Loss in Post Collapse America

Timely post for me, Aaron, as I've been particularly doomerish the past couple of weeks.

The Max Keiser on Goldman video made me even more so this morning. I felt overwhelmed and rudderless because it seems that the corruption is so deep, inbred, and systemic that justice will never be served in a civic sense -- via the court system. Though perhaps in a karmic sense someday it will be -- but then that sentiment even brings me down because there's a fine line between justice and revenge fantasies, and I begin to wonder about the true impetus for my own feelings. 

I get through it by trying to remain thankful for what I do have and have experienced -- something made a bit easier to actually live out because I have a six year old daughter who -- being a kid -- is also in need of this simple lesson.

Aaron,

I believe you hit the nail squarely on the head with your questions---and I agree with Rog that this perception of imminent collapse is what so many people are responding to with the accelerating jumpiness, anxieties, squirrelly behavior, etc. Think about the way animals behave before an earthquake? We are facing an economic earthquake with an unknown timeline for the shakedown.

Suggestions are for you (but that can be the rhetorical you, if you want!) These seem like small responses, but I suspect many/most people on this site are already taking on the big ones, from what I have read over the last umpteen months.

Breathe! Breathe deeply. Walk outside somewhere green---it has a calming effect on the human nervous system. Get some daylight. Recognize/acknowledge out loud (verbalize this) that you contribute fully to the extent that you are capable and let go of what you cannot control. No one is responsible for more than they are--and we are all responsible to the nth degree for every iota of what we can and do control (namely ourselves and our own behavior).

Learn something new--something outside your normal comfort zone, preferably. Widens the spirit.

Practice compassion. I remember reading a quote from Outlaws on the Design Frontier by a Buddhist woman who said, "In this world, how can we be anything but heartbroken and very, very kind?"

Play with children. Blow bubbles (remember what I said about learning something outside your comfort zone?)

Write a haiku. Read it to your significant other (or to your dog, if you prefer---or cat, or hamster). We get patterned into left-brained behavior, don't we? Give your left brain a break.

Bake some bread. Share it. Eat it slowly. Connect.

The world will go where the world is going -- we can prepare, we can change our circumstances to some degree or not, but our strategic response is based on our attitude and that demands replenishment of your heart and spirit on a regular basis, just like we water our garden when it doesn't rain.

Who was the tactical trainer who said something like, "Two people are lost in the woods. One of them has no skills or survival training, but has a strong, positive attitude. The other one has been fully trained in survival but has a bad, fearful attitude. I guarantee the person with the positive attitude is the one who is going to walk out of there."

We have met the woods. Now we walk.

best,

juli

Live in the moment.

It's is all we have, and all we've ever had. We spend too much time thinking about what was, or what will be that we miss all that there is.

Open your eyes with childlike joy at the miracles that surround you, the beauty of the sunset, the industry of a bee, the wonder of a spider spinning it's web, the grace of the eagle, and the power of the buffalo, the strength of an old Oak tree, they were here before you and will be around long after you've passed, and few take time to actually see them. They don't worry about what will be, we can learn from that, We do not know what we do not know, so why worry about it?

Life is a journey, not a destination, we all know where that destination lies. Enjoy the journey, plan your waypoints, but the destination was set at your birth.

Now I'll admit that I struggle to live by these ideas, but they are great rules to live by, if you can achieve it.

Aaron,

You are right.  Collapse is upon us.
Most of us here are trying  desparately to use our brains to survive.  Human nature.
We read, listen, study, ponder and then worry until we become despondent.
Okay, maybe not everyone, but many, self included.  In the last two years,
I have read every doomerish book anyone recommended and have gained many
perspectives on collapse, peak oil, sustainability, defense, transitions, permaculture,
evolution, economy, environment, etc., etc.!
Why?  As a retired librarian, I know bibliotherapy works for some....for me.
Amanda ask a good question a few days ago about what 3 books would you
want to have through hard times...can't remember the exact wording.  I should have
added the book ,   Sacred Demise:  Walking the spiritual path; of Industrial Civilation's Collapse
by Carolyn Baker.  This calming book helped me gain footing after One Second After. 

Somewhere I read..... "some people read too many books and too few people".

I have read and admired so many high volume posters here on Dr. Martenson's site.
What you are doing by your thoughtful dialogs is connecting with each other....reading people.
 

Juli said it very well.  Practice compassion and connect....with others, with nature, and with yourself.
Enjoy and be present in every waking moment.

cowgap

When I think about collapse I seem to go through different emotions depending on what filter I'm using and where I feel I am within the 6 stages of awareness. Lately I'm feeling pretty comfortable in the Acceptance stage and most of the time I'm feeling rather prepared for anything. I'm extremely lucky to live far from where I think the real S will HTF and I have means to escape need be.

