In 1986, while visiting in Tbilisi, Georgia, (Russia), I went to dinner with some educators from the university. Amidst the colorful gymnastic dancers and ear-shattering music, we chatted over a small dinner table. In broken English, one of the gentlemen made what seemed a cautiously couched statement, “I understand that your country has a major crisis.”

Thinking that he was talking about AIDS or Cancer, I asked him to what he was referring. “I think it is called abundance,” he spoke with broken hesitation.

Shocked about hearing something I never would have anticipated, I gestured, “What have you heard?”

“I hear that people are buying more and more things and then getting rid of them within 3 years. They say that there are piles and piles of discarded things and now there is no more land available to store them.”

The crisis and disease of abundance challenged my sensibilities and yet, what the educator reported was certainly not inaccurate. Over many years, I had traveled to several deprived nations of the world doing volunteer work. Repeatedly, even after only 2 weeks of being gone from home, I would come home and confront the number of options we, in the United States, have for anything and everything. We had 30 different kinds of bread on the grocery shelf and in Russia, at that time, they were lucky to stand in line all day to get even one loaf of bread.

The addiction to having “what I want when I want it” and the demand to have the latest update of a product evan earlier anearlier model works just fine was the pattern I became aware of. The need-want-have behavior has continued without considering long term impact on our environment and on future generations. The addiction is causing a crisis of lethal proportions…one that demands conscious exploration, research and choosing to alter and maintain a balance of energy with the use of the planet’s natural resources especially water and fossil fuels, a balance that includes the earth’s atmosphere, and balance then embraces the billions of other human beings on the planet.

Declaring this energy imbalance as a crisis need not thrust us into helplessness or hopelessness. Rather let the declaration call us to action, to conscious and intelligent creativity. Let us not allow the crisis to worsen before we act.

This week, I viewed the Oprah show with Leonardo DiCaprio speaking about the effects of global warming on our planet. The significant use of fossil fuels has contributed to a significant warming of the planet. Some hypothesize that global warming has been a significant factor in the production of the recent powerful hurpolluted The pooluted water and air quality has a direct and critical impact on our health and well-being.

How in the world are we? In trouble if we choose to look at the reports about the condition of our environment and the pollution of our air, water and soil.

There were several suggestions given on the Oprah Show (October 27th, 2005) that I pass on to you for consideration:
1. Drive an energy efficient automobile and demand the manufacturers to make more of them. (www.epa.gov/greenvehicles)
2. Use energy efficient light bulbs (compact fluorescent light bulbs)
3. Unplug electrical appliances that are not in use.
4. Use energy efficient appliances. (Look for the blue energy star.)
5. Write letters to legislators demanding support of environmental legislation.
6. Recycle as much as you can.
7. Join the virtual march on Washington to stop global warming. (www.stopglobalwarming.org)

Additional resources are available at these sites:
www.oprah.com
www.leonardodicaprio.com
www.stopglobalwarming.org
www.greenerchoices.org.

When you hear about hurricanes, earthquakes, fires and floods, do you respond with fear, dispondancy, anger, and frustration? If you respond emotionally, you are not alone.

With the intensity and frequency of natural disasters in the last few months, people have mentioned the ending of the planet as we have known it. They have predicted severe changes in how we use our natural resources and have indicated the economic impact accordingly. There are the doomsday predictors, the "hide head in the sand" avoiders, the "I told you so," preachers, and there have been those who have taken action to make a difference.

In the broad spectrum of possibilities, take a look at your pattern of responding to reports and predictions. If we live out of fear, our perspective will be short-sighted and limited in direction or impact. If we refuse to engage in the conversation, we allow others to take action on our behalf and become victims to the results.

If we are conscious to the possibilities and are willing to research potential actions and outcomes, we can make informed decisions. Without getting inundated with information, it is important to take some action that is individually appropriate, something that focuses your feelings into an action that matters.

Some will choose to do something that protects, heals or provides service. Some will provide money and resources to support the devastation and damage. Some will report about the reasons for the storms. Others will talk about the effects and even others will project blame.

Each natural disasters generates and releases a tremendous amount of energy. Speculation indicates that if we could harness the energy of a single bolt of lightening, we could potentially provide electricity for a major city for a year. Without being a scientist, I can only imagine how much energy that represents.

So what could happen if each of us imagined ourselves pulling the energy out of a hurricane wind and directing it to healing a particular situation or place on the planet that calls us. Prayer is expressed in many forms and participating in the release and chanelling of energy may be one of them.

With every destructive energy comes also the opportunity for a creative force. How will we use the energy of change and chaos, to create or destroy further:
to avoid or discover
to deny or research
to blame or to take responsibility
to be immmobilized or to take action
to feel helpless or to join in community
to dramitize or simplify
to to preach or personally alter your life
to whine or be grateful for your life

The choice is yours. Make it wisely. Choose it consiously. Whether you do something or nothing, your choice matters. You make a difference.