![]() |
Image by Pawel Kuczynski |
Here is what I see just from a little looking around - there are, and will continue to be, great changes occurring with increasing rapidity.
Why?
Cascading crises. Pick any one.
Economic crisis.
COVID crisis.
Variant crisis.
Climate crisis.
Environmental crisis.
Extinction crisis.
Biodiversity crisis.
The list goes on and on, but it does not matter.
We already have enough going on to let us know that business as usual is over, and it is not coming back.
There will be no "going back to normal" because it was that normal that got us into each and every one of our current crises.
To go back to normal would mean to go back to a continued path to extinction of not only humans, but all life on Earth.
There will also be no Great Reset.
There is nothing left for capitalism to reset. Decades of unchecked greed have sucked the life out of everyone, and everything.
There is nothing left.
There will, however, be a Great Remembering, and it might just save us.
This will be where the tired and worn out workers of overdeveloped nations begin to yearn more for slower, quieter lifestyles than they do for more money, more work, and more stuff.
People are deciding, appropriately, to quit consumerism all together. They can see it is a dead end.
The more principled ones will also quit jobs that support the creaking machine of consumerism, and shift toward endeavours that support the health of our communities and ecosystem.
Regardless of what happens moving forward, one will be better served by having a simple, more self-reliant and local lifestyle.
If there is any "reset" it will be this - community and cooperation are becoming more important than cash and competition.
The only things that will make the massive and rapid changes of the near future easier to deal with as our multiple crises continue to cascade and coalesce into collapse are:
Simplicity.
Community.
Cooperation.
Amen, brother.
ReplyDeleteI'm awaiting a copy of Mark Boyle's latest book, The Way Home, to arrive at my local bookshop. He has completely stepped off the treadmill, including no computer, phone, car or even solar panels. To me it looks like....home.
ReplyDeleteWe have been excited to find more community-minded friends recently, they are an important part of the transition to a saner life.
Madeleine
PS congratulations on your car-free year!
Completely stepping off the treadmill sounds good. It is the final step, and a big one. Like adopting any level of simplicity in a consumer world, it takes courage.
DeleteBuild community now and avoid the rush!
Glad you have met new folks in your area. SInce the pandemic started we have connected with good people doing good things, and it has made a significant difference in our lives.
And Mark Boyle - excellent stuff there. Thanks! I am all about low tech living. It reintroduces beauty into life.
Delete