We had eighteen for dinner yesterday. We had a great feast and a marvelous time. I am thankful for the wonderful family we have. This Thanksgiving celebration is a memorable one.
It looks like every fork, knife and spoon has been used and there is a mountain of plates, saucers and platters. Plus all the pots and pans; as chief dishwasher I have my work cut out for me.
I have washed one batch of plates and I have another soaking.
There will be no regular blog today. I hope you find one of my old blogs worthwhile.
I wish all a great holiday season.
Love and Peace, Gregg
Friday, November 28, 2014
Wednesday, November 26, 2014
GIVING THANKS
We got the chickens moved into their new coop on Monday evening after dark. I have moved chickens from one coop to another many times. We raise replacement pullets in one place and move them to the main coop, when their old enough; it happens every couple years. It is generally only a few, but I am well experienced in how to move chickens without much fuss or muss.
Chickens cannot see well in the dark and if they are familiar with you, i.e. their caregiver, one can generally pick them off the roost one at a time, put them in the carrier, without much trouble.
My first mistake. The chicken that was closest to me was a rooster. I picked him up and he started screaming as only a chicken can do. I put him in the carrier and he continued to complain bitterly. One would swear he was being murdered. Well roosters give warning to the flock. When they are outside and they see a hawk, they give a call and all the other chickens run for cover. So all the chickens cleared the roost and hysteria broke out.
It wasn't going to be the easy job that I anticipated. I went back in the house to let the chickens settle down. Jamie volunteered to go with me. It was clear we were going to have to catch chickens rather than just pick them off the roost. Fortunately, they had settled down when we got out there and we were able to pick five or six off the roost before hysteria broke out again. Chickens are much easier to catch in dim light, so even though we had to chase some down, we were able to catch them rather quickly and we made the move in two trips. This wasn't a big operation. It was only thirty chickens.
It actually went pretty well, it just wasn't what I envisioned sitting in my arm chair creating the event. The chickens are cozy in their new environs. They are adjusting well. I won't be able to let them out for a few days as they will try to get to their old home.
I am thankful the chickens are settled in their new abode and I have to walk less than fifty feet to the coop rather than one hundred yards. It will make Winter much nicer.
What do we have to be thankful for? We can be thankful, that after thousands of years, we see that we have been kept apart so that a small group could have power over us. We have been carefully taught that people are higher and lower. That some deserve more. That some deserve less. That some groups are dangerous; that some are our natural enemies. We have been taught that our wonderful Mother Earth is limited in abundance and not trustworthy. We have been taught that we have to fight and compete for everything worthwhile. We have been taught that everything is limited.
We can be thankful that everything we have learned about fear and divisiveness is untrue. We can be thankful that we are beginning to see through the age old manipulations and that we are individually sovereign but 'one'.
We can be thankful that we are seeing that the media attempts to keep our attention on fear. Fear is the method of control.
We can be thankful that we see, that any attention to fear, takes our attention away from the our innate love for each other.
We can be thankful for the love that is flooding the Earth, thinning the illusion and helping us awaken.
We can be thankful that we know all humanity is one. We know that our natural state is to be in love with each other and all we have to do is to quit listening to fear to make the transformation.
We can be thankful that the vast majority of the Earth's population knows that love is the only answer and it is only a few folks who have garnered power for themselves that attempt to keep us in darkness.
We can be thankful that one person who awakens has many times the power of one who stays in darkness. One person who holds his light high illuminates the hearts and minds of hundreds or even thousands in dim light.
We can be thankful that love cannot be limited. Love cannot be squelched. Love can only expand. Love cannot be denied. Love is the solution for everything.
We can be thankful that we are realizing we must give up our war with nature and must give in to our love for Mother Earth. We are at our core in-love with Nature. Nature is Love. It is only fear that has alienated us from the Earth.
We can be thankful that we are recognizing the Earth is a Being. A being as we are beings, created by Source. The Earth is the Mother of our Physicality and shares our Spirituality. She loves us absolutely and unconditionally. She gives us everything we need. We only need to give up our fear induced learning to see this clearly.
This Thanksgiving let us raise our voices and glasses to ONENESS. Oneness is Love. Isn't it wonderful to be in-love with Mother Earth and Each Other?!
Love and Peace, Gregg
Chickens cannot see well in the dark and if they are familiar with you, i.e. their caregiver, one can generally pick them off the roost one at a time, put them in the carrier, without much trouble.
My first mistake. The chicken that was closest to me was a rooster. I picked him up and he started screaming as only a chicken can do. I put him in the carrier and he continued to complain bitterly. One would swear he was being murdered. Well roosters give warning to the flock. When they are outside and they see a hawk, they give a call and all the other chickens run for cover. So all the chickens cleared the roost and hysteria broke out.
It wasn't going to be the easy job that I anticipated. I went back in the house to let the chickens settle down. Jamie volunteered to go with me. It was clear we were going to have to catch chickens rather than just pick them off the roost. Fortunately, they had settled down when we got out there and we were able to pick five or six off the roost before hysteria broke out again. Chickens are much easier to catch in dim light, so even though we had to chase some down, we were able to catch them rather quickly and we made the move in two trips. This wasn't a big operation. It was only thirty chickens.
It actually went pretty well, it just wasn't what I envisioned sitting in my arm chair creating the event. The chickens are cozy in their new environs. They are adjusting well. I won't be able to let them out for a few days as they will try to get to their old home.
I am thankful the chickens are settled in their new abode and I have to walk less than fifty feet to the coop rather than one hundred yards. It will make Winter much nicer.
What do we have to be thankful for? We can be thankful, that after thousands of years, we see that we have been kept apart so that a small group could have power over us. We have been carefully taught that people are higher and lower. That some deserve more. That some deserve less. That some groups are dangerous; that some are our natural enemies. We have been taught that our wonderful Mother Earth is limited in abundance and not trustworthy. We have been taught that we have to fight and compete for everything worthwhile. We have been taught that everything is limited.
We can be thankful that everything we have learned about fear and divisiveness is untrue. We can be thankful that we are beginning to see through the age old manipulations and that we are individually sovereign but 'one'.
We can be thankful that we are seeing that the media attempts to keep our attention on fear. Fear is the method of control.
We can be thankful that we see, that any attention to fear, takes our attention away from the our innate love for each other.
We can be thankful for the love that is flooding the Earth, thinning the illusion and helping us awaken.
We can be thankful that we know all humanity is one. We know that our natural state is to be in love with each other and all we have to do is to quit listening to fear to make the transformation.
We can be thankful that the vast majority of the Earth's population knows that love is the only answer and it is only a few folks who have garnered power for themselves that attempt to keep us in darkness.
We can be thankful that one person who awakens has many times the power of one who stays in darkness. One person who holds his light high illuminates the hearts and minds of hundreds or even thousands in dim light.
We can be thankful that love cannot be limited. Love cannot be squelched. Love can only expand. Love cannot be denied. Love is the solution for everything.
We can be thankful that we are realizing we must give up our war with nature and must give in to our love for Mother Earth. We are at our core in-love with Nature. Nature is Love. It is only fear that has alienated us from the Earth.
We can be thankful that we are recognizing the Earth is a Being. A being as we are beings, created by Source. The Earth is the Mother of our Physicality and shares our Spirituality. She loves us absolutely and unconditionally. She gives us everything we need. We only need to give up our fear induced learning to see this clearly.
This Thanksgiving let us raise our voices and glasses to ONENESS. Oneness is Love. Isn't it wonderful to be in-love with Mother Earth and Each Other?!
Love and Peace, Gregg
Monday, November 24, 2014
THANKSGIVING IS COMING
Our brief span of normal temperatures are over. Temperatures were slightly above normal, actually, highs in the low forties F. We were so used to it being twenty degrees below normal that it seemed like a heat wave. Looks like it is going back into the cold.
