Fire

Thank you darling Cheryl for providing the text!

 

FIRE 

Low aspect–burning and hot.  High aspect–transmutationTatwa (sacred symbol)– red triangle...

There are many ways to honor fire in our lives…the fire within which fuels our physiology and the fire without which supports our lifestyle. 

Here are a few and you can creatively come up with your own ways. Sitting within 5 feet of a living f...lame will purify our minds faster than any consciousness technology…this means an open burning fire (Bowl/Cauldron), a fire place and the best is a fire pit out of doors. If you do not have access to fire, 1-12 candles will do the trick. Light one, breathe, feel your body, light another feel it…somewhere along the way you will feel the perfect number to sit with…it will vary each time you sit with fire as you are continually evolving and experiencing change in your life. 

Build a fire with a conscious intent in mind: 

1) to purify yourself – your aura, mind and bodies, 

2) to burn papers-like diaries, letters, journals with information that logged your past – to end your stories and create a new beginning, 

3) to signify an end or completion to a way of being – divorce ceremony or end of a relationship orgratitude for completion of a project, 

4) to honor or celebrate anevent or the life of a loved one – human or animal, 

5) to honor and be ingratitude of Creator-Creatrix for this splendid life and petition forsupport in given matters! This last intent is a ceremony in honor of Goddess/God.You build the fire as the mouth of God/ess. Into the mouth of God/ess you offer fruit,rice, grain, ghee, flowers, incense. You are feeding God/ess as God/ess feeds you and answers your prayers and requests, igniting the fire in YOU

Builder forced to design estate around rock.. because locals say fairies live under it

Feb 22 2010 By James Moncur 

A BUILDER was forced to design a luxury estate around a rock - because locals said fairies lived under it.

Work on the multi-million pound development ground to a halt when villagers complained that the fairies would be "upset".
Marcus Salter, of Genesis Properties, estimates the colony of fairies believed to be under the rock in St Fillans, Perthshire, has cost him £15,000.

He said he first noticed possible problems when his diggers moved on to the site outside the village.
He said: "A neighbour came over shouting, 'Don't move that rock. You'll kill the fairies.' Then we got a series of phone calls, saying we were disturbing the fairies. I thought they were joking. It didn't go down very well."

The bemused builder then went to a meeting with the community council, where chairman Jeannie Fox told him: "I do believe in fairies but I can't be sure that they live under that rock.
"There are a lot of superstitions going about up here and people do believe things like standing stones and large rocks should never be moved."

The new development now centres on a small park with the "fairy" rock in the middle.

The Planning Inspectorate have no guidelines on fairies but a spokesman said: "Local customs and beliefs must be taken into account when applying for planning permission."

Never give up

People often ask me: where do you find the strength.  How come you keep going when most of us would have given up?

Well, apart from probably having been a pitbull terrier in a past Life, I have had a great teacher Anthony Robbins who told us: when do you stop and give up?  When you've reacherd the target.  Otherwise you change your approach and continue.

This text has been on the wall of my office for many years now, and whenever I change offices, the text travels with me.  I bought it in a little gift shop in Ashford, Kent, UK.

And ofcourse it is called ... never give up.

When things go wrong as they sometimes will,
When the road you're trudging seems all uphill,
When funds are low and the debts are high,
And you want to smile, but you have to sigh.
When care is pressing you down a bit.
Rest, if you must, but don't you quit.
Life is queer with its twists and turns
As every one of us sometimes learns.
And many a failure turns about
When he might have won had he stuck it out:
Don't give up though the pace seems slow -
You may succeed with another blow.
Success is failure turned inside out -
The silver tint of the clouds of doubt.
And you never can tell how close you are.
It may be near when it seems so far:
So stick to the fight when you're hardest hit
It's when things seem worst that you must not quit.

How to master the Art of Mindful eating

This is a guest post by Jules Clancy from stonesoup.
 

When I quit my job in January to focus on blogging full time, there were many changes I was excited about implementing in my lifestyle. One of the most rewarding has been around my eating habits.

During my years as a corporate wage slave, breakfast was a meal I ate alone in my car. Bites snatched and barely chewed while I negotiated the frustrating traffic on my one hour commute.

Lunch tended to be an even more disappointing affair. While I did usually take something fresh from home. I didn’t give it justice. Scoffing my sandwich in front of my computer while I prepared for the next meeting, I often barely registered what I was taking into my body. No wonder I would finish the lot feeling empty and unsatisfied.

With my new schedule I was committed to making a change. No more meals behind the wheel or a screen, I was determined to start practicing the art of mindful eating.

and the benefits?

Reduced over eating. It’s been a while now since I went to bed feeling bloated and over stuffed. Which is great in itself but also means that my ‘muffin top’ is pretty much gone when I wear my favorite jeans. 

