Tuesday, October 29, 2013

Welcome Home!

Welcome to our family!  We have a new baby in our family.  She is simply adorable.  And Nana absolutely cannot wait to meet her. 

This will be a brief message.  I have much to do to prepare for my visit to see her.  Until then.

Welcome home little one.  We are more than thrilled!

Sunday, October 27, 2013

Who Owns Your Mind?

Who owns your mind?  Most of us will laugh instantly when we read this.  Why you ask?  Because we already, instantly know the answer.  Certainly not us.  We're like a rapid river. High tide. We allow people or circumstances ~ consciously or unconsciously, to drag us wherever they wants to take us.  Sound familiar?


Do you wonder why we do this?  We don't own our minds.  This and the ever-present ego which is at an all time in our non-sustainable lifestyles are high right now. More like false egos.  A result of not feeling too good about ourselves.  So we project our own self-inflated importance when we are so uncentered. We focus on OUR needs, OUR goals...Again, that is just not sustainable.  It can't be.  It doesn't work.  Not for the people we are becoming. It is a dead-end road.  A cycle. Until we suffer enough and are ready to change this.

When I was married, what seemed to matter was matter.  Certainly not me.  For way too long I allowed that until I didn't.  Sometimes I rue the lost years - lots of them.  Years when I was a drone, programmed by unconsciousness.  Missing the moment, missing the breath.  Missing myself.  Who was I?

Every time I catch myself floating down that river, either by myself, or with relationships that are not sustainable, I right the boat, grab and oar and redirect.  I don't always own my mind.  I do know the theory; I do not always apply it.  

Who owns your mind?



Relationship


RELATIONSHIP


Unless and until you access the consciousness frequency of presence, all relationships, and particularly intimate relationships, are deeply flawed and ultimately dysfunctional. – Eckhart Tolle

The most important thing to say about relationship is that all there is is relationship. And with that, in line with what Eckhart Tolle tells us, the requirement for healthy relationship is presence, not just physical presence, no, there must be conscious presence, presence with the characteristic of connected consciousness energy, and for there to be connected consciousness energy, there must be interest, concern, the experience of connection, even love.

First, let’s examine the statement, “all there is is relationship.” From the moment we wake in the morning till we go to sleep at night, and even in our sleep in the form of dreams, we are relating to ourselves, are we not? We are experiencing the multidimensionality that marks the reality of every person. Always, arising in the awareness that is our essence is the content and experience of our mind, our body and our circumstances. Then, with every object we encounter, every person, every phenomenon of Life, there is the relationship of “me” with what we are encountering and experiencing, while simultaneously we experience the mind deciding what it thinks and feels about what we are relating to.

With what and who we focus upon and relate to, our relationships tend to be utilitarian. We are concerned whether we like or dislike “this,” will we benefit or be harmed by “this?” This is generally called a subject (me) – object (it or you) relationship, and is hardly conducive to high quality relationship. By focusing only on the utility or threat of the contents of our experience, we fail to experience the true and deep connections that are possible.

And then there is all that we do not focus on, that with which we appear not to be in relationship – but of course, not relating is relating and it is the poorest quality of relating. If typically, we live in a rather narrow focus, say 10% of what is present in any given moment (and that is generous), then 90% of what is available to us goes generally unnoticed. If we call what we focus upon our life-interest or circumstance, and it is in the foreground of our consciousness, then this background that goes unnoticed is Life itself. That these poor-quality relationships dominate our lives is diagnostic of why we struggle as individuals, as families, as groups, even as a species, to make sense of Life and to manifest peace and well-being.

As for our relationship with ourselves, we are seldom in true conscious presence with the experience of ourselves. Our thoughts, emotions, sensations, perceptions, the phenomenon of awareness in which all experience occurs, mostly go unnoticed. They are the water we fish swim in. Only when the experience is troubling, do we pay attention and then usually only with thought, which is the poorest medium to process and understand our experience. We think about what troubles us, but this does us little good, weaving ever more complicated and tangling webs of confusion. We may pay a counselor or therapist to help us think about our experience, and if the counselor or therapist is any good, they will direct us to our feelings, and ultimately to our intuition, which means really connecting with the experience in our totality, and perhaps we will have an insight, and we will thank the therapist without really noticing that the feeling and intuition is ours. The presence, insights and actions of the therapist simply led us to that which is already within us.

Sometimes, on our own, we will tune into our feelings, and into the silent presence behind our swirling thoughts and emotions, into the realm of intuition, and an insight will lead us to some clarity. We take a walk, a bath, listen to some music, chop some wood, go for a drive, pet our dog or cat, maybe we meditate. Out of this no-activity of the mind can arise knowing, called insight or intuition, an intelligence far deeper and wiser than thinking, and perhaps, insight will lead even to peace in the midst of turmoil. This accessing insight is never new. We knew about it all along, we’ve done and experienced the arising of insight, of peace, before, but we had forgotten.