We are inured and it is okay. It helps one learn acceptance. We used the two relatively warm days to finish the chicken coop. Well I should say Jamie did. She did most of the work. My part begins. I need to move the feeders, waterer and most importantly the chickens. I may move the chickens tonight if it works out. They need to be moved at night when I can just pick them off their roost. I need to do it as I am their familiar one. They panic if they don't know you. Then we have to move the two feed cans from the barn. They weigh between 150 and 200 pounds when full. Feed has to be kept in cans, we use galvanized garbage cans, the mice will have holes chewed in the feed sacks in a very short time. In fact we need to keep the empty sacks in a can too. When I first started raising chickens I just folded the empty sacks up and put them on a shelf. I found them mouse chewed when I wanted to reuse them.
We are undergoing Thanksgiving planning. Jamie has the preparations honed down to a 'T'. She has learned how to prepare the traditional Thanksgiving dinner ahead of time so that her whole holiday isn't taken up with cooking. She galantines the turkey; that is she takes it off the bones and rolls it up with the dressing inside, in the freezer it goes. She has discovered how to prepare and then freeze ahead of time; rutabagas, cranberries, even mashed potatoes. I am forgetting a couple things, and then she just needs to roast the turkey and heat up the other stuff. Pies are baked the day before. It is still a tremendous amount of work but she is able to spread it out over several days.
This will be the first Thanksgiving in many years when all my children will be present. Noah has been in California pursuing an acting career. I have six children; Laura [53], Stuart [51], Matt [49], Andrew [46], Noah [36], and Naomi [35]. We will gather here, with their spouses and children, and have a great celebration. I think we will have eighteen in all.
I love Thanksgiving. The idea is so much bigger than the holiday. In my personal life I have found that the two things that bring me the most peace are forgiveness and thanks giving. When ever I am down, troubled, ill at ease, in any way not happy, if I ask myself, "What am I not being thankful for?" and/or "Who haven't I forgiven?" I will see the pathway towards peace. Failure to forgive is like a sack of stones weighing down our consciousness. Failure in thankfulness is being blind to our fortune.
It takes some people a long time to understand forgiveness. They stubbornly hang onto the idea that forgiveness is for the other. They hope that, not forgiving, will bring justice. They have yet to realize forgiveness is strength. It doesn't make one more vulnerable. Forgiveness frees the mind and paves the way for oneness. Refusing to forgive, self or other, causes a heaviness of spirit that often leads to depression. If there was one word to describe the path towards love and awareness it would be forgiveness.
In our culture we have learned to focus on what we don't have. It is a keystone of materialism. It is easy for folks to pine for what they see as a lack and miss out on all the great thing around them. This holiday reminds us of all the things we have to be thankful for. Let's not wait for Thanksgiving to be thankful. Let's remember it always. Next time things are not quite perfect let's turn on our thankfulness and bask in the warm glow.
Love and Peace, Gregg
We are inured and it is okay. It helps one learn acceptance. We used the two relatively warm days to finish the chicken coop. Well I should say Jamie did. She did most of the work. My part begins. I need to move the feeders, waterer and most importantly the chickens. I may move the chickens tonight if it works out. They need to be moved at night when I can just pick them off their roost. I need to do it as I am their familiar one. They panic if they don't know you. Then we have to move the two feed cans from the barn. They weigh between 150 and 200 pounds when full. Feed has to be kept in cans, we use galvanized garbage cans, the mice will have holes chewed in the feed sacks in a very short time. In fact we need to keep the empty sacks in a can too. When I first started raising chickens I just folded the empty sacks up and put them on a shelf. I found them mouse chewed when I wanted to reuse them.
We are undergoing Thanksgiving planning. Jamie has the preparations honed down to a 'T'. She has learned how to prepare the traditional Thanksgiving dinner ahead of time so that her whole holiday isn't taken up with cooking. She galantines the turkey; that is she takes it off the bones and rolls it up with the dressing inside, in the freezer it goes. She has discovered how to prepare and then freeze ahead of time; rutabagas, cranberries, even mashed potatoes. I am forgetting a couple things, and then she just needs to roast the turkey and heat up the other stuff. Pies are baked the day before. It is still a tremendous amount of work but she is able to spread it out over several days.
This will be the first Thanksgiving in many years when all my children will be present. Noah has been in California pursuing an acting career. I have six children; Laura [53], Stuart [51], Matt [49], Andrew [46], Noah [36], and Naomi [35]. We will gather here, with their spouses and children, and have a great celebration. I think we will have eighteen in all.
I love Thanksgiving. The idea is so much bigger than the holiday. In my personal life I have found that the two things that bring me the most peace are forgiveness and thanks giving. When ever I am down, troubled, ill at ease, in any way not happy, if I ask myself, "What am I not being thankful for?" and/or "Who haven't I forgiven?" I will see the pathway towards peace. Failure to forgive is like a sack of stones weighing down our consciousness. Failure in thankfulness is being blind to our fortune.
It takes some people a long time to understand forgiveness. They stubbornly hang onto the idea that forgiveness is for the other. They hope that, not forgiving, will bring justice. They have yet to realize forgiveness is strength. It doesn't make one more vulnerable. Forgiveness frees the mind and paves the way for oneness. Refusing to forgive, self or other, causes a heaviness of spirit that often leads to depression. If there was one word to describe the path towards love and awareness it would be forgiveness.
In our culture we have learned to focus on what we don't have. It is a keystone of materialism. It is easy for folks to pine for what they see as a lack and miss out on all the great thing around them. This holiday reminds us of all the things we have to be thankful for. Let's not wait for Thanksgiving to be thankful. Let's remember it always. Next time things are not quite perfect let's turn on our thankfulness and bask in the warm glow.
Love and Peace, Gregg
Friday, November 21, 2014
ANOTHER FRIDAY
Wow! Time is flying for me. I have said this before. I am used to it, but it seems like it is really speeding up more. It will be Thanksgiving pretty soon and then December and the Christmas season. Maybe Winter won't seem so long after all. It was more than six below F last night, now it is twenty three. We are looking forward to the warm up that is predicted for this weekend. A little snow might even melt.
My sheep found the big bales I had delivered. It makes my chores more pleasurable. I had ten or twelve bales of old hay, some of it had a little mold and much of it was more like straw than hay. I had to sort through it to find something they would like. They didn't like any of it very well. They crowded around me, hoping I would produce something magically, every time I went to the chicken coop. The chicken coop is surrounded by pasture. It is hard to walk through sheep that are crowding around your legs. No, I wasn't prepared for fifteen inches of snow and the end of grazing.
We have settled into Winter. Once one adapts, it is rather nice. It is a good time for contemplation and reading. I need to go outside enough to take care of my animals and I don't do much in the form of Winter recreation. I do like cross country skiing but I haven't tried it in many years.
I will be eighty on January 24th. For some reason that benchmark has been significant. The only other time I took note of a birthday was when I was fifty. Suddenly I wasn't young anymore. I have been looking forward to being eighty. It doesn't seem old, it just seems amazing. How does one get to be eighty when they are still looking forward to growing up?
In a real sense I am still looking forward to growing up. Doesn't it irritate you when you still act childishly? I don't like it when I still permit reactions that are purely ego driven. Jamie and I are both dominate personalities and if the truth were spoken kind of "know-it-alls". Although we fundamentally agree on most things. We often perceive from different polarities. I was aware, after a little squabble, that I would like to express irritation without the other reacting, then when they react, it is their fault. Hey can't I express some ego childishness without getting a reaction? I guess not. Maybe when I am eighty I will be grown up.
This is the time when we are all growing up. The influx of love on the planet forces us to bring our craziness to the surface. We made a conscious or unconscious intent to become unconditionally loving beings [in other words-grown up]. To be open to the love that is engulfing us, we must let our egos have a subordinate place in our lives. We must learn to let our hearts lead. We can begin consciously by keeping love foremost on our minds. It will become automatic.
It doesn't help to dwell on our failures to love. It doesn't help to figure out why we behaved like jerks. The origin of those ego buttons are often too buried for easy recovery and it is not necessary to uncover them. What does help is forgiveness. Forgive, forgive, forgive yourself and the other. We will find those buttons disappear if they are not used.
I have to go out in Winter Wonderland. Happy Friday!