Increased enjoyment of food. As a food scientist, I’ve always considered myself a big fan of eating. Now that I’m on the path to mastering the art of mindful eating, I am finding a new found respect for food and am gaining far more pleasure from meal times. 

Improved digestion. Digestion begins in the mouth with the action of saliva. If food isn’t chewed properly it means that there’s more work for the rest of your digestion system. I may be imagining this, but I think I’ve also noticed I have less gas now that I’m eating mindfully. 

Being satisfied with less. Linked with reduced over eating, the real benefit here is being able to trust yourself to feel satisfied after one or two squares of chocolate so there is no temptation to scoff the whole block. Suddenly there’s no need to deny yourself the occasional treat which makes for a far healthier relationship with food.
Ready to change the way you interact with food?

How to master the art of mindful eating:

1. Start small. Like all new habits, it’s best to set realistic expectations. Choose one meal or snack each day and commit to focusing on mindful eating at that time.

2. Stop multitasking at meal times. It’s really difficult to focus on eating if you’re doing other things. Set aside time for eating without other entertainment.

3. Only eat at the table. Another way to minimize mindless munching is to get into the habit of only eating when you are sitting down and able to give the food your full attention. No more snacking on the run.
4. Appreciate the appearance. While we’ve all drooled over gorgeous food porn in magazines or online, sometimes we forget about the beauty of the food we are about to eat. Taking the time to notice sets the scene for mindful eating.
5. Focus on each mouthful. Think about the flavour, texture and even the sound of the food in your mouth. Focus on how much you like, or dislike these sensations.
6. Chew. While it can be overkill to go to the monastic extreme of 100 bites per mouthful, make sure you chew your food enough so that it is well broken down before you swallow.

7.Use cutlery and put it down between mouthfuls. It’s much easier to take smaller portions when using a knife and fork. Of course if you feel like you’re having a ridiculous Seinfeld moment eating a chocolate bar with utensils, then skip this step but do put the bar down in between bites so you can focus.

8. Talk and share. One of the joys of eating is sharing a meal with loved ones. It can be challenging to incorporate mindfulness in a social situation but not impossible. Turn the focus of the conversation onto the meal while you are actually eating. Share what you are experiencing in terms of flavours and textures, likes and dislikes. At first this may seem a little weird but trust me, you’ll soon find yourself having fun with it.

9. Go for quality not quantity. By choosing smaller amounts of the best food you can afford, you will not only enjoy it more, you’re far more likely to be satisfied without having to over eat.

10. Make time to prepare your own meals, preferably from fresh ingredients. The cooking process can be as relaxing and enjoyable as eating if you let it. For me, the peace of mind that comes from knowing exactly what has gone into my food makes any hassle worthwhile. 

Why not try the art of mindful eating with my super simple recipe for broccoli with chickpeas & tahini.

[5 ingredients | 10 mintutes]

super simple broccoli with chickpeas & tahini sauce

serves 2 – 3

This is broccoli at it’s best. Crunchy and fresh in some spots, caramelised and complex in others. It seems like so much more than, well, just broccoli. With all that variety it’s a great dish to practice the gentle art of mindful eating.

I’ve added the chickpeas to make it more of a complete meal, but I have been known to happily tuck into a big bowl of the broccoli on it’s own.

Tahini is a paste of ground sesame seeds and is available from most health food stores. Natural yoghurt makes a good substitute.

If Leo hasn’t convinced you to become a vegan yet, the broccoli is also brilliant served with some crispy bacon or a softly poached egg.

1 head broccoli, chopped into bite sized mini-trees
extra virgin olive oil
1 can chickpeas (14oz or 400g), drained
2 tablespoons tahini
3 tablespoons lemon juice

Preheat a large frying pan on the hottest heat.

Add 2 tablespoon oil to pan. When it starts to smoke add the broccoli and cover with a lid or an oven tray – it’s critical to seal it so the broccoli fries from the bottom but steams at the top.

After 2 minutes, remove the lid and stir. Return lid and cook for a further 2 minutes.
Add the chickpeas and stir. Cover and cook for another minute.

Test a piece of broccoli – if it’s tender, remove from the heat. If not cover and cook for another few minutes. Season with salt & pepper.

Meanwhile combine tahini & lemon juice with 2 tablespoons water and stir until you have a smooth sauce.
Serve broccoli and chickpeas with tahini sauce drizzled over the top. 

Jules Clancy is the author of the cookbook ‘And the love is free‘ and writes stonesoup – a blog about helping people become better home cooks by using a minimalist approach to cooking.

The Love Story of a Bristol Couple

They spent their lives together, they died within days of each other, and tomorrow family and friends will gather for the joint funeral of Mary and Ted Williams.

When 87-year-old Mary passed away at Southmead Hospital on March 10, Ted was holding her hand from the neighbouring bed.

The 90-year-old had himself been admitted to Frenchay Hospital with a heart complaint, shortly after his wife of 69 years was admitted to Southmead suffering from pneumonia.

