Happy 2013! I’m looking for signs of a new paradigm, and I have to say, I see them every day. Global consciousness is an unstoppable force, and we know another world is possible.

People everywhere are standing up for universal human rights despite oppression. Global awareness about climate change makes fossil fuels seem so 20th century, and people are rising up in all kinds of ways to defend the planetary atmosphere from excess carbon. More people are choosing organic food and fair trade products, and making healthy choices in daily life. Workers are finding solidarity, and students are fighting debt. Occupy groups all over the country are raising awareness and creating cooperative infrastructure with local churches, providing relief for disaster recovery and ongoing conditions of poverty. Peace is here if we want it.

Social media are giving us ways to connect that were never possible before. We can freely learn and share with people all over the world. Facebook gives us a way of archiving memories and comments with friends and family. Twitter expresses our collective tidbits of conversation and information as a global community. We are learning to think as one people on one planet, but we continually discover that nothing replaces face-to-face communication.

To feel truly connected, we need be in the same place together. Find your spiritual family by looking for people with a clue. Meet in circle often, weekly if possible. Read the Cleu Book and celebrate your human rites of drum, song, and story, music, art, and dance. Share resources to develop your spiritual community, and together, be the clue to a new paradigm.

As darkness becomes dawn, the longest night gives way to longer days in the return of the light. According to the ancient Mayan calendar and other prophecies, the 2012 winter solstice marks a transition, the end of a cycle, a paradigm shift from the old to the new. We are called to witness the birth of a new world.

We have come a long way, baby. We have freed ourselves from tradition and defined ourselves as individuals. The capitalist culture treats us as consumers, marketing desire and greed, spreading a mass media version of reality, a zombie shopocaplyspe. We live in a world of human-caused wonders and disasters. Global consciousness is awakening. We know that we have changed the climate, collapsing the stable conditions that have supported both civilization and biodiversity for thousands of years. The planet is warming, bees are dying, great cities are flooding, and a young man shoots down children in a massacre-suicide. We are stunned, but we must confront our shadows. We must act on behalf of our existence as a conscious species on a living planet.

Now is the time to reflect on your vision of a world you choose to live in. How will you claim your spiritual identity and live by your values? Remember that you are greater together. Look for people who have a clue. Keep in mind that everyone has a clue, but not everyone wants to know. Find people who are clue-seekers and human rites guides. Get a space where you can gather in circle weekly. Take time to celebrate and grieve, share and serve. Practice our human rites of music, art, drum, dance, song, story, and circle. Build up your community infrastructure so that you can meet the new paradigm with open arms.

Let us join together to preserve Life and affirm Consciousness on the Earth. It’s up to you, fantastic speck of stardust that you are!

You are the Cleu.

Hurricane Sandy speaks to us as Earth– as wind, rain, and surging ocean. Superstorm Sandy warns us that more global warming means more disasters. Will we listen?

Hurricane Sandy was nicknamed the “Frankenstorm” for being a strange mixture of natural and unnatural parts, creating a terrifying sum. Unprecedented megastorms are increasingly the new normal of living on a warming planet. Bill McKibben says we need to do the math, to stop driving the climate to a future of environmental disaster on what he calls a new kind of planet: “Eaarth.”

As the spokesperson for 350.org, McKibben reminds us that 350ppm of CO2 in the atmosphere is the upper limit for a healthy climate, one capable of sustaining civilization as we know it. Now that we have hit 392ppm, extreme weather events have multiplied all over the planet, from wildfires and droughts, to hurricanes and floods. Warmer air holds more water, and warmer oceans give storms more energy. Physics and chemistry dictate the cost of human greed for cheap energy and great profits. As people with a clue, we respect the scientific consensus on the human causes of global warming, and we commit to creating a more sustainable future.

Despite the human suffering caused by extreme weather events, we can all appreciate how community comes together in emergencies. Witness the depth of altruism that exists among human beings. We truly love each other despite our differences. People who go through hard times find all kinds of ways to help each other. The spirit of giving renews our faith in Consciousness. We are the Cleu!
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Instead of the usual experienced athlete, seven teenagers with potential lit the Olympic cauldron at the London 2012 Olympics. From the Olympic torch, they passed the flame to 204 petals representing all the nations competing in the Olympics. When the petals were raised, they formed one glorious blossom, shining as One.

We are all Olympians. Reflect on those moments when synchronicities occur, patterns or coincidences that seem like magic, except that they are part of the fabric of the universe. Envision a piece of medieval chainmail, a rippling metal fabric made of interlocking circles. When we connect, synchronicities happen. Meeting in circle and connecting with other circles provides both power and protection, making us strong, flexible, and resilient. Whether we engage in friendly competition, or cooperate to create a greater harmony, we belong together. When we can do both for the benefit of all, we excel.
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An American Spring is unfolding in Occupy Wall Street actions all over our country. Now is the time to deepen our commitment to nonviolence. We must find creative, humorous ways to send a message. Use catchy, inclusive slogans, inspiring songs and chants, and sincere good will to reach out with compassion to those who are afraid and those who protect for them. Talk to people outside of the movement, and take the time to really listen to their concerns. Focus on rebuilding our communities from the inside out. This takes time, and it means living more cooperatively, reducing consumerism, boycotting unethical corporations, and transforming our democracy so that it serves people, not profits. To counter fear, we must occupy love!

Now is the time to think globally, and act locally. Use the Cleu as a meme that represents a vision of our common humanity. Gather in circle with people who share this vision of who we are and where we come from. We are heading to a new paradigm of At-Onement, but we need to put this idea into practice. Study the Cleu Book to find common ground in our values, rites, and practices. Experience At-Onement in music, art, dance, drum, song, story, and even when chanting and marching together. We are One! By setting an intention, Cleu circles make things happen. As a circle, you can share resources, create networks of connection, and make a difference in your local community. Be the change you wish to see in the world. Be the clue!

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Here at Outpost One, we are following Occupy Wall Street events all over the country. “We are the 99%!” is a message that speaks to all of us. As the CLEU, we are thrilled to see how the Occupy events have created a model of non-hierarchical, decentralized, horizontal organization with open assembly, transparency, and consensus. The occupiers show us what democracy looks like and demonstrate that a better world is possible. People gather to stand against corporate greed and political corruption, and to give voice to their frustration and anger against a system that supports profits over people. Young and old, we will no longer be silent. We are growing hope, and we are not going away. Now is the time to stand up for our planet and its people. As Naomi Klein says, Occupy Wall Street is “the most important thing in the world right now.”

Want to join in the paradigm shift? Get a Cleu and a Cleu book, and then find others who share your vision and values. Meet weekly, contribute to a common pool of resources, and practice consensus. Subscribe to our seasonal email CleuViews, and when you give us your zipcode, we’ll help you find people with a clue. Occupy your community!