TAKE ANOTHER LOOK

From my study window the world is gorgeous. The Sun is bright, the sky is deep blue. The house across the street is splendorous in its adornment of sparkling white snow. How could the world be more beautiful?

Despite the beauty of the picture, I am weary of it. Very, very tired of Winter. I don't think I have ever experienced a February without one day above average temperature. The average high temperature for today is around 33F. We may reach 15F if we are lucky and if the average high is 33F, then in a normal year there are highs in the forties or even fifties.

We moved here on September 15^th. I was completely out of it. I could only walk from my bed or bathroom to my chair. Jamie had to wait on me hand and foot. I must have been improving all along but I didn't notice it much until the middle of October, by the end of November I could walk without a cane. I started improving rapidly after that. By January I was raring to go outside. I wanted to walk. I wanted to feel the outside air. I was able to go to the store by myself. I was able to do the family shopping, that was great, but it wasn't like really being outside. Our mail is delivered a short block away and I can walk down and get it. Everyday this February the road has been treacherous, it has been that slippery. I have to use my walker because if I fall down there would be no way to get up. That's no fun.

Oh yes! I long for a switch in the weather pattern that would bring at least normal highs for the day. The weather will probably turn on a dime the middle of March.

Okay! I will go back to that first paragraph and see only the beauty. Its there! Perception is everything.

What we see in the world is what we bring into focus. I listened to the Cohen testimony on Public Radio for awhile this Morning. What a painful, awful world is depicted. How could we be so crazy? How did we get there? Yet, like turning my chair around in my study and seeing the unquestionable beauty that is there, I can turn off the radio and see something else.

Perhaps we should not concern ourselves with changing the world. Perhaps we should concern ourselves with changing ourselves. Perhaps we should concentrate on changing how we see the world. If we choose to see only the love in the world, won't the world have to change?

We are creators. We expand what we see and love. We can't help that. We grow what we are in-love with. Why waste energy fretting and fuming about a hopeless world when we are quite capable of seeing the world we dream of; yes we are! We can see it in the eyes of those we love. We see it everyday in the smiles of strangers. It expresses itself when we laugh heartily.

Come on. Come on. It is a decision we make together. Look out upon a beautiful world. See the love. Look for that tsunami of love that is coming to engulf us.

Love and Peace, Gregg

THE WHOLE PICTURE

“Why is this happening to me?” Have you ever said this or thought it? If we create our own illusion which we call life, then why isn't it always as intended?

Let us explore this. First we must realize that we create at many levels. We may consciously wish something with all are hearts, but have a defeatist program [at feeling level] going on that says we don't deserve it.

But often we just can't see the whole picture. We are all creating together and separately. Sometimes what we are trying to create doesn't mesh.

Let us go back even further. We came into this world with an intent to grow. We wanted to see how close we could come to being unconditionally loving beings. We set up learning situations for ourselves so we would have the experiences need to reach our goal. We developed contracts with each other to facilitate our growth. These contracts can be experienced as very positive to quite negative, but in the long run they are all positive as they all contribute to our learning to love more fully.

We cannot see the whole picture! While we are in this life and in these bodies we will never be able to, we can't back away far enough.

So what do we do? First of all we remember a basic lesson. WE WILL NEVER KNOW ENOUGH TO JUSTIFY JUDGEMENT. Whether it be ourselves or our neighbors. Simple things like seeing someone park in a handicap space and get out of the car and seem to walk into the grocery store with ease. Do we really know it is with ease? I actually asked an old guy, like myself, why he needed handicap parking. He seemed okay. We chatted a bit. He told me his ticker was so bad that he couldn't breathe after a small amount of walking. His breathing became difficult just while we were talking. This was a pleasant conversation, he knew I was curious and not challenging. I had my answer.

From small things to big things we cannot see the whole picture. I told this story before, forgive me for repeating it. When I was working for an agency doing in-home family therapy we were dying on the vine because our agency leader did not particularly like the program and wouldn't do the necessary work to promote it. We started out with three therapist and we were down to two. I got a referral from a county we hadn't worked for and I was so excited because this could save the program if the county was impressed by my work and then begin referring more families.

