I was never one for walking in the already trampled places......

1) What is your purpose? If you had to describe your calling in life, what would you say? What are you here to do? What gift is yours to give to the world?

I am called to love and protect the earth, and to share that love and inspire and help others to do the same.

2) What do you love, and how do (or will) your actions demonstrate this?  What do you care about, and what do you most enjoy doing?

I have, since the time I was a small child, fallen irrevocably in love with the beauty of the natural world.  The woods went from being my playground to being my sanctuary, and without my experiences in the open air I would never have become the person who I am today. I feel that the brokenness in the world today exists because people have lost sight of their roots in the earth and forget to acknowledge it as the ultimate necessity. My greatest passions are two-fold: one, experiencing and protecting the beauty of the earth, and two, bringing peace to the broken places.  I am intrinsically drawn to places many would consider “war zones”, particularly those where fighting is due to conflict over land or other natural resources. I love helping and watching people heal, and helping them do so through reconnecting with the earth. To me there is no greater endeavour than expressing to others my passion for these things and inspiring them to find and confront the need for healing and nature within themselves. I try to do this in every way I know possible – through discussion over coffee, recommending books or movies with related themes, walks in the woods or along the ocean – but first and foremost, through offering myself as a servant to communities with a similar need thereby affecting lives and inspiring others to follow my lead.

3) Write your ideal job description. If you could get paid just to live, how would you spend your time? What would you devote your life to? What would your days be like?

I would work in a community that was self-sufficient, or very nearly so, and that was small enough to the point that I could know nearly everyone and have relationships with them. I would live with people of diverse cultures and backgrounds who were focused on pursuing their passions and loving one another rather than the pursuit of wealth. I would want to work to improve and/or maintain the sustainability of this community. My job would not be all-consuming and leave me time to think, to read, to create, and to spend time with friends or a family.  However, it would give me the opportunity to travel to other communities (and larger cities and governments) to help them to evaluate their own environmental impacts, put into place more sustainable practices, and mediate disputes over resources. It would allow me to work outside some or most of the time and not require an 8am – 5pm workday with me spending its entirety behind a desk at a computer. It would not involve me getting up early. I would have access to some technology, but would not be overwhelmed by its presence. Through travel I would not be confined by the community, but be able to have a variety of experiences elsewhere and use that experience to help my community as well as others.

shalom,

jane