Love and Peace, Gregg
My sheep found the big bales I had delivered. It makes my chores more pleasurable. I had ten or twelve bales of old hay, some of it had a little mold and much of it was more like straw than hay. I had to sort through it to find something they would like. They didn't like any of it very well. They crowded around me, hoping I would produce something magically, every time I went to the chicken coop. The chicken coop is surrounded by pasture. It is hard to walk through sheep that are crowding around your legs. No, I wasn't prepared for fifteen inches of snow and the end of grazing.
We have settled into Winter. Once one adapts, it is rather nice. It is a good time for contemplation and reading. I need to go outside enough to take care of my animals and I don't do much in the form of Winter recreation. I do like cross country skiing but I haven't tried it in many years.
I will be eighty on January 24th. For some reason that benchmark has been significant. The only other time I took note of a birthday was when I was fifty. Suddenly I wasn't young anymore. I have been looking forward to being eighty. It doesn't seem old, it just seems amazing. How does one get to be eighty when they are still looking forward to growing up?
In a real sense I am still looking forward to growing up. Doesn't it irritate you when you still act childishly? I don't like it when I still permit reactions that are purely ego driven. Jamie and I are both dominate personalities and if the truth were spoken kind of "know-it-alls". Although we fundamentally agree on most things. We often perceive from different polarities. I was aware, after a little squabble, that I would like to express irritation without the other reacting, then when they react, it is their fault. Hey can't I express some ego childishness without getting a reaction? I guess not. Maybe when I am eighty I will be grown up.
This is the time when we are all growing up. The influx of love on the planet forces us to bring our craziness to the surface. We made a conscious or unconscious intent to become unconditionally loving beings [in other words-grown up]. To be open to the love that is engulfing us, we must let our egos have a subordinate place in our lives. We must learn to let our hearts lead. We can begin consciously by keeping love foremost on our minds. It will become automatic.
It doesn't help to dwell on our failures to love. It doesn't help to figure out why we behaved like jerks. The origin of those ego buttons are often too buried for easy recovery and it is not necessary to uncover them. What does help is forgiveness. Forgive, forgive, forgive yourself and the other. We will find those buttons disappear if they are not used.
I have to go out in Winter Wonderland. Happy Friday!
Love and Peace, Gregg
Wednesday, November 19, 2014
LIFE ON PLANET EARTH
I had two very large bales of hay delivered for my sheep yesterday. The sheep went through two and one half bales last year. These bales are even larger; if it is not enough I can get more. I found that these large bales are the easiest way to feed sheep and one doesn't have to go out there every day if something comes up. My hay man [who is also my plowman] brings them over on a truck, and unloads them with a bobcat like vehicle, with a forklift. He drops them right over the fence.
The hay bales are about one hundred yards from the barn and I am going to have to trudge through the snow with a bucket of grain to entice the sheep to follow me to the bales. When we get the chickens located in their new coop, my chores will be much easier. The present chicken coop is over one hundred yards from our front door and I have been taking that path, at least twice a day, every Winter for nearly forty years. Last Winter began with a wet heavy snow that formed an ice highway out to the coop. I go topsy-turvy a couple times in a typical Winter. Last year was horrendous. It was Jamie's idea to move the chickens to the newly vacated goat barn which is about fifty feet from our front door. We would have had the conversion completed by now if it wasn't so cold. The forecast promises warmer days next week. I resisted the change, ever so mildly, because I need the exercise in the Winter and I don't like making concessions to an aging body. Oh well, life on planet Earth.
In a normal year it gets above freezing everyday, this time of year, and if it snows it doesn't last long. In my nearly four score on Planet Earth I have known only one Winter when it snowed this early and didn't melt until Spring. I hope this isn't the second time. Underneath the snow, there is still some excellent green grass in my pasture, I was hoping my sheep could graze a little longer. We will soon be getting to the time when it is normal to be snow covered. If we are going to have a melt it needs to come soon. Of course, there is that elusive January thaw to hope for.
I do my blogging in our new addition, we call it the North Room. It has two large windows facing East and one facing North. The light streams in the windows in the Morning and it is extremely pleasant to sit here and compose my blog. Most of the year, I do my morning chores when I first get up, and I would still be doing that if it hadn't snowed. As it is, the chickens are not eager to go out, they have plenty of food and water, so I go out late Morning. I let the chickens out. There is not much for them to do. Some of them go to the barn and scratch around. There is an area where I throw out the kitchen waste. Both the chickens and the sheep keep that area carefully patrolled. Nothing goes to waste on Laughing Water Farm.
It is 29.8 degrees F. That is like a heat wave compared to what it has been. I am going to go out and lead those sheep to their new bales.
Keep loving every moment of your lives.
Love and Peace, Gregg
The hay bales are about one hundred yards from the barn and I am going to have to trudge through the snow with a bucket of grain to entice the sheep to follow me to the bales. When we get the chickens located in their new coop, my chores will be much easier. The present chicken coop is over one hundred yards from our front door and I have been taking that path, at least twice a day, every Winter for nearly forty years. Last Winter began with a wet heavy snow that formed an ice highway out to the coop. I go topsy-turvy a couple times in a typical Winter. Last year was horrendous. It was Jamie's idea to move the chickens to the newly vacated goat barn which is about fifty feet from our front door. We would have had the conversion completed by now if it wasn't so cold. The forecast promises warmer days next week. I resisted the change, ever so mildly, because I need the exercise in the Winter and I don't like making concessions to an aging body. Oh well, life on planet Earth.
In a normal year it gets above freezing everyday, this time of year, and if it snows it doesn't last long. In my nearly four score on Planet Earth I have known only one Winter when it snowed this early and didn't melt until Spring. I hope this isn't the second time. Underneath the snow, there is still some excellent green grass in my pasture, I was hoping my sheep could graze a little longer. We will soon be getting to the time when it is normal to be snow covered. If we are going to have a melt it needs to come soon. Of course, there is that elusive January thaw to hope for.
I do my blogging in our new addition, we call it the North Room. It has two large windows facing East and one facing North. The light streams in the windows in the Morning and it is extremely pleasant to sit here and compose my blog. Most of the year, I do my morning chores when I first get up, and I would still be doing that if it hadn't snowed. As it is, the chickens are not eager to go out, they have plenty of food and water, so I go out late Morning. I let the chickens out. There is not much for them to do. Some of them go to the barn and scratch around. There is an area where I throw out the kitchen waste. Both the chickens and the sheep keep that area carefully patrolled. Nothing goes to waste on Laughing Water Farm.
It is 29.8 degrees F. That is like a heat wave compared to what it has been. I am going to go out and lead those sheep to their new bales.
Keep loving every moment of your lives.
Love and Peace, Gregg
Monday, November 17, 2014
WHAT DO WE KNOW
I wasn't going to say anything about the weather. Complaining is not good for my consciousness. I can be in wonder, though. I am. We have been right at or below the record low for cold since Friday and the forecast for this week doesn't show much improvement until the end of the week. We are missing out on all that wonderful global warming.
The meteorological explanation for the cold is rather simple. A hurricane in the Pacific cycled far North and pulled down the cold. It has happened before and will again. I am not a scientist. I am well grounded in the scientific method and observation. All knowledge must start with observation. We can't create viable hypotheses without sound observation.
We need to question what we think we know. We find ourselves accepting science in the same way we accepted religion. Which is paradoxical, don't you think? The idea of science is that is is grounded in fact and does not accept any ideas that are not grounded in fact. Yet most of us accept popular scientific conclusions as fact without the foggiest notions of whether they are true or not. Very much like religion. I am not saying there is anything wrong with it. We need to trust, that people who study these things, know what they are saying.
However, we must nor deny our own observations. I have a background as an electronic technician [air force]. I repaired radar sets. There are many aspects of electricity I don't understand but I can observe how it works. I am a gardener. I don't understand everything about the manufacture of chlorophyll but I can see it working.