The family didn't like me and it was probably my own fault. I typically saw a couple first before including the kids. It gave me a good picture of where things were at. Did they see the same problem? How was the problem affecting their relationship? I could fill a page with such queries. Many times I didn't need to see the whole family as the kids were acting out the marital drama and as the parents dealt with their issues the kids got better. In fact, usually.

Well in this case I was so enamored with my goal I didn't fully appreciate where they were at. They certainly didn't feel any need for therapy for themselves. They just had an obnoxious kid and their county social worker pressured them into seeing me. It was a shame as I was especially good at getting folks like this on board. I was blinded by a goal I had rather than being genuinely with this couple.

Without this counties participation our program was doomed to failure. They didn't give me a second chance. I was devastated. I had hoped to work for this agency for the rest of my life. It was just a matter of days after that I got a call from Anoka County offering me a job doing in-home family therapy for their Intake Department. Every couple years I was promoted until I was Project Manager for Family and Children Services. That is where I belonged. I retired eleven years later.

Whether it is a small thing in our life or big thing, we cannot SEE THE WHOLE PICTURE.

As we go through life, and it unfolds in front of us we can only accept it, as it is for us. It is for us, even when we cannot see why. Our choice is always to choose love.

We always come back to that, life gives us a continual opportunity to choose love.

CHOOSE LOVE!

HAPPY MONDAY!

Love and Peace, Gregg

BULLETIN

PET SCAN RESULTS

Completely free of cancer.

Love and Peace,  Gregg

DANCING WITH DEATH

It is early, only 8:37, we have a furnace man coming over to replace the blower motor sometime late Morning and I have an appointment with a doctor at 2:45. If I am going to bog, this is the time to do it.

The doctors appointment is for going over the results of my PET scan. In my last blog I mentioned that I am more sanguine about this one compared to the earlier one, yet I have some anxiousness. I don't want to be faced with anymore treatment decisions. Death is not an issue but how death might occur is. I wouldn't want to die by choking to death.

After one dances with death for awhile, death becomes a friend. It may sound corny and it is hard to explain to those who have no experience with the closeness of it. We become very experienced with the idea of death. The frequent doctors appointments the ongoing treatment is all geared to keep us alive.

Death quits being scary and takes on a restful quality. Of course, I have believed for a long time that there is no death and we just leave our bodies to continue life in spirit. That belief may have some comfort in accepting death............... I don't know............ maybe not much. We all have to deal with the powerful biological urge to stay alive and we don't want to diminish that and we have the unknown staring at us. No matter what we believe it is still an unknown. We can't remember dieing before, unless we have had out of body experiences or something like past life regression.

I think we all have to dance with death and find that it is not just scary but strangely cozy and comforting. It connects us with all those who have gone before us. It connects us with the ongoing stream of life.

I don't think I am nearly done with my dance and I hope to stay in this beautiful body for several years yet, but when we reach our 85^th year the dance becomes cheek to cheek.

It is amazing that we have such denial and fear of death. Are other cultures similar? I minored in cultural anthropology but I don't remember how other cultures regarded death. I have a daughter and daughter-in-law who work with the dieing and their families. It is extremely important work. In our culture it seems like we wait until folks are at deaths door before we learn to be cozy with it.

Yet we are obviously preoccupied with death. News show are filled with people dieing in many unpleasant ways. And the entertainment shows; if it is not a comedy somebody gets killed in every episode. Someone could point out that there is something besides comedies and cops and robbers shows. I know that but we do kill off a lot of people in these shows. I think it may be one of societies ways to deal with the fear of death.

I have thought for several years that we should have groups that meet to talk about death. That has come up in our social group a few times but nothing ever happened. Well the awareness of the need is a start. I think our culture is moving towards the direction of accepting death as part of the natural and loving cycle of life. When we look at Nature from a broad view we see only life; there is no death, life and death are one.

