Back to the Earth

So I originally set up this blog as part of a class that I took on Global Ethics and World Religion back in the summer of 2009. Now, two summers later I wish to pick up where I left off and a lot has happened to me. I set up this eco-blog as a way to share with people the unique experiences of my service learning class. I plan to take the blog into a different direction...sorta.

After taking the class my philosophies on service, Buddhism, the environment, humanity and self have grown exponentially. I have also gathered some wonderful new friends who share a lot of these ideals with me in one way or another. A couple of them have started a blog themselves about food (one of my favorite topics). Since one of them is very far away at the moment I felt like sharing in their experiences by reviving my blog.

Usually I put a picture up do depict my reflections. However at the moment I don't really have one. I promise to get one when I do a proper post this weekend after my birthday.

OOO I forgot, I have a lot of possible international travel plans coming up as well as opportunities to assist in a lot of community based green activities so I promise there will be lots more exciting things to come! Thanks a million and I hope to see you all on my Journey!

Best,

Toph

final blog post

Well this is it, the end of the semester. I have had a really great time from working at the Park to the English Language Students, to the classroom portions.
On the last day at maymont we weeded a lot, and I talked with my fellow workers on a lot of things dealing with nature. Of Course I shared my feeling about Japanese mythology and whales. However the most important thing that has culminated with the work I have done at Maymont is going to come in the future. I will visit the park and notice things more, I bet I may even be able to name some of the plants and weeds I see. I Have a new appreciation for the natural world around me. I had always felt really close to nature but now I have a feeling that people and the natural world really are meant to live together. The world is our responsibility just as the world's responsibility is us. This Kinda goes along with the articles we discussed on Buddhism and the words of Pema Chodren. That we are all connected. this may sound hokey but I feel really comfortable in this blog so I will go ahead and say this. If you sit and listen to the world around you and really take in the things you do throughout your day, you can learn so much about the world and why it is important to protect it as well as learn about it.
Today was the last day of class and it really got me thinking: I bet I could have just coasted by without putting much effort into this class, but why would I do that. I learned more in this class than I have all summer. I learned the importance of a leaf and the humble nature of greatness. I am still hoping that Dr Kisstle-ito will let me TA for her sometime because I really want to be involved with showing other students the great things she has to teach. I leave you with an Image of a whale, grey whale to be exact, and if you know me at all you will know why.

Thank you again for reading my rant. This blog is dedicated to Dr Kisslte-ito and those who desire to share their knowledge!!! Thank You

Thoughts on Native Americans, and tree spirits

Last week we read a few articles on Native American World view. This got me thinking about my world view and it is pretty similar. It was either Hughes or Fixico who discussed that the Earth's water is like the "Blood of the Mother". I could not agree more, and I am a big mama's boy. Now I like to think of the Mother earth as my mother. When I went to Maymont I laid in the grass and pretended that I was being cradled by the earth. That sounds really hokie but I don't really care. I could not help but feel that I was more in tune with earth. I have always believed that the universe works because of the energy that the various things within it give off. I really feel that we are connected that way. I mean I get the same sense of hunger as the Hawk I saw a couple of weeks ago.
as I reflect on the last two weeks I have a few things to say. I feel really honored to have Dr. Kissle-ito as a teacher. I feel that she has so much to teach, I mean, next week she is bringing me books on Buddhism to help me try to find a set of beliefs I feel comfortable with. How cool is that? I have always felt spiritual and green, and instead of this class showing me how wrong I am about that. It is teaching me to better understand the world. I am going to have a hard time finding a photo that properly says how I feel.
I found one. The picture to the right is of Kodama in a tree that is drawn by the 18th century scholar Toriyama Sekien. The reason I choose to reflect with this image is because of the significance of the Kodama. They live in trees and bring good fortune to the forests and the creatures that inhabit it. This to me is symbolic of the good fortune that we need to think about when we cut down trees. The good fortune that we are loosing because we do not honor the forests, and we do not stay in balance with the universe. I felt that this was something we could all take a moment to think about