Everything about our natural world is amazing and fills us with awe. We can capture understanding through science but we never know everything there is to know. Science is very controlled, and often accurate guessing, but it is still guessing. The proof is always in the observation. Is the guess working out? An hypothesis is a guess. A theory is a collection of hypotheses that were proven. It remains theoretical. There is no final proof. It is always evolving as we understand more. Treating science as religion means we don't understand either one.
We have always had the contamination of ego. That is one reason why skepticism and peer reviews are so important. When the ego belongs to a great scientist, in a powerful academic position, skepticism can be squelched and peer reviews superficial. In the fields of anthropology, archaeology, psychology and to a lesser extent geology, ego has played a large part in what we have considered truth. There are still many, false assumptions we have, that date back a hundred years or so. We are learning. The further away science gets from mathematics, the more likely contamination can occur.
In our present day we have the contamination of money plus ego. If somebody can make money off of it. It doesn't matter what it is; medicine, agriculture, health, manufacture, climate, etc, we can't trust the research. Our god has become money and all science has become contaminated.
This is not something new. We have been manipulated for thousands of years. Our beliefs have been imbedded in our consciousness. We are at a time when everything must be questioned. Awareness is awareness. It means seeing truth. Many of our cherished beliefs are going to be turned upside down.
Do our beliefs fit our observations? If not, do we need to change our beliefs or observe more deeply and fully? We must not abandon our observations and accept others conclusions without having our own understanding. There is nothing wrong with trusting folks who know more about a subject than we know, but we must be very wary if it goes counter to our own observation.
We all have inside us an ability to sense truth. This is not well developed in most of us because we have accepted what has been spoon fed by society and culture. We do need to start looking inside to discover who we are. We have a much greater recognition of truth and understanding than we are aware of.
We will discover that truth is always love. They are inseparable. All is one. Truth is never divisive. If we focus on love and continue to appreciate our oneness the coming upheavals will not be so traumatic. Be prepared to shepherd folks who are temporarily shattered by the challenge to their belief systems. We need to go back to the root, immerse ourselves in Nature and just observe. We don't need to make conclusions.
Love and Peace, Gregg
The meteorological explanation for the cold is rather simple. A hurricane in the Pacific cycled far North and pulled down the cold. It has happened before and will again. I am not a scientist. I am well grounded in the scientific method and observation. All knowledge must start with observation. We can't create viable hypotheses without sound observation.
We need to question what we think we know. We find ourselves accepting science in the same way we accepted religion. Which is paradoxical, don't you think? The idea of science is that is is grounded in fact and does not accept any ideas that are not grounded in fact. Yet most of us accept popular scientific conclusions as fact without the foggiest notions of whether they are true or not. Very much like religion. I am not saying there is anything wrong with it. We need to trust, that people who study these things, know what they are saying.
However, we must nor deny our own observations. I have a background as an electronic technician [air force]. I repaired radar sets. There are many aspects of electricity I don't understand but I can observe how it works. I am a gardener. I don't understand everything about the manufacture of chlorophyll but I can see it working.
Everything about our natural world is amazing and fills us with awe. We can capture understanding through science but we never know everything there is to know. Science is very controlled, and often accurate guessing, but it is still guessing. The proof is always in the observation. Is the guess working out? An hypothesis is a guess. A theory is a collection of hypotheses that were proven. It remains theoretical. There is no final proof. It is always evolving as we understand more. Treating science as religion means we don't understand either one.
We have always had the contamination of ego. That is one reason why skepticism and peer reviews are so important. When the ego belongs to a great scientist, in a powerful academic position, skepticism can be squelched and peer reviews superficial. In the fields of anthropology, archaeology, psychology and to a lesser extent geology, ego has played a large part in what we have considered truth. There are still many, false assumptions we have, that date back a hundred years or so. We are learning. The further away science gets from mathematics, the more likely contamination can occur.
In our present day we have the contamination of money plus ego. If somebody can make money off of it. It doesn't matter what it is; medicine, agriculture, health, manufacture, climate, etc, we can't trust the research. Our god has become money and all science has become contaminated.
This is not something new. We have been manipulated for thousands of years. Our beliefs have been imbedded in our consciousness. We are at a time when everything must be questioned. Awareness is awareness. It means seeing truth. Many of our cherished beliefs are going to be turned upside down.
Do our beliefs fit our observations? If not, do we need to change our beliefs or observe more deeply and fully? We must not abandon our observations and accept others conclusions without having our own understanding. There is nothing wrong with trusting folks who know more about a subject than we know, but we must be very wary if it goes counter to our own observation.
We all have inside us an ability to sense truth. This is not well developed in most of us because we have accepted what has been spoon fed by society and culture. We do need to start looking inside to discover who we are. We have a much greater recognition of truth and understanding than we are aware of.
We will discover that truth is always love. They are inseparable. All is one. Truth is never divisive. If we focus on love and continue to appreciate our oneness the coming upheavals will not be so traumatic. Be prepared to shepherd folks who are temporarily shattered by the challenge to their belief systems. We need to go back to the root, immerse ourselves in Nature and just observe. We don't need to make conclusions.
Love and Peace, Gregg
Friday, November 14, 2014
COLD MORNING
It was 1degree F when we got up. My memory thermometer said it got down to 0.7F. My weather calendar indicates the record low for this date is 0 degrees F in 1919. The record high is 71 in 1990. The normal high is 42F. We will be lucky if it gets into the twenties. It is 10.2F right now.
We celebrated Naomi's 35th birthday last night with a nice dinner and a little red wine. Her birthday was on the twelfth but she had to work. I put some music on. Simon and Garfunkel's Bookends was playing and I remembered that I received that album for my 35th birthday. Wow! 45 years ago. The music still sounds good.
My brother and sister and law were over to our house for a party and as they left, Arlene [my sister in law] said, "We got you bookends for your birthday". They were leaving and I didn't clarify what she was saying. I thought she meant things to hold up books. I thought it was kind of a strange present, especially since we had a large library style bookcase.
A few days later, I received the album. I was overjoyed with the music. That was 1970. I quickly acquired the other albums they had out. 1970 must have been a pivotal year for me. That was the year I left Wilder Child Guidance Clinic to go into private practice. For a going away present they gave me Abbey Roads. One of my senior colleagues suggested I get ear phones and zone into the music. I did.
Bookends and Abbey Roads opened up big door for me and in marched; Crosby, Stills and Nash, The Grateful Dead, James Taylor, Blood, Sweat and Tears, Willy Nelson et al. I have to stop trying to list them as I know I am forgetting a couple of my favorites. The music of that era blew my mind and opened me up.
The music described the times and portrayed the pain of the world but it was also very hopeful. It gave dignity to struggling mankind and hinted that paradise was possible.
One may ask, "What did you listen to before that?" I listened to all kinds of folk music. Some of it Irish, English, American, Country. I loved Josh White, Burl Ives, Ledbetter, Woody Guthrie and many others.
Ideas for this blog are not suggesting themselves to me. So much of my blogs are the same. I reassure folks that things are okay and the world is not as bad as it looks. Some of the stuff I read is similarly reassuring. I sometimes get impatient. I want to see real change. I don't want to just listen to promises.
My impatience doesn't last long, because I do know we are on the verge of entering paradise. How do I know? I listen with my heart. I just know. I know all our minds are together and we are beginning to bring heaven forth upon this Earth. Let me quote something from a blog I read before going to bed last night: "If you want a peaceful world, picture a peaceful world. Your pictures are that powerful. Picture a world of goodness and mercy, and behold, it will arise. Instead of storming about the state of the world, bless it. Instead of rigorously trying to overthrow the world, picture a world you would love with all your heart, and that is the world that will appear before you. The world has been amazing how it has absorbed your slings and arrows. Now the world looks for a new appraisal from you, and it will follow your thoughts. You can't get off the world- while you are here- so be a cheerleader and so change it without fanfare, and My Will be done." This is a paragraph from a blog called, "Heaven Letters"
Sounds like good advice.
Love and Peace, Gregg
We celebrated Naomi's 35th birthday last night with a nice dinner and a little red wine. Her birthday was on the twelfth but she had to work. I put some music on. Simon and Garfunkel's Bookends was playing and I remembered that I received that album for my 35th birthday. Wow! 45 years ago. The music still sounds good.
