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What is a teaching vacation? Sounds good to me.
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I had a meditation yesterday and in my head I saw a young bird sitting on the door of the cage, and it´s the frist time she should try to fly.
She was afraid that she would crash and die if her wings didn´t carried her.
She had to gather faith and courage, at last the joy of thinking she could fly and the freedoom she would feel flying took over at last. She had a tingeling feeling in her belly when she realized she had thrown herself out in the air, she could fly by her self :-)
I also drew two “saints & angels” card about my situation right know and it´s funny how they mirror excattly how I feel right now:
Don´t compromise (St Agnes of Rome) and You found it (St Anthony of Padua).
Don´t compromise :
You´re are asked to take a stand in favor of your truth and self-esteem.
St Agnes is your role model in this aspect. She shows that in love relationships, as well as career, home, health, and ohter life areas you mustn´t compromise your values.
If you´re in a difficult situation, first try no negoiate a better solution with hte people involved.
St Agnes will help you speak truthfully with love.
The key with this message is to stand by your truth without compromise.
As Gods holy child, you deserve to be treated with love, respect, and dignity.
Accept nothing less.
You found it:
This is a message about finding something of great value such as your life path.
St Anthony ask you to have faith that you´ve found or will soon find what you are looking for.
Congratulations you found your way.
Pay attention to your inner guidance, such as gut feelings, visions or thoughts.
Follow that wisdom and you´ll find the item. Trust in miracles.
Love ,courage and light
Jessica
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Daily fitness tips (from my blog http://www.jessicagottling.blogspot.com/)
Serve God by helping somebody.
Love Jessica
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Daily spiritual fitness tips (from my blog http://jessicagottling.blogspot.com/):
Serve God by helping somebody.
Love Jessica
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You may recall hearing of the purchase of a bridge in London by some Americans…
yes, quite a costly outlay… but because it was called London bridge - they assumed they were purchasing the infamous bridge of London where the two towers stand at each end, and the drawbridge goes up to allow sailboats etc to pass under/through.
In fact, it was not Tower bridge that they purchased at all.. no.. they did buy London bridge..
It just seemed strange that for all the effort in trying to acquire something of such great esteem and status.. something that is part of English culture/history (ie: Tower bridge - where kings even have been held prisoner).. that they didn’t bother to look at what they were buying.
Some more current news feedback:
Ghana GTV news announces Mugabe’s 85th birthday in which supporters were forking out $$$$$$$$$ for his party.
next news item:
Ghana GTV news announces the poverty and debt of Zimbabwe of $$$$$$$$$ and current inflation etc etc etc.
The news reader smiles on the first reading, then ponders a concerned look whilst reading the second.
;o) Very PC
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Ilva ;o)
Who is Miu Fuin!? x
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Who is open to change? Who likes it? Who relishes in it? Who hasn’t changed anything about their life or themselves for a very long time? Who is stuck in a rut? Who despises change? Who seeks out opportunities to go higher or further? Who looks at themselves to see how and what they should change in their life?
Change, change, change…without it we may as well not live. I know that’s harsh but isn’t the truth always a gut kicker. I’m being forceful on this topic because I truly believe that if we are to get the most out of life we have to be open to change - either in our own attitudes, approaches, behaviours, circumstances, thoughts, perspectives, or in all of these things.
To rise to our full potential, we have to go a step further and not only be open to change but seek it. Look at people you admire, people who achieve amazing things - how do they deal with change and what are their attitudes to it? I don’t think the status quo is something they want as a constant.
People who shine with positivity and bring out the best in others and themselves are flowing more often than not. By flowing, I mean they are like a river’s currents that are not hurt or stopped by logs or branches or rocks in their path but that look to overcome, deal with or divert the tough stuff and then look for ways to go faster and smoother when the opportunity avails…
There’s a wonderful line in Counting Crow’s song ‘A murder of one’ that builds into an impassioned, melodic plea for change:
You don’t wanna waste your life
Now darlin’
You don’t wanna waste your life
Now baby
Change, change, change
I think the song title is so pertinent too. Without change, we are at risk of murdering our potential, our spirit and ultimately our life.
