I AM
BECAUSE WE ARE
SUMMARY FOR REALLY BUSY PEOPLE ;-)
I am because we are, is the meaning of Ubuntu, an African philosophy, that feels like the most natural way of being and living, to me. Before I knew this, I have struggled a lot with our unnatural way of living (especially in the west, where I live). But… through it all, I have always managed to see the human in everybody, I can even see the pure potential in everybody. I guess that is one of my natural gifts.
That has been the case in all walks of my life: during my 22 years of corporate experience, my 9 years of entrepreneurial experience and my 55 years of experience as an eternal student of life.
In this Decade of Transformation, that we are in, I fully dedicate my work (and my life, for that matter) to creating a better world, for the wellbeing of all, in service to our future generations. I have a strong belief, or one could call it a vision ;-), that living a natural life, is THE solution to reconnect the three divides that we are so suffering from, on a global level: the disconnect with ourselves, with others and with the planet.
My biggest source of inspiration is my intuition and indigenous wisdom. Maybe they are the same. I am infinitely grateful, to be alive in this time and to be able to bridge the old and the new, with a backpack full of really ancient and really modern tools, that are integrated and embodied in this human experience, called Vivienne or VivU BuntU.
In whatever walk of life you find yourself, if this resonates with you, I would love to explore and co-create, with ease and joy!
I love diving. I love diving in the oceans, because it makes me really humble towards the earth: as a diver you are a guest in the underwater world, which is two thirds of our whole world. I am very much aware of that and the fact that we, as humans can have a tendency to overrate ourselves, thinking we are the most important living species. I can be totally in awe watching a whale, coral or a seahorse: they are all great teachers in how to treat our surroundings...
I wish that I, and we, would live in a world, where everyone would love nature. A world in which humility would be the first and foremost value, for all of us. Because that would mean, that we would have transitioned to an eco-orientated world, instead of the ego-orientated world, in which we find ourselves today.
I have had that, unconscious, longing, ever since I can remember. The longing for a relaxed world, a human world, in which people can just be who they are. What I now know as: the natural way. The way we are meant to be. Our essence.
But, like most people, that is not the world that I grew up in. I have mostly felt an alien…not understanding many concepts in our ‘modern’ world, like winning, competition, ambition, achievements, success. I was not judging them (until my early twenties, that is ;-)), but I just didn’t feel anything for them. And that (non) feeling has created many upsets and many blessings in my life….
I stumbled my way through life, until I felt a strong call to travel to New Zealand. I was 27. I was about to embark on a life changing journey of 7 weeks, at the other end of the world.
In my book, Living Natural Law, I elucidate on the impact of this event for the remainder of my life’s journey. Here, I would love to share one thing with you, though: the moment I met Garth…… A man, double my age, who had left his successful job as an architect, sold his house, bought a boat and lived a free life. When he was not spending time on his boat, he lived in, what we now call, a tiny (tiny, tiny) cabin at a camping ground. A few square meters with mainly books and music records. I had never seen an adult, adult-adult for me at that time, that was so happy the way he lived. One day, he took me sailing, I caught my first fish, that we bbq-ed on the boat and ate with some cream crackers. It is still the best snapper, I have ever had, even at my 55th year of being on this planet, the same age that Garth had back then.
In the 15 years that followed, during which I tried to fit in, in all kinds of systems, Garth often crossed my mind.
Why do we, humans, all follow the same path?
Why do we run around, chasing things we don’t even know why we are chasing them for?
By the time I was 40, I didn’t have the answers, but my body decided not to conform to the ratrace anymore and I found myself in a burnout. Time to reinvent myself. Which I did. Yet it took another 7 years for me, to have the courage to do what Garth did… choose for my inner wisdom and what I was ‘instructed’ to do and be. I really can’t take credit for anything that happened, during that time, as it was all guided by…my intuition? It was guided. And it was crystal clear, I was meant to make myself available as an entrepreneur and be of service to a wider world than my corporate surroundings. And so I did.
I am still miss Transformation, as during the 22 years I have spent in corporate life. But the transformation powers are geared towards a different goal: a better world for our future generations.
Wherever I see an opportunity to weave and co-create transformative experiences, I will do so.
In the past 7 years, I have had the honor to learn from various indigenous tribes by spending time with them, Being with them. That acknowledged, and re-anchored, a deep inner knowing. I would love, especially for the young generation, that nobody in our current world, needs to wait until the autumn of their lives to be encouraged, and feel empowered, to live the natural way ;-).
I wish everybody could and would live their full potential.
To me, life is a gift. And living and giving the best of ourselves, our true nature, is what we’re meant to do or better…be. I am fully dedicated to guiding and inspiring people to be the best they can be: your true Self. The person you are meant to be. I believe that is the biggest favour we can do to ourselves, our communities and our planet as a whole.
So if you feel there is more in you, your purpose is calling or there has been this longtime desire of living a more meaningful life, I invite you to have a look if my book Living Natural Law and/or my services resonate with you. I love co-creating in the field of consciousness, sustainability, leadership and future generations.
All in for radical transformation and radical co-creation!
There is another reason why I love diving. I believe that human beings are like the world: only a small part (even less than a third) is what you see and the most interesting part is under the waterline. The more people become conscious of that and start understanding their own behaviour, purpose and values, the more people will live their own truth and walk their paths.
And I think that is what the world needs.
Living Natural Law is a book about living a more connected, more simple life, integrating consciousness as a more sustainable way of living.
A book, connecting ancient wisdom and future generations.
A book about our lives as a, somewhat messy, learning space.
A book about how to connect to ourselves, others and our Planet.
A book about how we could also treat the Earth and other Human Beings.
To remember our original way of Being.
I hope it inspires you with the shifts that are part of my story:
Corporate Life, From fighting the system to developing Compassion for All
Family Life, From struggling to meet expectations to stepping into Imperfect Perfection
Earthly Life, From feeling at home in nature to collaborating with Mother Earth
Spiritual Life, From seeking spiritual satisfaction to surrendering to Soul Purpose
Natural Life, From feeling at home everywhere but home to learning to Live Natural law in every eternal Now moment
Let’s dream our future together!
that people, all over the world, live a natural life
that Living Natural Law will spark a movement of people living a connected life: with themselves, others and Earth
that we build a healthy relationship with our Earth, in which we only take what we (really) need, living the Golden Rule
that we realize we all ARE nature and that we are all the same
that we feel empowered to act in our own little world, trusting that is what the whole world needs
that we practice compassion, humility and the other grandfather teachings wherever and whenever we can
that we honor our indigenous custodians of Earth by listening, seeing and learning…co-creating together
that we honor our Earth by giving it rights: rights for Nature
that we serve our future generations by being the best ancestors we can
that we reach out to each other with an open mind and open heart, to, together, create a better world
that this sparks our collective shift from an egocentric to an ecocentric way of living