The Adventures of Peacefull

22 September, Living in the Forest, Montevarde, Costa Rica

I awoke at midday, I was very tired. Got up and found I had wireless connection and then it went on me. I started to realise the connection is not very good here. The weather is very wet so wondered if the cloud cover was affecting wireless. It also is probably the distance from the router. Turned out to be the issue.

I managed to do some work on the computer and then slept more. I am very exhausted and this sleep is so welcome. I really need this time here to rejuvenate. I can’t think of a better place than the most biologically diverse forest in the world. I seem to be in the heart of it. The house I am staying in is wooden and I have a kitchen table and can plug in the computer and open the window. I watch the mist roll in and look at the lush plant life all around me. I see a beautiful blue butterfly come past. I am keen to get into nature and really look at it. I am very lucky to be here.

My neighbour Suzie who allowed me to stay at her place for free. Apparently knocked on my door a few times but I was sound asleep. She came later and invited me to come to a party. My other friend Rowan also turned up and she came over and we had a chat. She had a falling out with a friend and felt hurt by it. The fact we were going to the party must have made her feel like an outsider. The man in question is a scientist, expert on frogs and lectured in the US. I find it interesting to reflect on how people handle their personal relationships, they don’t see the link to nature and the importance of resolving conflict. When I asked this expert what he thought would happen to the world, he said the problem was overpopulation and consumption. These are true statements but what drives consumerism? What drives overpopulation? Consumerism is driven by the perception of needs and wants. Marketing facilitates more wants by psychologically influencing people through media to believe they need a product or service. People are open to this because they don’t feel satisfied in their lives and compensate their working life with buying things. I have observed through my life experience and travels, there is a deep unhappiness in the world and sense of powerless that pervades many societies. I sensed the unhappiness as I traveled. The dream of capitalism never produced the promised leisure society or a sense of connectedness/belonging. It created greater divisions, greater pressures/stresses, poorer health and social isolation on a scale that is every growing. There were advantages of course, but I am speaking overall on balance. This was a discussion I would have liked to have had. Even some of the environmentalists can’t see their social impacts. This one man lived in a large house and the light was on in the bathroom. He had all the modern gadgets yet he didn’t see the link of his life to that theory of consumerism. Apparently he lived in a little place when he first arrived and then build the big house. He had not learned how to live in nature, but lived with it but separate. This is the challenge for all of us. We can study it but again we don’t feel the oneness with the natural order, of which we are integrally linked. So I found that interesting. I met his friends who seemed really pleasant people.

I played cards with the French boy, nice kid. He also built a pyramid of cards I saw the metaphor in the world order we have created, however I saw his creativity and patience in creating it. He also was open to believing he could make it bigger, I liked the way he thought. I enjoyed his company. I see the future when I see kids. I liked the way he just played games. He was happy. Children will show us the way I am sure.

I am sure what I observe is the tip of the iceberg, these people would have incredible lives. Many have traveled all over the world. One woman I could see the sparkle in her eye, a real live wire. I would have liked to speak more to her. We live in a diverse and rich world of human beings also. The diversity is certainly in people as well as nature.

I came back home with Suzie and did some blogging on my computer. It was nice to meet new people and see how they live here. Many really love it here. I don’t feel the draw here, but I am at peace with that. I will start to organize my trip to Lima, Peru. Machu Picchu is the next stop.

One gentleman and his wife left the party. He made a point to say he really appreciated what I was trying to do as I had told him my experiences. I gave him my website and he said he’d look at it.

I will now close this down and go and sleep some more. Tomorrow I need to find out if I am clowning at the Friends school and I want to do some meditation at the yoga place. So that will be lovely.

Sweet dreams and a new future is in my vision.

We can be the change we wish to see. We don’t have to change the world, just ourselves and magically the world changes. I recognize this is the way. So I will work towards it.

Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi

“Each one has to find his peace from within. And peace to be real must be unaffected by outside circumstances.”

Random video from the Gallery

Clowning around the world for peace

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