Tuesday, January 3, 2012

THINK!

I had a conversation recently that really saddened me. It was a conversation with someone I care about, and it was about a subject that's frequently discussed on this blog. I'll be the first to say that the topics on here aren't necessarily "conventional" (What would be the fun in that?), and I'm used to being received with strange looks when I bring them up! Things like babywearing, minimalist living, extended breastfeeding, whole foods plant based diets, natural remedies, elimination communication, composting, making your own clothes, alternative vaccine decisions, growing your own food, and even yoga aren't widely embraced in our society. And that's ok! I don't expect anyone to have the same opinions as me or to agree with me about all of these things. But what saddened me about this conversation I had was the absolute, blind, and uninformed closed-mindedness of the other person. Instead of looking at the subject honestly, it was incorrectly stereotyped and flippantly dismissed in a ridiculing way. Ouch. Ouch not that I was made fun of, but that this person who is important to me so brazenly and intentionally discarded evidence-based truth in favor of a (literally) toxic norm, for no reason other than that what I think is "weird," and outside the status quo. A different opinion based on scientific evidence and logical reasoning would have been most welcome! But this was based on nothing. I am no expert in anything discussed on this blog and am hopefully always learning and open to ideas that seem foreign to me. But a different opinion based on nothing other than what's considered "normal" in this country that is anything BUT normal in comparison to the rest of the world, is sad. I say all of that to say that I hope Ear to the Earth is an environment where THINKING for ourselves is encouraged, topics are considered critically, and positive change is encouraged! Isn't there always room for improvement? Aren't there always more questions than answers? Wouldn't we be foolish to assume that just because something is normal, it's right? Let's encourage each other to honestly explore all types of various issues, think critically about them, and then put what we learn into practice! Who's with me?!  :)

3 comments:

Sharon Telschow said...

Aye! You keep that brain thinking lady, it keeps my brain thinking and I love you for that (among other things).

Melissa said...

It's sad that we (as an American culture) are so quick to believe that if the USDA or other government agency makes a law or says that something is necessary or even (gasp) healthy, then it's the gospel truth. The truth is that when we aren't thinking for ourselves we lose touch with our instincts and natural abilities to make wise decisions. There are so many sad and ridiculous things that have happened in human history because we weren't exercising our brains: midwives were almost completely outlawed and reported (by government agencies) to be uneducated, dangerous heathens, raw milk has become the devil incarnate, seed saving has become a crime, backyard vegetable gardening almost became a crime (recently), beekeeping is still a crime in many cities, family farming is finally making a comeback after big ag (with all of its toxic pesticides and synthetic fertilzers has had its hand in the pot for way too long, immunizations... ugh. enough said. Thanks for writing Lizzie! Stay encouraged and keep up the good work!
p.s. Elijah hasn't had a single shot, wears cloth diapers (working on EC), eats food that we grow, stays with me all day and for the majority of the nights, nurses on demand and has never been sick, is in perfect health and probably one of the sweetest boys you'll ever meet. ;) I haven't been to the doctor for any illness in years and Andy and I are constantly battling with following the norm and which laws are worth breaking... shh. no actually, we never battle with following the norm. We're pretty abnormal. haha. For example, Andy's no longer using the bathroom inside, so that he doesn't waste clean water... how's that for a blog?

Maggard said...

Love it. Why is it so unusual to not just go with the flow? Saying this after returning from an appointment at the military hospital... yike. We've decided to do SOME vaccines for Fern and even at some, the doctors do not know how to handle it. Really? Please. Am I the only military mama who is thinking through these things? I sure as snot hope not. Kind of like when they say something about "oh it probably happened upstairs after she was born" and I say, "no, she was born at home"... can't tell you how many jaws I have to scrape up off the floor. Or when I told my doctor (who I thought was fairly natural-minded) about having my placenta encapsulated "oh please honey, how much did they get you for that one..." GIVE ME A BREAK! And I'll even admit that it is a little odd (in terms of our culture) but I looked into the benefits (THINKING!) and decided it was worth a try! (P.S. Totally would do it a thousand times over...) Any who. It's like a friend of mine said about EC, it seems as though our culture is becoming so "advanced" we're moving backward... And most people are chugging right along with this "advanced" thinking, without even ever thinking for themselves.

Oh and Melissa, Andy ROCKS for peeing outside. My dad (and his dog) pee off the front porch every morning... and the other day Andrew totally came in the kitchen and said "well, the bathroom seemed too far away, so I just went and peed on the compost pile" Swwwwoooonn!!