I know when I leave this world, there’s one thing I want to know I did - that I lived life to the full. That I gave and I took from it the absolute maximum. Nothing less. My gosh we’re here for such a short time - a snap of the fingers, a blink of the eyes, a turn of the head and then it’s time to go.
It’s the verse below that started me on this train of thought today and I’m writing in an attempt to bring out what it made me feel:
“Behold, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs forth; do you not perceive and know it and will you not give heed to it? I will even make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.” (Isaiah 43:19)
It sums up - as beautiful, powerful words always do - the need to pay attention to the new things in your life and look to do new things even if they seem impossible, tricky or difficult. God makes a new way for us - we simply need to be open to it.
Being open means knowing that we can be the change itself.
I am the river in the desert.
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I think the greatest thing I could do for the world is to love myself. Because if I don’t then I’m like a pauper. What have I to give? But loving myself…and liking everything I do are not the same thing. The One I WON’T change…the other things I can change.
I’ve got to be me. I’m growing into the person I ‘choose’ to be and not trying to be someone I’m not.
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Dear Alexandra,
Yes, Italians were treated that way during their hay day of immigration to the USA. They had to work their way up the ladder of the social scale. So did Jews, and Irish, and Germans, and English and French, or just about anyone who immigrated here. If it was to harsh, and not worth the long haul I am sure they could have went back to where they were from. Many still have to work their way up the social ladder and they accept that this is the way it is in all cultures because that is the way it is in all cultures.
But this is today. Immigrants are offered English classes, welfare, medical benefits, and various other assistant programs. Many take advantage of those programs, and not all in a productive manner. We are no different then European countries who valued our western culture and opened our arms to welcome immigrants, share. Many criminal elements have entered our society, no different then they have in our European cousins because of our generosity and lax immigration laws.
Here in the states, special grants are given to immigrants to start businesses, go to universities.
Immigrants burden the citizenry of their host countries, because it takes tax dollars to support and assist them, but it is a burden that has been traditionally accepted by the majority of the populace of most western countries. Most immigrants are grateful but not all are.
Neither do all immigrants cherish the values of western cultures, such as freedom of speech, civil and criminal law system. They merely want to use those systems to set up their own system.
Any legal or illegal immigrant has access to the law. They do not have to be treated like slaves. Unfortunately, many immigrants are not legal. They have been smuggled here by members from their own countries who now live in the USA, and yes, sadly they are treated like slaves by their own kind, not the USA system, and they fear speaking up. They fear deportation which is understandable, given some of their birth countries. Many, many, many illegal immigrants live in our system and have excellent jobs. Many Americans don’t and they would like to have those jobs but are shamed, ridiculed, accused of racism, discrimination if they speak out.
It is a lie that immigrants, even the illegal ones are given the worst jobs here in America, which isn’t to say that some are not given these jobs.
Is it discriminatory to want to feed your family?
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Thank you Dr. Mani for your post
It is a recurring theme today for me, when everyone tries to stop me from doing exactly that, my dream..many sirens “how about the economic crises? ” “how can you ever survive in this cruel world with your music?” and so on… I can;t hear them anymore…my eyes have dried from the tears
Love and Graditude
Annie
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Dear Anca,
I guess one feels love when a kind of lightness overwhelms us. When we can be ourself free. Though, it is about loving oneself first.
Thank you.
Love.
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I just posted this story on my blog, http://happinessinthisworld.com. Enjoy!
A young violin prodigy was walking down the street one day trying to decide whether or not to pursue a life in music when he came upon the most famous violin teacher in the world. Scarcely believing his luck, he stopped the great teacher and asked if he could play for him, thinking he would abandon his dream of a career in music if the great teacher told him he was wasting his time.
The greater teacher nodded silently for him to begin. So he played, beads of sweat soon appearing on his forehead, and when he finished, he was certain he’d given his finest performance.
But the great maestro only shook his head sadly and said, “You lack the fire.”
The young musician was devastated. Nevertheless, he returned home and announced his intention to abandon the violin. Instead, he entered the world of business and turned out to have such a talent for it that in a few short years he found himself richer than he’d ever imagined possible.