I have been breakfasting on cold leftover pizza while I have been writing this. It hits the spot. We can't find a better reason for living than that. Leftover pizza for breakfast, yum.

Happy Friday everyone!

Love and Peace, Gregg

OPTIMISM

We have a major snowstorm going on. We could get up to nine inches. My guess is that it won't be that bad. We had a doctors appointment this Morning. On the way, there were very few cars and the waiting room at the clinic was empty. On the way home the traffic had picked up considerably. The appointment was for Jamie. She was very pleased as she felt the doctor knew exactly what she was experiencing. She has hope.

I haven't heard back about my PET scan. I am oddly at peace about it; not completely to be sure.

I have nothing bouncing around in my head about what to write. I picked up a TIME magazine when I was in the waiting room. It claimed to be dedicated to optimism in a chaotic world. I leafed through it I missed any optimism. It may have been there, but between dozing off and observing my environment, I may have missed it, besides Jamie was finished before I could read much.

I mention it because I am continually startled on how perception of everything around us changes with our mood. As I learn how to lift myself out of a low place to a higher place I am really impressed at the difference. I can see how awful things can look when we are depressed or just mopey for some reason. There have been many books written on positive thinking. I am sure they have helped but the journey remains a personal one for each of us.

We each need to take our own journey. It seems such a simple concept but many of us resist it. The negative/positive value of what we think and say has crucial consequences when it comes to what we see. We are in charge of our perception. We create our life experience according to our perception. We are powerful creators and we see what we expect.

Fortunately the positive greatly outweighs the negative and we are 'one' so the individual gets help from the more positive thinking people around them. Everything is energy. What we think of as solids are energy in form. When our thinking and feelings are positive we emit positive energy which adds to the whole.

On a global scale the positive energy has been increasing. I know it doesn't look like it. But the craziness we see is the last gasps of the negative energy. Check it our for yourself, the negative energy coming from our idiot boxes is far worse than the energy we experience in the grocery or hardware store. Negative energy has been dominant for a few thousand years. Those who have emitted and encouraged it are losing their grasp.

All of us can help create the world we have longed for by paying attention to how we think and feel. Many Seers are predicting a tsunami of love that will engulf the planet. Like water breaching a dam, there is that last pebble or chink that needs to give way. Anyone of us can allow the tsunami of love to blanket the whole.

Love and Peace, Gregg

THE ILLUSION

Jamie came home from the hospital Saturday. Her stomach problems have cleared up. What was causing them? It is largely speculative. The low potassium was probably caused by her inability to eat for two weeks. She was unable to eat for two weeks because of severe nausea. Low potassium causes nausea so we have a circular argument. Nothing showed up on the stomach probe and Jamie hasn't got any feedback about the biopsies. If there was something significant they would have called her by now. Well whatever, the hospital stay seemed to have broken the cycle. That is good. She appears to be on the mend.

I had a follow-up PET scan this Morning. If it is clear I won't have to see the oncologist for six months. I anticipate it will be clear but that won't keep me from being on pins and needles until I hear.

I have been getting better and better at getting out of the turmoil of this illusion. What I call the illusion is this world we create individually and collectively, often heavily contaminated by our egos. It can be paradise or it can be hell.

I have been trying to understand 'Oneness'. I accept it intellectually and I am just beginning to understand it experientially. In a sense we have never left our Creator. We project part of our being into bodies to experience separateness. I don't know why we would need to do this and I have not been satisfied with the explanations I have heard. I can put off the understanding of the why while I am still in this body.

As I see it we are one with each other and one with our Creator/Source. Being one we have all the attributes of source and free will to create what we want to experience. The Garden of Eden may symbolize a time when we were in separate bodies but still knew our real Source and therefore could create only out of love. The Fall symbolizes the acceptance of the ego as our guidance. The acknowledgement of fear entered the picture. As long as we knew our connection with Source fear was impossible.

Following our egos lead us to extreme separation and an inability to imagine not being separated.

