Changing the world is what most of us know we are here for. Our dear friends involved in the environmental or activist scene, teachers writing, publishing and educating about health, parenting and lifestyle, artists expressing their vision, spiritual teachers and seekers alike all know this. There’s even an online community called Zaadz based on this idea.
The Law of Attraction is one of the tools we can use to manifest change and imagination is fuel for its operation.
So here’s my suggestion. We use the law of attraction to vision our future life in the world we have changed. It’s so much easier to do the work of changing the world if we know what we are changing it into. Hence this meme.
What is a meme?
Broadly described in Wikipedia as a unit of cultural information that can be transmitted from one mind to another, a meme is a set of questions (or 1 question with a few answers) we ask each other to stimulate conversation. When answering the meme, to ensure a broad discussion, one links back to it’s originator and tags at least 5 other bloggers so they answer the questions and do the same. Just copy and paste the question, into your blog. Then answer the meme and tag your friends. Remember to link to the original post, this one, so people can follow the discussion all the way through.
So the question is…
What 5 things will your grandchildren say to you? (If you already have grandchildren then answer for your great grandchildren. If you don’t have any kids imagine you do.)
And here are my answers…
- Grandma, was refined sugar really legal, did they really let kids eat it? Didn’t they know it was bad for them?
- Did you really use fossil fuels to run your cars and your homes?
- Why did you buy things wrapped in plastic?
- What did you call those places that used to be where the community gardens are now? Supermarkets?
- Grandma, what’s lawn?
I’d like to tag the following visionaries for their answers:
Brian from Zaadz.
Miss Steak of The Ethicurean. A wonderful site about eating ethically.
Ed Mills at Evolving Times
Mike at Tree Hugger, the best environmental site online.
Honest Human who intrigues me the most.
And who knows maybe Steve Pavlina or Dr Mercola will add their two cents worth. These men are powerful entities on the web but incredibly busy. Wouldn’t it be great if they took up the challenge and helped us vision a bright new day.
And You dear reader. Let the rest of us dream with you your version for the future. Leave a comment below. Or answer it in your blog and link to your blog in a comment. If you don’t have a blog, think about being a guest blogger on Nourished Magazine.
UPDATE: Mike at Treehugger has written me, “I’ll see what I can do” and Brian from Zaadz has put his top meme starter on the case. It may take a while to hear their answers. It did take me a couple of weeks to come up with all 5. But we’re waiting with baited breath.
About the Author...
Joanne Hay, Editor of Nourished Magazine, Chief Nourisher and Mother of three is very grateful to live in Byron Bay and be able to share all she has learned about Nourishment. She has trained as an Acupuncturist (unfinished), Kinesiologist (finished) and parent (never finished). She serves the Weston A Price Foundation as a chapter leader. She loves sauerkraut, kangaroo tail stew, home made ice cream, her husband Wes and her kids Isaiah, Brynn and Ronin (in no particular order…well maybe ice cream first).
Mar 13th, 2007 at 10:39 am
Joanne, your list is so good, I don’t think I’d change it, except from an environmental perspective to say “Grandma, why didn’t they stop using fossil fuels earlier, while they still had time to make a difference?” That could replace Number 2.
Mar 13th, 2007 at 11:00 am
Helen,
What would your five be?
Mar 13th, 2007 at 5:59 pm
Here is my five…
1. Grandpa, was raw milk really illegal to drink and yet cigarettes were legal to smoke?
2. Did humans really fight wars against each other?
3. Were there really people living on this planet that were in poverty and couldn’t get food while food was being wasted in other countries?
4. What’s television?
5. When did politicians start taking responsibility for their decisions and actions?
Mar 19th, 2007 at 2:07 pm
Hey Poppy,
What’s that big stack with smoke coming out of it in the background of you and Nan?
Mar 20th, 2007 at 7:21 am
Honest Human’s five questions her grandchildren will ask her:
1. Why did the government coerce and manipulate people into injecting viruses, foreign DNA, bacteria, immune-system suppressants, heavy metals and other known toxins into their children in the name of public health?
2. Didn’t anyone notice that the sea levels were rising?
3. Why did people destroy all the biodiversity on this planet to grow only a handful of species that they engineered to be resistant to pesticides when the pesticides were toxic to people, animals and butterflies, too?
4. What’s a honey bee?
5. Why were people so afraid of sunlight, the ultimate source of energy and health?
http://www.honesthuman.com
Mar 20th, 2007 at 7:50 am
So Suzanne
What’s the vision?
