If you have been trying to grocery shop the last few months, you know how different things are now from two years ago.
Many people used to be able to plan out their meals for the
week, go to the store and get what they needed, which helped them to stick
to a budget.
That is not possible now. You never know from one week to
the next if prices will go up. You never know from what day to the next, what
will actually be in stock. Gas prices in Vancouver have been the most expensive
in North America, so trips to the store are necessarily limited.
Shopping now requires a new way of thinking. You have to go,
see what is in stock and make purchases accordingly. If I spot something I know
I use on a regular basis, I will get it right away, especially dry goods. I
have to work with what is currently available. I may have to consider
alternatives to get the nourishment my body requires, or find something new and
different.
This can be applied in other areas, where we face similar
challenges.
We can look to the past to see what was applicable at that
time. What were the goals and methods used to reach those goals? Were they successful?
What lessons did we learn? How best do we move forward?
In these fast changing and unsettling times, we cannot necessarily
rely on the past for the answers to the problems of today. We are challenged to
move forward, not backward, and hopefully, not just stand still. We are in the midst
of the breaking in of a brave, new world.
We have to find new ways of thinking and doing that will
move us into the future; a future, hopefully, of kindness and compassion. We
have to plan for a living legacy. When we can consider a situation objectively,
and look at things from different points of view, new possibilities can present
themselves.
I believe this holds true, economically, socially,
politically, and in our religious life.
In studying the works of Rudolf Steiner, we can deepen our
understanding of the how, what, where, when and why of current events, and of
how to begin to address these questions.
I currently read an astounding statement by Dr. Steiner:
Our ancestors were our own souls in other bodies.
We know through the incredible work of Dr. Steiner that our souls have
gone through many incarnations, and will continue to do so, in order that we
may continue to evolve. The Christ Event, as he explains, does not preclude
this fact. Rather, the Christ points the way as to how we can continually
strive onwards and upwards.
Sparky