We can reverse this. Imagine Source never left us and we never left source. Imagine we are acting out this illusion while still underneath God's blanket of love, a giant bubble of Golden Unconditional Love in which we act out our individual dramas. We have free will and we can't know our ONENESS or the existence of Source as long as we are convinced we are separate.

The dramas we create out of fear and our belief in separateness do not really exist. They are only what we imagine. Only Love exist.

I have been testing this. When I finds myself over-stressed with negative thoughts, I can pause and imagine myself in a bubble of unconditional love, from my position inside the bubble of love I can see the illusion but not be caught up in it. I can go from being very stressed to very peaceful in seconds. How long can I maintain that beautiful place........ that is what I am working on.

I have been experimenting with bringing the whole world in my bubble, for indeed the whole world does share the same bubble I am learning to retreat to, we are all here together, only our belief in separation dictates otherwise.

That's right! Our Creator, Source, Allah, Great Spirit, Mother/Father God, it does not matter what you call our Ultimate Creator, her/his Being surrounds us. We are an integral part of this Being of Unconditional Love.

Yes we have free will. We can create the world we want. Unfortunately we do. Let us want a World created by Love.

I hope you are having a good Monday.

Love and Peace, Gregg

JAMIE

I am tired. I didn't get to bed until after 2AM and the telephone woke me up at 7:45. Here is the story.

Jamie hasn't been feeling well these last couple weeks. She has had flu like symptoms, it was hard to keep anything down. She felt better yesterday, but decided to call the doctor and get to an understanding of the problem. It was hanging on way too long for something that would pass by itself.

She got an appointment at 2PM with a Nurse Practitioner. She listened to Jamie's story and took several tests. Jamie really liked her. A scope was planned for later in the week or next week. We got back home sometime after three.

About four o'clock the telephone rang and it was the clinic saying they wanted her to report to the ER because her potassium was critically low. Off we went.

We waited. We waited and we waited. The ER was packed with very sick looking people. After an hour or so Jamie suggested I go home and she would call when I should pick her up. We are only ten minutes away at the most.

About Sixish I got a call and she told me they wanted to keep her as her electrolytes were wacky and they wanted to observe her further. I want to say at this point and now, neither of us are particularly concerned. In fact we are relieved and pleased that the problem is being addressed. The potassium and electrolyte situation is explained by her enforced fast of the last couple weeks.

I had a very pleasant interlude as Naomi and Bruce stopped in to check on my well being. We had a good visit.

This Morning Jamie called at 7:45. She was concerned because they were having phone difficulties and she couldn't make a connection last Night. I expected her to call before she settled down for the Night. When it was getting late I didn't want to call her and perhaps disturb her sleep. Sleeping properly was one of the struggles she had in the last two weeks. She was feeling better. A scope was scheduled for today and she expected to get discharged this afternoon.

We talked three or four times on the phone. On the last call she said that they wanted to keep her one more day. Apparently it has something to do with continued observation after they do the scope. She is not worried that they will find anything wrong as her symptoms can be adequately explained.

So I am sitting here in limbo waiting. I wanted to blog early so I could have time this afternoon to spend with her. She is in the St Cloud Hospital. The number there is 320 251 2700. She is in room 566. She likes to chat on the phone.

More on Monday.

HAPPY FRIDAY!

Love and Peace, Gregg

A WEDNESDAY

I am tired and sleepy. I stayed up too late last Night and then when I went to bed my mind was too active and not inclined to shut down into a slumbering state. I toyed with the idea of not blogging, but since I have nothing on my agenda but staring out my study window and perhaps eating up the chips my youngest grandson Elijah left me, I might as well blog.

Most of us believe an awakening is in progress and we will learn to live on Planet Earth in a sane and peaceful manner. I guess that is redundant because if it is sane it has to be peaceful. Then I want to use every excuse I can, to use the words Love, Joy and Peace.

