2012

I was very torn about what I wanted to post today...

Either way it was going to be about 2012 and I actually wrote two different posts...

One was about the movements of venus and the different ways it ties in to the various cultures that have existed...and that it's travels are often viewed as significant.

The other post was a plea to everyone that we shouldn't sit and wait for a specific date, for God, a comet, or zombies to come along and wipe the slate clean for us, or to give us a radical mindset change.

Both of my posts were valid, and each as a whole bore it's own perspective of the 2012 discussion which has been going on in many circles for quite some time.


The bottom line is this:

Something incredible could happen in 2012. But it's entirely possible nothing will happen. Our calendar could be off by several years in either direction, and it is a possiblity that the roll-over of the Mayan long count calendar actually happened in 2009 or some other year.

Maybe it happened in 2001. There was an event at that time which has changed many aspects of our lives since. Some of us feel like we've got big brother watching over our shoulders even harder now, and others still don't feel safe so long as there are Muslims in this country. It's only in retrospect that massive changes look as completely massive as they really are...

And it's also true that huge changes in the direction of humanity can happen over a period of years... even centuries. The universe takes its time... I can't imagine that everything is going to change dramatically in just one night -

((One caveat - if a large comet or asteroid were to slam into the Earth, it would cause huge changes and not for the better. We're also probably going to see something like that on its way to us... though that isn't a guarantee either.))

We can't sit and wait for something to happen... to make it all better or to make it worse. Each one of us is an individual, a part of the whole, but still an individual. That means we each have the power to change our own lives. I know that most people will immediately have excuses.... in fact I bet I can list many of them right now:

I have kids
I have bills to pay
Where would I live if I didn't have a job?
I need a car
I need a house
I need a job
I need a tv
I need running water
I need a grocery store
I need my family
I need my pets
I need security
I need safety
I need a phone
I need my friends
I need the internet
My significant other wouldn't be ok with it
My parents wouldn't understand


And that's ok... it just means you aren't ready yet. But if you aren't ready enough to make that change right now, then you aren't ready for something major to happen in 2012 either. I mean, it's only about a year and a half away, can you see yourself walking away from your life as it is in that amount of time from now?

So instead of wishing, watching and waiting for a radical event to force us all to change our lives (or kill off half of us before we get the chance), take action today. It doesn't have to be anything big, it doesn't have to be a major departure from your life as it is. It's ok to take baby steps. Focus on one small thing at a time, and eliminate it from your life - or add something beneficial like yoga or meditiation or walking in solitude with nature.

You can eliminate something by reducing your posessions, becoming vegetarian or otherwise simplifying your diet, reducing the number of obligations you put on yourself for social events, spending time alone, volunteering to help others, giving up driving (walking or getting a bike) at least part of the time, and so forth.

Once you make a small step and become comfortable with it, take another. Take time to feel the difference in yourself from the change that you've made, notice how your mood is different and whether it lightens your spirits or makes you feel more grounded. After a few steps, you'll find that your priorities change and your old ways just don't interest you any longer. Once you get the ball rolling, it will take less effort to keep it rolling and as you progress through greater challenges you'll find you have more and more strength to conquer them.

Eventually, you may be able to walk the earth as Jesus did or as the Buddha's did, regardless of what happens next December.