Today At Maymont

Ok, so 8:30 in the morning does not agree with me. However, I was there with Heather and ready to help make Maymont look its best. Everyone else was assigned to work in the Italian gardens Dead heading roses. Peggy assigned me to leaf blowing, and that did not sound very calming and nature oriented, but it was fun. I got to drive a golf cart around and I cleaned the front of the Nature center and all around the barn. I loved the fact that the goats enjoyed eating the leaves that I blew into their pen. The coolest moment however came in the form of the circle of life. After I had finished blowing and met up with the rest of the volunteers in the garden we saw the neatest sight. A Hawk had just plucked his prey of a garden snake out of the garden and was about to enjoy his meal. WE stood there and watched as the hawk eviscerated the snake and ate every part of it. We all thought this was beautiful and we laughed at the insane Mockingbird who kept pestering the Hawk. The Hawk, upon finishing, lifted its hind feathers in a graceful large movement, and defecated. It just goes to show that not all of nature is pristine but it is all important. I had a lot of fun and I am excited to see what we do next week at Maymont

The first real blog

I wasn’t quite sure what to expect when I walked into the first few classes, p[probably some religious readings, a few documentaries, and a grim reminder of how our planet is in peril. I will admit that some of that is true, but not exactly in the way one would expect. The second day of class after the usual teacher introductions we watched a very interesting video that was a compilation of nature scenes, my personal favorite is the one that dealt with the water crashing on the rocky island beach, and I also liked the waterfall. As the Teacher well knows I have a big love of aquatic environments. While we did this we had to write a haiku. This was mine
The water wakes the earth
Brings life to all, great mother
Home, pleasure, clean

Throughout this project I thought of the Henry David Thoreau piece that we had read. The activity fused the art of writing with the communication of nature. Although we did not get as in touch with nature as Mr. Thoreau did with Walking, the effects were similar. If nothing else I want to experience nature in a different more thoughtful way. The name of this blog is Beneath the Bodhi Tree for just that reason. We have read a lot of technical articles that I slightly understand, but as an English major I relate better to the literature.
Today in class I had my first experience with the service learning aspect of the class. The English language students came and I got a first hand experience talking with European cultures. The first gentleman that myself and my friend Heather talked to was named Francisco and he is a wonderfully charismatic guy. He was really friendly and I asked him if there was a lot of Environmental issues going around in Spain. He showed us an article about how America was beginning to look at Spain for ways of windmill energy. He also told us that he was writing his thesis on renewable energy because that’s what he was studying in Germany before he came to the United States. However, he also said how people in Spain were lazy and how he thought it was interesting that people in the US were interested in that. Our next partner was from France and he said that French people really don’t talk about environmental issues that much. On a personal level we really clicked because we are both fans of Horror movies.
Tomorrow I am going to Maymont Park to work and I am excited to report on those events. Looking back at the last few weeks I feel that I have been given a taste of what is to come. I have always been interested in both World Religions and the environment but I have never really thought about how they fit together. I feel a bit angry about the ways we have treated the Earth although I feel that the anger is a bit superfluous, instead I want to take the energy and focus it on learning and growing as both a person and as an environmentalist.

This blog is dedicated to the memories of Michal Jackson and Ferrah Faucet!

Beginning of the blog

Alright so it is quarter of one in the morning so I shall make this a quick intro and I hope to add more tomorrow. The initial hope of this blog is to discuss the things I am studying in my class. The class is called Global Ethics and World Religion. Throughout the course we are going to take service learning activities, readings on nature and conservation, concepts of different religions and put them together in order to better understand the personal hand print we have on the world. I cannot wait to delve into this subject and I hope that later on this blog will continue to be used for similar things. Sleep well and I will get back with you in the morning. Thank You to Corey for helping me get this thing started!