Where I find myself getting worried or stressed is trying to get family and friends to see what is going on and getting them to make adjustments in their lives.

In a way I have to admit I somewhat look forward to collapse as my old signature used to read "Things need to get worse before they get better." Yes there will be loss and suffering but I try to look at this with a wider lens. Truth is population is out of control and modern life has become environmentally/economically/morally unsustainable and unfortunately nothing will change until we hit rock bottom.

I think the coming collapse is needed for us as a species and we can and will learn a lot from it. Most of us here are already aware of the problems and perils with homo-economicus but the vast majority won't see it until TS that HTF hits them in the face.

I still have a long life ahead of me (31 yrs old) and I don't look forward to living it the way we do now in this doggamn rat race. What I do look forward to is a different kind of society where we can live in closer harmony with nature and still benefit from the advances, benefits and pleasures technology has given us. When I was a kid I used to think the only thing that could ever save this planet was First Contact. Now I think it's collapse.

As long as I can get through the tough times ahead (hopefully in relative comfort) I'm filled with excitement and exhilaration to be here to witness what I hope can be an incredible global transformation.

Excellent post Aaron.  You seem to have a knack of asking a question or making a statement in a way that brings about a good discussion of a subject many of us have thought about.  Thanks friend.

My plan to get through the future is to do what I can to prepare physically as well as mentally.  As most others have, we've been stockpiling food, bought gold, honed skills with firearms, planted gardens, visited the gym 4 days a week and preached to others to do likewise with mixed success.  There is still much to do, but I think the storm is almost upon us.  One area of focus now is mental preparation.  I've always been fascinated by the concept of Zen and am trying to get closer in that regard to where I want to be.  I don't know how those around me will react, but I think I can control how I will react.  One thing I've been practicing with some success is the ability to shut the mind off.  Sometimes I need to stop thinking, stop planning and stop worrying and just experience the current moment.

Several years back, when my father died, I saw first hand how stress affected all of us in the family differently.  Petty issues turned into big arguments over simple things like where to eat dinner.  At the time, I kept telling everyone that was complaining about others that they are just seeing that person's reaction to stress and not to take it personally.  Hopefully, that lesson will help us get through the next couple of years.

I know it may sound wrong, but I'm hoping to find some enjoyment in the coming storm.  If it can be avoided, then I pray we avoid it, but if it cannot, I intend to make the best of the situation.  If we get to the point where having a turkey at Thanksgiving means learning to hunt and spending a couple of days in the field, then it will be enjoyed for the experience it is.  I know there will be situations that I'd not wish on anyone, least of all my own family, but I do think there may be something to be gained in other areas.

Put simply, my plan is to prepare for the worst without ruining our outlook on life, while trying to find and focus on any positive elements of the time we are starting to experience.

Thanks,

Tim

thanks for this thread Aaron

I've found that keeping busy is the best way to avoid thinking too much and getting depressed.  Having two active, healthy, happy teens helps.  My daughter's grad party is tomorrow.  My son is into his 3rd of 4 straight days of baseball and 7th game since last Sat.  Plus, we're helping out with a couple tournaments friends' kids are playing in.  I took my daughter to the new Harry Potter flick last night.  I'm a sucker for the books and movies.  We're cutting and splitting firewood when we have time, I have to install a new gas tank and a safe in the next couple days and we're supposed to be on vacation this coming week.  So, I'm not sitting and contemplating much.  I'm living in separate realities, one the regular flow of life, the other preparing for whatever is coming.  They seem to balance out and keep me focused.  Even though I can trot out the possible parade of horribles, I can't and don't want to escape the present.  Life is pretty good, all things considered.  Enjoy it while we can.

"So, my question is this: 
How do we deal with it? 
No one is immune to the psychological trauma of losing someone they love dearly.
Or to violations, or visions of catastrophe.

As these things build up, and the pressure brings this situation to an explosive level, how do you keep focus amidst the loss? 
What gives solace and strength in times of desperation and sadness?"

Hi Aaron,

Good questions! I too have noticed how things seem to be "speeding up" of late as CM says.  I'm not a particularly spititual or philosophical fellow having pretty much been raised on the value of hard work and getting things done and then followed by a good nights sleep.

But after having gone through a bit of a learning experience the past few years due to my gut feeling that all was not well and then doing the CC last fall I basically had a major "oh s*!$" experience. I can best describe it as realizing that my worst fears were not wild speculation but rather the simple hard facts. These things test one's strength for sure.

