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Gotta Change Our Way of Thinkin’

Gotta Change Our Way of Thinkin’

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Last week I attended the annual homeowner’s meeting in our neighborhood. All was going well until just before the meeting adjourned. A guy brought up the fact that a neighbor, who is not a member of the association was receiving the community bulletin board emails. He was irate. Another guy became irate, then another and I felt like I was watching nice, decent men transform into two-year-olds throwing a temper tantrum because two of their neighbor kids refused to join their koolaid club.

While I make light of the display, it upset me for days. The precipitating event was many years in the past but these men were holding thought forms that made it 100% real just last Sunday. I could actually see an energy shift in their faces and it was as if they were possessed by something nasty, something scary even. These are very nice guys so how could they transmute into such angry, spiteful beings?

Of course, I had to speak up….perhaps things in the past should be left there…don’t we want to create a sense of community through communicating with each other? Why such anger after so many years? It’s not like they’re getting free cable.

After recovering from the emotional outburst I witnessed and processing it within myself, I saw it as a tremendous teaching. This is exactly what happens when we refuse to change our way of thinking. The thought forms grow in strength and become more and more real.

How many times have you heard corporation CEO’s or politicians or your neighbor or even yourself say some of these things? “It’s impossible to switch from fossil fuels.” “We have to use fossil fuels.” “We can’t do without oil rigs in the Gulf.” “There’s not enough wind to make windmills useful.” “Solar is too expensive.”

I could go on but you get the drift. Each time we think these thoughts or others like them, we are literally creating a world where those statements become reality. I have heard many times that our thoughts create the reality in which we live. Group thoughts are even more powerful, as I saw last weekend.

Who are you listening to these days? What are the thoughts you repeat to yourself and others?

“Gonna change my way of thinkin,’ make myself a different set of rules. Gonna put my good foot forward, Stop being influenced by fools.” These lyrics from Bob Dylan offer something to think about…literally THINK about. We have the power–our MINDS–to begin to change this world. First we must listen to what we’re saying to ourselves and others. Then we can begin to change our way of thinkin’ and make a better world.

Salt Water and Blue Sky–Balance

Salt Water and Blue Sky–Balance

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This past week I set an intention of reconnecting with the Gulf Coast by seeking the positive, the good, the beauty here. For over a year I regularly visited seven beaches that had been affected by the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill. I needed to turn a corner in my work and embrace the beauty of the coast and the amazing ability of nature to recover from such a devastating environmental disaster.

I needed to shift my perspective and look for the positive signs of recovery while being mindful of the ongoing struggle some areas, animals and people still face on a daily basis. Last year I had little hope any marine animals, sea creatures or birdlife around the area would survive. To date, 22 sea turtle nests have been documented on Alabama beaches. Today I witnessed many osprey with young on their nests and other shorebirds that successfully raised chicks this year. In fact, I saw a baby tern hopping on the sand with his parents at Gulf Islands National Seashore and the sight of it brought back powerful memories for me.

Last year at this time I was sitting on the beach taking a break from photographing oiled beaches and saw this baby tern and baby. It gave me hope amidst much destruction. Today I was reminded, by another baby tern, that life indeed is making a tremendous effort to survive the toxic environment created by last year’s oil spill.

Over the past week I have spent hours on the water–paddling, drifting, offering prayers of gratitude for the magnificent beauty of the water, its creatures, the clear sky, the white sand. Last year I was afraid to touch the water, much less paddle out and allow it to wash over me. This shift in perspective has helped me balance grief and sadness and embrace the elements that make this area so special, so amazing.

It’s easy to get stuck in the negative spin and only see the bad. Or sometimes turn our attention away from ‘bad’ things happening to the planet and pretend they are not occurring. We must, however, find a way to be aware of what is happening environmentally, and keep a balanced perspective by looking at both the triumphs and challenges our Earth faces, that we face.

One way we can achieve this balance is by connecting with nature on a regular basis and allowing it to share the wisdom it has to impart.

Toward an Open Dialogue

Toward an Open Dialogue

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I sat in my car listening to rain pound the windows and roof. I was overlooking the Gulf of Mexico where just last year oil coated the beaches. I reached over and picked up the children’s book that was birthed from the year’s work at the beaches. I held it in my hands, closed my eyes and said a silent thank-you to the Gulf and Her ecosystems and dedicated The Gulf Oil Spill Story to Her.

I slowly opened the cover and started reading the story aloud to the Gulf. The rhyming poem echoed through my heart and mind as I sent it out into the muggy, coastal air. With each image I remembered the exact place where the illustration and story lines were inspired. As I read I began to feel a mixture of grief and love and passion for this place to which I am deeply connected. Hours after my birth I breathed the salt air of this beautiful coast. And today, as a thank-you for the life I was graced with, I gifted Her with this kid’s book in the hope that future generations will be better caretakers than my generation.

Yesterday a guy that has worked for an oil company for over twenty years looked through the book. It was a surreal experience. While the story is not anti-oil, it does question the wisdom of choices we make regarding energy and drilling. He shared his ideas about the spill and so the book opened a dialogue between us.

My niece read the book and loved it. My mom especially liked the checklist at the end of the story that encourages families to be daily environmental stewards. A friend of mine sat mesmerized by the illustrations while another friend had tears come as she read it. All of these different reactions and yet the one common thread is the story opens dialogues between people. I can think of no more important intention of any project.

