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tv news as we know it

The 11 pm news came on as I was involved in light paper work. On and on it went about disease, murder, verbal and physical attacks, and vandalism. Keeping abreast of happenings in the world is important, but it’s also important that the news be presented in an unbiased way; that it educate, not disturb; and that the day’s developments not be about sensationalism and stress. If when we watch the news as it’s being presented year after year, and determine that it has enlightened many, and somehow contributed to positive changes, we’d have to agree that the news is worthy of air time. Mostly, however, it seems to bring fear and tension to the lives of viewers. Thankfully, there’s always the off switch. Whew! Peace restored.

Now there are people who have their own tv or radio talk shows whose main purpose is to project anger at, or deride most anyone with views contrary to theirs. Are they necessary? Can’t we think for ourselves? Why listen to them? At one time I tuned in when a certain person began his radio career, then I began thinking that it was all very unpleasant, and stopped. Last year as I got into a taxi, I heard once again the voice of that particular radio personality. Nothing changed; he’s still unpleasant.

The only reprieve on the night I listened to some of the news was the voice of a 90 year old woman being questioned. An arsonist’s hand was at work on the street where she lives causing tragedy. Listening to her was easy though. Her hair was wrapped in rollers, her posture was ramrod straight, there were no tears in her eyes, and her voice was strong as she spoke about the damage to neighbors’ homes. She said she was prepared to vacate her place – just in case. She was on the screen for only a short time, but somehow her presence was a breath of fresh air. I can only guess where her strength comes from.

We know there are great things occurring throughout the world. And should the news become more than what it now is viewers listening would feel more relaxed and grateful to be living in a fascinating world, and perhaps more clarity about issues would result. A mingling of the positive and the negative is important. By this is not meant stories of “celebrities” – their clothes, relationships, marriages, divorces, lifestyles. No. No. Positive news are stories of people going beyond the everyday to a place often read about, and achieved by just a few – although many can join. There’s a whole lot of beauty in the world, and a great many wonderful people. One day should the news media begin to report more expansively on this, the mass consciousness of the world would change. And that can only be a very good thing for all of us. Otherwise, if we’re focused on the worst of things, how will we ever get to the best of things?

We are what we think
All that we are arises with our thoughts.
With our thoughts we make the world. – the Buddha

It is well known that emotions of the soul affect the body and
produce great, significant and wide-ranging changes in the
state of health. Emotions of the soul should be watched
regularly examined, and kept well balanced. – Maimonides, twelfth-century Jewish sage

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octuplets, children of the mountains, the smile train

Watching the unfolding drama of the octuplets recently born to a woman who doesn’t seem to understand what she’s done is difficult. She appears to need protection from herself. I wish we lived in a society where people who are compassionate, well-connected, wise in the ways of the world, and capable of righting a situation that, without intervention, will only get worse could step in. It’s apparent that the tiny babies are in need of help, and lots of love and care is a good start. This country has so many who have much to give. How will the babies thrive without their help? I know this can be said about many babies in the world.

I felt the same way last week when I watched the Diane Sawyer Special: A Hidden America, Children of the Mountains. It’s about families who live deep in the Appalachia Mountains – about their lack of nurturing, lack of education, lack of community, lack of hope, lack of parental guidance, lack of nutritious foods. Most of the parents of these children are addicted to alcohol or prescription drugs. Jobs are few, and most men work in the coal mines. Nothing changes there; it’s been this way for many generations. Their homes are surrounded by garbage. A doctor from India said it’s worse deep in Appalachia country than in some of the poorest places of India.

Some doctors and nurses are changing the lives of many children in a huge way. The movie SMILE PINKI www.thesmiletrain.org tells of kind-hearted doctors who instinctively know how to help others. In India where every year 35,000 children are born with clefts, they’re out searching for these children whose parents are poor and unable to help their children who are generally ostracized from their communities. The Smile Train is there to change all that, and that’s something to smile about. Wouldn’t it be a different world if every child born could be swaddled in love and care. Yes, what if.

