Tuesday, November 20, 2012
My daughter has been watching the movie "The Story of Stuff " (<http://www.storyofstuff.org> www.storyofstuff.org. ) in her grade 7 science class. The 20 minute fast-paced, fact filled movie is a look at what we humans produce and consume all the way from extraction, to sale, to use and disposal. It is about all "the stuff in our lives" and how it affects communities at home and abroad. The story looks at the connections between a huge number of environmental and social issues and then calls us
all to work towards creating a more sustainable and just world.
My daughter and I have had some great discussions about how much stuff we really need and where does the stuff in our lives come from. What is the stuff made of - is it good quality and made to last or cheap and easily broken? How is stuff made that we consume? It is a great discussion to be having as we enter into the Christmas season. We often have
conversation about buying locally and keeping giving simple. And we do our share of making cards and a few small gifts every year but we can always do more and learn more. My intention for this Christmas is to pay attention to hands and gifts that come from our hands. The ancient yogi's believed that the hands were a direct expression of the goodness of the heart, the
beauty that is inside being expressed into the world. Our hands don't just work independently on their own. They are informed, inspired by and connected to our heart. There are so many great gifts that we can purchase to support our local community and that keep many hands employed. For example we have a wonderful hairdresser who cuts our hair (it's always
about having good hair). Giving someone a gift certificate for a hair cut would be a great gift from the hands of someone who makes the world a more beautiful place one haircut at a time. Or how about the musicians of this county who use their hands to play their instruments in the upcoming Christmas concerts, and the concerts year round. A ticket to an event of
any kind is always a great gift. How about giving gift certificates for any of the local restaurants or cafes and support the hands that make the food that is served. Or a gift certificate for an oil change. Or a gift of some home made cookies from one of the local Christmas Bazaars And of course we have so many artists in this county who use their hands in so many ways.
We can support them by buying their art as gifts. We are a creative community with many talented hands. Let's support them this Christmas.