http://www.karmatube.org/ KarmaTube is a collection of short, 'do something' videos coupled with simple actions that every viewer can take. Our mission is to spread the good. Thank you for your partnership in service. eng inspiration, wisdom, spiritual, service, video eng karmatube@charityfocus.org 2013-05-23 08:30:25 <p>O, the maddening tedium of the everyday responsibilities of adult life!</p> <p>It plagues us because, when traversing a landscape all-too-familiar and all-too-disappointing, the "default setting" of our mentality is to feel victimized by circumstance. We place ourselves in the center of the universal narrative, making the plot-line all about our own misery.</p> <p>In this video, which animates exceprts of his 2005 commencement address at Kenyon University, novelist David Foster Wallace speaks about personal empowerment in the often stultifying world of responsible adulthood. The freedom comes from an open-minded awareness of the possibility that there are less self-centered, complex, and gladdening narratives spinning around you -- even in the most frustrating situations. "It will actually be within your power to experience a crowded, hot, slow, consumer-hell type situation as not only meaningful, but sacred, on fire with the same force that made the stars: love, fellowship, the mystical oneness of all things deep down," he advises. "Not that that mystical stuff is necessarily true. The only thing that's capital-T True is that you get to decide how you're gonna try to see it."</p> http://www.karmatube.org/videos.php?id=4032 Fri, 17 May 2013 00:00:00 -0700 Children can be powerful change agents. Undaunted, persistent, energetic, creative, and unafraid of adopting new technologies, they can sometimes succeed in tackling entrenched problems where adults have repeatedly failed. Amlan Ganguly understands this dynamic very well. Meet Shikha, Salim, and Priyanka, the bright-eyed kids Ganguly empowers to tackle serious, endemic health problems in their Kolkata slum. "We call ourselves 'The Dakabuko', which means 'the courage of a daredevil'," says Salim, "because to work here, you need courage." The team is more than intrepid; it radiates hopefulness. http://www.karmatube.org/videos.php?id=3825 Fri, 10 May 2013 00:00:00 -0700 Can we see the economic crisis not as a disaster, but as a tremendous opportunity? Centered around this provocative inquiry, Money and Life is a feature length film that offers a new story of money based on an emerging paradigm of planetary well-being that understands all of life as profoundly interconnected. This cinematic odyssey takes us on a journey, from the origins of money to connecting the systemic dots on the current global financial crisis and how we got here. It is a tapestry of beautifully shot expert interviews woven with compelling vignettes of individuals and businesses consciously transforming their relationship with money. Together with dynamic animation, an original music score and an elegant voice of narration, the film tells a new story of money, but more broadly it tells a new story of humanity with a touch of humor and a lot of heart. http://www.karmatube.org/videos.php?id=4002 Fri, 03 May 2013 00:00:00 -0700 Thomas Weller sows seeds of kindness on the freeways of San Diego, California. A mechanic by training, Weller stops to help stranded motorists with flat tires, overheated engines and other roadside crises. Ask him why he does this, and he will hand you a card that reads: "Assisting you has been my pleasure. I ask for no payment other than for you to pass on the favor by helping someone else in distress that you may encounter." http://www.karmatube.org/videos.php?id=3657 Fri, 26 Apr 2013 00:00:00 -0700 Have you ever considered the amount of waste generated by even a small party using disposable plates and utensils? 14 year-old Tomas Lang has. He discusses the simple solution he implemented at his school to make community meals and special events more ecologically sustainable -- a strategy you can use for your Earth Day party on 22 April. http://www.karmatube.org/videos.php?id=3765 Fri, 19 Apr 2013 00:00:00 -0700 Love is a funny thing. As the saying goes, we often find love when we least expect, but it might be equally true that when we do find love it's different than we expected. This beautiful short film was created to raise awareness and money for a good cause, which it did. But it has gone so much further in showing us what love looks like, and how we can connect with each other when we have the courage to break down our own walls and become vulnerable. http://www.karmatube.org/videos.php?id=2178 Fri, 12 Apr 2013 00:00:00 -0700 South Central Los Angeles is a food desert - an area filled with liquor stores, fast food chains and vacant lots. Tired of driving 45 minutes to buy food that is not chemically treated, Ron Finley decided to turn some of those unused plots, starting with the patch in front of his house, into a food forest. With obesity rates 5X higher in South Central than in Beverly Hills, a neighborhood only 8 to 10 miles away, Finley realized that food is the problem, but is also the solution. "The drive-thrus are killing more people than drive-bys." Finley and a group of volunteer gardeners from all over Los Angeles are changing that, one lot at a time. "Growing your own food is like printing your own money." http://www.karmatube.org/videos.php?id=3875 Fri, 05 Apr 2013 00:00:00 -0700