A Way of Living That Doesn't Include Hubcap Hell

Cardinal Touch, huh?  What's in a name?  To me, Cardinal Touch simply means essential (Cardinal) connections (Touch) - to the earth and to each other.  It's a way of life that fits me and connects me:  God* first (listen to my heart), take care of me second (listen to my body), and then give back to the world and everything in it.  It is also a life that maximizes my abilities while allowing me the greatest sense of enjoyment.  I didn't always live this way.  I have struggled, and still need to remind myself some days to not revert back to going solo on my own path.  What I've learned is that if I don't kick and scream and fight the simpler life, I find that the path that God guides me to is much more pleasant and life-giving for me.

Not sure what I mean?  Let me tell you about Hubcap Hell.

After I gave up a lucrative career, I made a not-so-short stop in Hubcap Hell.  I knew this place was not part of a simpler life, but I could not break free of it, and stayed on the treadmill a bit too long.  The basic fact of the story is that I kept losing hubcaps.  Was it dreadful driving?  Did I brush too many curbs or hit too many potholes?  Yes, no, maybe?  Who knows.  But whatever it was, I kept losing hubcaps left and right.  It was always one at a time, and not having a hubcap bothered me TREMENDOUSLY!

It bothered me because I felt that my car looked less than which made me look less than.  It screamed, "you are not successful", "you are incomplete" each time I went to drive it.

And this conceit drove me to considerations that wasted my creative time and energy. For example, I would consider how I should park my car at client locations so they could not see that my car lacked luster.  If it was a time that the driver's side was missing a hubcap then I would make sure my approach to the building was from the passenger side.  If it was a time when the passenger side had a missing hubcap, then I would make sure I parked in such a way that the driver's side would be in view.

At first I did recognize this as a problem.  And so, unfortunately, my first solution did not lead me to a simpler life.  I went to Hubcap Heaven (there really is such a place!) and I got a replacement.  But it was never long before I lost another one.  And it was never the same one so I drove myself crazy with approaching and parking the right way, trying to remember which side of the car contained the flaw. 

Each time I lost a hubcap, I would go back to Hubcap Heaven, a one hour round trip.  I did this three or four times at $25 to $30 a pop so there were actual and intrinsic costs.  Finally, I came to my senses!  I knew I had to stop this insanity!  I had a true change of heart, a real desire for simpler living.  I realized it's such a time and esteem guzzler to care about how others viewed my car.  For me, my car simply became the gift of transportation.  Whenever I saw the naked wheel, I thought to myself, "hubcaps are not important; this doesn't matter to me."  I have transportation, see me drive to a simpler life!

And then the universe tested me.  Was this change temporary or permanent?  As fate would have it, my work took me near Hubcap Heaven.  My head said, "Just stop by.  You are in the area.  You don't have to pay personally for gas, it is a work expense.  It is only $25, and you are worth it."  But then my heart spoke up.  "Set yourself free.  Take this baby step.  It will take you one step closer to a simpler life.  Start now, you will be happier for it.  Don't let things run your life."  And then my head spoke up again, and then my heart, then my head, then my heart.  In the end, I listened to my heart.  I chose not to stop to replace the last hubcap that had fallen off.  And let me say that I knew right away that this was the right choice.  But the universe confirmed it for me anyway.  You see, soon after passing up the chance to buy a replacement, I lost another hubcap!  Now I had two missing hubcaps.  In fact, I now had one missing on each side!  Had I replaced the one, I would have had four perfect tires for only a short time, and then I might have stayed on the replacement treadmill.  Instead I decided that two hubcaps were just fine with me.   

When I told someone the story, they suggested I move one of the hubcaps to the other side, that way each side would be uniform.  But I stuck with my mantra and said, "Ahh, it doesn't matter to me."

Reflective questions:

1.  Do you have an approach to daily living?  What do you think about *God first, self second then world?

2.  Do you have an item (person, place or thing) that runs part of your life?  Is it possible to put less emphasis on that item for good or for a short time.  What would you lose by doing so?  What would you gain?