It seems like we are all in a hurry to learn and we are creating lessons for ourselves to help us grow. Some of these lessons can be fiendish and we wonder “why is this happening?” We will get through them easier and quicker if we accept that we are the authors of these situations and they are to help us become more loving, more expansive, less judgmental etc.

We yearn for paradise on Earth. We most realize that, although help is available, change comes from the bottom up. We can't wait for paradise to be bestowed upon us. No, no, no, no, we must look around us and see how we can create paradise in our own lives. Who are we not loving? Who are we judging? Who are we excluding from our heart? Who do we need to forgive? These are a few questions that will point us toward what needs to be done to bring more light into our lives.

Paradise begins within our own heart and mind, with a mind that refuses to judge anyone and a heart that is willing to accept all. We are getting there but we don't have to do so much wearing away. We can make some leaps and bounds.

So much that holds us back are little beliefs we have inculcated from our total culture. For some reason we haven't questioned them. They may be beliefs about politics, religion, gender, child rearing, hierarchy, [add to the list]. We just accepted these notions without realizing they contained bombshells of judgement, prejudice and what have you. We don't want them and as our self-awareness increases we will replace them with loving messages.

Yes! We need to begin the creation of paradise in our own hearts and minds and extend it outward. Do we have paradise in our intimate relationships? Do we have paradise within the four walls of our home? And especially can we find it inside our own skin?

It all starts with learning to love ourselves. Irritating isn't it? We have to begin with how we feel about ourselves. It is a journey and sometimes quite difficult, but it is easier than continuing to create lessons for ourselves to learn the same thing.

I believe there is help around us. We may call the help guides. I do. Last Night as I was trying to calm my busy mind I asked for help in erasing my errors. My mind calmed almost immediately. Peace descended.

We are on a journey to know ourselves as unconditional loving beings. If we turn that around and instead of thinking we have to get there, believe we already are there and we have to strip away the nonsense we have learned it is easier. Our egos interacting with an imperfect world created a shield around us which we mistake as us. That is the factor that separates us from knowing ourselves and all others and keeps us from experiencing Oneness.

The Loving Universe does not see our disguises and loves us all equally. Let us accept the perception of God, or whatever word we want to use, and begin loving ourselves.

Love and Peace, Gregg

OLD AND LOVING IT

We are poised between snowfalls, it is warmish, 24F and a little dreary, but as I look out my study window I perceive it as quite pleasant, another nice day on Planet Earth.

I have two blooming amaryllis on my windowsill. They are magnificent. One is a traditional red/orange and the other pink and white. I want to share their beauty with folks so I have been sending pictures out to my kids almost every day. I figure it is a little much, but I am getting to the age where they can just groan and think, “the old man is getting senile.” It gives me a lot of leeway.

Jamie hasn't been feeling up to snuff these last couple weeks so I have been doing most of the chores. I like it. I need things to do. I went grocery shopping this Morning. I love doing it, but I do have a little difficulty in the fresh vegetable aisle. How much to buy? How much broccoli can I buy without some going to waste? I detest wasting food. I am not a complete novice I did quite a bit of the shopping when we had kids around, but then it seemed everything got scarfed up. Jamie is not eating much, so it is like shopping for one and a half people. It is easy to load up the freezer, but fresh fruit and vegetables, I have to calculate what will get eaten.

I was mentioning to my kids how great I am finding old age. I just love being an 'old man'. I never anticipated it would be so satisfying. I feel freer than I have ever felt. It is getting much easier to get in the 'now'. I find it so easy to strike up conversations and I find strangers actually beam when they stop and talk. Perhaps this was always true and I didn't take the opportunity to make connections like I do now.

I am going to make this a short blog. I wish I could bring everybody into my heart and mind and show them what a beautiful World looks like. I know everybody can do it. Just close your eyes, stop your busy mind and let the Love of the Universe flood in. Isn't it peaceful? Isn't it full of Love and Joy? Open your eyes and choose to see only the love.