But when they realised the couple had been inseparable since their teenage years, medical staff at the two hospitals devised a compassionate plan to ensure they were happy in their final days.

Ted was transferred to the same ward as his wife and he was able to hold Mary's hand from the neighbouring bed for the final three hours of her life. Just three days later, Ted died – not so much of a broken heart as fading away, according to his son Tony.

"I'm so grateful to the NHS staff for having the compassion and thoughtfulness to transfer my dad to be with my mum, without us even asking for it," said the 67-year-old, from Keynsham.

"It made my parents happy in their final hours. My mum passed away happy, knowing that her beloved husband was with her and holding her hand, and then my dad was able to pass on, feeling his life was complete.

"My dad had a long-standing heart complaint – he had his first heart attack in his 40s, and retired early in his mid-50s because of it. But he always said he'd make sure he'd stay alive while mum was around, because he didn't want her to be left alone.

"Mum and dad had the happiest life you can imagine, and they couldn't have asked for more than this when their time came to pass on.

"When I arrived at the hospital after mum had died, my dad said to me that his time was up and he was happy to pass on now. Then he faded away, and just three days later, he passed away peacefully in his sleep just as mum had done."

 

The story of the couple's life together reads like a love story. Muriel – known to all as Mary – met Ted Williams when she was just 13 years old and he was 15.

Mr Williams said: "They met at church. My dad was a Catholic and went to St Nicholas of Tolentino Church in Lawford's Gate.

"My mum converted to Catholicism at that young age because she had already taken a shine to my dad, and she knew that in those days people from different denominations couldn't marry."

But love blossomed in this holy setting and the couple tied the knot in 1941, when Ted was 21 and Mary was 19.

"Dad was an engineer, and he stayed here in Bristol working on planes during the war, so they weren't even separated then," Mr Williams said.

"Then after the war my dad had a good career as an engineer with Bristol Cars and later even worked as a supervisor on the Concorde project.

"But they were always happiest in the evenings when they were together. They were simple people, and although dad made good money through his career, they gave most of it away to friends and family whom they felt were in greater need.

"They didn't want any luxuries, they were simply happy in each other's company. Their great love was making music in the evenings. Dad would play the spoons and mum would sing. They would encourage me to play guitar, and half the neighbourhood would come around with different instruments."

The couple spent more than 60 years in their home in Ullswater Road, Southmead, before moving into a residential care home in Westbury-on-Trym for the last three years of their life.

"Everyone in the area of Southmead where they lived knew my mum and dad," Mr Williams said. "Everyone in the street called them Aunty Mary and Uncle Ted. For my contemporaries, they had simply always been around, and everyone thought of them as family."

The final love letter between the pair was written by Mary from her hospital bed, just days before her death.

Unaware that her husband was also in hospital, she wrote: 'Why haven't you come in to see me, my darling?'

"Perhaps the medical staff at Frenchay heard about the letter, and they did this wonderful thing – they went to great effort to get my dad moved to be in the next bed to my mum," Mr Williams said.

"It gave my parents the perfect end to their life-long love story. You really can't ask for much more than that."

Mary and Ted Williams' joint funeral will be held at Canford Crematorium at 3pm tomorrow, followed by drinks at Sommerville House, Cricket Lane, Westbury-on-Trym. The family request no flowers to be sent, but rather donations to the League of Friends at either Southmead or Frenchay hospitals.

From bristol.co.uk website

Disturb us ...

Please read ... after I will tell you who it was written by

Disturb us, when

We are too well pleased with ourselves,

When our dreams have come true

Because we have dreamed too little,

When we arrived safely

Because we sailed too close to the shore.

Disturb us, when

With the abundance of things we possess

We have lost our thirst

For the waters of life;

Having fallen in love with life,

We have ceased to dream of eternity

And in our efforts to build a new earth,

We have allowed our vision

Of the new Heaven to dim.

Disturb us, to dare more boldly,

To venture on wider seas

Where storms will show your mastery;

Where losing sight of land,

We shall find the stars.

We ask you to push back

The horizons of our hopes;

And to push into the future

In strength, courage, hope, and love.

Written by

Sir Francis Drake in ... 1577

I've lived Life my way ...

Q: Doctor, I've heard that cardiovascular exercise can prolong life; is this true?
A: Your heart is only good for so many beats, and that's it... don't waste them on exercise.. Everything wears out eventually. Speeding up your heart will not make you live longer; that's like saying you can extend the life of your car by driving it faster. Want to live longer? Take a nap.

Q: Should I cut down on meat and eat more fruits and vegetables?
A: You must grasp logistical efficiencies. What does a cow eat? Hay and corn. And what are these? Vegetables. So a steak is nothing more than an efficient mechanism of delivering vegetables to your system. Need grain? Eat chicken. Beef is also a good source of field grass (green leafy vegetable). And a pork chop can give you 100% of your recommended daily allowance of vegetable products.

