Blessings

Live each day as a blessing,
and you will be blessed.

A Loving Overview, by Laurie A. Monroe

As I walked through the woods, the mountains surrounded me and comforted me with their strength. The earth invited me to sit for awhile and to listen to the gentle winds swirling through the statuesque trees whose branches reached out to me with an understanding hug. As I sat there in awe of this magnificent creation, thoughts of change entered my mind. Through all of time, change is omnipresent and it is the basic element of Universal law.



Through transition of any kind there exists a constant--Change. One cannot ignore or deny change, for change is instrumental in our ever evolving pattern of growth and self-discovery. With this acceptance a new awareness of self takes place and we are able to look at ourselves with a Different Overview, one of total love; hence infinite possibilities. We are truly more than physical matter and can perceive that which is greater than physical reality as we know it.



In the process of acceptance, one begins to remember small parts of the Whole that we are a part of--the eminence of One. To know that there is no separation, there are no limitations, and nothing is by chance is to know inner peace. To illustrate this, experience your innermost thoughts while listening to the silence; for it is in the silence that we will truly know the oneness that we are. To accept the truth of this oneness is to know that we are a magnificent expression of Love, which is life's energy.


Laurie A. Monroe, who took over running the Monroe Institute after her father's death, passed gently from the physical in her sleep early on the morning of December 18, 2006.
Read entire "Overview" here.

Non Sequitur

Ways to Peace

When I started this blog it was because I have a lot to say that I wanted to share, and because I love to write. I also have a lot of empathy for things out of their natural balance, and wanted to do something to try to bring them back to a place of rest, a place of peace. Sometimes I will be posting beautiful photos and writing soothing words to bring calm to the unsettled spirit.

But I keep running into articles that show how the world is out of balance. Others tell of efforts made by individuals, groups, municipalities, corporations, and governments to bring balance. The articles I post are to show the struggles, to bring forth the truths, and to open the possibility that we, as individuals, can change to a more peaceful way of living by our everyday choices.

I was in the car with a friend recently who gave me a running commentary about his driving, and why he was doing what he was doing. He had, he thought, valid reasons for not using his turn signals or for getting angry when someone cut him off. All I could see was the tension he was creating and holding in his body.

And, he is a health nut, purchasing organic food and taking herbal supplements and exercising. He was negating it all by creating negative energy within himself.

"We are all in this together", I said. "Driving on the freeway is an act of sheer trust. If you enter in a fighting mood, you will get a fight. Enter instead with the notion that you will be working together with everyone on the road to ensure that you all arrive safely at your destinations. Think of everyone on the road as part of your family.

Everyone knows there are always family members who are a bit rowdy or inconsiderate or self-centered. When these folks are encountered, give them blessings for a safe journey, rather than wrath. They will help protect everyone around them, including yourself, if you bless them rather than curse them. Use your signals before all moves, so that all members of your family (of the moment) can work together to share the road space.

Everyday choices, coming from within, to walk the path of peace. There are so many ways! The articles are here to provide opportunities for understanding, leading to personal growth and change.

Inner Peace Brings World Peace

How to make a working link.

Here is the HTML code.

You may live-link your name or other words this way. Copy and paste the URL you want to reference in the space between the "..."
Replace the SEEN TEXT HERE with your linking word. All these extra words and letters in your sentence disappear, leaving only the link-word when you publish.

Note, 12-18-06: This post was originally about the Blogger/Beta mismatch, which has been fixed. I leave this here for informational purposes.

Leaf and flower shapes

The two collections of organic shapes on the left were created very quickly with only brief glances at the paper, during an Imagination Arts session.

The shape in the lower right was drawn very slowly and carefully from a poppy without looking at the paper.

Drawing games such as these help bring peace and relaxation to offset the busy pace of life.

Pulitzer prize author speaks

Author to students: Vote, buy with an aim.

Sunday, December 10, 2006
Molly Kavanaugh
Plain Dealer Reporter

Elyria- Pulitzer Prize-winning author Jared Diamond says he won't be around for the collapse of U.S. society, but the 300 high school students he spoke to Friday might be.

"That depends on all of you, and how you vote, and what you buy and what products you don't buy. A lot of our con sumption is wasteful consumption," said the 69-year-old scientist, speaking at Lorain County Community College's "Meeting Great Minds" series.

Diamond won the Pulitzer in 1998 for his nonfiction account of the rise and fall of human societies titled "Guns, Germs and Steel." ....

.... He repeatedly urged the students to make their voices heard by voting and by making environmentally sound purchases, such as hybrid cars instead of sport utility vehicles.

Article has been excerpted. Full story at title link.

Today's Preteena Comic

Feel like a Butterfly

The snow comes and goes at this time of the year.

The butterflies will return after the earth has finished it's winter rest.

I took this photo in September while on a hike in the Cuyahoga Valley National Park.

Nature renews the spirit, any time of year.

