Balancing My time

We are only on Earth a short while, and we might as well try
to make something out of our lives.


So, the Story Goes On....

Up until two years ago I did not have exact clarity on my life's mission, but in 2003 I realized that my purpose is to help start a worldwide Sustainability Movement. One of the biggest challenges of my life is trying to do more things than I have time for. What I found is that if I give all my time to The Cause I start getting burnout, so I've had to balance my life with other activities. After having a bad burnout at the end of 2003, I spent most of last year trying to figure out how to manage my time and determining how I could still contribute to my mission and "giving back" to the Planet. The answer, I have decided, is to continue on with the mission, but to take it more slowly and to take some time out to enjoy life.

For six years I was spending at least 20 hours a week on my environmental and population work, while holding a full time job and raising a family. This was making me crazy. In 2004, I came up with a plan that provides more balance in my life. Unfortunately, it leaves less time for front line activism, which is really the work that counts. However, I do hope that in some small way I am helping to lay the groundwork for a great Movement that will continue long after I am gone.

What is the Sustainability Movement?: All people will learn to change the way they live so that their activities do not harm the Earth or reduce quality of life for future generations. In other words, the Sustainability Movement is teaching people how to leave the Earth in as good or better condition than when they came here. I'm not only talking about environmentally, but also socially, culturally, and in every other aspect.

The Plan for 2005 and Beyond....

So, here are my priorities, which really haven't changed much:

God - The top priority is to always put God first, and to live my life in a way that I feel is honorable to Him. This is a personal thing, and quite separate from human-made religion and the corrupt institutions that claim to operate under the Father's name.

Family - My wife, my widowed mother, my extended family, and especially my two daughters must always come first. Children MUST ALWAYS be the top priority, no exceptions. In my opinion, raising, helping, coaching, and unconditionally loving the next generation is our NUMBER ONE reason for being here.

Planet - I've always rooted for the underdog, and in this case it is Earth. Our Planet gives us life, yet we abuse it, neglect it, and disrespect it. My third greatest loyalty is to the third Planet from the sun, which is blessed with incredible beauty and an amazing variety of animal life. Human overpopulation, species destruction, pollution, and global climate change are all horrible plagues on the Planet. I have a passionate desire to defend the Planet because, well, it doesn't appear that many people are.



Time Management

Rather than spending all my time going full speed trying to save the world, I've now broken my personal time up a little more. This is how I divide the limited time I have when not with my family or at my job:

Deep Thinking — I spend a lot of time blogging, which helps me sort out my thoughts, and I participate in several e-mail discussion lists. In addition, I dedicate time for reading the newspaper, online articles, listening to public radio, and watching educational TV. I used to feel guilty about this, since it takes me away from activism. But all of this is important because the New Movement requires tons of time to hash out the details. And the more I learn, the more perspective I gain, and this helps me to better define the Movement. I guess you could say that I am donating my brain to serve as an incubator for new ideas.

Activism — To keep from going crazy, I've cut back on my volunteer hours to 10 hours a week instead of 20. I also try to only attend one meeting a week (it used to be 3 and 4).

Hobby — In 2003 I got back into my computer hobby. I love piddling on my Macintosh computer and reading computer books and magazines. The tinkering and reading totally relaxes me (and gets my mind off the daily sadness of species extinction, green space loss, and global climate change).

Sports — After 30 years I started playing tennis again. The mental and physical discipline, added to the joy of being outside on a warm summer evening, is exhilarating. I also love running, and I got a crazy idea this weekend to run in a marathon (maybe!).

Lifestyle Improvement — It's important to practice what you preach. Changing your lifestyle in a way that reduces your environmental footprint and is more sustainable is very difficult. While trying to save the world on a global level, it is difficult to find time to make the changes needed on a personal level. Living sustainability means spending more time finding and preparing organic food, avoiding fast food joints, and tending to a garden. I just started a small garden again after many years, and I intend to expand it each year. Another important lifestyle change is avoiding cars, but walking and public transportation take more time. So, all of this personal change is a big adjustment. One day I would like to live in an intentional community, where I would grow my own food. Other than having a decent computer, I have no interest in anything material, so I think I'd fit in well with such a community.

In Summary ...

Changing the world is far more difficult than I ever imagined because society is extremely resistant to change. It just likes to move forward in the only way it knows, regardless of the long term consequences. And trying to change the thinking and tenets behind capitalism is EXTREMELY DIFFICULT. Capitalism is like cancer, in that it continually grows, adapts, and prospers. That is, until it kills its host. It is difficult and overwhelming to stand up against this force, and, maybe we will lose. However, just as I believe there is a cure for cancer, I also believe there is a cure for capitalism. The way we do business in the Sustainable World will be far different.

The second point is that I spend a lot of time trying to change the world through writing articles, public education, and lobbying to change public policy. But changing the world also requires changes at the personal level. The so-called "American lifestyle" is the most soul-less, hypocritical, and corrupt thing I've ever seen. The goal is to move quickly away from the rotten values that define lazy and spoiled America. Again, this isn't easy. For instance, just trying to find something decent to eat in a grocery store is difficult. If you go into a Kroger the food is 90 percent junk and you can hardly find the organic and vegetarian sections. That's because capitalism doesn't care what you eat — they only care about profit. And apparently, most Americans don't care either (as you can tell from the massive obesity in the U.S.).

The third point is what a great local Sierra Club leader once said, "If it's not fun, it's not sustainable." While saving the World is important, it's essential that you enjoy it in the process. My advice to fellow Canaries is don't become obsessed with saving the World to the point where you neglect yourself. You're only on this Earth once, so take some time to enjoy nature (or at least what's left of it).

Respectfully,

The Yellow Canary

I dedicate today's post to my dear friend Günther, who is one of the greatest Canaries I have ever met.