Q: Should I reduce my alcohol intake?
A: No, not at all. Wine is made from fruit. Brandy is distilled wine, that means they take the water out of the fruity bit so you get even more of the goodness that way. Beer is also made out of grain. Bottoms up!

Q: How can I calculate my body/fat ratio?
A: Well, if you have a body and you have fat, your ratio is one to one. If you have two bodies, your ratio is two to one, etc.

Q: What are some of the advantages of participating in a regular exercise program?
A: Can't think of a single one, sorry. My philosophy is: No Pain...Good!

Q: Aren't fried foods bad for you?
A: YOU'RE NOT LISTENING!!! .... Foods are fried these days in vegetable oil. In fact, they're permeated in it. How could getting more vegetables be bad for you?

Q: Will sit-ups help prevent me from getting a little soft around the middle?
A: Definitely not! When you exercise a muscle, it gets bigger. You should only be doing sit-ups if you want a bigger stomach.

Q: Is chocolate bad for me?
A: Are you crazy? HELLO Cocoa beans! Another vegetable!!! It's the best! feel-good food around!

Q: Is swimming good for your figure?
A: If swimming is good for your figure, explain whales to me.

Q: Is getting in-shape important for my lifestyle?
A: Hey! ! 'Round' is a shape!

Well, I hope this has cleared up any misconceptions you may have had about food and diets.

And remember:

'Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways - Chardonnay in one hand - Cigar in the other - body thoroughly used up, totally worn out and screaming 'WOO HOO, What a Ride'

AND......

For those of you who watch what you eat, here's the final word on nutrition and health. It's a relief to know the truth after all those conflicting nutritional studies.

1. The Japanese eat very little fat
and suffer fewer heart attacks than Americans.

2. The Mexicans eat a lot of fat
and suffer fewer heart attacks than Americans.

3. The Chinese drink very little red wine
and suffer fewer heart attacks than Americans.

4. The Italians drink a lot of red wine
and suffer fewer heart attacks than Americans.

5. The Germans drink a lot of beers and eat lots of sausages and fats and suffer fewer heart attacks than Americans.

CONCLUSION

Eat and drink what you like.
Speaking English is apparently what kills you.

YOURS TRULY,
"LIVED LIFE MY WAY"

Tampon-makers can't mention the V-word. Period. An advertising campaign for tampons is rejected by US television networks for daring to include the word vagina

For years, advertising for tampons and "sanitary products" have been shrouded in nebulous euphemism. 

So what happens when a US tampon-maker drops the coy messaging and goes straight for the jugular (so to speak)? Its ad gets banned by the major US television networks for mentioning the word vagina.

Even when the company substituted "down there" for vagina, two of the networks still wouldn't run the ad, so the company was forced to drop the idea altogether. 

That provoked Amanda Hess, author of The Sexist blog, to observe: "Now, the commercial contains no direct references to female genitalia – you know, the place where the fucking tampon goes."

An executive for Kimberly-Clark, the owner of Kotex, notes that US TV networks have no such compunction about references to "erectile dysfunction" in prime-time ads for Viagra and Ciallis.


The New York Times reports that the campaign – produced by the advertising agency JWT, part of WPP – for tampon brand Kotex was "a bit too frank" for US television:

Merrie Harris, global business director at JWT, said that after being informed that it could not use the word vagina in advertising by three broadcast networks, it shot the ad cited above with the actress instead saying "down there", which was rejected by two of the three networks. (Both Ms Harris and representatives from the brand declined to specify the networks.)
"It's very funny because the whole spot is about censorship," Ms Harris said. "The whole category has been very euphemistic, or paternalistic even, and we're saying, enough with the euphemisms, and get over it. Tampon is not a dirty word, and neither is vagina."

The amended ad shown above, "How do I feel about my period?", has a series of images parodying the stock images used in sanitary product advertising, and concludes: "The ads on TV are really helpful because they use that blue liquid, and I'm like, oh, that's what's supposed to happen." The ad debuted on US television this week.

Things are different in anything-goes Britain, where the makers of the Mooncup product have a website entitled loveyourvagina.com.

A little something for the weekend ...

Men:

1. Some men are extremely busy.

2. Although they are so busy, they still have time for women.

3. Although they have time for women, they don't really care for them.

4. Although they don't really care for them, they always have one around.

5. Although they always have one around them, they always try their luck with others.

6. Although they try their luck with others, they get really pissed off if the woman leaves them.

7. Although the woman leaves them they still don't learn from their mistakes and still try their luck with others.


Women:

1. The most important thing for some women is financial security.

2. Although this is so important, they still go out and buy expensive clothes and stuff.

3. Although they always buy expensive clothes, they never have something to wear.

4. Although they never have something to wear, they always dress beautifully.

5. Although they always dress beautifully, their clothes are always just "an old rag".

6. Although their clothes are always "just an old rag", they still expect you to compliment them.

7. Although they expect you to compliment them, when you do, they don't believe you.

If you want to change the World ... Love a Woman

Infinite gratitude Jeff Brown for circulating this on Facebook.

