November 17, 2021

What is Conscious Living All About?

Have you discovered Conscious Living? I’ve become a fan of this new PBS program, created and hosted by joyfully thoughtful Bianca and Michael Alexander who take us along on their progressive journeys as mindful people. Their travels across the country and around the world embrace our daily connections to the land, our food, good health, and spiritual renewal that unite cultures.

Recently, they joined us from their eco-conscious hotel room in California where they’re taping an upcoming program (they share camera recording; Michael edits). CTG host John Hart Asher and I wanted to know, “What is Conscious Living all about?”

Bianca explains: “For us, it’s all about honoring where the plants came from, honoring Mother Earth. And we both love plants. My mom was a green thumb. Michael’s a green thumb, and plants are something that are worthy of protecting. And it’s something that we can do by being more aware of how we’re moving to the world, how we’re traveling through the world, how we’re being with each other. So Conscious Living is really about highlighting the journey towards being a more mindful human and coexisting with planet earth in a way that supports and sustains everyone and everything, while also hopefully having a good time.”

It was on their Bali honeymoon that they germinated the program’s concept. “How do we take care of this place that we live and also take care of each other because they really go hand in hand?” they wondered.

Like many great ideas (and gardens), it didn’t come together overnight. One step at a time, as they grew together as young marrieds and ideas coalesced, they knew they wanted to address lifestyle concerns that weren’t yet mainstream on broadcast programs. So, they launched their series as online-first. In summer 2021 they debuted on PBS.

To heighten our spiritual awareness and physical well-being, they weave together nature, yoga, music, meditation, dance, and vegan meals. A healthy lifestyle “does go hand-in-hand with the spiritual path because, you know, when your body is healthier and your mind is clearer it does make it easier to meditate,” Bianca says.

In Living Zen, we join them at the peaceful, productive Green Gulch Farm Zen Center in California’s Marin County. Farm, garden, and hospitality apprentices gain hands-on experience and an opportunity to engage with Buddhist practices. Their reverence for the soil and its gifts grounds us deeply into what gardening is truly all about.

Essential to Conscious Living is reflective engagement with the outdoors, from woods to water and mountains to deserts. “Just the sound of nothing is such a powerful place to be. . . And the best place to find it is in nature. That’s one of the things that many spiritual paths talk about is that power of silence,” Michael says.

So, why did they choose to go both local and global? “It just kind of opens up a sense of, I think, brotherly love and unity to realize—despite the fact that we have different skin colors, different genders, different religions—there is a universal commonality,” Bianca notes. “You know, we all want to live well and be seen, and find people that support us, and have a good time, and eat good food. And, you know, just be happy and healthy. And there’s something very connecting about that.”

Check out their website for their story, program trailers, and to dive into their personal and very personable blog where they share intimate stories about their journeys.

Facebook and Instagram: @consciouslivingtv
Twitter: @conscioustv

Check your local program listings or watch on PBS online and with the PBS app.

Watch their story now!

Thanks for stopping by! Linda

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