So it is with personal relationships. We all know what is happening when relationships are clear, fulfilling, and flowing. We are in “the vibrational frequency of presence.” We also all know what is happening when a relationship is in conflict and difficulty. We are in our defensive separateness. Again, we may go to a relationship counselor, and the counselor, if any good, will bring us into shared presence, – and we will think the therapist is a genius when what they did was bring us into what we always had and knew as the secret to a fulfilling life and relationship – into shared presence – but we had forgotten.

Our culture tells us we are our thoughts and emotions, never that we are intuition, the mind’s “vibrational frequency of presence.” Never in our schooling is this dimension, the source of true intelligence, pointed out and cultivated. This lack of recognition and development of intuition, of silent presence, as the source of wisdom, of true intelligence, of knowing and of love, is a great tragedy.

We all know that when a close relationship descends into argument and conflict that resolution and healing occur when either through insight or exhaustion, we drop whatever has separated us and we re-approach each other in genuine presence. But we forget that relationship exists and thrives only in shared presence. Everything about our culture emphasizes our individuality and our right to competitive assertion, so, over and over again, we fall back into self-absorption, separateness, and argument. Most relationships have us existing on parallel planes of shared activity and interest where the communication and contact is superficial, the conscious presence that is the life-blood of true and healthy relationship mostly neglected and forgotten. Only occasionally and usually accidentally do we come into full presence, and it is these moments that sustain any relationship.

“True communication is communion – the realization of oneness, which is love.” – Tolle
With ourselves and with our loved ones, moments of communion, of true presence, are rare. So much more so with those we have casual, little or no personal association with. Humanity suffers because we labor under the delusion that there is a me and you, us and other, with mutually exclusive interests and needs. We never consider the anonymous people who flow by our person every day, much less those outside the sphere of our physical presence and circle of interest. We communicate at people, seldom truly with people, let alone rise to the level of “communion.” Why not?
No one ever teaches us to bring to the level of consciousness the realization that all that is beautiful happens through presence and communion, through the dissolving of separateness to experience oneness, love. Oh, our religions suggest it, but we generally prefer the religious instructions that are moralistic and sectarian to the teachings of brotherhood, forgiveness, union, love, and mystical presence. We think the real world is competition and self-absorption. And, sadly then, this is the world we create. But this way lays madness, what Buddhism calls “egoic delusion.”

Our relationship with Nature, with Life, and even with Spirit, is likewise impoverished by our forgetting that it is in the moments of deep presence, possibly, of awe and wonder, where the sense of self dissolves into “the vibrational frequency of presence” that all that is meaningful happens, and where true religious experience can occur. Many times in life we have experienced this. It is why we seek out experiences in Nature that are so vast and overwhelming that we forget ourselves – at the sea, on a mountain, in the desert. It is why we go to a great cathedral, or attend spiritual rituals. But it is not the sea, the mountain, or the desert, the cathedral or the ritual that is spiritual. It is our own deepest self in pure presence that is spiritual, for it is indeed Spirit, but we forget this.

It can happen in our own front yard with our dog, with a bird, a flower, a cloud in the sky. It can happen with family members and friends, with total strangers, if we remember it is who we are at our deepest level. It is in the “vibrational frequency of presence,” with ourselves, with our family, with our friends and acquaintances, with our dog or cat, with the strangers whose path we cross, even with the unknown peoples of the world, and with Nature, both small and vast, that knows “the peace that surpasseth understanding.” It is called communion. It is called love. It is true Presence. Practiced at levels of subtlety and ubiquity, it is what heals us, our relationships, and it can heal the world.

Friday, October 25, 2013

Ahhhhh

Well...here it is.  Phase One.  Note the missing leg.  It has a snafu so the company is sending another leg out. 



 Gorgeous eh?  I couldn't be happier.  Now I await the rest of the furniture, pillows, etc.

Tuesday, October 22, 2013

School Daze

Good Morning, faithful readers.  You've seen my photographs from kindergarten to now.   If you have paid close attention, you will be able to spot me right off. 

This was my fifth grade class.  I can still remember the names of each student but can't remember what I did five minute ago. 

Recently, through an online site, I have been able to connect with many of these wonderful people. 

By the way, the white rat you see on Harvey's shoulder was mine.  I won it in a classroom contest.  Initially, this was a Vitamin B deficiency rat.  My lucky number of 11 won this.  Interesting number - 1 and 1.  But that is another story.