Love and Peace, Gregg

BE HAPPY

I have excellent good energy this Morning! Perhaps it is in part to due with the gorgeous day. It is beautiful and Sunny. It is below zero but the Sun is so strong and there is no wind. It doesn't feel cold. I went to get the paper this Morning. Our city has done an amazing job, just overnight, of plowing the roads. Yesterday the roads were miserable, this Morning it is very good driving. There are mountains of snow piled up here and there. They are white and fresh and beautiful for now. I asked the lady at the station store if they were going to haul the mountains of snow away, she thought they would let Nature take care of it.

Have you noticed how life teaches us? We may not see it at the time, but upon reflection it is clear. I am emerging from a little rough patch and although I could see it was a lesson, it is hard to appreciate when we are in the middle of the process. [I won't say more about this particular lesson in this blog- perhaps later]

Several times I have looked back at my career as a psychotherapist and was astounded how I was being continually being taught by my clients. One could say the whole teacher/pupil thing was turned around. When I was a young man with small children most of my clients had presenting problems that dealt with child raising. When I was older and was having marital difficulties my clients were mostly seeking marriage counseling. And so it went, in subtler and more obvious ways.

I went through a period of time when my clients were fabulously wealthy. They may have had maids, cooks and owned islands in the Caribbean. Some were family members of great corporations. Yet they were seeking guidance from this offspring of a working class/lower middle class family. [Oh it was a family of great pretension-perhaps that was good] Whatever residue of belief that money, status and power would bring happiness was greatly threatened as I got to know these folks better and better. The belief that money, status or fame will bring happiness is so indoctrinating in our society that it takes much unlearning to realize it is simply not true.

Because I was, in part, a shamed filled child I always had a secret wish to be famous. Then one day I got a new client who was a poet/playwright/actor, he wanted help getting rid of his obsession to be famous as it interfered with his creativity. By this time, being much more aware of myself, I told him I didn't think I could help him as I had the same problem myself. That didn't seem to trouble him and he continued in therapy. He did become famous.

As time goes on, the lesson I learn over and over, is that happiness has nothing to do with anything going on outside our own skin. I can be happy in any circumstance and also miserable. Of course it is easier to be happy in a benign situation. Happiness is more difficult when surrounded by people who are miserable or in situation of pain or lack.

Oh! What goes on in our own heart and mind eclipses everything else! I have been in relationship with people who were going through a very painful time. They may have been giving invitations to join in their misery. Ah.... but compassion is knowing and appreciating ones pain, it is not joining them in pain. Maintaining our own center of love and peace is always most helpful. Any helpful move on our part will come from love.

When we are in a tough situation with folks around us we only add to the pain and confusion if we let it invade our own consciousness. They need to be brought into our heart and comforted. We can't do that if our heart has been hardened against them.

Sure we may be tired of life teaching us lessons. It is not fun. We can make it easier. We can sail through the lesson and glean the learning without the pain. Oh, yes we can! That is what life is about, learning that happiness is our responsibility. The solution is not out there. It is learning to love ourselves in a way that nothing 'out there' can challenge it.

I am speaking as a journeyman who is amidst of learning, not one who has solved the problem. I know what helps. Upon arising greet the day! Bring to mind all we are thankful for, anything. “The kink in my back is not so bad this Morning.” “It not quite as cold as it cold be.” At this level thankfulness it is a reverse negative, but with a little practice we will see things we are really thankful for in a positive way.

We are thankful for so much! I can just sit here and see things I am thankful for. Today I am healthy! Today I have money in the bank! Today I live in a warm house! Today the view out my study window is stunning! Today I have two amaryllis on my windowsill exploding in beauty! Today I have a cup of coffee at my elbow! Today my computer is working flawlessly! [I spilled water on the keyboard day before yesterday and it has been iffy for awhile] I could go on and on. My life is perfect and I am in love!

What a difference it makes to contemplate the positive things in life. We can list all the negative things we can think about and be miserable. It is just as easy to list the things we are grateful for.

Ahhh....... such is life, it comes to us everyday, wave by wave and we can shape it with the perception of our beautiful and powerful minds anyway we wish.

