What I Mean by “A Real Green Life”

I'd like to share what the term, "a real green life" means to me and then in a related post (which I'll link to again at the bottom of this one), I'll unpack some of the challenges we face in trying to live a life like this, along with how we might tackle them...

Here's what I mean by "real" and "green."

"Real" means...

For me, "real" has to do with things like...

• Real values - exploring and developing your own values and being guided by them as much as possible.
• The real you - doing your best to find out who you really are. (As opposed to who you think the rest of the world wants you to be.) And making a sincere commitment to be as kind and inclusive toward the real you as you would be toward any one else.
• Real food - growing some of your own and making choices that nourish your family and the land/community that grew the food, as much as you can. 
• Real, clean ways of caring for your self and family - with regards to what to put on your skin, in your body, on the surfaces of your house, and in our soil, air, and water (and what not to).
• Real vs fake - practicing being able to see through the fakes, fads, and quick fixes. Ditching the substitutes and going after what you really need. (For example, real vs fast food; real home-based healthcare vs pharmaceuticals; real in-person hugs, tears, and laughter vs emojis.)

And "green" means...

To me, "green" has to do with making choices that are regenerative, or at least that do as little harm as possible.

In any area of our lives we can ask, is this the most regenerative choice I can make? Or in the absence of a regenerative choice, is this the least harmful action I can take?

The principle applies regardless of what specific thing we're talking about. You might be wanting to minimize harm or restore health to something as small as a single garden bed or to a whole garden or farm, a relationship, your own health... the list can be endless.

What stops us, and what can we do about it?

With that list of definitions in hand, what's stopping us from living this kind of life? What trips us up, from day to day?

In "3 Keys to a Real Green Life," I'll explore three specific things that I think have a lot to do with the mess we find ourselves in, and three ways we can unpack the solution from within the problem.