* I use the term God as a universal term.  You may decide that Great Spirit, Allah, Higher Power, etc. better suits you for today.  It is not for me to decide.

Sustainable Living

Today my topic is sustainable living.  I’ll explain what it is, why I like it, and one way I participate.

First, what is it?  Sustainable living is a lifestyle, a way of acting on a conscious decision to reduce the amount of natural resources we use as individuals.   People do this by altering their activities related to transportation, use of energy, consumption of goods, and/or diet.   For example, someone who invests in solar paneling to reduce the amount of natural gas needed to warm their home, practices sustainable living.  Another example would be someone who opts to dine out locally, and strolls instead of steers, to nearby restaurants and shops.   

Why do I practice it?  For me, it gives me the opportunity to reduce negative impact to the planet while simultaneously increasing the positive benefits to me and my family.  Positive benefits include less money out-of-pocket, fewer errands, the opportunity to build community and to make an ecological impact.      

My husband and I have done this in many ways, but my favorite example is the creation of a variety of gardens on our property by using sustainable living practices.  This has led to fewer store runs, and therefore fewer purchases of packaged goods.  Let me give you more detail about these gardens.

Our home sits on about one quarter acre of land.  The very back third of the yard was not getting used for anything; we simply mowed the grass here and mowed the grass there and mowed the grass even further over there.  Eventually we decided to reduce the amount of lawn space and created ornamental gardens instead.  Doing so reduced the amount of time and the gasoline we needed to cut the grass.  But we didn’t run to the nursery to purchase plants.  We utilized what was already growing on our property first.  We started by thinning and transplanting overgrown perennials, like daylilies and liriope, from the front of our yard to the very back. 

Of course we didn’t want the same plants everywhere so we spoke to neighbors and friends about trading some of our ornamental perennials.  This has been a huge success and is on-going!   For example, we have a beautiful deep pink Rose of Sharon bush that produces many offspring each year.  This year we dug up the offspring, put them in used flowerpots, and shared them with neighbors, friends and family.  In turn, we have received back many different ornamental perennials such as ferns and bleeding hearts, to name just a few.  And we transfer plants from one house to another by reusing the same flowerpots.  We educate everyone to use them over and over again.  This trading keeps us from traveling to the nursery to make purchases; it also creates a sense of community among our neighbors, family and friends. 

Next, we dug up other portions of our yard in order to plant separate vegetable, fruit, and herb gardens.  We’ve come a long way.  About ten years ago we had one small vegetable garden, with little more than peppers and tomatoes.  Every few years we doubled this space.  The vegetable garden is now about 900 square feet and we plant many more veggies than peppers and tomatoes.  We have also conscientiously selected the vegetable plants we grow, selecting as many perennials and self-sustaining plants as possible.  For example, rhubarb and Swiss chard return every year.  Another example is garlic, which is harvested, and then some of the heads are set aside and replanted.  You just need to be sure to buy starters from a manufacturer that doesn’t genetically modify the bulbs so as not to reproduce.  The fruit garden includes raspberry patches which delight us by producing lots of fruit every year.  And did you know that many herbs are perennials too?  Rosemary, oregano, mint, chives and sage are a few examples. 

Having fresh fruit, veggies and herbs on hand gives us plenty of dinner ideas, and keeps us from running to the grocery store so often, especially during the summer.  But sometimes the yield is too great and we can’t consume everything.  Then we freeze some and give some to our neighbors.  This makes for great community. 

Sustainable living then is acting on a conscious decision to reduce the amount of natural resources we expend and generally results in living more simply.  One way we participate is the way we garden.  Hopefully you’ve gleaned that it’s not difficult to live this way, we use less of our planets resources, and we have built community.  Maybe it has piqued your interest and you’d like to learn more.  If you do, just ask me, because I have more to tell.

Reflective questions:
1.  What does sustainable living mean to you?

2.  How do you or would you benefit from sustainable living?