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manly p. hall

Recently I read The Secret Teachings of All Ages by Manly P. Hall. It’s not the kind of book you can breeze through, and if you read it before bedtime, you might find yourself awake in the wee hours of the morning – wondering. He offered the book to humanity by these words: “This book is dedicated to the Rational Soul of the World.” Manly P. Hall was called a teacher, a sage, a mystic, a scholar. In The Secret Teachings he discusses Ancient Teachings, Ancient Mysteries, Ancient Philsophers, Secret Societies, how they came to be, how they operated, and what became of them, The Qabbalah, Symbolism, The Cryptogram, Islam faith, Mystic Christianity, Bacon, Shakspere, and the Rosierucians, American Indian Symbolism, and more. www.sacred-texts.com/eso/sta

After reading the last inspiring chapter of the book, I searched the web hoping to find a site that discusses the book and the author. It wasn’t difficult. Here is what one had to say: “. . . To read Hall’s work is to experience a readerly joy rarely associated with ordinary compendiums of wisdom. Its depth, breadth, and detail are, simply put, not ordinary, and not easily understood.” And he continues: “But this much is clear; readers who discover The Secret Teachings of All Ages for the first time today will encounter a book probably unlike any they have seen before. The accomplishment of the Secret Teachings, in part, is that it may be the only serious compendium of the last several hundred years that takes the world of myth and symbol on its own terms.” www.mitchhorowitz.com/manly-p-hall.html

Indeed, and I thought that even though it’s “not easily understood” there’s a wanting to stay with it and continue reading, and to read it again. Manly P. Hall founded the Philosophical Research Society in 1934. www.prs.org www.prs.org/mphbio.htm

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“To avoid a future of war, crime, and bankruptcy, the individual must begin to plan his own destiny and the best source of the necessary information comes down to us through the writings of the ancients.” – Manly P. Hall

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zeitgeist

Zeitgeist – noun, German, the spirit of the times; general trend of thought or feeling characteristic of a particular period of time. Based on the Random House Dictionary

Books have been written about this material age. Now there’s a movie, Zeitgeist. A lot of people have watched it. There are parts of Zeitgeist that offend some, and there are parts that people agree with. Watching Zeitgeist helps us understand the world we live in.

The Energy that created the world – the sunsets, the mountains, the oceans, the rivers, the lakes, the ponds, the valleys, the hills, nature in all its stunning beauty which we’re a part of – didn’t create it for just a few to enjoy, and didn’t create it for just a few to control.

Somehow though we weren’t paying attention and got caught up in stuff – stuff for our amusement, stuff for our bodies, stuff for our homes, we wanted the latest this and the latest that, and as paying credit cards for all the stuff got more difficult, we failed to notice that a few were/are controlling the planet’s resources, that a few were/are making rules and regulations, that a few were/are destroying the earth’s natural resources that are not theirs to tamper with in such a way.

Perhaps now is the time to think about the world as we’ve never done before – to not give ourselves over to things that disempower us and make us fearful, to ignore the nonsense that’s placed before us in the form of “celebrity” worship, to think twice before using scary prescription drugs, to relinquish some of our adult toys, and hours and hours spent on tech stuff, and hours spent watching tv, and to quit wanting and buying a new this and a new that when the “old” is barely out of its box.

Is it time to begin the search for the real power that’s built into our beings? Is now the time to reach out in service to others and to the world? Is it time to figure out how to correct the gross imbalances on the planet which is being overrun with pollutants of many kinds – in our soil, food, water, fish, animals, air, homes, and in our bodies? The list is a long one. The good news is that there’s always a starting point for change and the time is always right..

www.zeitgeistmovie.com and www.thevenusproject.com

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“The universe is transformation; our life is what our thoughts make it.” -Marcus Aurelius

“What is the meaning of life? To be happy and useful.” -His Holiness The Dalai Lama

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The Master Cleanse Experience… aka Lemonade Diet

Well it has been sometime since I have blogged, before the birth of our second baby, Clover Alessandra. This topic, however, has to be blogged about. I started the Master Cleanse diet this past Monday, January 29th, 2008. It is a 10 day(min) fast where you only consume liquids consisting of a lemonade concoction and then do a herbal laxative tea in the morning and evening. I completed this fast once January 2007 with my mother-in-law, Fran. 

