John Francis the Inspirator

    There's a saying, "We have 2 ears and a mouth, try to use it evenly or accordingly."  John Francis takes listening to an all new extreme and chooses a vow of silence, in hopes of learning from others.  While silent he managed to earn a Ph.D in Land Management and traveled by walking across the entire lower 48 states.  After only watching this random video of him, I was inspired and will continue too look up more interesting videos that he has done. The quotes are from near the end of the video.

     John Francis refused to travel in motorised vehicles after watching two oil tankers collide into each other back in the 70′s. He made a decision to stop talking for one day after spending years arguing with people over the environment.

That one day of silence turned into two days, three days….and then 17 years of silence!

In his TED talk, he discusses what he discovered by listening to others and walking the earth.

Start at 16:20 on video.

      "So I realize I had the responsibility to more than just me.  I was going to have to change. You know we can do it. I was afraid to change, because I was so used to the guy that only just walked. I was so used to that person. That I didn't want to stop. I didn't know who I would be, but I know I needed to change because it would be the only way I could be here today. I know that a lot of time we find ourselves in this wonderful place where we have gotten to, but there's another place that we got to go that we have to leave behind the security of who we have become and go to the place of who you are becoming. So I want to encourage you to go to that next place to let yourself out of any prison that you may find yourself in, as comfortable that it may because we have to do something now, we have to change now.  As former vice president said we have to become activist." John Francis 

       "If we are all part of the environment, then how we treat each other is our first chance to live in a sustainable way," he said. "Make the first step and just keep on until we change and the world changes around us." John Francis