When the air has a chill, bundle up, wear a hat and scarf, and enjoy every sensation brought to your being by the sun, the wind, the birds, and the crackle of your feet on the frosty earth.

The warmth in your heart will make you feel light as a butterfly on a September day.

Bark beetles ravaging western US forests

I have just read this article, and am saddened to no end. But it must end. Outrage energy must be redirected into action.

We, as individuals, must take steps that the government will never do, and that is to regulate ourselves to be energy efficient, reuse and repair rather than buy and discard, and to live lightly on the planet.

Everyone must take personal responsibility.

The earth is suffocating and humans are doing the choking. We must ease the burden. Now.

Thanks to the Global Warming blog for providing this link.

Gone Tomorrow: The Hidden Life of Garbage

I found this link at Taoist Poet"
The description is from Video.Google.com

This is a short 19-minute documentary about recycling and waste in the U.S. based on the book of the same name by Heather Rogers. The film has great facts and funny archive and exposes the often magical (but false) feeling we get from 'helping the earth' by 'recycling.' It also points out the real problems: over production and industrial pollution. Plus it explains corporate greenwashing and our economic system of 'built-in obsolescence'.

Corn for Fuel

I've spent the morning doing research on ethanol because I plan on plowing through the snowstorm to attend the "Fuel for Thought" presentation this evening by the Cuyahoga Area League of Women Voters.

I have no idea what side of the fence the speakers are on. With any luck, there will be one 'pro' and one 'con' so we can have a lively discussion.

Here is what I found in my research.

The net energy gain from ethanol production from corn is a bit over what it takes to produce it. (Estimates from 1.3 to 1.67 units produced for every unit expended. The higher energy gain includes large on-site barns full of beef cattle to consume the distillers mash.)

Organic beef cattle raised in a humane manner on grass and legumes (not grain) contain more essential nutrients in the meat products than do feedlot beef cattle. Wellness Foods

The price of corn is going up.

The small net reduction of greenhouse gasses realized through ethanol replacement of fossil fuels will be eliminated (or worse) by the destruction of intact ecosystems for bio-fuel production.

The USDA is considering allowing land set aside for erosion control and water-quality improvement to be released to ethanol production.

The whole ethanol industry is based on the excesses of fuel needed to run non-fuel-efficient vehicles such as SUVs.

"Prodigious amounts" of natural gas will be used in the bio-fuel plants.

******** My conclusions & opinions ********

• Cattle raised in beef lots are less nutritious (than free range) and are not living enjoyable lives. Feeding captive animals the mash from ethanol production is cruel.
• Farmland would be better utilized in feeding the hungry. Even further, it is unethical to use farmland to support fuel gluttony.
• The converting of protected (CRP) land to farmland for bio-fuels will increase greenhouse gasses and is a serious case of shortsightedness.
• Natural gas prices for home-heating and industry will go up, so everything will cost more, all at the expense of fuel gluttony.
• Ethanol plants should, after the first batch of fuel is produced, be mandated to run totally on their own products. If they can't make it, they aren't worth it. Of course they wouldn't be worth it. No business can run on that slim a margin.

The answer?
Conservation, fuel efficiency, and renewable energy sources that are more sensible and ethical.

Comment on "Not So Hot"

"It's hard to panic about global warming when you're freezing."

Cute opening, but from what I can tell, Kevin O'Brien was serious in his Dec. 6 column in the Cleveland Plain Dealer when
he says the topic of global warming gets more press than it deserves.

I kept reading the entire article looking for the punch line, but
never found it. If he was trying to be funny he did not succeed. If
he was serious, we are in big trouble if he is in the majority.

Laugh all you want as you shiver in the cold, while thinking what we
do does not have global implications.

When the truth is finally
staring everyone in the face it will be too late.

The time is now to scale back on consumption of the earth's
resources. Right now, not tomorrow. Conserve, conserve, conserve.
Every little bit helps. Give back to the earth what is taken.
Consider how your actions will be seen seven generations from now.

Government will not be able to reach consensus on how to implement
change, so individuals must do it on their own. Everyone is
responsible; everyone can choose the positive path of nourishing
self, others, and the planet.

Joan Chittiser, Everest, Peace Conference

A woman of peace speaks out. Full article at title link.
Sister Joan writes:

In Lebanon the week before (I saw the movie Everest), spiritual leaders from every side of the religious crevasse -- Hindu, Buddhist, Muslim, and Orthodox -- met in the first-ever Middle East-Asian Spiritual Dialogue to discuss the role of religion and the road to peace. They were sheikhs and monks and archbishops and patriarchs and judges and theologians. In Lebanon the week before, spiritual leaders from every side of the religious crevasse -- Hindu, Buddhist, Muslim, and Orthodox -- met in the first-ever Middle East-Asian Spiritual Dialogue to discuss the role of religion and the road to peace. They were sheikhs and monks and archbishops and patriarchs and judges and theologians.

It Is Finally The Time