What drove me to even consider this craziness was that I was at my wits end with the lack of weightloss from having my first baby, Sebastian. I packed on a hefty 50 lbs with him and had 40 lbs to lose after the baby. I managed to wittle away at it but by the holidays (6months) later I was still 10 lbs heavier and at a plateau. I saw the footage on Oprah about Beyonce Knowles doing the fast to lose weight for her role in “DreamGirls” I thought to myself… I can do that! So when I saw the family at Christmas I mentioned it to Fran and low and behold, she had the actual orginal book The Master Cleanser by Stanley Burroughs.   I was shocked! Apparently she had the book and had always wanted to do the fast but never got around to it.  So it was ON! We decided to start and complete the fast together beginning the new year. 

It was a really tough first few days and I almost quit so many times. It was amazing the need to chew something was what I felt and I just felt like I had the flu. Apparently these are all detox symptoms. At the end of the fast I was a pleasant 12 lbs lighter and had so much energy and umpf that I was so happy I had completed the fast no matter how tough it had been.

This is why I am here again going through the same fast. This time I had more to lose since I started at a higher starting weight. I figure it will get me going down the right path and help me restart my system. Oddly though, this time the fast has not been as arduous. It has actually been quite easy.  I was prepared for the worst on day 2 and day 3 and that never came. I am currently on day 6 and toward the end of the day at that.  One side effect I am experiencing that I also had last time is the “coldies”. You just freaking feel cold all the time. I guess the lack of solid food and also it being winter time doesn’t help. Besides that everything else, including the cravings are manageable. Last time I was obsessed with watching the Food Network and looking at cookbook recipes. Weird even though I couldn’t eat anything just looking at it made me feel better and closer to food. I am planning to go to day 10, but have been contemplating continuing on for 4 more days to make it a full 2 weeks.

I have been looking at message boards www.therawfoodsite.com which are really helpful during this time. It is always nice to know there are others going through what you are going through. With that being said, it is definitely easier to do this with someone than alone. Also I had the benefit of having this week off of work. So I will only be at work for 3 days if I complete the 10 day fast instead of the 14 day one. The worst days are also in the beginning.

So right now my sense of smell is like superhero sense of smell. I guess since I am not eating it has instensified my other senses. It’s really odd to smell everything so intensely but at the same time really great. I am also just starting to get the energy high that comes with this fast toward the end. I have also managed to mantain working out. I have gone twice now and plan to go and do a weightlifting class tomorrow.

One thing I did differently this time was I drank a lot more water in between my lemonade drinks. I think that really helped me feel so much better and I am glad I figured that out. Also having two little ones keeps me really busy and my mind off of the whole food thing. It is truly amazing how much time you have when you don’t mess with food. You have a lot of free time to read and do things you usually don’t have time for. For me though with the kids I am just spending more time with them.

So another hard thing is watching your loved ones eat in front of you. Michael has been eating pizza, chinese food, pasta, etc.  It’s tough but I just tell myself that I can’t do it and I am too close now to the end to stop this. I know once I am done I will feel like a million bucks just like last time. Also hopefully a good 15 lbs lighter. Currently I have lost 8 1/2 lbs as of this morning weigh in. It is really motivating to see that scale go down everyday! My plan after the fast is really stay away from all the bad foods and eat a more clean diet and continue my vigorous exercising… I am addicted to the working out part!

So to anyone that wants to try this diet… DO IT! Just commit and do it and I promise you will be truly amazed at how you feel and how you look! 

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shhhh. . .

Shhhh. . . is the title of Ode Magazine’s July/August 2008 issue – Everything you always wanted to know about peace and quiet The Silence Issue. www.odemagazine.com Books and magazine articles toot the many benefits of silence. They write that the world is getting noisier. mystics have said the silence is where answers to our deepest questions are often found. If this is so, silence seems a very good idea. Once upon a time people hungry for quiet time found it in monasteries. Now reserving space is not always possible. There are, however, silent retreats led by innovative leaders taking place not only indoors, but outside as well – no limit there. According to some people who have been on silent retreats, silence speaks volumes to them. Nice! Not everyone knows what to do with silence though – for some it causes anxiety even though they’re seeking it. And beginning on page 69 is a neat article called “Because God Whispers” written by Tijn Touber, Ode’s senior editor. Ah, – so many reasons to find your way to this magazine.