My brother and sister and law were over to our house for a party and as they left, Arlene [my sister in law] said, "We got you bookends for your birthday". They were leaving and I didn't clarify what she was saying. I thought she meant things to hold up books. I thought it was kind of a strange present, especially since we had a large library style bookcase.
A few days later, I received the album. I was overjoyed with the music. That was 1970. I quickly acquired the other albums they had out. 1970 must have been a pivotal year for me. That was the year I left Wilder Child Guidance Clinic to go into private practice. For a going away present they gave me Abbey Roads. One of my senior colleagues suggested I get ear phones and zone into the music. I did.
Bookends and Abbey Roads opened up big door for me and in marched; Crosby, Stills and Nash, The Grateful Dead, James Taylor, Blood, Sweat and Tears, Willy Nelson et al. I have to stop trying to list them as I know I am forgetting a couple of my favorites. The music of that era blew my mind and opened me up.
The music described the times and portrayed the pain of the world but it was also very hopeful. It gave dignity to struggling mankind and hinted that paradise was possible.
One may ask, "What did you listen to before that?" I listened to all kinds of folk music. Some of it Irish, English, American, Country. I loved Josh White, Burl Ives, Ledbetter, Woody Guthrie and many others.
Ideas for this blog are not suggesting themselves to me. So much of my blogs are the same. I reassure folks that things are okay and the world is not as bad as it looks. Some of the stuff I read is similarly reassuring. I sometimes get impatient. I want to see real change. I don't want to just listen to promises.
My impatience doesn't last long, because I do know we are on the verge of entering paradise. How do I know? I listen with my heart. I just know. I know all our minds are together and we are beginning to bring heaven forth upon this Earth. Let me quote something from a blog I read before going to bed last night: "If you want a peaceful world, picture a peaceful world. Your pictures are that powerful. Picture a world of goodness and mercy, and behold, it will arise. Instead of storming about the state of the world, bless it. Instead of rigorously trying to overthrow the world, picture a world you would love with all your heart, and that is the world that will appear before you. The world has been amazing how it has absorbed your slings and arrows. Now the world looks for a new appraisal from you, and it will follow your thoughts. You can't get off the world- while you are here- so be a cheerleader and so change it without fanfare, and My Will be done." This is a paragraph from a blog called, "Heaven Letters"
Sounds like good advice.
Love and Peace, Gregg
Wednesday, November 12, 2014
WINTER RULES
What happens when the low temperature hovers around freezing for weeks, then suddenly the high temperature is in the low teens F.? What happens when the Earth is still soft and unfrozen and it is suddenly covered with fifteen inches of snow?
Saturday we were enjoying Autumn. Jamie planted the garlic and Noah and I dug the potatoes. High temperatures were in the forties F. Sunday we scurried around getting things done ahead of the storm. Monday, I made only one visit to the animals. {I couldn't see the sheep} Yesterday we cleared snow. But first- we got a telephone call from a neighbor telling us that our sheep were across the road in the church yard [a place for lost sheep?].
Something really scared them because my usual docile sheep were very wary of me. Even a bucket of grain, would not relieve them of their anxiety. They would follow us a little way and then bolt back. They acted as if they were afraid to cross the road. Noah was the hero of the day. If it wasn't for him the sheep would have joined the church by now.
We got the sheep back in the yard. They wanted to get back in the fence. We opened a gate, that they have never used before, and they weren't about to go through. They walked back and forth several times before they recognized the opening and went in. I will never disparage the intelligence of another creature. All animals are good at what they are good at, and often outshine humans in particular areas. That said; sheep are much less observant than many animals. Once they are convinced they can't get out of a fence, they don't try, and they won't even notice when an opening occurs. For the farmer that is a great trait. Goats on the other hand, notice everything. They will find an opening in a fence five minutes after it occurs.
A box elder tree fell down on the fence, sometime this Summer. I wasn't too concerned about it, as I said, the sheep won't necessarily notice it for several days and it looked like a big job removing it. Well, they found it, probably, before the storm. Not exactly the best timing for us human caretakers. Again, Noah came through, and cut up the tree and repaired the fence.
This Morning, was the first Morning, I had to do the chores under the Winter rules. I had to go down the basement and find my water jugs and I had to get the toboggan from the garage. No more using the hose. I will be hauling water until Spring. It is one of the earliest times I have had to begin hauling water. The earliest was the year of the Halloween blizzard. I have often been able to use the hoses until Thanksgiving time and into December.
By Friday I will be into the Winter routine and I won't be mentioning Winter [hopefully].
I found all the activity good for my body and spirit. When one is my age, it is good to discover one can do those things. I am not saying, I had no negative reaction to the sudden onset of Winter. I found it discouraging. Winter is long when it starts this early. However, I discovered acceptance. With acceptance comes peace. If we can't change something, we can still find ways to love it. Weather always gives us good lessons in acceptance.
We are soon to experience upheavals, on the world stage, that will disturb many people. Some of our cherished beliefs will be challenged. We will need to be alert to the needs of the folks around us. Some will need reassurance. Many folks will be looking to those, who seem at peace, for understanding. Many of us, have not paid too much attention to the crumbling of our institutions. Things could happen fast. A whole new idea of leadership will emerge. The new leaders will be folks who do not see people as higher or lower. The new leaders will KNOW everyone is equal; not just proclaim it.
In the meantime, we can only stay in the moment, and love it. If we maintain, that we are here to find love. We will. All is well.
Love and Peace, Gregg
Saturday we were enjoying Autumn. Jamie planted the garlic and Noah and I dug the potatoes. High temperatures were in the forties F. Sunday we scurried around getting things done ahead of the storm. Monday, I made only one visit to the animals. {I couldn't see the sheep} Yesterday we cleared snow. But first- we got a telephone call from a neighbor telling us that our sheep were across the road in the church yard [a place for lost sheep?].
Something really scared them because my usual docile sheep were very wary of me. Even a bucket of grain, would not relieve them of their anxiety. They would follow us a little way and then bolt back. They acted as if they were afraid to cross the road. Noah was the hero of the day. If it wasn't for him the sheep would have joined the church by now.
We got the sheep back in the yard. They wanted to get back in the fence. We opened a gate, that they have never used before, and they weren't about to go through. They walked back and forth several times before they recognized the opening and went in. I will never disparage the intelligence of another creature. All animals are good at what they are good at, and often outshine humans in particular areas. That said; sheep are much less observant than many animals. Once they are convinced they can't get out of a fence, they don't try, and they won't even notice when an opening occurs. For the farmer that is a great trait. Goats on the other hand, notice everything. They will find an opening in a fence five minutes after it occurs.
A box elder tree fell down on the fence, sometime this Summer. I wasn't too concerned about it, as I said, the sheep won't necessarily notice it for several days and it looked like a big job removing it. Well, they found it, probably, before the storm. Not exactly the best timing for us human caretakers. Again, Noah came through, and cut up the tree and repaired the fence.
This Morning, was the first Morning, I had to do the chores under the Winter rules. I had to go down the basement and find my water jugs and I had to get the toboggan from the garage. No more using the hose. I will be hauling water until Spring. It is one of the earliest times I have had to begin hauling water. The earliest was the year of the Halloween blizzard. I have often been able to use the hoses until Thanksgiving time and into December.
By Friday I will be into the Winter routine and I won't be mentioning Winter [hopefully].
I found all the activity good for my body and spirit. When one is my age, it is good to discover one can do those things. I am not saying, I had no negative reaction to the sudden onset of Winter. I found it discouraging. Winter is long when it starts this early. However, I discovered acceptance. With acceptance comes peace. If we can't change something, we can still find ways to love it. Weather always gives us good lessons in acceptance.
We are soon to experience upheavals, on the world stage, that will disturb many people. Some of our cherished beliefs will be challenged. We will need to be alert to the needs of the folks around us. Some will need reassurance. Many folks will be looking to those, who seem at peace, for understanding. Many of us, have not paid too much attention to the crumbling of our institutions. Things could happen fast. A whole new idea of leadership will emerge. The new leaders will be folks who do not see people as higher or lower. The new leaders will KNOW everyone is equal; not just proclaim it.
