Bursting the Material Bubble
- March 18, 2015 (original publication date)
In 2014, when I took a big, giant leap off of my proverbial cliff, I was expecting that most of my family, friends and colleagues would think that I was all kinds of crazy! I mean, who gives up an incredibly lucrative career at a major movie studio in the midst of an unsteadily recovering economy with unemployment figures hovering between 6-14% depending on who you talk to? (with those numbers tending to fluctuate even higher with the most dire of predictions, which almost always includes another crash to the stock market, despite its record highs).
I mean who really takes that kind of risk?
And, yet, leap, I did into the abyss. Because the theory of relativity states that what goes up must come down, and unlike the state of the country, I figured if I was orchestrating my own downfall, at the very least, I might be able to soften the landing.
What I discovered was a situation vastly different from what I imagined. Instead of snide comments, and incredulous expressions, the overall majority of people I talked to, whether known to me or complete strangers, have applauded my efforts. At first, I cynically speculated it might be the pure entertainment value of watching another human being crash and burn...we all know how much we like to rubberneck at traffic accidents or watch a celebrity fall from grace. Yet, slowly an alternate reason altogether revealed itself. Not only were people excited about my endeavors, they encouraged them, were even 'proud' of me for taking the opportunity; for taking a chance and pushing myself so far out of my comfort zone, that I had no other option, but to begin a free fall descent into uncertainty.
The really crazy thing about my journey that thoroughly fascinates me is that I am not alone. Not by a long shot. Unbeknownst to me, while previously locked away in my restrictive albeit lovely corporate dungeon, there were movements stirring up all over this country of people just like me; itinerant travelers, creative activists, artists, musicians, writers, minimalistic gurus, environmental enthusiasts...all choosing to eschew the propped up, unsustainable, completely ridiculous, corporatized food and farming, politicized, whitewashed, wholly unattainable for 99% of the country, version of the American "dream".
And, there it is...a growing number of the populace are throwing off the mantle of mortgages, car payments, credit card debt, hatred, polarization, and more. They are ridding themselves of that grand albatross, "The American Dream", that has been wringing them by the neck, and they are gleefully, as am I, bursting the material bubble.
That's right! They are out there, willfully poking thousands of pins in the guaranteed future bubble of capitalism with reckless abandon.
They are building tiny homes, living off the grid, buying produce from local farmers, working for themselves, joining co-ops, forming communities where neighbors barter and trade for goods or services, where quality overrides quantity, and compassion trumps greed.
Yes, it sounds a bit like a hippie utopia from the 60's, only no offense to the hippie generation that I came in on the tail end of, believe me you are my icons!...but, these defectors of the 21st century are some of the best and brightest, 6 figure salary executives who depart after years of loyal service to volunteer in Africa, India, or poverty stricken neighborhoods that exist everywhere in America's affluent 1%'ers "backyards".
As this nation, and indeed the world seem to teeter on the precipice of the next age of humanity, a chasm of immense proportions has split open wide to divide us. And, while there are many factions that comprise this split, the bulk of it comes down to whether compassion trumps greed or greed trumps compassion.
Often, I have seen that when an individual comes face to face with another individual then choosing compassion for that living breathing being before you is easier than when it becomes an esoteric, theoretical policy discussion. If there is not a face that 'we' relate to, often the issue ceases to exist in our world. We, as a society, seem to have collective, selective participation syndrome which links heavily with the "not in my backyard" belief.
As I come to the close of this rambling dissertation about the material bubble on the eve of Dr. Martin Luther King Day, I wonder what his views would be on the rampant, and often brutal consumerism that seems to have humanity firmly in its grasp? How far it seems we have come from his lessons of dignity, honor, compassion, and love. How much farther will we be driven to go before we hit rock bottom devoid of all feeling?
I, for one, am going to keep my pin at the ready so that whenever possible I can poke a little whole in that ever present material bubble. After all, technology is part of my industry, and I prefer life with my iPad, and phone...but, not a new phone every year, and not a different color case for every outfit. And maybe, just maybe, I will drive the same car, judiciously for another 15 years. Or, move somewhere that I can dust off my bike, walk just a little more often. And, maybe, just maybe, one day we will all live off the grid with a tiny plot of land, utilizing sustainable materials, eating sustainable food, with cleaner air, less modified food, a higher level of camaraderie, connection to our neighbors, and all will be right with the world.
A girl can dream, right? :-) Yes, 'we' can!