HAPPY FRIDAY!

Love and Peace, Gregg

A MAD WORLD

Good Afternoon! No I did not listen to the State of the Union last Night. I did not want to get sick to my stomach nor did I want to rage against the man who is just a symptom and not the cause of our problem. The present state of the world is madness. We have become a predatory species and we prey on each other for status, power and wealth.

Of course, I know this is not the true picture. The reality is that the world is full of people who just want to get along and love each other. The craziness has risen to the top for all to see. It is like the scum on top of a septic tank. It helps us see what we want and what we want to live without. We want to live without that craziness. No more judgement. No more divisiveness. No more polarization. No more people herded in to groups based on false beliefs. We want a world of autonomous free thinkers.

Sure we will always have people who would rather not think for themselves or can't for one reason or another. In a sane society they would be shepherded by the most loving among us, not exploited by the most cynical.

And speaking of craziness, what is it about supposedly sane people going about supporting a coup in Venezuela? Were they not paying attention?

Ever since it was discovered that Venezuela had vast oil reserves, the Cabal [or whatever we want to call them] led by United States cranked up their propaganda campaign against the country's leaders. They have been actively and greedily salivating ever since the discovery.

Hugo Chavez wanted only what was best for his people and he succeeded in raising the standard of living for his people. He did what he could do to minimize the exploitation of the oil companies. He really pissed off the Cabal when he moved to nationalize the oil companies.

The Cabal used its immense power and propaganda machine in an attempt to destroy Chavez and the Venezuelan economy. Chavez had the loyalty of his people and despite several engineered attempts to oust him he hung on. He died in 2013.

Unfortunately Maduro, though a good man, does not have the personal power or charisma Chavez had. The Cabal saw this as their chance to finally crush the ruling government and take control of the oil. They did everything they could do to make misery for the people. They ruined their financial system and used sanctions to isolate the government. They wanted to turn the citizens against Maduro so they would have an excuse to 'save them'. The alternate leader they support is a far-right toady and supporter of the Cabal.

Don't just accept what I say. Look it up. It is obvious to anyone paying attention. It is simple to find out.

I use the word Cabal because I don't know what to call them. I don't want to say United States because most of this goes on beneath the awareness of most politicians. If you can imagine a Military/Industrial Complex composed of most of the Western World, that would be those who maintain power through war, manipulation and control, that would be the folks I mean. Of course money, meaning banks, must be behind them.

It is way beyond my pay grade to understand just who is doing the manipulation. I do know they have been able to keep us alienated from each other and warring amongst ourselves whenever it suits them.

They cannot maintain their power simply because we are beginning to see through them. We know that the color of a persons skin, the contours of their face, their religion and their life style do not make them less lovable. We all have an intense desire to live in peace and fellowship. As it has been said by our avatars and mentors from time immemorial, all that we need to do is LOVE EACH OTHER. To do this we need to love ourselves that seems to be the hard part.

Let us not get sucked in by the propaganda of the crazies. If it is not love it is not right.

Love and Peace, Gregg

MARIJUANA

It is kind of a gloomy day. Although I had plenty of sleep my body feels like it could take a nap anytime. My spirit is good though. I look out my study window and it is grayish. The road is iced up in front of the house, but I did go out and get the paper and found the main roads in good shape.

One of the amaryllis on my windowsill is fully budded and showing color. It should be in full bloom tomorrow and adding light.

I may be ready to begin commenting on the world again. It occurs to me that one reason why I resist is that the world is so polarized that we can't make a comment without many minds categorizing us with traits we may not have. For instance, I intend to comment on the legalization of marijuana today. If I say I am for it, a list of about ten statements about me go off in peoples minds. If I say I am against it a list of other presumptions jump to them. I am guilty of this myself. The divisiveness, that the polarization causes, keeps us from seeing each other clearly. Some folks believe this is intentional as it keeps us divided and prevents us from coming together and demanding real change.