In the meantime, we can only stay in the moment, and love it. If we maintain, that we are here to find love. We will. All is well.
Love and Peace, Gregg
Monday, November 10, 2014
AND WINTER ARRIVETH
I don't know if there is any such word as arriveth; Winter has arrived, however, and with considerable determination. This is my eightieth Winter [I will be eighty on January 24th], so I have seen Winter's arrival in all different forms. Last Winter was one of the longest and most miserable Winters I experienced. Yet, we had plenty of warning, there were several one to three inch snowstorms, that fell and melted, before the final blast, in early December, that made Winter permanent.
When we have sudden Winter, this time of year, people recall the great Armistice Day blizzard of 1940. I was five years old and attending first grade [I skipped kindergarten]. When we got up in the Morning it was warm 40F. We resisted wearing heavy coats, if we didn't have to, and my Mother let us go to school in sweaters. We had a long walk. We called it a mile, in those days, but it was eight city blocks. It started snowing about nine o'clock. By Noon, they decided to send the kids home. I remember walking through raging snow to get home. It was probably in the 20sF by then, it got much colder that night. I can't separate my childhood memory from all I have heard since. The folks who were old enough, to have first hand reliable memories, would be pretty old. I know many people were stuck downtown as the streetcars quit running, my Grandfather was one of them.
I don't know how they forecast weather in those days. I know they had telecommunications and the AM radio stations fed information to each other. Our severe weather, generally, originates West of us and often we would hear broadcast that would be tracing a storm across Montana and the Dakotas. I don't know why the 1940's storm was not predicted. I know that several duck hunters lost their lives because they couldn't get off the lakes or reach shelter.
Now we know about a storm's coming days before it arrives. It still has an element of surprise. Yesterday was quite pleasant. The temperature must have been close to 40F. We bustled around, getting things done, we didn't want to do in the snow. We had a chicken roost, in the barn, that we moved for the new chicken coop. I raised broilers in the barn, in the past, and we are reusing the door and the roost.
No matter how much we prepare, a sudden change in the weather is a surprise. I haven't been out to see my animals yet. The chickens are fine. They have plenty of food and water and they wouldn't go out if I invited them. There is probably six inches of snow on the ground now and we will probably get six more. I need to look through my old bales of hay to find something suitable for the sheep. I haven't got any new hay for them yet. The pasture is still in excellent condition and I was hoping I could keep them on pasture for a few weeks yet.
We have canned goods on the shelf and three freezers full of food. We could survive for a long, long time if we got snowed in. Unfortunately, one member of the family has a job to go to. Naomi is a nurse and she is working nights. Hopefully, she will be able to get out of our driveway and then find that the roads have been plowed.
For us folks who don't have to go anywhere, it is kind of cozy. It is a lesson in peace. When we stay in the moment, and don't agonize over what may be in the future, it is wonderful {filled with wonder}. The snow is beautiful. We have a shelter belt of pines, spruces and firs about 200ft from my window. I have watched the trees slowly change to their Winter garb.
No matter, the storm we go through, there will always be love and beauty to focus on. The world is going through a storm, as the consciousness of humanity is pulled by the tsunami of love, yet is reluctant to give up the old ways of seeing. Those, who have been in power don't want us to see anything new. They don't want us to contemplate oneness. They don't want us to see a world without war. They don't want us to see a world of peace. They don't want us to recognize we are all brothers and sisters. They don't want us to see that all is love.
We can't resist it! The world of love is pulling us in. We all need to give up our little fears and give up our resistance to seeing love everywhere. Love cannot fail. Let us turn our faces to love.
Love and Peace, Gregg
When we have sudden Winter, this time of year, people recall the great Armistice Day blizzard of 1940. I was five years old and attending first grade [I skipped kindergarten]. When we got up in the Morning it was warm 40F. We resisted wearing heavy coats, if we didn't have to, and my Mother let us go to school in sweaters. We had a long walk. We called it a mile, in those days, but it was eight city blocks. It started snowing about nine o'clock. By Noon, they decided to send the kids home. I remember walking through raging snow to get home. It was probably in the 20sF by then, it got much colder that night. I can't separate my childhood memory from all I have heard since. The folks who were old enough, to have first hand reliable memories, would be pretty old. I know many people were stuck downtown as the streetcars quit running, my Grandfather was one of them.
I don't know how they forecast weather in those days. I know they had telecommunications and the AM radio stations fed information to each other. Our severe weather, generally, originates West of us and often we would hear broadcast that would be tracing a storm across Montana and the Dakotas. I don't know why the 1940's storm was not predicted. I know that several duck hunters lost their lives because they couldn't get off the lakes or reach shelter.
Now we know about a storm's coming days before it arrives. It still has an element of surprise. Yesterday was quite pleasant. The temperature must have been close to 40F. We bustled around, getting things done, we didn't want to do in the snow. We had a chicken roost, in the barn, that we moved for the new chicken coop. I raised broilers in the barn, in the past, and we are reusing the door and the roost.
No matter how much we prepare, a sudden change in the weather is a surprise. I haven't been out to see my animals yet. The chickens are fine. They have plenty of food and water and they wouldn't go out if I invited them. There is probably six inches of snow on the ground now and we will probably get six more. I need to look through my old bales of hay to find something suitable for the sheep. I haven't got any new hay for them yet. The pasture is still in excellent condition and I was hoping I could keep them on pasture for a few weeks yet.
We have canned goods on the shelf and three freezers full of food. We could survive for a long, long time if we got snowed in. Unfortunately, one member of the family has a job to go to. Naomi is a nurse and she is working nights. Hopefully, she will be able to get out of our driveway and then find that the roads have been plowed.
For us folks who don't have to go anywhere, it is kind of cozy. It is a lesson in peace. When we stay in the moment, and don't agonize over what may be in the future, it is wonderful {filled with wonder}. The snow is beautiful. We have a shelter belt of pines, spruces and firs about 200ft from my window. I have watched the trees slowly change to their Winter garb.
No matter, the storm we go through, there will always be love and beauty to focus on. The world is going through a storm, as the consciousness of humanity is pulled by the tsunami of love, yet is reluctant to give up the old ways of seeing. Those, who have been in power don't want us to see anything new. They don't want us to contemplate oneness. They don't want us to see a world without war. They don't want us to see a world of peace. They don't want us to recognize we are all brothers and sisters. They don't want us to see that all is love.
We can't resist it! The world of love is pulling us in. We all need to give up our little fears and give up our resistance to seeing love everywhere. Love cannot fail. Let us turn our faces to love.
Love and Peace, Gregg
Friday, November 7, 2014
WINTER COMETH
It is a cool drizzly day. It is 36.6 F and feels much colder. Jamie is out in the garden harvesting the Brussels Sprouts. She has been back in the house a couple times complaining of the cold and looking for gloves for her freezing fingers. I am sitting here, warm and cozy, at my computer. Our grandson, Elijah, is sitting behind me playing on his iPad.
I was outside earlier to do the chores and I am going to need to go out and dig potatoes this afternoon. The window is closing on our potato digging time. If the forecast holds out the ground will begin freezing next week. Every year we go through this. We pass up nice Sunny weather in October and find ourselves in the most miserable situation digging potatoes in snow or sleet.
There is still a little snow on the ground from the dusting we got Wednesday night. For some reason it makes it feel colder. It has been colder than this several times in recent days and it didn't seem so bad. Every year it seems like a switch is thrown and it suddenly seems Wintery. For us it happened a couple days ago; the combination of wind, temperature, and lack of sunshine suddenly announced we were in a new weather phase, the introduction of Winter.
Don't read this as a complaint. I celebrate these experiences on Planet Earth. Once I get out there digging potatoes [or whatever] I enjoy it. The pain is in the anticipation and the actual doing is always much easier than I imagine. Digging potatoes is like mining for gold. Every spadeful is filled with wonder. Exposing those beautiful white, red and purplish globules to the light is amazing. One never knows if they are going to get two, three or dozen potatoes from a plant. We don't have an ideal place for storing potatoes. Our basement is too warm. They will only last to the first of the year. We either can what we can't store or we use a friends root cellar.