If you want to change the world… love a woman-really love her. Find the one who calls to your soul, who doesn’t make sense. Throw away your check list and put your ear to her heart and listen. Hear the names, the prayers, the songs of every living thing……

every winged one, every furry and scaled one,

every underground and underwater one, every green and flowering one,

every not yet born and dying one…

Hear their melancholy praises back to the One who gave them life.

If you haven’t heard your own name yet, you haven’t listened long enough.

If your eyes aren’t filled with tears, if you aren’t bowing at her feet,

you haven’t ever grieved having almost lost her.

If you want to change the world… love a woman-one woman

beyond yourself, beyond desire and reason,

beyond your male preferences for youth, beauty and variety

and all your superficial concepts of freedom.

We have given ourselves so many choices

we have forgotten that true liberation

comes from standing in the middle of the soul’s fire

and burning through our resistance to Love.

There is only one Goddess.

Look into Her eyes and see-really see

if she is the one to bring the axe to your head.

If not, walk away. Right now.

Don’t waste time “trying.”

Know that your decision has nothing to do with her

because ultimately it’s not with who,

but when we choose to surrender.

If you want to change the world… love a woman.

Love her for life-beyond your fear of death,

beyond your fear of being manipulated

by the Mother inside your head.

Don’t tell her you’re willing to die for her.

Say you’re willing to LIVE with her,

plant trees with her and watch them grow.

Be her hero by telling her how beautiful she is in her vulnerable majesty,

by helping her to remember every day that she IS Goddess

through your adoration and devotion.

If you want to change the world… love a woman

in all her faces, through all her seasons

and she will heal you of your schizophrenia-

your double-mindedness and half-heartedness

which keeps your Spirit and body separate-

which keeps you alone and always looking outside your Self

for something to make your life worth living.

There will always be another woman.

Soon the new shiny one will become the old dull one

and you’ll grow restless again, trading in women like cars,

trading in the Goddess for the latest object of your desire.

Man doesn’t need any more choices.

What man needs is Woman, the Way of the Feminine,

of Patience and Compassion, non-seeking, non-doing,

of breathing in one place and sinking deep intertwining roots

strong enough to hold the Earth together

while she shakes off the cement and steel from her skin.

If you want to change the world… love a woman, just one woman .

Love and protect her as if she is the last holy vessel.

Love her through her fear of abandonment

which she has been holding for all of humanity.

No, the wound is not hers to heal alone.

No, she is not weak in her codependence.

If you want to change the world… love a woman

all the way through

until she believes you,

until her instincts, her visions, her voice, her art, her passion,

her wildness have returned to her-

until she is a force of love more powerful

than all the political media demons who seek to devalue and destroy her.

If you want to change the world,

lay down your causes, your guns and protest signs.

Lay down your inner war, your righteous anger

and love a woman…

beyond all of your striving for greatness,

beyond your tenacious quest for enlightenment.

The holy grail stands before you

if you would only take her in your arms

and let go of searching for something beyond this intimacy.

What if peace is a dream which can only be re-membered

through the heart of Woman?

What if a man’s love for Woman, the Way of the Feminine

is the key to opening Her heart?

If you want to change the world…love a woman

to the depths of your shadow,

to the highest reaches of your Being,

back to the Garden where you first met her,

to the gateway of the rainbow realm

where you walk through together as Light as One,

to the point of no return,

to the ends and the beginning of a new Earth.

Lisa Citor

The cliff

A person is walking along a mountain ridge. He stumbles and falls. As he tumbles down the cliff, he sees the branch of a tree projecting from the cliff-face. He catches hold of that branch. As he is hanging there precariously, he sees his guru standing on the mountaintop. He asks the guru what he should do. But there is no way the guru can help him physically.

The guru tells him: “The region to the left of the valley below you is dry and thorny. The right side is lush and green. Look to the right and try to fall there. Now that the fall is inevitable, and you may be plunging to your death, enjoy the scenery during your last leap.”

Sisters

 

This morning I received a beautiful message from my friend Mireille.

Mireille is going through hel at the moment as she is suffering badly of the side effects of her chemotherapy treatment.

