Disasters, devastation, hard times and bad times are just the door way to a life that is grander than any of us can image if we make that choice. Look at Japan’s response after having the bomb dropped on it. They came away as a leader in the industrial revolution. Hearing from your doctor that you have a terminal and serious illness or losing a love one are all horrific events. You and I can recount numerous examples of devastating events. But in every case we have a choice of how we move forward. Not moving forward is a bad choice. Having the option to let go of the past and embracing the future is a true gift. It is too bad that it take these travesties for us to realize that gift.

Though in many cases it’s not as horrific as the disaster previously discussed, I believe many of us are living in an opportunity right now due to our economy. It hasn’t been to good for many of us. I believe the punchline is that its not so much a slow in the economy as it is changing course, a new economy so to speak. I don’t believe this is an attack on Capitalism, but rather an attack on Consumerism (and many poor spending habits of both money and natural resources.)

We need to adjust our live to new ways of living and thinking. The old economy, the old industrial revolution of consumerism is taking a huge change of direct. Our challenge is to see if we can flow with it and not to continue trying to swim up stream in a direction that will not render the fruits it once did. We also need to not get discourage when thing don’t work out the first time. We are navigating uncharted waters. There may not be any specific manual on how to navigate these waters. We have an opportunity to learn, evolve, and define our future. The future is ours to build. Our fathers and mothers life styles may not be available to our generation. We would be wise to learn from history and not repeat the excess of the last two decades. This applies to not only our personal financial habits but also our planets limited resources. This is exciting stuff!

It’s time to take charge of our lives. Life choices are not a political problem. This is an individual life choice issue. Stand on your values, just make sure your values are not confused with those hard headed ideas of “well that’s the way its always been done”. Don’t wait on the government, your parents, your spouse, ignite your fire. You’re driving, step on the gas.

Whatever choices you make, have confidence that it will lead you down a path that can lead you to a life beyond your wildest dream.

This is a valuable lesson for us all.

Watch the video, then read on.

I was just watching a show on the Green Planet Channel about Greensburg, Kansas. On May 4, 2007 a Category 5 Tornado struck the town of Greensburg, Kansas wiping out most of the town as you can see from the photo …(more photos).

11 people were killed and 1400 peoples lives were thrown a huge change of direction. The initial devastation of the event can’t be measure in just the millions of dollars or in the destroyed memories that mother nature had decided to claim. Family members were lost or injured. Homes and worldly possession were leveled, twisted, and cast into a pile of rubble.

This left the town’s people with two choices. Wallow in there own self pity and waste time on why is God doing this to them or regroup and come together as a community to rebuild there lives. Fortunately, as is usually the case, the community decide the latter. Not only did they decide to move forward with there lives, they decide to move forward in a way that is environmentally sound. They are rebuilding green, making there community sustainable. What a victory from the jaws of defeat these courageous people have chosen.

Like most residents, City Administrator Steve Hewitt lost his home and everything he owned, but he believed the tornado had a silver lining. “It forced people to make change. It forced people to say, ‘You know what we have is an opportunity unlike any other community gets,’ ” Hewitt said.

A full story on the town of Greensburg is available at  “After tornado, town rebuilds by going green”