Having canned goods on the shelf, a freezer full of beans, broccoli, cauliflower and Brussels sprouts and potatoes and sacks of onions in the cellar gives one a warm feeling and makes the coming Winter seem cozy and welcome.
It is all love, isn't it. Love captured in the form of a potato or Brussels sprout. Our Mother's gift to us guaranteeing us a safe and loved filled Winter.
Have you ever contemplated how many people spend their lives doing things that have nothing to do with our day to day welfare? Do you realize how little work there is to do if we are only interested in being happy? By happy, I mean, safe, healthy, well fed, well housed, surrounded by beauty; each one of us, free to share our gifts with each other. If we loved each other and took care of each other, we would not need the weighty corporate structures of insurance companies, banks etc. Millions of people who shuffle papers or click computers, keeping tabs for the for-profit world, could do what their hearts mean them to do.
Can we envision a world that would be for-service rather than for profit? We each carry with us a great gift to share with the whole. Soon after we are born we are programmed to fit into a for-profit world [usually not our profit]. Our gifts become deeply buried or are expressed as a hobby. Of course there are many fortunate ones who found ways of service that fit their gifts. There are many teachers, nurses, physicians, social workers, carpenters, electricians, plumbers, etc, that are doing exactly what they want and fulfilling their gifts. But often, they have to work in corporate or government structures that are stultifying and limiting.
What if our society was for-service and non competitive? Can you imagine the freedom? A simple example. A tiny percentage of our population grows food for the rest of us, in this for-profit world. If everybody who enjoyed getting their hands in the dirt cooperated and contributed we could feed ourselves with very little labor, for each individual involved, and it would be a labor of love. The food would be healthy and nutritious. There would be no more poisons foisted on us by corporate agriculture.
Let us contemplate what the world would be like, if we loved our Mother Earth and loved and cherished each other. This is our natural state. We are creative beings, part of and indistinguishable, from Source. When we let go of that part of us, that separates us from one another, we will see clearly how we can contribute to the whole. We will see how we can make a for-service world work. It will be fun work. It will be a great joy.
Love and Peace, Gregg
I was outside earlier to do the chores and I am going to need to go out and dig potatoes this afternoon. The window is closing on our potato digging time. If the forecast holds out the ground will begin freezing next week. Every year we go through this. We pass up nice Sunny weather in October and find ourselves in the most miserable situation digging potatoes in snow or sleet.
There is still a little snow on the ground from the dusting we got Wednesday night. For some reason it makes it feel colder. It has been colder than this several times in recent days and it didn't seem so bad. Every year it seems like a switch is thrown and it suddenly seems Wintery. For us it happened a couple days ago; the combination of wind, temperature, and lack of sunshine suddenly announced we were in a new weather phase, the introduction of Winter.
Don't read this as a complaint. I celebrate these experiences on Planet Earth. Once I get out there digging potatoes [or whatever] I enjoy it. The pain is in the anticipation and the actual doing is always much easier than I imagine. Digging potatoes is like mining for gold. Every spadeful is filled with wonder. Exposing those beautiful white, red and purplish globules to the light is amazing. One never knows if they are going to get two, three or dozen potatoes from a plant. We don't have an ideal place for storing potatoes. Our basement is too warm. They will only last to the first of the year. We either can what we can't store or we use a friends root cellar.
Having canned goods on the shelf, a freezer full of beans, broccoli, cauliflower and Brussels sprouts and potatoes and sacks of onions in the cellar gives one a warm feeling and makes the coming Winter seem cozy and welcome.
It is all love, isn't it. Love captured in the form of a potato or Brussels sprout. Our Mother's gift to us guaranteeing us a safe and loved filled Winter.
Have you ever contemplated how many people spend their lives doing things that have nothing to do with our day to day welfare? Do you realize how little work there is to do if we are only interested in being happy? By happy, I mean, safe, healthy, well fed, well housed, surrounded by beauty; each one of us, free to share our gifts with each other. If we loved each other and took care of each other, we would not need the weighty corporate structures of insurance companies, banks etc. Millions of people who shuffle papers or click computers, keeping tabs for the for-profit world, could do what their hearts mean them to do.
Can we envision a world that would be for-service rather than for profit? We each carry with us a great gift to share with the whole. Soon after we are born we are programmed to fit into a for-profit world [usually not our profit]. Our gifts become deeply buried or are expressed as a hobby. Of course there are many fortunate ones who found ways of service that fit their gifts. There are many teachers, nurses, physicians, social workers, carpenters, electricians, plumbers, etc, that are doing exactly what they want and fulfilling their gifts. But often, they have to work in corporate or government structures that are stultifying and limiting.
What if our society was for-service and non competitive? Can you imagine the freedom? A simple example. A tiny percentage of our population grows food for the rest of us, in this for-profit world. If everybody who enjoyed getting their hands in the dirt cooperated and contributed we could feed ourselves with very little labor, for each individual involved, and it would be a labor of love. The food would be healthy and nutritious. There would be no more poisons foisted on us by corporate agriculture.
Let us contemplate what the world would be like, if we loved our Mother Earth and loved and cherished each other. This is our natural state. We are creative beings, part of and indistinguishable, from Source. When we let go of that part of us, that separates us from one another, we will see clearly how we can contribute to the whole. We will see how we can make a for-service world work. It will be fun work. It will be a great joy.
Love and Peace, Gregg
Wednesday, November 5, 2014
WHERE ARE WE?
It is a drizzly Morning. It is the kind of day that one would want to stay in and curl up with a good book and a cup of coffee. It is 37 degrees F and it is threatening to snow. The Winter deniers among us are forced to see reality. I was out this morning to feed my young chickens and I let both flocks out to enjoy the inclement weather. They don't seem to mind; they leaped out of their coop with seeming alacrity.
When we look at the crumbling world order, it is hard to keep our bearings. Looking at the election results yesterday, one would guess, most folks don't know what is best for them. People get seduced into voting for a candidate that represents one of their fear induced ideas. It doesn't matter. We are progressing. The collective mind of human kind is turning toward the light. Angry stances are softening. Age old grievances are coming to the surface, but they are attenuating. Folks are realizing that violence solves nothing. If we had a media that showed what was going on, rather than the fear engendered propaganda we are exposed to, we would see that humanity is improving. Folks are on the verge of recognizing their oneness.
Attempts at creating war in the vulnerable spots in the world, e.g. the Middle East, are failing. War is the only way the cabal could continue in control. Without war their banking system fails. They cannot generate enough revenue, to keep in control, without keeping the war machine cranked up.
It doesn't help to keep our eyes focused on the crumbling world. We won't be able to see our way. Each one of us, needs to focus on our day to day life. We need to focus on our experience as it passes in front of us. Our happiness lies in finding love in every moment of our experience. Our salvation lies in our happiness.
By focusing on the love in our day to day experience, we cause it to grow. We create an envelope of love around us. Remember, like attracts like. What you focus on grows. We don't want to waste our time looking at the crumbling world. By focusing on the love around us, we can watch the New World of Love emerging.
Happiness is a state of mind, we can always reach. Even when we are deeply down in a pit of despair, we can find something to be thankful for. Thankfulness opens the gate to happiness. We can always find something to be thankful for, even if it is, only, that we can take a breath without pain; or if breathing hurts-well that is a tough one- but even then, I know we can see something to be thankful for. It is amazing how fast we can climb our of the pit when we conscientiously look for something to be thankful for.
It comes down to the fact, that we have a world to create and we don't want to create a world that is characterized by our pissing and moaning. That would be very much like the world we have now.
We want to create a world that recognizes our oneness. We want to create a world where everybody feels loved and appreciated. We want to create a world of plenty, where no one experiences lack. We want to create a world where everyone can express their gifts freely and fully. We want to create a world of Peace and Joy.
