We transition from frosty winter, interspersed with very wet wintry days towards spring, this liminal space is a beautiful time to plan and dream. I thought I’d continue the theme of dreaming the future for that reason, with a few suggested ‘what if’s’ to share…
What if we spent our time in the moment, making our basic work tasks into a joy to do, a service to ourself or others, rather than a chore? When did our craving for being elsewhere, take hold of our psyche to the point that it’s no longer seen as a job well done to have a clean house or a cooked from scratch meal.
What if we made little rituals of thanks for all we have rather than what we think we still need. Abundance isn’t recognised by regretting lack, rather the opposite.
What I have noticed recently is a chronic disregard for other people’s needs and a selfishness creeping in, that is nothing short of entitlement. Is this the future of humanity we can expect when we enter a state of dreaming the future, then?
What if we paused a moment, every now and then to be fully aware of what our hands are doing, what our brain has engaged with… if we drifted off into never-never land, following illusive trails into the future. If the mind sped off into past moments and yet, we’re in the now, whether we want to be or not and therefore, everything we relate to as being past or future is actually happening in this moment, like a constant time warp ever so slightly changed by our mind’s concepts of how it remembers or reimagines it was or in fact will be. Each moment we think of a situation it’s altered slightly until we may even believe what happened in our remembering is the truth of the entire episode.
We don’t physically go there, our brain opens the pathways but our physical body doesn’t actually go anywhere. If we could we would become time travellers, even shapeshifters. Although there is a part of me that believes we can and have simply forgotten how to bundle up our physical beings in a whole package and transmute it to elsewhere like ‘beam me up Scotty,’ moments in a particle transporter.
More than all of the above, what if we check in on others who perhaps aren’t as well placed to share a meal with them, or just pass the time of day, share a book or a movie… chat about the state of the world.
We might in fact need to practise those skills of communication again. Brush the dust off and find joy in human conversation, because what will we do if the whole system goes down and we can’t scroll and scroll mindlessly at other people’s lives that appear to be so much better… (and don’t get me started with the AI intervention on social media and the incursion into our lives through programmes such as Palantir)! But, are they really though; are others lives really better or is that the illusion of wanting unreasonably and being needy for things that really don’t change our lives one iota… or is that simply the illusion cast by influencers to make you feel they’re better off and so you covet what you think they have?
You know the ones… they float through gardening and homesteading reels, dressed in floaty summer dresses, straw hats and have perfectly manicured nails… sure, that’s a reality when you grow your own vegetables, fruit, herbs and raise hens… not!
What would happen
if we all wanted less
less mess, less stuff
less electricity
less commuting
driving, travelling
What if
we stayed put
for a while…
grew our own food
as much as
the local climate allowed
traded foor what we couldn’t grow
recycled, repurposed
redesigned stuff
that otherwise
goes to landfill
What if
puffed up lips
fingernails like talons
and “perfect”
designer figures
were no longer
a must have
to suit
someone else’s ideal
What if
muscle and lean flesh
came naturally
from working in nature daily
What if
hopping on planes
to sit in the sun
elsewhere
was replaced by
sitting in the sun
talking with
a lonely neighbour
What if
instead of complaining
that “they”
should do something
about the carbon footprint
whilst driving to the shops
to buy that new
influencer-touted item
that will change your life
made in sweatshops
on the other side
of the globe
What if
YOU
did all you can
And so… this theme of dreaming the future is only just begun. There are so many possibilities to mend, recreate and reinvent in the present moment. What we dream now, creates our reality for a brighter planetary future… it can shape how we see ourselves and our roll as co-creators on this beautiful planet.
Tell me your thoughts in the comments… I have so much more to share on the subject…
Walk softly… dream the future in wholeness… Awen /|\
Penny
Photography and words copyright ©️ Penny Reilly all rights reserved.
Penny Reilly Artist Beyond the Gate 