Almost a decade later he found himself walking down another street in another city when he happened to spot the great teacher again. He rushed over to him. “I’m so sorry to bother you,” he said, “and I’m sure you don’t remember me, but I stopped you on the street years ago to play my violin for you, and I just want to thank you. Because of your advice, I abandoned my greatest love, the violin, painful as it was, and became a businessman and today enjoy great success, which I owe all to you. But one thing you must tell me: how did you know I didn’t have what it takes? How did you know all those years ago I lacked the fire?”
The great teacher shook his head sadly and said only, “You don’t understand. I tell everyone who plays for me they lack the fire. If you had the fire, you wouldn’t have listened.”
No matter how much others may doubt you or you may doubt yourself, never be defeated!
(The preceding isn’t my original work but comes from “Telling Lies for Fun and Profit” by Lawrence Block. It’s been so helpful in lifting my spirits when I’m discouraged I wanted to post it—I even used it on Match.com to lure my wife into a first date!)
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Ivan Cameron, the 6-year old son of David Cameron, leader of the Conservative Party and likely to be our next Prime Minister, died this week.
It would be hard to overstate the effect that the life and death of this little boy will have on the whole nation here in the UK.
Prior to his birth, his parents David and Samantha had followed a predictable and straightforward path through life, both from homes filled with the material advantages that are aspired to by many, but attained by few.
When it was realised that Ivan suffered from a condition that would not only make his life short, but would also make it painful, distressing (both for him and for those caring for him) and solitary because of his inability to communicate, his parents made some decisions about how to care for him.
Those decisions, as David has said, profoundly changed both their attitudes to the whole process of how we care for those unable to look after themselves, and how we support those carers.
His experience of our Health system, the people who work in it and the people who use it, have already had an impact on his politics, and will, I am sure, affect where his priorities lie if he becomes responsible for making the choices of where the country’s resources are focussed in the coming years.
And seeing exactly how David has cared for his son gives voters a unique glimpse into his values and how he translates them into his actual life.
There are many problems with our National Health Service; there are differing ideas about how this vital service should adapt to today’s conditions.
But the life and death of little Ivan Cameron will certainly impact the thinking of one of our two main political parties.
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Only My Dream Left (Poem from Marisol’s play “Flower Empower”)
This dream has brought me to different places,
A thousand faces, endless suffering of lonely disgraces
Conflicts of my micro/macro life
Why must I only sing of pain and strife?
My womb filled with these talents
Giving birth to invisible lives
Can you not blame me for my disguise?
What kind of eternal task is this?
Depriving me of my earthly bliss?
My love’s kiss was my death
With only my dream left.
With only my dream left.
With only my dream left.
With only my dream left.
With only my dream left.
And I sit at his right.
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Judgment can only be applied in the perception of things to be ‘good’ or ‘bad’.
However, things that are ‘good’ and ‘bad’ are relative.
What is ‘good’ to someone promotes the person’s qualities and is seen as compatible. What is ‘bad’ to someone distorts the person’s qualities and is seen as incompatible.
We see things/people/circumstances as ‘good’ if they are in accordance to our notions of happiness. We see the same things as ‘bad’ if they do not go accordingly such notions. Therefore, things, people and circumstances can be perceived to have good and bad qualities, by how they fulfill our notions of happiness.
We are happy when we feel we can be more of ourselves by fulfilling our own needs, desires, notions, assumptions, beliefs.
However, we share one reality and each person’s path to happiness is unique and can get in the way of others’. A certain circumstance might seem compatible and ‘good’ to manifest a person’s own form of happiness. But that circumstance might seem to be grossly incompatible and ‘bad’ to manifest another person’s form of happiness. This is how the terms ‘good’ and ‘bad’ are variables by containing relative, ever-changing values.
The energy vibration in things/people/circumstances has to be similar and compatible to a person’s thought vibration in order to manifest personal notions of happiness. A person can be happy when both personal and circumstantial vibrations align into a matching frequency. The Law of Attraction is therefore more accurately described as The Law of Alignment.
We can more easily get what we want when we can align and match our emanated vibrations to the right time/things/place/people/circumstances that are in our visualized notions of happiness.
Due to people’s massive overlaps of energy vibrations and their different notions of happiness, massive interferences and incompatibilities to one’s search for happiness can often occur. The search for happiness is therefore not often easy.
The world as we know it may not grant each individual a non-interfered path to happiness, but we can make each others search for happiness a little easier.