What I am troubled by is that legalization is not separated from commercialization. I have always been in favor of legalization. I have always been against commercialization.

With the introduction of commercialization comes capitalism big time. How long would it be before companies like Monsanto take over the industry? How would this affect the product? What would the impact be on the population? What would be the effect of advertising?

Although I do not currently partake of marijuana I have had my day as a toker and even today if someone came over with a fat joint I might take a hit. [that is not an invitation] I am happy with my non-usage. And that is an important point. I believe marijuana is no more and perhaps less dangerous than alcohol but we all know people that should not partake. I remember sitting in smokey rooms and the joint is being passed around, some folks just pass it with a touch to their lips or just pass it on with nothing. They know intuitively or by prior experience it is not for them. That needs to be respected.

With commercialization comes capitalism. With capitalism comes greed. With greed comes high powered advertisers trained to convince anybody of anything. Wow, I don't think we want that.

Could we make it legal, but block commercialization. Perhaps we could limit production to a small mom and pop industry. Make all advertising illegal. This needs to be discussed.

Many of us remember the experience as a mind opening one, perhaps even sacred. For every burnout and dead-ender there were many folks that reached new creative potential. However, we can't deny the burnouts and dead-enders.

We need to resist the usual polarization and have a reasonable discussion. Cannot a sane society maximize the positive use of marijuana without the negative? Are we grown up enough to do it? I think we are but there is no reason to rush into it. Tax collection should not be part of the discussions at all; that is the flip side of capitalism.

As usual, if we act like the loving beings we are, we will make the right decision.

Love and Peace, Gregg

TIME?

I have been busy with high finance this Morning. I brought up my bank statement on the computer and noted that an automatic payment was listed at $120 when it should have been $125. It was raised starting 1/1/19. I made the change but it wasn't made permanent. I know most of you are probably tech savvy enough to find this completely undaunting, but for some of us old folks it can be a little problematic. I knew enough to get into the right screen where it could be changed but I couldn't see how to do it. I called the bank, their tech people are so patient and understanding, I got the help I needed and I shouldn't be troubled with it again as long as the amount doesn't change.

That is my big story for this Morning. I wrote before about the illusion of time. Everybody experiences it everyday. If we are standing out in the cold waiting, time is much slower than when we are warm and cozy and drinking a cup of coffee. Some days fly by, others crawl. Everybody my age experiences how much faster time is than when we were younger.

Many people have predicted that as we get closer to the Grand Awakening time will speed up greatly. I have been experiencing a greater and greater perceived acceleration of time. Perhaps much of that can be attributed to my age. But......... lately........... wow does time fly. Lately I have been really noticing it on Fridays. For the last handful of Fridays, I would remark to Jamie, “Its Friday again!”

I hope it does for-tend the beginning of a new age and not be my my age. I am sure getting tired of our present situation. I love news. I have always loved news. I advise people to keep their noses out of the idiot box, but mine is blaring most evenings. Oh, I like to think I am above it all, 'I just like to see how people think' and I am not negatively affected. I am not really fooling myself. I may have more resistance to being sucked in than many, but nobody is immune.

When I look at the total picture I do think the enlightenment is on schedule. More and more people are learning to think for themselves and are pulling their minds out of group-think. It is becoming more and more clear that love is the only solution for our individual as well as our world problems. The ego maniacs of our society have been in charge. That is changing. The growing awareness of the importance of love is putting pressure on decision makers. The old world is crumbling, that is one reason why it seems so crazy. Seen through eyes of one with only a modicum of awakening the world is bonkers.

My coping mechanism has been to concentrate on the condition of my own mind. Does any fear dwell there? How about judgement? Anger? Resentment? I want my mind to be filled only with love and loving intent. I want to be sure my love excludes nobody.

My insomnia had a hidden benefit. I could focus on the content of my mind and practice keeping it clear of any unloving thought. By the way I had the best sleep last Night than I had for a few months and some good dreams too.

HAPPY FRIDAY FOLKS!

Love and Peace, Gregg