Then I began spending time on this site reading your and others posts and that has been invaluable to me. I have been able to take action and piece together a plan of sorts to deal with things.

Interestingly, some of your posts on the Definitive Firearms Thread have helped me answer the questions you have asked today!

How do we deal with it? 
No one is immune to the psychological trauma of losing someone they love dearly.
Or to violations, or visions of catastrophe.

A couple of months ago, after passing out over 100 CC dvds and talking to anyone who would listen, I realized that very little change was actually happening as regards general awareness etc. So I drew a line in the sand and said "That's it. Next week I am going to start delivering the CC on Thursday nights and I am going to continue do so until no one is any longer interested".  The experience and results of doing this I had no idea would be profound for me but it has been!  It has really helped answer the last two questions you asked.

how do you keep focus amidst the loss? -- Activity that builds community and helps others and keeps the focus on positive actions.

What gives solace and strength in times of desperation and sadness?"  --Knowing that one's efforts have helped a few others be better prepared and having made new friends and acquaintences seems to work pretty well.

Hope this helps!  If you have occasion to travel south to bankrupt California let me know. I know of one of the best and most remote fishing holes in the central Sierra.  All native trout!

Coop

Aaron and Others,

I'd like to add another perspective.  My biggest fear is that we will stand down and allow ourselves and families to become victoms of something far worse than a financial crisis.  

Many pundits seem to agree that come this fall, we are going to see another shoe drop.  Though it may be abrupt, the slide will not end there, it will only be one more step in aquescing to long term poverty and tyranny. 

Does anyone still think this is just an accident or the result of negligent incompetence?  We are seeing a plan unfold, yes a conspiracy, to consolidate power and wealth into the hands of an elite few.  If we simply allow this to happen then we are betraying everything that is sacred in life and we will regret that dearly.

Hopefully people will come to realize that we still hold the power of self determination - we can only lose if we give up. I posted some monetary solutions that could help end the fincnaical crisis in another post.  If you doubt that there are viable solutions, please stop by and read Our financial solutions are right in front of us if we take the time to look...   

In the end, it is up to us...will we make a stand?

Larry

Beautiful.

Sager,

I do the same thing.  It's especially hard when it's something like visiting family. 

becky

I'm in the same boat with you guys.  I keep telling my wife that this is like watching the biggest drama of all time unfold and we're actually getting to see it.  I think the biggest issue we as humans have to deal with is fear.  Every negative emotion and every problem in the world is ultimately fear based.  How much can you be afraid if you realize that no matter what you do, some day, no matter what, you're going to die.  Big deal!  Every day I see people work themselves into a tizzy about life issues and it's their fear that affects them more than anything else.  The death that will come though is only a physical one.  The spiritual me goes on, no matter what, forever.  Pain, hunger, thirst, heat, cold, whatever, can't affect me in an eternal sense.  They can only affect my body, not my soul.  I have to say I find it amusing that the spiritual is a forbidden topic here when the entire situation is a spiritual issue at its very core.    

I've got my Gs in line (goods, garden, gold, guns, and, for me, most importantly, God) and whatever happens after that happens.  And quite frankly, I don't think there's going to be a collapse of the sort that many people here envision.  Life goes on.  Whether empires fall or plagues or famines devastate, life goes on.  Look at modern Hiroshima.  Look at the British Empire.  I do think that there is a high probability of a global conflagration within a 10 year period of the bottom of this economic crisis based on historical patterns.  But just as a forest fire burns out the dead wood and sets the stage for new healthier grow, in the same way, I look at what's coming not like an end of things as we know it but a rebirth for a world which will be better than the old one.  Cheer up, it's not that bad unless you want it to be.  

Your story makes an excellent point.  You can place someone in a hypnotic trance, place a drop of cool water on their skin, tell them it's boiling water, and their skin will raise a blister!!!  Most people don't realize that their very worst enemy (and conversely, their very best friend) is their own mind.

I too have been doing this.  Sometimes it has a calming effect, other times it is depressing.  Either way, I try to shut the mind off and just absorb the experience.  Last month while at a race at Mid-Ohio, I took hundreds of photos, not only of cars, but of the people watching the race.  I could not help thinking that most of them have no idea how rare an event like that will be.

I think that is what depresses me at times.  The thought that there is time to prepare, but sooner or later that time will run out and for most people, it will be too late to start preparing.  It will be very difficult for many and will be for no other reason than their belief that the government will not let this happen.

Other times though, I just enjoy the experience as much as possible and try to remember as much as I can.

Tim