It’s easy to get discouraged with so many conflicting ideas about renewable energy, drilling, politics, religion, climate change…. But when we take the time to listen to other’s points of view without judgment, movement toward resolution can occur. Common ground can be found if we are willing to stand with one another, instead of against each other.

Life After the Spill

Life After the Spill

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A week ago I led a small group experience in Asheville. I showed an audio visual presentation of images from the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill last summer and then we did a meditation visualizing the Earth healing from this and other man-made disasters. Next I showed beautiful images of nature from many places in the world and we did a gratitude meditation. During this time I felt the strong connection humans have with the planet and a flow of gratitude from the Earth as we sat in silence, in stillness cultivating appreciation and love.

Today, as I was paddling my SUP board on Mobile Bay dolphins swam under the board, flocks of pelicans flew overhead, and small mullet splashed in front of me. What a different experience from a year ago.

Last June 13 I was walking the beaches documenting oil washing ashore in Alabama and grieving the unfolding disaster, still spewing unknown amounts of crude into the Gulf of Mexico. As I walked the shores I expected few shore birds and little marine life to survive. I felt as if I was attending a wake each time I visited the beach. And certainly I was for the thousands of birds, marine mammals, sea turtles and fish that died. And for the 11 men who died. It was so devastating to witness this tragedy. Each blog post felt like a eulogy.

But today, there is life on Mobile Bay–swimming under the water, flying over it, and paddling on the surface. Gratitude abounds within me as I acknowledge these signs of recovery.

Yet I know every place on the Gulf Coast is not so fortunate. Some areas are still experiencing heavy oiling in marshes. There are still large tar balls washing ashore and in the local Mobile newspaper, I read an article stating that local officials know there are large oil mats on the bottom just offshore of some major tourist beaches. They are trying to figure out how to remove the oil but are waiting until after ‘tourist season.’ In the meantime, if a hurricane comes ashore, who is to say what the outcome will be.


There is much work to be done on the Gulf Coast to return it to health and there is much to be thankful for. I believe we must remember the spill so we can use it as a reminder that renewal energy is an absolute MUST in our country, in our world. Also, we still have cleanup to do and much oil to remove that remains in the ecosystem. Finally, I believe the spill is an opportunity to recognize the value of such beautiful and amazing resources found along the Gulf Coast and in all of nature. This man-made disaster is a reminder that we must work diligently to protect nature, refrain from exploiting natural resources, and be good planetary stewards.

Today, I am grateful for dolphins, pelicans, fish and all life that slowly recovers from the toxins released last year. My friend Brandon also posted on gratitude today and so I join him in promoting awareness and gratitude for the amazing world in which we live.

On Being Mindful

On Being Mindful

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As I walked down the driveway to begin my morning walk, I gazed into my garden seeing which friends had bloomed this morning. A rose, a delphinium, and the lavender is close to blooming. The day lilies…oh, wow! They are about to burst forth in their orange-yellow glory.

Once my feet made it to the main road, my heart sank. Someone had sprayed the bank in front of my home with herbicide. I looked across the street and up the street–no evidence of spray. It seems my neighbor’s gardener kept on going up the road when he sprayed their yard. At least it was isolated to one area on the roadway.

There is no grass in the rocks that line the roadway, just little plants that struggle to hold the soil. I felt sad because I value these important plants that anchor the soil in place. Frustration also arose because I do not broadcast spray poisons on my property.

So what’s the big deal? State highway departments spray millions of gallons of poison on roadways all across the country. Power companies also spray millions of gallons of toxic chemicals under power lines because it is cheaper than mowing or hand-clearing. But does that make it right?

My dislike for herbicides, pesticides, and insecticides goes beyond the obvious risk from using these chemicals (honey bees could teach us about the potential risks of chemical use). When my father was a farmer he was exposed to strong chemicals used on crops. He would come home and his clothes would be saturated with the toxins. Many years later he developed mysterious symptoms that worsened over the years. Doctors never figured out why he died in his early 40’s. By the time they did toxic-exposure blood work, all traces of the compounds had left his body. But the damage progressed.

I don’t know what my dad would say about the use of chemicals in our world. I believe he would caution us to read labels, spray sparingly and to refrain from using them if at all possible. My brother and I practice organic gardening because we saw what chemicals can do to a strong, healthy man’s body and life. Why do we think dumping millions of gallons of chemicals onto roadsides will not have consequences? Or the gallons we dump every year into our yards, our gardens? On to the food we eat.

I sent an email to my neighborhood asking people to be mindful of two things: 1) Chemical use has an inherent risk and we really do not know what continued use does to the environment and ultimately to us; 2) Everyone doesn’t use chemicals on their gardens. In fact, some of us want to work with the Earth and honor all plants and animals.

If the roadside in front of my home gets unruly, I trim it. If my garden has plants that I would rather not be there, I remove them by hand. I let insects have some of my rose blossoms to munch on. They always leave some for me to enjoy. Practicing organic gardening doesn’t make me better than people who use chemicals nor does it make me a better gardener. When I choose to work with plants and insects instead of just destroying them, I feel my relationship with the Earth grow stronger. Being aware of all life surrounding me helps me feel connected to nature, to the Earth. I grow in mindfulness as I take the time to understand how each and every plant, animal, insect and human has a place on the planet. There is value in every part of the living system we call Earth.