(This photo and the one below were taken on our trip out West last summer to the Grand Canyon and Bryce Canyon.)

Spiritual Ecology is the realization that all forms of reality, from the densest material forms (Earth=Body) to the most subtle spiritual forms (God=Spirit) are the same. The only difference between the spiritual and the material is that the material form from the molecules are closer together (denser), whereas in the spiritual form the elements are farther apart and are therefore harder to find (more subtle). This topic is one to which those of us who are interested in the survival of the planet must address ourselves. It is the consciousness that our environment is nothing other than ourself and that working for the goal of a healthy planet is absolutely related to our well-being.

Many of us realize that the caring and maintenance of a safe, peaceful earth is essential to life. Do we see the relationship of our body (the home of our soul) to our earth (the home of our body)? Our bodies have blood and the earth has rivers. Our bodies have bones and the land has minerals. Our bodies have skin and the world has soil. Our bodies have hair and the earth has grass and weeds.

All beings on this planet are part of one family. We all trace our ancestry back to the same source ultimately. Just as in a family there can be harmony and peace only when there is a sense of loving, caring and sharing among all the members, so the answers to our problems, on a world level or a community level, will appear when we treat all people as if they are our relatives, accepting them with love and having concern for the well-being of all.

How is it possible to help people who live in other parts of the world or who we have not yet met? Simply by living a life of individual and local conscious ecology. If there are people hungry anywhere on the planet, then we who have food must eat lower on the food chain to provide more for those who have less or none. Happiness and serenity cannot be realized through material possessions, which merely gratify the organs of sensory perception and the ego. So perhaps our values should change from acquiring more for ourselves to a philosophy of sharing and serving those citizens of our global family who are in need. (Not from Ellen Sue: There are many people already doing this.)

We ought to follow the examples of those beings on the planet who treat the earth as if it were their very own body, with gentleness and gratitude. This brings us to the idea of the meditative process, which lowers the requirements of our needs: less food, oxygen and space, and therefore allows us to create less of a burden on the resources available. As one draws into oneself, one discovers the renewable source within, through a connection with the supreme. These conscious people can be trusted to heal the planet and lead us onward to a holistic-holy ecological universe.

Note: This article by Arthur Baral first appeared in Vegetarian Voice, the publication of the North American Vegetarian Society. Check out their website www.navs-online.org for more information on vegetarianism, especially their annual Summerfest in Pennsylvania. While this essay was published back in 1981, like Silent Spring by Rachel Carson (See my review of her groundbreaking book in Reviews), it is perhaps even more relevant today than when it was first written. Also, I put in bold the phrases that I thought needed special emphasis.

On February 12th, 2003, I met the man who was to become my second husband. After 30 years of marriage and 13 years of being single, I took the plunge again, becoming engaged at 65 and marrying one year later. All I can think of is that classic movie with Katherine Hepburn and Sir Lawrence Olivier: Love Among the Ruins and what I thought were perhaps foolish thoughts about marriage in our “golden years” just slip away.

Rhymes always come to me when I am either troubled or happy. They seem to clear my mind. So I am sharing two rhymes I wrote while in the “romantic ruins” with Alan. This is not to say that marriage, even the second time around, is a bed of roses, because roses, after all, have thorns. Rather, I want to share with you that romance is possible at any age, even when you are on Medicare!

So if you are a single senior and like it that way, great! But if you are still seeking a partner, don’t give up. Remember, there’s a lid for every pot!

This is a picture of my husband Alan & me. He plays gold all year round, so he’s tan all year ’round. Actually, he says that all he needs is a 200 watt bulb!

(I was inspired to write this because my husband works as a legal assistant in a law firm. It was written while I was still living in State College and seeing Alan on week-ends in Philadelphia.)

Missing you is like missing ME,
‘Cause part of you is now part of We.

The part of ME that’s part of YOU
Is faraway, what can we do…

But keep that YOU inside of ME
Until WE meet again and see

That all are parts are reunited
Tossed and turned ’cause we’re excited

To be a part of ONE ANOTHER
No need to hide under the cover.

Because now WE’RE the party of the first part
Holding tightly as we each share our heart.

So missing you is like missing ME
‘Cause now we know “It’s got to be WE.”

(I used to put mini-rhymes in Alan’s pocket before I would return to State College or he would return to Philadelphia. Here’s one I wrote while on the bus to see Alan and later put into his shirt pocket.)

Just think if we had never met
We’d still be surfing on the ‘Net.

But now are lives are interfaced
Our lonely hearts are now love laced.

I know I’m yours when we are kissing;
You’re worth the wait, worth the missing.

My ETA* is almost here and soon I will be very near.
As the distance does disappear, I hold our love, so dear, so dear.

* Estimated Time of Arrival