P.S.  I returned the rat to school the day after I won it.  Seeing it eat a worm was over the top.  Nuff said:)

Monday, October 21, 2013

Become

WHAT WE THINK, WE CREATE.

WHAT WE FEEL, WE ATTRACT.

WHAT WE IMAGINE, WE BECOME.
Sometimes we just have to find that catalyst that activates the reset button.  Maybe it happens when we have just been stuck enough to change things up!

Does that happen for you?  It happens to everyone.  Some need to talk about it, post it on Facebook.  Others of us work within.  Find what works best for you and just become.

Happy Monday!

Tuesday, October 15, 2013

Senior Women

We are a family of seniors now.  My two dogs and I. All over 60 now.  Jessy is the younger at 60, I'll be 65 soon and Molly is 69.  An energetic tribe we are. 
                                                          safely anchored in the car

There is something new about all of this for me.  The dogs were always my buddies and I loved them dearly.  At times, they were more than I could handle.  Especially with the move to New Hampshire.  Apartment living.  But they adjusted beautifully.  I not as well.  Maybe I don't want to adjust. But they give me home.  Wherever we are.

More than ever I want to be home ~ wherever that is. Dogs manage what is.  Sometimes I would love to be in their heads.  I wonder what they feel.  I think I know some of it.  They teach me their likes and dislikes.  Daily.

I can not imagine life without them.  They are going to the kennel for a few days while I relax with a friend.  They love the kennel.  I miss them terribly when they are gone from our home, wherever that may be. But I will enjoy my time taking it easy.  Not rushing to toilet them early in the morning.  They will be pampered, too.

Traveling to the south they provide the best company.  We talk on the way.  I stop frequently to walk them.  They are well nourished, hydrated.  They love looking out the window.  Children are always waving at them. 

But I wonder how they will experience their first home when we return in January.  This is their second home now.  Will they be mad, happy, take off?  I'll surely watch them close. 

It won't be long til we are all southbound.  Senior women.

Thursday, October 10, 2013

Politics


Politics is the fine art of getting votes from the poor and money from the rich by promising to protect them from one another.

             Mark Twain

Monday, October 7, 2013

Social Media

Facebook has become an issue for lots of folks.  For many,  their days begins with checking Fb news.  Then the gossip ~ who is doing what.  Who needs to publicize their private life, problems or their general dismay with the corporate government. 

Moreover, Facebook, (fb) cues in on words and adjusts their marketing to your special needs.  Yes, your information shared is used against you.  Used to sell you more things that will end up in landfills, clog water systems and take you further from yourself. 

When I lived in the Smokies, I enjoyed Facebook.  Much less so now that I am in New England.  I am 'friended' by friends of mine, people with whom I shall most likely, never meet.  They don't write me, inquire about me, they just want my name in their elite group.  It was like that when I had a certain position living in the mountains.  Everyone wanted to 'friend' me, but not just on Facebook.  They liked my so-called status and wanted to be in my company.  It was more than boring. Please, don't be my groupie.  I don't appreciate sponging.

I like real people.  People who don't ask you about 'friending' or 'de-friending' them.  If they pay attention, they know why they are no longer in the inner circle.  Paths diverge.  Let's not make it more than that.  Okay. And I don't know why I have so many Fb friends to begin with.  I have thousands of acquaintances.  I only want a few close friends.  Simple as that. I have a more than full life.

Recently a family member and I discussed this social media.  90% of my 'friends' never respond to me, ask me what I am up to, or make an intelligent response when I post things.  So why are they on my 'friends' listing?  I have no clue.  It seems more about how they want to appear.  Superficial.  And yes, from my perspective most of the Fb postings are superficial.  Boring. Trite. 

But then this is my perspective, my blog. My core value. I do admire people who stand up, who do what they say they will do, have ego's in check and who adore my delightful personality and exacting perspective.


Happy Monday!

Sunday, October 6, 2013

On Barns

Just the other day I was in Cape Neddick, Maine.  There is a barn which I wanted to photograph.  Barns are fascinating.  Imagine this as a home.  With a few modifications.
I would attach a garage to one side of this with a breezeway to connect the two. I wouldn't want to detract from this striking building.
A couple of years ago, I started painting the barn above. The angles were a struggle. The interior is finished but I do not have a copy of it. I added a landscape.  Just the other day, I cut out the landscape because it just didn't work.  I'll paste it to a blank piece of white watercolor paper and frame it.  

Until then, you will just have to enjoy the barn as it is.  A work in progress.  Til the next time.





