away the darkness, is to listen and respond to the seasons. In a lovely post about letting go of people pleasing and productivity, Christine Newell, author of Five Seasons in Seoul, shares how she has taken inspiration from the moon, and the cooler seasons, to slow down. She quotes a lovely meditation from Jungjin Moon on Insight Timer that says,

“In this cycle of constant change, the moon shows us that there is no such thing as a meaningless phase … like the moon, we need phases of slowing down, retreat and rest.”

Christine then says,

“Jungjin also reminds us that autumn is the season for letting go. In keeping with this idea, I’ve been thinking about what I can let go of to make this phase easier. The first thing that came to mind was my need to please others.

I can be such a people pleaser, and I hate letting others down, but living with chronic illness means I have limited energy. My window for productivity is much narrower than it used to be. I often battle brain fog in the mornings, and I can’t work at night. This leaves me with limited time to write. So, as we approach winter, I’m setting the intention to prioritise my health and my writing. If that means being a little selfish with my time, then I’m going to try and get comfortable with that.”

This resonated deeply with me as a fellow people pleaser, introvert, and someone who fatigues easily. While it’s not always possible to adjust our entire schedule to align with the seasons, we can take, and create, opportunities to do so.

For me, this means putting aside worrying about everyone else and my perpetual “to do” list, to sit wrapped in a warm blanket with my chai, and just be. On days when the winter sun is streaming through the window, these moments are especially luxurious. They provide an emotional and physical reset and recharge my energy for the next phase… whatever that may be.

Now, to a group of people who are embracing offline catch-ups in all-seasons. I stumbled across this heartwarming short documentary on YouTube made by Leah Rustomjee last week. It tells the story of The Granny Grommets, a group of novice surfers who are all 50+ years old, in Albany NSW. The group was first formed in 1999 and has now grown to 90 members. They take to the surf every Friday morning, come rain, hail or shine.

The ladies share stories of friendship, illness, and grief, and how the group has supported them through good times and bad. Many have also found a new sense of freedom in their lives since joining the group, proving that “age is just a number.”

At the end of the film, the “grannies” sing a song that captures their essence perfectly.

“Some of us are here and some of us are gone

But the spirit of the grannies lives on and on

Riding the cloud breakers onto the shore.

We will surf forever, after heaven‘s door,

Granny… Granny Grommets

Surf riders, wild and free…”

It turns out that there are other Granny Grommets groups around Australia too - I just love their spirit!

To another documentary now and I heard via Austin Kleon that Flaco the owl escaped from Central Park Zoo in NY after being kept in captivity for his whole life.

At first, people worried that he wouldn’t survive outside captivity and campaigned for his recapture. But amazingly, at thirteen years old, Flaco learnt how to fly and hunt (he had never done either of these things ever before), and survive on his own.

This is a lovely story of resilience and triumph of natural instinct, and I’m looking forward to seeing the whole documentary about Flaco, created by Penny Lane.

Austin Kleon also interviewed the film’s director, Penny Lane on the art of filmmaking (lots of relatable insights for creatives, even if you’re not a filmmaker)!

Here’s the documentary trailer…

Staying with a creative theme, and exercises in observing the world around us can open our eyes to seeing things that have been right in front of us, sometimes for years, that we have never truly noticed before. This is what Rob Walker at The Art of Noticing writes about every week. One of his recent posts featured The Hundred Hunt, which could turn into a game for the whole family to enjoy!

The rules are simple, as The Hundred Hunt website explains:

“Find all 100 numbers — one to one hundred — photographed in the real world. On apartment doors, elevator walls, loading docks, painted curbs. Numbers that are just existing — not pointing anywhere, not doing a job. Once you learn to see them, they’re everywhere. Log each find, add your photo, and watch your grid fill in — one overlooked detail at a time. For curious walkers, street photographers, and anyone who wants to see the world differently.”

Well, I love a personal challenge and the satisfaction of “winning” (collecting the whole set). I had plans to start my hundred hunt this week, but I haven’t got around to it yet, so I’m going to start tomorrow. If you want to join in, you can track your progress on the website (you don’t need to sign-in if you don’t want to), or just come up with your own system.

Finally, my kids love making fun of me for being old, but I’m not owning the “old” label just yet (also, everything is relative, age is just a number, and all that…). I was telling my eldest son the other day that apart from a few extra little health challenges, I still feel about 25. He just snorted and said, “yeah, until you open the fridge and see the cholesterol lowering margarine!”

Sigh. He has a point! 😆

Later the same night, this popped up in my Instagram feed, and I agree…

And that’s the end of this edition! I hope at least one thing brightened your day, inspired you to take action, or helped you return to what matters most.

🙏🏻

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