Earth month, my awakening to nature's needs and wisdom

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I am a firm believer in asking questions, being inquisitive and not taking anything as it’s given. Not accepting being spoon-fed with information and rules can save us a lot of time and energy and can help us become more rooted in who we are. I started being interested in sustainability, regenerative practices, social justice and climate change only after I started to ask myself questions. 

I was one of those people who didn’t get it, why would you want to march on streets for climate change, why such a buzz about it when, I thought (uninformed and having zero knowledge on the matter) that climate has been constantly changing and it will keep doing so. I was one of the people who would proudly go to retail therapy or spend my weekend at the mall, being happy with my way-too-many purchases, of low quality clothing that I would wear probably on a vacation and give them to someone else afterwards. I started to find bits of information while I was researching “the best fabrics for skin”. Interested in my wellbeing and health I wanted to know what are the best fabrics out there, and that stirred my curiosity. 

Later, while I was journaling I asked myself a big question. “What do you really care about?”. Among other things like family and friends, being healthy and content with my life, I also wrote that I cared about the environment and I wanted my future children and grandchildren to be able to enjoy the nature that I grew up with. In that moment I realised I was a hypocrite, saying I care about a lot of things I had no clue and understanding about. I’m not going to lie, I felt ashamed, guilty and confused. 

Learning about sustainability, regenerative practices, the detrimental effect pollution and plastic has on the oceans, marine life, soil, agriculture, how fast fashion and toxic dyes destroy the lives of people, and how I have been contributing to that, has been a tough awakening. I felt hopeless at many times, for the future of the planet, hopeless because I didn’t know if I was doing enough and at other times almost scared to share bits about the journey I was on because of the fear that I wasn’t perfect, that my practices were not perfect and that I will be judged. I judged others before and I definitely had many moments when I judged people even now, for the times when I spoke and shared knowledge about what is happening to the planet and to us and it was heard by deaf ears.

I am at a point in my journey now where I am confident in my choices, learn as I go, dive deeper, ask my questions, have empathy for others, watch my choices, vote with my money, and consume less. If anything my sustainability journey brought me on the path of slow living and low consumption. I ask myself a million questions before purchasing anything and consider its consequences. 

I grew up feeling connected and close to nature. My grandparents had cows, ducks, chickens, fields of corn, watermelons, grapes, and gardens full of veggies. I would jump in the carriage and go to the fields. I loved to go to the gardens and pick up peas and tomatoes that we would later on cook with. I fed the chickens and ducks, and called them by their names. I witnessed their birth and their death. I was aware of what  it meant to have animals, to care for them and also to eat them at a certain point. It was part of the process, a slow respectful process, where nature gave and we took, and then we gave and nature took. I am understanding this once again, standing in reverence and owe to mother nature and grateful for the people who are attuned with her, care for her and along the way care for me as well. 

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