Our Deepest Values

In my latest blog for Sevya I discussed the importance of loving rituals in our lives and how fair trade products could be understood in this context. Now I would like to piggyback on these ideas by discussing values that underlie expressions of love in our lives.

When we stop to think about it there are deep reasons why we automatically create loving rituals for our children, for others we love and for ourselves. When we value others deeply we tend open ourselves to what they need. As our understanding of our loved ones’ needs grows, so does our ability to be creative with our love. We create playful, joyous spaces where needs can be met; and we feel the benefits ourselves as we create these spaces. It feels wonderful to give. Compassion opens our hearts and we are much more appreciative of life’s beauty, more open to change, more creative with others and with ourselves.

So have we answered the question yet? Why do we work so hard to create loving rituals for those we love, including ourselves? Different people may come up with different answers to this question. For me, there seems to be a sense of value operating at the deepest levels of my consciousness. One may call it instinctual, but I would also say that, very often, I feed this sense of value with conscious thoughts. From the moment I held my newly born son in my arms I felt a deep attachment, a sense of wonder, and a powerful commitment to keep him safe and give him what he needs. Together with this instinctual bond my experiences have informed me along the way.

From the beginning, as I learned more and more about how to fulfill my role as a father, I was confronted with plenty of social norms, resources, advice, and opportunities to watch other fathers. Importantly, I also had my experiences as a child to draw on. I grew up with eight siblings, two of which were not so far in age from me. We routinely created games to play that came from our imaginations. For one small example, at our grandfather’s cabin we made up a game where we would kick a ball high up into the branches of the giant oak trees, trying to catch it after it bounced downwards unpredictably from branch to branch.

Today, my five year old son benefits from the fact that I grew up with an abundance of loving, creative play spaces to help me grow. He naturally draws out my creative, playful side, knowing that I will usually play along and that we will probably come up with some kind of loving ritual of our own design or of our own interpretation. It is not hard to notice how my son has become better and better at creating his own engaging activities. He tends to stay quite focused and purposeful as he plays games of his own design. His curiosity and playful spirit carry him into all sorts of new understandings and experiences.

I have gone this far into explaining how love rituals work in my fatherly experiences in order to approach a broader question: what are the sources of our deepest values? Also, why do we so often operate in ways that are counter to our deepest values? Can we redirect ourselves in more alignment with our deepest values? As far as I can see, people develop their healthiest relationships in their world in ways similar to a parent’s development with their children. This relates well to our mission at Sevya because we intend to promote the healthiest possible relationship between consumers and producers of our retail and wholesale fair trade products. We intend to promote a healthy sense of value in our products. From our end, we strive to create healthy conditions for the artisan communities who produce the goods.

The nine fair trade principles adhered to by Sevya summarize how these values are maintained. I have revisited these few tangible examples of love rituals in order to inspire our customers to look into their own deepest values as they consider purchasing items. Sevya would like to promote a deep and concrete understanding of how important fair trade practices are for the artisan communities who produce our goods. This is exactly why I am drawing the comparison to love rituals in parenting. Sevya strives to inspire customers to think of values that every bit as tangible and important as those parents refer to as they raise their children, and every bit as real as values we employ when we create loving rituals for our own personal health and peace of mind. We want to inspire a sense of loving compassion for the artisan communities that are striving to create sustainable livelihoods. Rather than blindly ignoring the effects of our purchases, can we develop compassionate, loving relationships as we consider our purchases?

Sevya’s commitment to the fair trade principles ensures that customers truly can help make positive changes in the world through their purchases of our retail and wholesale scarves, bedding, décor, jewelry and gifts. Do you want to express your deepest values in such a way?

Jerry Rasch writes for Sevya as a part-time, but full-hearted pursuit.