Awakening the Dreamer

A man trampled to death by a frenzied herd of WalMart shoppers!!

We have become MEGA Consumers attacking each other to get the latest flat screen TV.

The consumer mentality that pervades our entire culture is out of control. The Joneses can’t keep up with Joneses anymore. When will we get off the BUY NOW treadmill?

Does anything we purchase really bring us any lasting happiness or inner peace?

I recently attended an event called “Awakening the Dreamer” . The symposium was created by the Pachamama Alliance to bring awareness of our destruction and exploitation of the planet and it’s inhabitants.

From their website:

“The Old Dream is dying. Its demise becomes inevitable as we discover the devastation we’ve caused to our own planet home, as we count the rising cost of our inhumanity to each other and as we see how our current way of living fails to deliver lasting happiness.  All of these are the inevitable conclusions of an old dream rooted in acquisition, consumption and putting personal gain above communal good.”

A friend hosted the event at his house with fifteen people attending. The attendees were from all walks of life with a common goal of saving the Earth.

After everyone introduced themselves, we watched a two hour video demonstrating the devastation and mass extinction that is occurring on the planet.  We took breaks between segments to thoughtfully discuss the topics being presented… and boy were there topics!

Many parts of the film were disturbing, especially how the West tends to dump their poisonous refuse in third world countries. Wonder where all your old computers go?

The images of children playing in filthy chemical cesspools was very saddening. Furthermore, many animals that I thought were doing well are actually becoming extinct at an alarming rate.

The symposium was a thoughtful and eye opening event that everyone needs to experience.  When I left,  I had a better grasp on how my actions (or inaction) affect everything on the planet.

This year I am not accepting any gifts for Christmas. I intend  to inform potential givers to donate some money, food or time to to a local charity or a less fortunate person.

Do we really need another TV in our homes to fill our lives with empty and cliched TV programming that only feeds our desire to consume.

It’s time to wake up people. Wake up from the dream we are living in…