Is the govt still coercing us into vaccinations? Like this idiotic vaccine for cervical cancer. Or have we come up with more holstic alternatives to dealing with disease?
Have the sea levels risen or did we work out how to stop global warming?
Have we lost all biodiversity or is seed savers now a global network, found in every village in every corner of the world? Do bioterrorists now get lifelong prison terms for destroying biodiversity?
Really, we’ve lost the honey bee?
So people got it that sunlight didn’t cause the cancer epidemics. That’s good but I’m worried about the bees now.
Dear Honest Human, gimme a glimpse of a new way of life on the planet. This meme is to stimulate us to imagine a wonderful future. I hope you can help.
Mar 20th, 2007 at 8:09 am
With regard to the honey bees and biodiversity, our ancestors still might be working to get their habitat back to support both. I guess what I was hinting at here was what the world might look like unless we continue to work toward the desirable vision…
I will modify questions 3 and 4 to reflect that desirable vision:
3. Did people really think it was a good idea to only raise one species of each kind of food? Didn’t they miss all that flavor and the uniqueness?
4. Were the honeybees the ultimate wake-up call, allowing humans to work together for a sustainable and replenishing life for all creatures?
Mar 21st, 2007 at 1:32 pm
Hi Joanne
Thanks for “tagging” me with this great meme. It’s definitely got me thinking. I’ll put on my meme thinking cap and see what I can come up with by the end of the week.
Mar 21st, 2007 at 1:34 pm
And, btw, I LOVE your answers!
Apr 21st, 2007 at 12:11 pm
Patrick, The idea of this meme is to vision up what it is you actually want. We are imagining a peaceful world, one in which we’ve done what is needed to be done in order to create peace, harmony with nature, biodiversity, health and happiness. How about, “Grandpa, can you tell me again the story of how you saved the honey bees and butterflies, they are so beautiful. I’m so glad we don’t use poisons to farm like they did in the olden days.”
“Why didn’t they fix it in time?” OMG is this what you vision? Please Patrick, try again.
Apr 21st, 2007 at 2:17 pm
My vision….our thoughts….as we sit here on a Friday night relaxing.
My husbands’ off hand remark but meant was “Bush out of office..the sooner the better. For the world, the undertaking of alternative energy to help mitigate the impact of global warming. If we had a JFK-like figure and he had a dream that we could be energy self-sufficient within ten years, I think it could happen.
And, yes, I’ll entertain the Mongolian yurt idea for retirement living. :-) It will have to be in an area where its socially progressive, few bugs and no cats.” Whoops! scratch the latter…we have seven!
I’m envisioning much the same along with an acre on a quiet hillside where people can come and be quiet, or talk and heal from within. And, those that visit love to cook and garden do so!
Apr 21st, 2007 at 2:22 pm
Response from Patrick over at There’s a Blog in my Soup!
1. Grandpa, how could Americans let their leaders rule this country full of so much corruptness and greed?
2. Grandpa, can you tell me about honey bees, and butterflies again? I so wish we had those today, they seem like magical creatures, I wish I could have a taste of honey.
3. What was Disney world and Disney land like ? Could you tell me about the coastal flooding again?
4. When did america have it’s second revolutionary war? What was it like? What made the people say enough is enough and turn on the government?
5. Why did they destroy the environment? How could any human do something so evil? Why didn’t they fix it in time? What was snow like?
May 19th, 2007 at 8:12 am
JoAnne,
Thanks for entering my Blog Carnival! Now that I have come to visit your site, I am absolutely delighted that I decided to try doing the Visualize Possibilities BC. Maybe it was just so Iw ould meet you?
“Source” works in mysterious ways.
I am simply going to have to write a post about you… OK, I gotta go do that now!
Heather Flanagan
http://www.VisualizePossibilities.com
Jun 3rd, 2007 at 10:21 pm
Hi,
Your submission has been included at the Carnival of Miracles at http://letthesunshinein.wordpress.com/2007/06/03/the-carnival-of-miracles-edition-10/
Cheers,
Rajesh
Aug 21st, 2007 at 3:16 pm
Thanks Joanne for commenting on my blog and introducing your meme. Great idea! Now I have to think of fire blogger friends . . .
marguerite
http://lamarguerite.wordpress.com
“The Daily Sins of a Green Girl Wannabe”