Her message just touched my soul

A young wife sat on a sofa on a hot humid day, drinking iced tea and visiting with her mother. As they talked about life, about marriage, about the responsibilities of life and the obligations of adulthood, the mother clinked the ice cubes in her glass thoughtfully and turned a clear, sober glance upon her daughter.. 'Don't forget your sisters,' she advised, swirling the tea leaves to the bottom of her glass. 'They'll be more important as you get older. No matter how much you love your husband, no matter how much you love the children you may have, you are still going to need sisters. Remember to go places with them now and then; do things with them...' 'Remember that 'sisters' means ALL the women... your girlfriends, your daughters, and all your other women relatives too.. 'You'll need other women. Women always do.' What a funny piece of advice!' the young woman thought. Haven't I just gotten married? Haven't I just joined the couple-world? I'm now a married woman, for goodness sake! A grownup! Surely my husband and the family we may start will be all I need to make my life worthwhile!' But she listened to her mother. She kept contact with her sisters and made more women friends each year. As the years tumbled by, one after another, she gradually came to understand that her mother really knew what she was talking about. As time and nature work their changes and their mysteries upon a woman, sisters are the mainstays of her life.. After more than 50 years of living in this world, here is what I've learned: THIS SAYS IT ALL: Time passes. Life happens. Distance separates. Children grow up. Jobs come and go. Love waxes and wanes. Men don't do what they're supposed to do. Hearts break.  Parents die. Colleagues forget favors. Careers end. BUT......... Sisters are there, no matter how much time and how many miles are between you. A girl friend is never farther away than needing her can reach.  When you have to walk that lonesome valley and you have to walk it by yourself, the 20 women in your life will be on the valley's rim, cheering you on, praying for you, pulling for you, intervening on your behalf, and waiting with open arms at the valley's end.. Sometimes, they will even break the rules and walk beside you...Or come in and carry you out. Girlfriends, daughters, granddaughters, daughters-in-law, sisters, sisters-in-law, Mothers, Grandmothers, aunties, nieces, cousins, and extended family: all bless our life! The world wouldn't be the same without women, and neither would I.. When we began this adventure called womanhood, we had no idea of the incredible joys or sorrows that lay ahead. Nor did we know how much we would need each other..

Maya Angelou celebrates her 80 years of pain and joy

NEW YORK — In the dining room of her elegantly restored Harlem town house, beneath painted clouds on a light blue ceiling, Maya Angelou is asked how it feels to be turning 80.

"Exciting!" she says with a broad smile, then adds: "The body knows. The bones don't let you forget."

The woman who defies a simple label — Angelou has been a memoirist, poet, civil rights activist, actress, director, professor, singer and dancer — is getting an early birthday gift. 

Click here to read the rest of the article written by Bob Minzesheimer, for USA TODAY

This lady has said a few things I would like to quote:
 

Regarding body changes, she said there were many, occurring every day.....like her breasts. They seem to be in a race to see which will reach her waist, first.


Maya Angelou said this:
'I've learned that no matter what happens, or how bad it seems today, life does go on, and it will be better tomorrow.'

'I've learned that you can tell a lot about a person by the way he/she handles these three things: a  rainy day, lost luggage, and tangled Christmas tree lights.'

'I've learned that regardless of your relationship with your parents, you'll miss them when they're  gone from your life.'

'I've learned that making a 'living' is not the same thing as 'making a life.'

'I've learned that life sometimes gives you a secondchance.'

'I've learned that you shouldn't go through life with a catcher's mitt on both hands; you need to be able to throw some things back...'

'I've learned that whenever I decide something with an open heart, I usually make the right decision.'

'I've learned that even when I have pains, I don't have to be one.'

'I've learned that every day you should reach out and touch someone. People love a warm hug, or just a friendly pat on the back...'

'I've learned that I still have a lot to learn..'

'I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.'

What can YOU do today to make people feel better?  Please share.

Is Modern Medicine founded on error?

Friday, December 07, 2007 by: Gabriel Donohoe, citizen journalist


(NaturalNews) Modern medicine is firmly founded on the "Germ Theory of Disease" promulgated by Louis Pasteur in the 1860's. Pasteur's 140-year-old theory is still the medical paradigm upon which Western medicine fights disease as we enter the 21st century.

But with a huge increase today in infectious diseases and the rapidly rising epidemic of cancer, diabetes, heart disease and other chronic illnesses; we have to wonder if Pasteur's theory is really that sound.

Consider this alarming statistic from a report commissioned by the Nutrition Institute of America in October, 2003: 2.2 million hospital patients suffer Adverse Drug Reactions (ADRs) to prescribed medicine each year leading to the deaths of 106,000 people. In other words, over 2,000 Americans die each week from properly prescribed medicine in properly prescribed doses.

This is a serious indictment of pharmaceutical medicine which is inextricably based on Pasteur's germ theory.

According to Pasteur:

· Germs, or microbes, cause disease
· Germs invade the body from the outside, i.e., air, water, or food
· Human blood is sterile and can only be infected by outside microbes
· Germs are monomorphic, i.e., they have only one form and can be identified by species
· Specific diseases are caused by specific germs
· Germs should be killed by pharmaceutical drugs

In the 1870s Pasteur's germ theory was developed further by William Koch, a contemporary and rival of Pasteur, whose proofs of the germ theory are still known today as "Koch's Postulates". See Koch's Postulates at (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Koch's_postulates)

Basically, Koch's contribution to the germ theory was to prove that a specific type of germ caused a specific disease, that the germ would be found in all people suffering from that particular disease but not healthy people, and that every person exposed to these germs would fall ill with disease.

