• Spread Your Seeds

    “Friendship is born at that moment when one person says to another: “What! You too? I thought I was the only one.”  ~ C.S. Lewis When I was a kid, I always wondered if I was the only real human among a sea of robot-aliens. But as I grew older, I began to worry that I was crazy, and everyone else was sane. As my vocabulary grew, the definitions of words became ingrained in my mind – of success, failure, ‘a good life’, and even sanity. Suddenly, there was a list of activities I ‘should’ be doing, majors I ‘should’ be pursuing, careers I ‘should’ have. I quit listening to my DNA and numbed my senses from what actually felt right for me. While wallowing in this confusion, I slowly realized that others were feeling guilty…

  • The Impact of Mentorship

    “You cannot teach a man anything, you can only help him find it within himself.” ― Galileo My mentor died last month. It was unexpected. When I heard the news, my breath caught in my throat and a simple “no” escaped my lips. Imre Molnar was the Provost of College for Creative Studies. A former corporate designer, Imre choose a career in education because he believed in students and was inspired by the kind of innovation one only sees in the freedom of an experimental incubator like a student studio. When the President of our college organized a meeting for faculty and staff impacted by Imre’s death dozens showed up – including professors, maintenance men, department chairs and administrative staff. It says a lot about a person when his impact extends far beyond the boundaries of…

  • Found Within

    My childhood neighborhood; was one of those where everybody knew everybody and I knew these streets like the back of my hand. I knew which families lived in which houses, what time Mr. Konsol would pull in the driveway from work, what time Bob and Virginia would water their yard, these details became so known as if I would be tested on this information. Maybe that was what made it so special; it was small enough for us all to grow into a family. Our days were filled with new games, invented activities, neighborhood sports, but never boredom. It was these days that were relatively care free. The only worries were when the street lights were turning on and it was time to head home. The greatest attribute of that vicinity; had to be the woods surrounding us. We…

  • Movement

    A certain professor once told me that I needed to start finding intellectual pursuits that furthered my growth as a human being and kept my mind off of others. She also said that people were a matter of the heart, and all I needed to worry about was how to love them better. Three months later and I am just now starting to really understand what she meant by that. This past year has presented some personal life challenges that forced me to look at people in a different light, and it wasn’t positive. I became discouraged and sour, introverted and detached, and very not my usual self. And as a naturally self-aware person, I could only let the charades continue for so long. So, I decided to make some…

  • A Time to Listen

    How does one learn to listen to that inner voice in a society that values alert problem solving and devalues silence? Learning transcendental meditation this past semester has helped me to understand that it was a mistake to believe that what was happening outside of me was creating my life. When in reality my internal self has been creating my life experience all along. Through the practice of meditation I have learned to stop and listen. Listen to what my body and mind were asking for and, more importantly, not allow the troubles in my head to steal too much of my time. Over time I have begun to see that positive thinking will see me through, positive actions will pave the path I seek. The moment I start doubting myself, I will see that doubt reflected in…

  • The Effortless Ease of True Creativity

    It is my belief that reaching enlightenment will not happen over night or come with force but with ease and great passion towards unlocking the inner core of the mindless self. Fulfillment of this goal comes with perseverance in bettering the current state of living and reflecting on the past, present and future to move forward to a greater state of being. My goal is to continue living with the knowledge and great guidance of those who have come before me and to view life as a weightless journey filled with everyday opportunities that arise from hard work and positivity. Life has a funny way of throwing you into hard situations that require decision-making and tough choices. There will always be rough points in life which may be difficult to overcome. Not handling a crisis well creates…

  • Slowing Down on Life’s Super-Highway

    One gorgeous, sunny day in Austin, Texas, I found myself contemplating my career of thirteen years. Actually, I’d begun thinking about leaving three years prior, but this time I was serious and full of courage, determination, and willingness, no longer thinking “what else could I possibly do?!?” You see, I’d worked in public safety since I was twenty-two, working as an EMT and Paramedic in various capacities throughout those years, fighting stress, burn-out and fatigue. Now…I knew it was time to move on! Change was on its way. I’d been living the high-paced city life for way too long. Often I would rationalize that my pay rate of $12 to $30 per hour, depending on my job assignment, made everything worth it. Being disconnected from emotion as part of my…

  • Start Small, Think Big: Building a Foundation for the Future

    I’m a dreamer. I have a huge imagination and a tendency to idealize the way things should be. But sometimes these high ideals cause me to become impatient because I’m not always able to get to where I want to be fast enough. ‘Start small, think big’ is an aphorism I’ve found comfort in reminding myself over the years, and one I’ve largely benefited from. I’ve been blogging continuously for about 14 months now, and around the time of my initial blog launch anniversary in October, I realized it was time for a serious blog makeover. I took the best parts of my old blog and transformed it into something bigger and better—Sustainalizer. This transformation made me realize just how far I’d come in a relatively short period of time;…

  • Socially Awkward Networking

    Recently, I read an article about how Facebook improves communication skills. It suggests that social networks are practice for gaining “21st century skills needed to be successful in today’s society”. This pushed my buttons just a little bit. I’m all for Facebook just as much as the next person. It is a great way to keep in touch with family and friends. But, there is just something so extremely impersonal about the whole thing. Facebook offers individuals a way to express themselves freely, which is fine, but it also may indirectly call them to be inconsiderate. I’ve found out things about people that I didn’t want or need to know just by browsing through my news feed. It goes from extreme comments, to mundane information, to something that should be…

  • Entire Life Meditation

    Today, I am graduating from Yoga Teacher Training. The last two months have included well over 200 hours of yoga practice. So instead of giving you a specific project, idea, ritual or practice for living sustainably on this Sunday, I am going to share with you my final paper, which I feel is an approachable anecdote to sustainability through the practice of meditation and yoga. In Yoga Beyond Belief Ganga White states, “Your entire life is meditation, all other specific forms of meditation are secondary.” In order to lead a fulfilled life, we have ideals for how we must interact with the world. We have life partners, we maintain relationships, we raise children, we work. According to Ganga White, these day-to-day activities are all “entire life” meditations. What is the…