There are more than one way to look at “idealism” and “the ideal life”. I always strive to fulfill my ideals, to reach my goals of how I view my ideal life to be. Being consistent is important. First and foremost to be true to yourself, but also because you don’t get any credibility or respect from others if you aren’t. The problem is, if you search long and hard enough, extremly few people are truly consistent.
“How can you use a PC when you are so focused on the environment?”
“What’s the point of not eating meat - you kill insects every day by just walking!”
On a more realistic level, I do agree about the incosistency of preaching about animal welfare and being vegetarian if one eats meat every now and then. Or saying one hates caged animals when one has a rat or mouse in a cage sitting next to ones couch. But I have lately come to understand idealism - and thus consistency - a bit differently. (Much credit goes to my significant other for this, he was the one who made me aware of seeing these issues in a new perspective).
Idealism can be just that – the ideal. Meaning that the ideal might be a goal that is unreachable, either because it is not possible or because one doesn’t want to reach it. But it is a goal to strive towards. It can, of course, also be a reachable goal, but it is still in the future.
So, let’s say that my ideal goal would be to live in the forest, completely self-sufficient, not relying on the indutstrial way of life anymore.
Is that what I really want? Is it even possible? The answer to both those questions are: I don’t know. And I am far from living that way now anyhow (if I did, this blog wouldn’t exist, would it?). But having that as an ideal goal to strive towards, I am in a constant process to change the parts of my life that is not keeping with my ideals.
That example might be seen as rather extreme, though. So let me take a more close-to-home ideal that I meet everyday: Not eat industry meat, dairy products or eggs. I am not there yet, as I still buy some products that contain milk, and I buy ecological milk and eggs.
So one could argue the point that I am being inconstent. But I see it more as being in the process of reaching the goal of not eating industrial-produced animalistic food. As long as I am actually in this process, and do not stagnate somewhere, I do not have a problem with it.
This view has made me relax a bit more, and to be at ease with where I am and the choices I make. It has also made me more conscious.