Friday, October 4, 2013

New Moon in Libra: Second Renaissance

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New Moon Phase: beginning, initiation, seeding, make a wish or set an intention
Moon: Libra

Today’s New Moon signals the beginning of what I’ve been calling the second renaissance.
The New Moon in Libra enters at 8:34 pm EDT / 00:34 am UTC at the degree known as “miners emerging from a deep coal mine.”  The New Moon forms a Grand Cross (also called a Grand Square) with the Black Moon, Uranus, and Pluto.  This indicates that the month will bring drastic evolutionary change.  Let’s look at how each of these planets infuse this New Moon energy that will unfold:

Black Moon:  All things come from the great creative void, the dark womb represented by the Black Moon.  The Black Moon is the Mother Energy needed for birth and rebirth.  It brings things out from the dark, out from the shadows.  The old passes away and the new emerges.  Order and form emerge from discordance.
Uranus: The planet of sudden changes, surprises, energetic frequency signatures, and lightning puts things where they need to be.  It realigns and reconfigures.  It also brings an exceptionally potent electrical charge to the energy.  Uranus strikes quickly and jangles things.  Uranus opposes the New Moon, which means it is 180 degrees apart.  The world will do a “180.”

Pluto:  Pluto is the Divine Consort or soulmate of Eris, represented here by the Black Moon.  (Eris and the Black Moon are the same energy.  The Black Moon works on a more personal, micro level and Eris works at a larger, macro level.)  Pluto is ruler of the Underworld and brings things up from the depths.  You could say Pluto “fathers” this energy.  When Pluto and the Black Moon are together, true love is destined.  The second renaissance is birthed in the frequencies of love.

You can be sure that forces that stand opposed to the creative vision of humanity know the power of this New Moon to birth something.  Something like a new world order.  A new world order will begin emerging, but it is an order that is in full support of humanity and life – not death.  This is the will of the Aeon Sophia, the divine being embodied as our planet.  Together, Pluto and the Black Moon bring light to the dark.  Though attempts will be made to press the dark inherent in these two energies, the combination of Pluto and the Black Moon only results in love.  Pluto and the Black Moon can be tempestuous, but they are always strong and committed.

The Sun, called Sabaoth by the Gnostics, blesses the union and the child that is born from it.
This is a month where we will look back and remember where we were when it all happened. The thing to hold to this month as we see things come crashing down around us, things lashing out, and things erupting from the deep is that the time of darkness is over.  They lost.  No matter how much it looks like they are taking over, it is not the case.  Their last ditch effort begins.  Everyone should expect the unexpected and this could be on very, very grand scales.

What does one do on an occasion such as this?  What more could be cause for celebration than the end of darkness and enslavement of consciousness?

A Capitol Murder!

One doesn't have to look too far back in history to see the government as terrorist.  We saw what was done to our people in the 60s when they wanted their freedom.  The government terrorized them.  Even the presidents saw blacks as inferior.  Who knows why blacks were finally granted civil rights in a not so civil America. Could it be more votes? Of course, the history of slavery goes back hundreds of years. 

How can humans be so cruel to one another?  But this blog is not about race.  It is about terror. The terror within our corporate government.

Yesterday, an emotionally distraught person was allegedly trying to get into the White House.  I won't waste time with the particulars.  I will use 'allegedly.'  I was not there, and frankly, I don't trust the media to report honesty.  It is well nigh rare and suspect it has always been.  Kudos to the media who stand for right. 

The sharpshooter who murdered this young mother could see as well as I that a child was inside the vehicle.  A baby.  That this woman was murdered instead of having the tires on her car deflated is beyond me.  How does anyone maintain any sense of equilibrium in this cold, uncaring world?  Much less a new mother with a Congress that has a double standard. A society that enslaved her people. A president who doesn't care about the people who voted for him. 

Still, there is a lot we do not know about this young mom.  We do know her child is now without a mother.  I just wonder...who will our government murder next?  They took out a young mother.  Will they take out a chi** next?

Murderers!

Tuesday, October 1, 2013

October in New England

idea_new-england-fall-foliage_311x175
http://www.travelchannel.com/interests/road-trips/articles/new-england-road-trips

The White Mountains are lovely, but so are the other regions of New Hampshire.Leaf season is beginning.  For the nearly next three weeks, it is prime viewing. 

http://www.yankeefoliage.com/peak-foliage-forecast-map/

Flying in this past weekend revealed lots of redness in trees from the air.  There was still a fair amount of green evident.  Things are changing quickly all around.  Soon the green will turn golden, red, rust.  These seasons of change provide opportunities for us to change as well.  Einstein said it best:

IF THE WORLD IS TO CHANGE FOR THE BETTER, IT MUST HAVE A CHANGE IN HUMAN CONSCIOUSNESS

Albert Einstein

                            Happy October!