However, Koch had to abandon part of his first postulate when he discovered that healthy people could carry the germs of certain diseases and yet show no symptoms. He also had to revise his third postulate when it was shown that some people could be exposed to virulent germs yet not catch the disease.

The "proofs" of the new Germ Theory were already showing flaws.

Still, despite being highly controversial in the late 1800s, the Germ Theory was quickly adopted by the medical powers of the day. This new theory about germs invading from outside the body empowered the medical and pharmaceutical industry as guardians of human and animal health. People became dependent on the fledgling medical/drugs industry for information and protection from disease. Thus, Modern Medicine was born.

A number of eminent scientists opposed Pasteur and The Germ Theory, most notably the highly respected Professor Antoine Béchamp. Béchamp was a reserved, modest man and a much more distinguished scientist than the self-promoting chemist, Louis Pasteur. (It is believed today that Pasteur stole much of Béchamp's work and passed it off as his own. This prompted R.B. Pearson to write a book in the 1940s called "Pasteur, Plagiarist, Imposter.") See text at (http://www.whale.to/a/b/pearson.html)

Béchamp and other scientists believed in the theory of pleomorphism, that a microbe could evolve through many forms from virus to bacterium to yeast to fungus to mold and could even de-evolve back to a pre-virus again. Béchamp could see this evolution and de-evolution clearly in his microscope. Big Medicine rejected pleomorphism back then just as it will not even look at pleomorphic phenomena filmed and documented by scientists today, such as Dr. Robert O. Young in San Diego, California.

Another of Béchamp's contemporaries, Claude Bernard, expounded on the pleomorphic theory and said that the inner terrain or "milieu interieur" was the cause of disease, and not microbes. It was discovered that acidic blood and tissue provide a terrain that is ideal for disease to develop. When the terrain becomes acidic, microbes evolve into pathogenic forms and carry out the work nature designed them to do – as cleaners and undertakers, scavenging inflamed or infected tissue.

The acidity or acid/alkaline balance of the blood is measured by pH, the potential of Hydrogen, see (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PH) and is a very important marker for good health. The blood will do all it can to keep its pH at 7.365, or slightly alkaline. It will even strip alkaline reserves like calcium from the bones to buffer a rise in acidity. (This can lead to a condition labelled by modern medicine as osteoporosis.)

When the pH drops, even by .1, the increase in acidity is interpreted by the microbes, already present in the body in their billions, as a sign of a dead or dying body. This prompts them to morph from benign bacteria into virulent yeast and mold so that they can reduce the body to the dust from whence it came.

Even Pasteur eventually realized the truth of this and on his death-bed said that "Bernard was right... the microbe is nothing; the terrain is everything." But Big Medicine now chose to ignore him. They sensed that the germ theory provided a gilt-edged opportunity to amass a huge fortune.

Béchamp and others in the scientific community opposed the germ theory and advocated the theory of pleomorphism, saying:

· Acidic terrain, not germs, cause disease
· Germs are already in the body by the billions and don't necessarily have to come from without (although that can sometimes happen)
· Blood is not sterile but can contain many microbial forms
· Germs are pleomorphic, i.e., they can change through many forms (Dr Gaston Naessens identified a microbe undergoing 16 different stages of evolution)
· Virtually all diseases are caused by acidic terrain
· Diseases can be prevented or reversed by increasing the alkalinity of the terrain

What led Professor Béchamp to formulate his pleomorphic theory was the discovery of great numbers of small grainy objects in live blood samples which he observed through his microscope. Many of his contemporaries dismissed these tiny life forms as laboratory contamination which were of no importance. But they intrigued Béchamp. He named them "microzymas" or "little bodies".

He found microzymas present in every cell in the bloodstream, in animals, in plants, and even in rocks. He found them present in the remains of dead animals many years after the animal's body had withered away to dust. He observed that in a healthy organism, microzymas work at repairing and nourishing all cells; but when the terrain becomes acidic, the microzymas morph into viruses, bacteria, yeast, fungus, and mold and prepare to break the host down.

Béchamp's work was ignored, ridiculed, suppressed, and soon forgotten. Down through the years, some scientists discovered pleomorphic phenomena for themselves - Enderlein, Rife, Reich, Livingston-Wheeler, Naessens, and more recently, in the U.S., Dr. Robert O. Young (San Diego) and Dr. David Jubb (New York). Most had no recourse to the works of earlier scientists and thought that their discoveries were unique to them. Like Béchamp before them, they too found their discoveries ignored or suppressed.