If we can recognize people’s need to do things that feels compatible to them, we would more easily understand the reasons for their actions. Therefore, we would be less likely to be too critical of their notions of happiness in respect to our own. We would also be less likely to impose our notions of happiness onto others that can restrict their happiness, especially those that are achieved with minimal incompatibility or interference to others.
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I was shocked while reading in a book of Grisham how italians were treated in USA in the beginning of 20 C.The same thing is happening still,with poor est european workers,whom cunning and greedy people promise big wages ,but ,after their arrival in “the promise land”,the hell stars.They are the modern slaves,and I feel bad seeing that one honest man who want to work is treated that way,by criminals.
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The man I love will dance with me without worrying what he looks like because he knows I find it sexy.
The man I love will tell me bedtime stories, no matter how ridiculous, because he knows that “once upon a time…” is endearing.
The man I love will be silly because he loves to hear my laugh.
The man I love will bring me flowers on random days and for absolutely no reason other than he knows they make me smile.
The man I love will simply kiss me and whisper “happy valentine’s day” with nothing else because we love each other enough every other day of the year.
The man I love will be honest with me no matter what because he respects and trusts me enough to handle it.
The man I love will never make let me walk behind him because he knows we’re stronger when we’re together.
Most of all, the man I love will do all this because he knows how much I love him back.
submitted from http://anonymousdiaryproject.blogspot.com
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This may be a very selfish theme, but I am curious, so so curious.
I spent so much of my life feeling unloved, that it became an obsession. Being around someone I love, and would do anything for, and yet… feeling completely unloved. Is it my doing, is it just my mind? What does it take for a person to feel loved?
Recently, in a discussion with my grandmother, about her relationship with grandpa, I asked her if she felt loved by such a disciplined person that always demanded work. To my surprise, her crunched face lit up and she said without any hesitation: YES. He always protected me in front of our five daughters, and even if he knew that as a mother I would put them first, he never did. He always put me first.
I have reached moments, usually in solitude, when I felt loved, sometimes for a reason (the care or love of others), sometimes for no reason at all (the feeling just overwhelms without any explanation). Could it be something we don’t know how to recognize in life?
My question to others is, do you feel loved? When do you feel that? How?
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Hope I’m not double posting this link to my song about the Bishop Williamson. It’s about his bizarre faith in the Leuchter Report and why Pope Benedict wants the Society of St Pius X in the the fold of the Universal Church.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CB5rAX-fNpg
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Good teachers say “Watch what I can do.” Great teachers say “Let me show you what you can do.”
Teaching was on my work-related list of “things to do” before I die. Now death is near and I often find myself wondering if it might not have been better to take a teaching vacation instead.
I suppose it’s never too late, she said. But don’t you have a class to prepare for Wednesday?
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I am learning to find comfort in chaos:
…A few years ago, I stepped out of that controlled, structured life and decided to go wandering off into the woods somewhere. That’s not entirely true, I thought I knew which forest I was going to and what I was going to find in there and how it was going to be. Well, long story short, I didn’t. I got lost in the forest, and nothing I experienced was what I expected it to be. I stayed lost so long, that I forgot what it was like outside the forest. I started taking baby steps; enjoying the trees and creatures I’d meet. I stopped looking forward to the end or even believe that there is an end. I sat under the trees and I imagined that the end would come to me. I even gave up on words like end or beginning, or purpose. I took off my control over my experience. I allowed it to come to me undefined. I gave up all illusions of power and control and lost touch with the 3-D reality I was living in. Or did I?…
From:http://evolutioninconsciousness.blogspot.com/2009/03/comfort-in-chaos.html
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I’m taking a ’sabbatical’ from the regular work I do online - to pursue a dream.
A couple of movies I watched recently shared a similar theme. Both light-heartedly, yet sensitively, explored the serious subject of dying. More specifically, how to LIVE before dying.
“The Bucket List” was about making a list of things to do before one dies - and then working through it. “The Last Holiday” was about daring to do the things one always hesitated about - until the realization hit that life isn’t forever.
As a doctor, a surgeon, a heart specialist, I have always understood (perhaps more poignantly than most) how tenuous life is, how suddenly it can be snuffed out, even without warning.
