Conscious Humanity, No. 128

Welcome to the 128th 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.

After watching On the Roam with Jason Momoa, I found another documentary series featuring an actor. This time, presented and directed by Will Smith, who will always be The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air to me. It’s a National Geographic series called Pole to Pole where Will spends 100 days travelling from the South Pole to the North Pole via different remote communities, listening to their stories about the joys and hardships of life, the realties of facing climate change, and different ways of interacting with physical and spiritual worlds.

In Episode 4, Will travels to the Himalayas, searching for the secret to happiness. He visits Paro Taktsang (also known as the Tiger’s Nest), a monastery perched on a 3,000-foot cliff face, where the monks challenge him to face, and reflect upon, the reality of his death in order to discover happiness.

After bungee jumping in Bhutan, Will explains that there is this crazy relationship between beauty and danger. He said,

“…when you realise you didn’t die, there’s this flood of relief… that is ecstatic.”

Will also spends time with people in the village of Laya, who are reportedly some of the happiest people on Earth. Their lives are not easy though; the cold weather is extreme and it takes a lot to survive there. But they spend so much time together, and share food, and rituals. It’s a true community spirit, that is more broadly reflected in Bhutan’s Index of Gross National Happiness (GNH), an alternative to the economic index, Gross Domestic Product (GDP), which is used by nearly every other country in the world.

Will says,

“I never really thought of letting go as being a part of happiness. My mindset was always about gaining, and keeping, but there’s something in surrendering, that is ecstatic.”

Letting go of material wealth and “success” to focus on what is truly important usually comes back to people, relationships, and taking care of those around you. At the beginning of the Pacific Islands episode, Will shares a line from his grandmother, a nurse, who used to tell him,

“Try to make everything you touch better.”

What a beautiful mission to live by!

“Make everything you touch better” isn’t necessarily a message that many boys and men are exposed to today. Social media, mainstream media, and culture more broadly, tells stories about male personal worth and success being dictated by physical strength, material possessions, and financial wealth. So, it’s heartening to hear male voices speaking up to share alternative, emotionally intelligent perspectives. One of those voices is Luke Bateman, an Aussie farmer who reads lots of books, and is proud to say so. In a recent video, he shares his opinion on why boys and men must read:

“Now it is not because higher literacy rates are correlated with a higher lifetime income, though they are. And it is not because human longitudinal studies show that readers live longer and happier lives than non-readers, though they do. And it’s not even because reading helps improve mental strength and resilience, though it does.

It is because reading is the pathway back to the meaning and purpose that has always existed within you. It is the map back to yourself. It is the portal to your rich and vibrant internal world. It is the guide back to the life of emotion and love that you were taught to sever yourself from.

Reading is our rebellion.”

Continuing with a rebellious theme, Austin Kleon shared a quote from James C. Scott’s 2012 book called Two Cheers for Anarchism where he argues that we need to be ready to break a big law in the name of justice and rationality. To prepare for this, he recommends a daily practice of ‘anarchist calisthenics’ - he says that every day or so, we could break some trivial law that makes no sense, even if it’s only jaywalking.

Now, I come from a family line of conscientious rule followers who live in fear of doing “the wrong thing.” I like to think that I’m breaking this mould, but it takes work, and my default is still to follow the rules. So, this concept of being an anarchist is quietly thrilling! It’s a reminder that people power can push back against powerful elites through quiet action, rather than violence. Importantly, anarchism isn’t about causing harm to others; it’s a quiet, calm, and collective ‘no’ in the face of the nonsensical or unjust, which Scott explains has a history of working:

“Quiet, anonymous, and often complicitous, lawbreaking and disobedience may well be the historically preferred mode of political action for peasant and subaltern classes, for whom open defiance is too dangerous. For two centuries from roughly 1650 to 1850, poaching (of wood, game, fish, kindling, fodder) from Crown or private lands was the most popular crime in England. By “popular” I mean both the most frequent and most heartily approved of by the commoners. Since the rural population had never accepted the claim of the Crown or the nobility to “the free gifts of nature” in forests, streams, and open lands (heath, moor, open pasture), they violated those property rights en masse repeatedly, enough to make the elite claim to property rights in many areas a dead letter. And yet, this conflict over property rights was conducted surreptitiously from below with virtually no public declaration of war. It is as if villagers had managed, de facto, defiantly to exercise their presumed right to such lands without ever making a formal claim.”

Coincidentally, just two days ago, Angela Nikolau and Ivan Beerkus climbed to the top of the Empire State Building and displayed a powerful and potent message: “When the power of love beats the love of power the world knows peace.”

That’s a pretty solid example of anarchy, don’t you think? (But “don’t try this at home” and all that.)

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I discovered some wisdom from spiritual teacher, Ram Dass in the New York Times The Good List newsletter this week and although the NYT framed the article as being about judging others less harshly, Ram Dass’ main intention was to encourage us to judge ourselves less harshly. Either way, a little less judgement has to be a good thing, and this idea might help:

“When you go out into the woods, and you look at trees, you see all these different trees. And some of them are bent, and some of them are straight, and some of them are evergreens, and some of them are whatever. And you look at the tree and you allow it. You see why it is the way it is. You sort of understand that it didn’t get enough light, and so it turned that way. And you don’t get all emotional about it. You just allow it. You appreciate the tree.

The minute you get near humans, you lose all that. And you are constantly saying “You are too this, or I’m too this.” That judgment mind comes in. And so I practice turning people into trees. Which means appreciating them just the way they are.”

I think this perspective is a good antidote to anger and frustration too. Instead of getting angry with someone, turn them into a tree and appreciate them just as they are.

Staying with philosophy, in the fast-paced, AI saturated world we have found ourselves in, I’m drawn to those who don’t buy in to the “hurry up and use AI or you’ll miss out” narrative and Oliver Burkeman (author of Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals) is one such person. He says,

“The moment you ask “how can I not get left behind by AI?” you’ve already made the mistake, I think. (An eminently correctable one, so don’t worry!) Just focus on doing what you actually want to do, to the extent that your circumstances allow. The proper role of any new technology as an aid to that will then reveal itself naturally.”

Do what you want to do and use AI as an assistant when the need arises, is such a simple and logical idea that it really shouldn’t be groundbreaking or unique. But in the rush to adopt AI, more thoughtful, nuanced perspectives aren’t so easy to hear or see.

Switching to music and nature now, and Paul Barton Piano has a playlist on his YouTube channel dedicated to playing piano for elephants and it’s beautiful to watch the elephants gently sway, or just stand close to Paul as he plays. It suggests a deep, inner experience on behalf of the elephant that we know almost nothing about. Us humans have a track record of underestimating the emotional complexity of animals, and it’s lovely to see creators commenting on this, through music and film.

Earlier this week, I watched Remarkably Bright Creatures on Netflix and at the end, Marcelos, the octopus, says…

“Humans, for the most part, are dull and blundering. But occasionally, you can be remarkably bright creatures.”

What a lovely way to flip the script on human and animal intelligence!

Finally, you now officially have permission to retreat, from Steve the Otter…

“If the day growls… back away quietly and return to bed.”

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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