Be the Change You Wish to See

There is an ancient story that tells of a time when man had a symbiotic relationship with the animals that he killed for food. The night before a hunt, he would pray and make offerings to them, and in turn, the animals would sacrifice themselves to be hunted and eaten. One day, man selfishly killed more than the animals were willing to sacrifice, and to restore the balance of the fragile system, one of the people in his tribe became sick.

Today, as the earth’s resources become depleted, humanity as a whole is sick. We are trapped in a cycle of gluttony fueled by a need for security, which we attempt to satiate by consuming more. We are blindly rolling down a road toward extinction and in order to avoid this, there must be a drastic change. We hear that 2012 is “The Year of Change,” but so far, the only change I see is for the worst. People are getting fatter, sicker and further from the truth. But as it goes with any sickness, it must get worse before it gets better.

Right now we are living so far outside of ourselves, constantly looking for our self-worth in the amount of text messages and facebook comments we receive, comparing ourselves to the people we see in the media, or getting a high status job. If we were able to receive affirmations from within ourselves, we wouldn’t need external validation. In order to truly heal, we must go within, back to the truth of our nature. This is where I started. I am launching this revolution within myself in hopes of seeing it in others. Be the change you wish to see in the world.

The way I see it, my diagnosis with cancer came in perfect timing. Had I kept going the rate I was, unconsciously swallowing the values of a society that I have never agreed with, I would be continuing to contribute to the downfall of our race. Instead, I feel that I have been given a very important role in the awakening of humans to our dis-ease. The healing that has to be done within myself is parallel with the healing that has to be done in all of humanity. So I am learning everything I can about wellness so that I may heal myself and, in turn, be part of the healing of every human. This healing cannot be done with pharmaceuticals and surgeries. In fact, those things are what have kept us so sick in the first place by suppressing the symptoms and covering up the true problem. A change is in order.

Whatever this change may be, it is starting right now. I can feel it. The time has come to clear away the illusions of security and self worth that fuel our egos, making us selfish and judgmental. We must go back to our roots and re-build the relationship we have with the earth and all of its inhabitants, including ourselves and the animals and plants we eat. We can no longer take more than our share, because there is no longer enough. When we learn to heal within, we learn to live without the need for external sources of fulfillment. It is here, within myself, that I will start this needed change.