Last year I read a very good article in Yoga+Joyful Living November/December 2007 issue www.yogaplus.org on silence called My Accidental Silent Retreat by Alexandra Starr, and in the article five silent retreat places were listed. And they are:

Insight Meditation Society, Barre, MA, 978-355-4378; www.dharma.org
Mount Madonna Center, Watsonville, CA, 408-846-4064; www.mountmadonna.org
Abbey of Gethsemani, Trappist, KY, 502-549-4133; www.monks.org
Spirit Rock Meditation Center, Woodacre, CA, 405-488-0164; www.spiritrock.org
Kripalu Center for Yoga & Health, Stockbridge, MA, 866-200-5203; www.kripalu.org

Shhhh . . .

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a witless one, a camera, sjp’s hands

As I was logging on to my laptop I saw a little photo zeroing in on someone’s hands with words like man hands, veins, etc. It turns out they are Sarah Jessica Parker’s hands. The photo is irksome for a few reasons. Many things are happening in the world at the moment. Thousands in China have lost their lives, others have lost families, and others have lost homes. There are fires blazing elsewhere in the world, in different ways and in different parts of the world people are experiencing tragedies.

Then we have a witless one with a camera in our midst who can see no further than a pair of hands. Too bad. I think that if a palm reader were to look at the palms of SJP’s hands the lines would surely have love, success, friendship, abundance all nicely etched there. Another thing about the witless one with a camera is that we’ll have girls and women now wondering and worrying about their hands, as if they need more to be concerned about in our society’s obsession with a body’s surface beauty. Sarah Jessica Parker happens to be thin, there’s no meat on her bones, so to speak, hence the showing of veins. So, all you females out there, don’t get any ideas, your hands are fine just the way they are. There’s no need to start hiding them. In fact, think about their strength. Sometimes when I’m traveling, and carrying heavy bags, I marvel at the way hands were created, and all they’re capable of doing. Their strength is awesome.

Now to get back to the subject, O’ witless one, what was the point of a close-up photo of SJP’s hands, and the disparaging comment?

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illicit, moises naim

When I watched the PBS documentary called ILLICIT I became increasingly saddened. And I wondered why so many people are using all kinds of methods to fill their pockets with millions and millions, at times billions, of dollars at the expense of human beings and our planet? I watched an hour’s worth of talk on money laundering, copied goods transported around the world (including medicines), killings for profit, people used as slaves with no apparent means of freeing themselves, And I thought “the truth hurts” can be applied here. Then I got really antsy as I saw all the confiscated stuff being destroyed, and began wondering about the earth with all the destroyed confiscated stuff being thrown at it. So much was going on in this PBS documentary that it started to become difficult to watch.

The documentary was based on Moises Naim’s book ILLICIT which was named “One of the Best Books of 2005” by the Washington Post. www.moisesnaim.com .

It’s been said many times that the BIG rule of life is to not violate ourselves or others. And though some think that lining their pockets with money gotten by illicit means is okay, it would seem that the Intelligence of the Universe will one day catch up with them. It’s amazing that some think the whole purpose of life is to satisfy their needs with ludicrous amounts of consumption. If they were to look around and see the earth and its beauty, and the way the Energy that created and guides it does so in harmony, tranquility, peace, joy, and if they were to go off by themselves for a time, and recapture the other part of themselves, maybe they’d understand that “conspicuous consumption” is a substandard way of living, and one day they just might have to pay the piper.

The simple truth is that more and more is not the answer. If our hearts are empty, and we don’t allow the beauty of the world, and its people to enter, then no amount of stuff will help.

It’s true that, on a small scale, many of us are guilty of using, or purchasing, copied goods. We think it’s only a small offense, or, it’s so easy, we don’t think about it at all. But . . . “One illicit . . . transaction always leads to another.” -Burke

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bisphenol a(bpa)

I got rid of my French Press, the one I’ve been using, the one that’s a perfect size for one, and has developed a lovely worn look from being used and appreciated. The one given to me as a gift. The reason is that after reading an article on BPA I decided to turn it over, and, lo and behold, it had that little triangle on the bottom, and in that triangle was the number 7. Shoot! I’ve been reading that that number within a little triangle shouldn’t be on anything we’re using.

Have you read about BPA? We’ve been in ignorance too long, and now it’s time for us to take a look at what we’ve been using in our homes. I don’t know what will become of all the discarded items that have been produced with toxic chemicals, but discard we should since we’re being told that they’re detrimental to our health. I’ve got to admit that it took awhile for me to take notice, and now I can’t seem to pick up a magazine without seeing an article about BPA and the harm it can cause.