All of them were fascinated with the "little bodies" that Béchamp had called "microzymas". Enderlein called them "protits", Livingston-Wheeler called them "Progenitor cryptocides", and Naessens called them "somatids". But all found that they couldn't destroy these "little bodies" even when subjecting them to excessive carbonizing temperatures or high dosage radiation.

Dr. David Jubb calls them "Colloids of Life" and says that they are indestructible. They resist "enormous heat, radiation, and chemicals and can reside in petrochemical solution, in hot rock deep within the Earth, in meteorites and in radioactive water inside nuclear power stations. Upon the loss of life of its host, colloid of life return to the earth. A colloid of life is the unknown factor between the animate and the inanimate." (Jubbs Cell Rejuvenation, p.14.)

That last sentence has quite a resonance. Dr. Jubb is saying that colloids of life, or microzymas, are the smallest observable life forms between spirit and matter.

We still have a lot to learn about life, medicine, and healing but we need to approach these things with an open, inquisitive mind.

The Power of friendship and Love

I know there are people all over the world who are dying, suffering, experiencing pain .  But today I choose to be happy!

I am meeting my best friend for lunch today.  And when I say "best", I honestly mean BEST!!  Rose-Marie has been in in my Life for the past 10 years.  She's my big sister, my friend and at times my biggest ally.  She always stood by me, even though at times I was all but polite to her.  She's seen me angry, happy and sad.  But whetever mood I was in and whatever situation in Life, she was always my friend in need.  KNowing she loves me unconditionally has kept me going when times were hard.

My dad is coming out of hospital today!  I am sooooo happy both for him as for my family.  Ten weeks ago he was taken into casualty with the life span of one hour.  "If he makes it through the next hour, he might make it through the night".  The next week was touch and go with only my mum allowed in to visit for 10 minutes, 3 times a day.  After a week the doctors told us to prepare for a funeral.  He was not going to make it.  The news was heartbreaking especially for my mum and my daughter.  I took them to a cosy café in town and both my mum and me needed two strong Irish Coffees to settle our nerves.  Later that night my daughter tried to end her Life too.  Thanks to the Goddess od Love, I walked in the room at the right time.

Since that moment things changed.  Did my dad feel what was going on, although no one told him?  Did he sense my daughters pain?  Was his Love for us so deep he just sensed what was going on?

At that moment n time he made the decision TO LIVE, no matter what enyone else around him said.

A few days later he move to a private ward and the sparkle in his eye returned.  Friends who visited him noticed this too and started making plans.  One friend invited him to be part of an exhibition later this year and dad said yes.  Another friend offered him a huge tree trunk.  Dad was over the moon.  New ideas for a sculpture building in his mind.

When I was finally allowed to visit him and asked: "So what's the news"?  He said: "out of here as soon as possible.  I need to paint my granddaughters portrait" and smirked.

Is it unconditional Love for his granddaughter that kept him going?  What is it that made this magical change in him?

What is it that keeps you going?  When days look grim and there's pain inside of you...

I want to share a beautiful poem by Oriah Mountain Dreamer

It doesn’t interest me
what you do for a living.
I want to know
what you ache for
and if you dare to dream
of meeting your heart’s longing.


It doesn’t interest me
how old you are.
I want to know
if you will risk
looking like a fool
for love
for your dream
for the adventure of being alive.


It doesn’t interest me
what planets are
squaring your moon...
I want to know
if you have touched
the centre of your own sorrow
if you have been opened
by life’s betrayals
or have become shrivelled and closed
from fear of further pain.


I want to know
if you can sit with pain
mine or your own
without moving to hide it
or fade it
or fix it.


I want to know
if you can be with joy
mine or your own
if you can dance with wildness
and let the ecstasy fill you
to the tips of your fingers and toes
without cautioning us
to be careful
to be realistic
to remember the limitations
of being human.


It doesn’t interest me
if the story you are telling me
is true.
I want to know if you can
disappoint another
to be true to yourself.
If you can bear
the accusation of betrayal
and not betray your own soul.
If you can be faithless
and therefore trustworthy.


I want to know if you can see Beauty
even when it is not pretty
every day.
And if you can source your own life
from its presence.


I want to know
if you can live with failure
yours and mine
and still stand at the edge of the lake
and shout to the silver of the full moon,
“Yes.”


It doesn’t interest me
to know where you live
or how much money you have.
I want to know if you can get up
after the night of grief and despair
weary and bruised to the bone
and do what needs to be done
to feed the children.


It doesn’t interest me
who you know
or how you came to be here.
I want to know if you will stand
in the centre of the fire
with me
and not shrink back.


It doesn’t interest me
where or what or with whom
you have studied.
I want to know
what sustains you
from the inside
when all else falls away.


I want to know
if you can be alone
with yourself
and if you truly like
the company you keep
in the empty moments.

Do you?  Can you?
My darling friends, enjoy the Love all around you and have a great weekend!