Creating the Perfect Lifestyle... Not!

photo by Jaime Kowal

You’re blurry-eyed and a little fuzzy-headed. You stumble out of bed and down the hall, and sidle up to the coffeemaker. Plugging it in, you reach for your shade-grown coffee and spoon it into a permanent coffee filter. He kisses you softly on the neck. (I just wrote that to keep your attention.)

Now you’re hungry. And as easy shopping should have it, an organic omelet is in your future. My, you’re the smart one. Those farmers’ markets yield all sorts of local, organically grown produce. The farmers are kinda cute too. How resistible is a chap who is up to his elbows in Mother Earth?

Anyway, I digress. Back in the bathroom, you’re polishing your pearly whites with a battery-operated toothbrush, and pushing a disposable razor across your underarms (yoga tonight!). Battery-operated? Disposable? I do see the toilet paper is recyclable. And good for you—how you turned off the water for the two minutes you brushed and counted strokes (between the teeth and the gum line). The natural toothpaste is a nice touch. Very healthy. But what is it with the toilet? You flush all the time. Ever hear: “if it’s yellow, let it mellow”? Oh well, next time. Remember to turn the fan off.

Out in the kitchen, you’re giving it a once-over. You squirt some earth-friendly detergent into your Energy Star dishwasher and turn it on (oops, lose the drying cycle!). Little Kyoto (bless your heart for taking in a rescue dog) is whining until you serve him his organic raw food (I hope when I die I come back as your, uh, companion animal).

At the front door, you ready yourself for errand-running. Bravo for you that you calculate your car trips and ride your bike whenever possible. That’s probably why you’re in such great shape. Or maybe it’s the well-chosen nutritional supplements. Or maybe it’s the yoga. Maybe it’s all the walking you do. Regardless, you’re turning heads.

But you really don’t care. You’ve got a personal coach, a meditation practice and some well-chosen workshops coming up. You’re very centred, focused and in the flow. And that’s about as sensual as it gets.

Do you see yourself in this picture? Remember, it’s not about creating the perfect lifestyle, because there is no such thing. Nobody can be 100 per cent pure or green, and you’d drive yourself crazy trying. Rather, it’s an intention. It’s that never-ending adventure of improving the quality of your life and improving the quality of your relationship with the Earth and everybody on it.

SharedVISION Test Drive Day
Thanks to all who turned out for SharedVISION’s 20th anniversary Test Drive celebration on Earth Day at the North Shore Auto Mall.

Over 300 test drives were taken including all the Honda, Ford, Toyota, Saturn, and Lexus hybrids. The 1912 Detroit Electric Car was a big hit and the friendly and knowledgeable Ballard reps made the Ford fuel cell concept car a highlight. Thanks to our event presenter, Pacific Honda, as well as our sponsor, Carter GM and our host, North Shore Auto Mall. Special thanks to Earth Day Canada, i-Earth, the Environmental Youth Alliance, Vancouver Renewable Energy Cooperative, Whole Foods, earthforever.net, Saje, G.A.P Adventures and our wonderful volunteers for making this event such a success. It’s all good. It’s all a SharedVISION.

In gratitude,
Rebecca