And these things convinced me that it was time to live out one of my dreams - to write books. Three of them, actually. One will be a ‘how to’ business book. Another will be in the ‘Self Help/New Age’ genre. And the last will be a fiction novel.
I’ve decided to set aside 6 months to do it. It may take longer - or maybe get done sooner.
It doesn’t matter.
Big Question(s):
1. Are YOU going for YOUR dreams?
2. If not, WHAT is holding you back? And WHY?
All success
Dr.Mani
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Last evening on tv, an episode of the Free the Slaves documentary series was aired on the national station.
Here are some details from the documentary>..
There are more slaves now than at any other time in human history
- 27 million slaves worldwide, including N-W Africa, USA, SE Asia, Europe - either in prostitution, war (as child soldiers)or in other kinds of work.
also,
slaves are cheaper to ‘buy’ now than ever before.
Today a slave in Ghana {to work in agricultural labour}
can be purchased at around $90, whereas the price in the 1680s, equivalent in today’s currency, was $48,000 ["expensive by today's standards"]
……………………….
Free the slaves co-founder said, if one of us is enslaved, then none of us can truelly say we are free.
As Satish Kumar writes in his book “You are, therefore, I am”.
……..
The opportunity for zero slavery is at its optimum now…..
the economics are right, the community ethos is supportive, the law is in place; and the victims want to do what it takes to ensure self-sufficiency.
…………………
It was coincidence that just that afternoon I had purchased a braclet of four metals, the kind that felt like almost a handcuff when trying to place on the wrist.
I reflected at the time how easy we place these chains on, sometimes self-imposed … like smoking perhaps.. but othertimes, powerful bonds that are held over other people and that can enslave them.
……………and following on from a comment made in Paulo Coelho’s blog last week ..
I don’t think NGOs are to be so criticised for their work in the world. My organisation for instance, helps combat child trafficking and child labour. It works with the ILO/IPEC/Lutrena in the past but also establishes community surveillance teams made up of a plethora of members.
Myorgn provides financial backing, educational and health support to those ‘at risk’ of being trafficked…
we live in the northern region, where - for centuries now - people have been enticed to the south.
once it was slavery to be shipped abroad (africans selling africans for example to the colonialists); currently youth travel - lulled by the bright lights and hope of work in the big cities; and then there is the Kayaye situation.
my org also has three training centres around the northern region - carpentry, batik printing, dress-making … skills that those trafficking or sent as child labourers .. can adopt since they have missed out on an education.
Transparency…
well, there is a great heap of documentation, reporting, photo and video documentaries, financial accounting that goes on in NGO work… reporting back to the donor organisations. It’s their money and they need to know where it has gone and how it has been spent.
………
who else is doing the work in the rural disadvantaged areas… that is the question you need to look at.
why NGOs exist at all is because they fill a space, a need, an essential part of societies responsibilities that is not fulfilled by government.
Tamale is NGO central… more NGOs in this town than any other… but they all inspire small small.. and all do some work.. small small, step by step.
yes, there is some corruption - as is everywhere… bosses taking bigger lunches, or pay packets than should be morally allowed.. but that kind of way is on the out… because of NGOs accountability to their donors.
………….
What are they (NGOs) really doing?
motivating, inspiring, being involved…
;o)
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The number of children that cannot read or write in Year 1 is on the increase it seems, yet, they are not repeating Year 1. Is not that a reflection of a failure of our governments and teaching methods? Why are these children allowed to go to the next year?
We are handicapping these children from their first Year at school. What hope do they have?
There are a huge numbers of graduates that still cannot spell either.
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Walking on the Red Carpet Fawzia heard someone in a crowd of people yelling: ”Harisha! Harisha!”
She turned around and noticed a tall man following her like a shadow.
- ”Who are you?” she asked.
- ”I am Harisha. Lord of Monkeys.” he answered.
A few seconds later she turned gently her head and looked through the crowd trying to find Oscar. He had to come just for one reason: he knew she was the best and no matter who the Lord was.
She was waiting for him while Harisha clapped his hands together and disappeared.
Now she stood alone.
/”My name is Miu Fan.”/
———————————————————————
The Arabian name Fawzia means “victorious, winner”.
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