Yes, many magazines are warning us about the situation we now find ourselves part of, and for health’s sake we have to listen. In the March/April 2008 Spirituality & Health magazine there’s an article by Jill Neimark on page 33 called How to Be Smart about Plastic. It’s an easy to read article explaining why we should avoid plastic containers labeled with a small triangle having “the numbers 3, 6 and 7.” And that we should, “Stick with 1, 2, 4, and 5.” Additionally, “growing evidence suggests it’s best not to put any plastic in the microwave.” It’s good to know about these things, right?
SpiritualityHealth.com

And about canned food she says to “Look for brands that advertise BPA-free resins.” And she continues, “Many plastic “sport” water bottles and baby bottles leach BPA.” And “Most cartons are coated with plastic on the inside.” Therefore, as far as cartons are concerned, she writes, “squeeze your own juice, buy bottled milk, or look for cartons lined with foil.”

It doesn’t have to be complicated because the simple truth is that we owe it to the beautiful and fascinating world we live in to be aware, and to be willing to do our part because planet earth deserves our care and attention. In the process, we human beings can enjoy life on a healthy earth and with healthy bodies as it was meant to be.

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john perkins, psychonavigation

Last November 2007 I bought a book at Robin’s Bookstore, the oldest independent bookstore in Philadelphia. Something coerced me into picking it up and perusing it. I had another book in hand, but found myself purchasing and walking out with THE WORLD IS AS YOU DREAM IT Teachings from the Amazon and Andes, by New York Times bestselling author of CONFESSIONS OF AN ECONOMIC HIT MAN, John Perkins. I cried as I read many of the passages, and cried even more when I read the Epilogue. If you were to read this book I think you would understand.

In an interview On Spiritual Travel, Shamanism, and Consciousness, with Dennis Hughes, Share Guide Publisher, is written: “John Perkins spent three years in the Peace Corps in Ecuador and then became a consultant to the United Nations and World Bank, then a businessman in my own right. . . .” The interviewer asked him to give a definition of shamanism, he said his favorite short definition is:

“A shaman is a man or woman who journeys to other worlds in order to obtain power, wisdom and energy from those worlds to affect change in this world. When we talk about other worlds, we can use terms like the unconscious or the subconscious – there are a lot of different terms that can be used.”

At the end of the interview he said:

“The shamans like to tell us that Mother Earth isn’t in danger, this idea of needing to save the planet is ridiculous. That human beings aren’t going to destroy the planet. But the planet may just shake us all off like a bunch of fleas. She’s giving us a lot of warnings right now. El Nino as a message is a great gift. Climate change, the fires that have swept through the Indonesian rainforest, the drought which for the first time ever has hit the Amazon, are all amazing warnings. Receding glaciers. . . and so she’s giving us a message and this is a very exciting time for human beings to live in and to react. Because we don’t want to be shaken off. Yet it really doesn’t matter a whole lot if we do get shaken off, for we know that everything shapeshifts. We never die, we never leave. Einsteinian science confirms that matter and enery never leave they just change – they shapeshift. But since we’re getting these messages from the earth, it’s an incredibly wonderful opportunity to be able to respond to the challenge.”
www.shareguide.com
www.shareguide.com/Perkins.html

John Perkins’s organization Dream Change Coalition leads trips to the Highlands of Ecuador to work with the Shuar and Quechua and he gives workshops in the USA and in Europe. On the back cover of the book is written:

…Now these shamans are turning their wisdom and power to the problem of curing a new kind of illness-that created by the industrial world’s dream of dominating and exploiting nature.
John Perkins tells the story of these remarkable shamans and of the U.S. medical doctors, psychologists, and scientists who have gone with him to learn the techniques of dream change. These shamanic teachings have sparked a revolution in modern concepts about healing, the subconscious, and the powers each of us has to alter individual and communal reality.

John has used the knowledge he gained from master shamans, around the world in his successful career as a management consultant, president of a US energy company, and as founder of the Dream Change Coalition, an organization that inspires executives to clean up pollution, reshape corporate goals, and form Earth-honoring partnerships with indigenous cultures. www.dreamchange.org
www.johnperkins.org