Well, looking at our fight against Covid -19, lockdowns have got me analysing about a few questions and our ways to consider it an important way of healthy living and finding true happiness in it. Let’s call it..’seeing past our socially constructed normalcy to find health and happiness.’

What is this society? What is considered normal? How do you define comfort? Is money the source of your security? Ever thought of living off the land for a few months? What’s absolute freedom?

In my search for answers to these mind waggling questions, I happened to read a few books, go through a couple of documentaries, visit nonprofit organisations, look at activists and I came across a very interesting podcast illuminating our paths towards ecological balance, intersectional sustainability, true abundance and wellness for all.

So, as conscious citizens living on this planet, what is our role in creating balance, regenerating to give back to nature and work for our communities to build strong relationships that help us survive? I think we’re doing….nothing!

What are we doing to preserve our planet? A one-of-a-kind btw!
What are we doing to preserve our planet? A one-of-a-kind btw!

We’re born in a closed environment, trained to understand what’s considered normal because society has made us believe that. A lot of people don’t know any other way because in the most literal sense, they haven’t seen anything different. It doesn’t matter how crazy things are, if you’re around for it long enough, it becomes normal.

Every man living on this planet has the right to use its resources to the fullest. Do you think it’s fair? Do you think about people below the poverty line? What do the governments do with our taxes? How is wealth concentrated in the hands of just 1% of the entire human species on this earth?
Just to give you an example, our taxes to the government are being used to contribute to war. Being one of the leading examples of systems of injustice, is war really the solution? Seeing an entire range of species go extinct because of war is the solution?

How did we reach this world structure? What are our power systems telling us?
How did we reach this world structure? What are our power systems telling us?

I’ll paraphrase Thoreau here:
“Rather than love, than money, than faith, than fame, than fairness, give me truth!”

With the advent of technology, the creation of comfort in our four walls, the fight to earn more, producing without caring, mindless consumption, polluting land, water and soil, become political giants, exploiting resources are consequences of our actions and in this process we have destroyed our lifestyles, gone away from nature and created this bubble in our minds that money can strengthen our lives. Are we realistically analysing that this harm to the environment is leading to well, death?!

Having money has just allowed us to cause a lot of destruction. When you can pass over money or swipe your credit card, you don’t have to think of where those products are coming from, the impact that they have, or the people behind it. All it does is drastically increase the amount of evil that we dole out into this world.

I hold deep appreciation to those strong voices that technically live on backpacks, the ones wanting grow with nature, amalgamate themselves as healers, givers and leaders of change without consuming more. I would be sounding crazy right? Living on a backpack?
So many unlearnings to do. So it’s normal for humans to have this sense of security through money come naturally but the conventional sense of wisdom around that sense of security maybe narrow-minded and misinformed. I don’t think money is security! Think about a million people losing their houses overnight just because of a corrupt system and their state of mind when they knew they had enough to last for a lifetime! That’s the illusion of security through money.

When will we look beyond what we have been seeing and taught?
When will we look beyond what we have been seeing and taught?

So most importantly, I think it comes from relationships. People have taken care of each other when times were difficult to navigate through. We have health insurance right now. But what did people do when they had to face it earlier?

I request all of you to give a thought on your interest to know about nature. Let’s say, how have you tried knowing about the flora and fauna in your vicinity? Have you tried growing vegetables at home?
Take in the sights and sounds of your surroundings. You might be surprised by how much you’re missing-early spring flowers, pretty ground cover plants-right in your very neighbourhood.

We search for light around us, only to come back to ourselves and find radiating from us.
We search for light around us, only to come back to ourselves and find radiating from us.

I think I have lived through to know what is needed for happiness. A quiet life rooted in spiritual growth, with the possibility of being useful to people to whom it is easy to be good, and who are not accustomed to being good to.
And work which one hopes maybe of some use. The rest? Nature, books, music, love for one’s neighbour. Such is my idea of happiness.