The good news is it is happening. The more people get behind the creation, the faster it will manifest. We are all needed. Let us begin with ourselves today! Let us expel all negative thought. Let us greet everyone with love. Let us find things to be thankful for. Let us feel our thankfulness, arise in our beings, to create happiness and love. Laughter, joy, love and peace participate in the creation of paradise.
Remember our contribution is important. We are all equally powerful beings. At every turn of our day, let us remember to keep our minds focused on Love.
Love and Peace, Gregg
When we look at the crumbling world order, it is hard to keep our bearings. Looking at the election results yesterday, one would guess, most folks don't know what is best for them. People get seduced into voting for a candidate that represents one of their fear induced ideas. It doesn't matter. We are progressing. The collective mind of human kind is turning toward the light. Angry stances are softening. Age old grievances are coming to the surface, but they are attenuating. Folks are realizing that violence solves nothing. If we had a media that showed what was going on, rather than the fear engendered propaganda we are exposed to, we would see that humanity is improving. Folks are on the verge of recognizing their oneness.
Attempts at creating war in the vulnerable spots in the world, e.g. the Middle East, are failing. War is the only way the cabal could continue in control. Without war their banking system fails. They cannot generate enough revenue, to keep in control, without keeping the war machine cranked up.
It doesn't help to keep our eyes focused on the crumbling world. We won't be able to see our way. Each one of us, needs to focus on our day to day life. We need to focus on our experience as it passes in front of us. Our happiness lies in finding love in every moment of our experience. Our salvation lies in our happiness.
By focusing on the love in our day to day experience, we cause it to grow. We create an envelope of love around us. Remember, like attracts like. What you focus on grows. We don't want to waste our time looking at the crumbling world. By focusing on the love around us, we can watch the New World of Love emerging.
Happiness is a state of mind, we can always reach. Even when we are deeply down in a pit of despair, we can find something to be thankful for. Thankfulness opens the gate to happiness. We can always find something to be thankful for, even if it is, only, that we can take a breath without pain; or if breathing hurts-well that is a tough one- but even then, I know we can see something to be thankful for. It is amazing how fast we can climb our of the pit when we conscientiously look for something to be thankful for.
It comes down to the fact, that we have a world to create and we don't want to create a world that is characterized by our pissing and moaning. That would be very much like the world we have now.
We want to create a world that recognizes our oneness. We want to create a world where everybody feels loved and appreciated. We want to create a world of plenty, where no one experiences lack. We want to create a world where everyone can express their gifts freely and fully. We want to create a world of Peace and Joy.
The good news is it is happening. The more people get behind the creation, the faster it will manifest. We are all needed. Let us begin with ourselves today! Let us expel all negative thought. Let us greet everyone with love. Let us find things to be thankful for. Let us feel our thankfulness, arise in our beings, to create happiness and love. Laughter, joy, love and peace participate in the creation of paradise.
Remember our contribution is important. We are all equally powerful beings. At every turn of our day, let us remember to keep our minds focused on Love.
Love and Peace, Gregg
Monday, November 3, 2014
REACTIONS
I, no longer, look at the past and wish I could have been different. I know, everything fits into the perfection of our evolution. Everything has its way of moving us forward. If I was one to want things different, I would wish for different or no reactions to people or events.
How many times have we reacted to what someone said, or did, and made our life miserable or hurt someone's feelings? How many times have we experienced a moment, an evening, an event ruined because of our's/other's reactions?
Most of the time we realize the reaction was uncalled for. Yet, we might be puzzled. Why did we react so strongly? The reaction can be an outburst, spraying negativity on everything and everybody or it can be internal, a gripping of our own soul with negativity. In either case, it always affects everyone.
What is that all about? We are going along just fine and something is said that puts us in hell. Why?
We have all developed layers, around, what we think is a fragile core. We will discover it is not fragile at all. At our core we are unconditionally loving beings. We are incapable of being hurt. However, some time after birth we identified with our fragile bodies, and everything in our culture led us to believe we needed to protect ourselves from the outside. We were taught, that we were separate entities, vulnerable to harm. We learned that being vulnerable was dangerous. We are just beginning to learn that vulnerability is our strength.
We, all, had different experiences and we, all, developed different types of layers for protection. These layers have one thing in common; when poked they have an immediate and automatic response.
What can we do about it? We need to accept, we are responsible for our reactions. However, responsibility is not guilt. Responsibility is not blame or fault finding. Awareness is the name of the game we are in. Awareness is the key to our evolution. We need to become aware that we have these layers. Some of us need to look at our lives and understand, how and why, we developed these defenses; others, of us, can learn to become more exposed and let down our guard without much exploration. In either case, acceptance of who we are, right now and the willingness to look and see, what is happening is crucial. Our reactions are automatic. We can't stop a reaction once it is triggered. We can, however, look to see what was causing it and realize we do not need that defense.
Self examination is never, never self-blame. We must be sweet and kind to ourselves. We must be abundantly forgiving. We built up these layers in the first place because we were afraid we were not lovable. Attacking ourselves just proves it. Discovering we are lovable is a key part of awareness. We are infinitely lovable.
Many of us, on looking back at our lives, have realized that our defenses have diminished. If we have been pursuing a path of embracing love, we may see we have made remarkable progress. Others, may have chosen life partners to hurry their evolution, their respective layers may be antagonistic. If we find ourselves in relationships where we are often 'poked' it may be an opportunity, we created, to grow.
We are all on different paths and we are all growing. All of us. Love is always the only solution. When we love ourselves sufficiently, we will let our defensive layers melt in the light, of the love, that surrounds us. It is always there. We will discover we are not vulnerable. We are great beings of light and love.
Love and Peace, Gregg
How many times have we reacted to what someone said, or did, and made our life miserable or hurt someone's feelings? How many times have we experienced a moment, an evening, an event ruined because of our's/other's reactions?
Most of the time we realize the reaction was uncalled for. Yet, we might be puzzled. Why did we react so strongly? The reaction can be an outburst, spraying negativity on everything and everybody or it can be internal, a gripping of our own soul with negativity. In either case, it always affects everyone.
What is that all about? We are going along just fine and something is said that puts us in hell. Why?
We have all developed layers, around, what we think is a fragile core. We will discover it is not fragile at all. At our core we are unconditionally loving beings. We are incapable of being hurt. However, some time after birth we identified with our fragile bodies, and everything in our culture led us to believe we needed to protect ourselves from the outside. We were taught, that we were separate entities, vulnerable to harm. We learned that being vulnerable was dangerous. We are just beginning to learn that vulnerability is our strength.
We, all, had different experiences and we, all, developed different types of layers for protection. These layers have one thing in common; when poked they have an immediate and automatic response.
What can we do about it? We need to accept, we are responsible for our reactions. However, responsibility is not guilt. Responsibility is not blame or fault finding. Awareness is the name of the game we are in. Awareness is the key to our evolution. We need to become aware that we have these layers. Some of us need to look at our lives and understand, how and why, we developed these defenses; others, of us, can learn to become more exposed and let down our guard without much exploration. In either case, acceptance of who we are, right now and the willingness to look and see, what is happening is crucial. Our reactions are automatic. We can't stop a reaction once it is triggered. We can, however, look to see what was causing it and realize we do not need that defense.
Self examination is never, never self-blame. We must be sweet and kind to ourselves. We must be abundantly forgiving. We built up these layers in the first place because we were afraid we were not lovable. Attacking ourselves just proves it. Discovering we are lovable is a key part of awareness. We are infinitely lovable.
Many of us, on looking back at our lives, have realized that our defenses have diminished. If we have been pursuing a path of embracing love, we may see we have made remarkable progress. Others, may have chosen life partners to hurry their evolution, their respective layers may be antagonistic. If we find ourselves in relationships where we are often 'poked' it may be an opportunity, we created, to grow.
We are all on different paths and we are all growing. All of us. Love is always the only solution. When we love ourselves sufficiently, we will let our defensive layers melt in the light, of the love, that surrounds us. It is always there. We will discover we are not vulnerable. We are great beings of light and love.
Love and Peace, Gregg
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