I first became aware of the origins of the concept of duality when I read Zen and The Art of Motorcycle Maintenance by Robert Pirsig. The subject of duality became important through his search for the the meaning of quality. He stated, that quality existed in both Classic and Romantic realms of thought, which in his terms defied the concept of duality.
I am now reading a book called Hands of Light by Barbara Ann Brennan, that picks up this concept and puts it into reference. Which has caused fantastic revelation for me, that I would like to share.
The concept of duality, in Western civilazation, dates back to the early Greek philosophers. Then Issac Newton reinforced this existence with his work in physics, due to his view that everything was solid objects, or said more simply, everything is separate. This has been our existence since his concepts were presented.
Then, in the early 1900's along came Albert Einstein, and his theories shattered Newton's Law, by stating, space is not 3 dimensional, and time is not a separate entity. Both are connected and form a 4 dimensional continuum, space time. Connected is the operative word in the last statement.
If you are not a Physicist, you probably react to Einstein's theories, much like I do, "It's way over my head!" In my opinion, this is because we have no way to apply it in our everyday lives. Where as Newton's theories, could be applied every day. Newtonian thoughts are "that is a rock", or "that is a tree" and "that is the ground". Those thoughts reinforce the concept of everything is separate. This where duality is reinforced through the concept of either/or.
In the 1920's, as scientists began to explore quantum physics they also began to confirm most of Einstein's theories. The term quanta is name given to sub atomic particles called energy packets. The more scientists began to explore, the realization became quite clear, things are not either/or, they are both/and. Take light as an example it is both a wave, and it is individual energy packets. It is not either a wave or a packet. It is both and!
So, what does this all have to do with you and I, in our everyday world? It's really pretty simple when you boil it all down. Everything is made of energy, to include us and our thoughts. We exist in a field of energy known as the universe. Energy is a continually flowing through us and from us at the same time. Through this energy field we are all connected to every thing in the universe!
When we actually understand this concept, the duality disappears. There is no good or bad, right or wrong as an example. There is both good and bad to all situations, and there is both right and wrong. Using those concepts as examples can be quite difficult to get our heads around in the world we live in now. I am sure if we try to apply this concept to say a really hot topic like terrorism, the concept becomes much harder to apply.
I can hear you thinking terrorism is bad, terrorism is wrong, and yes on the surface it is, but within those acts of terrorism there are seeds of good. I now hear you gasping! (GRIN!) If we dig deep enough and long enough, and if can keep our opinions separate from the facts, then we will be able to find those seeds, as they do exist, they must. It is the Law of, both/and.
By the same token, all good acts contain seeds of bad. Your not gasping this time, but your internal dialog is starting to tell you I am completely nuts, and that is okay! Again if you dig deep enough you will find the seeds of bad, however tiny they are they are still there.
Now think of the Yin/Yang symbol, with in the black realm there is a white dot, and with in the white realm there is a black dot. If you apply the concept to the whole symbol, it begins to take on new meaning.
Monday, April 20, 2009
Sunday, April 19, 2009
The Chautauqua That is TED!
I love the TED lectures! They cover all kinds of inspiring, challenging, and thought provoking topics.
I ask that you set aside about 5 minutes, and watch this video, as I believe this is a possibility.
Enjoy!
I ask that you set aside about 5 minutes, and watch this video, as I believe this is a possibility.
Enjoy!
Monday, April 13, 2009
Follow Up To "Breakthrough"
In a brief sentence, the checks have not shown up yet.
The interesting part is my reaction to this event. The old me, would have gone right back to being resigned and cynical. To be honest that thought crossed my mind more than once, but as that opportunity to slide back into that old train of though presented itself, the stronger my commitment to my new self became. As I rolled in this sea of emotion, I realized that it would be my choice that would ultimately determine the outcome.
The checks had not shown up in time for Jaia and I to attend the class, and that is all that happened, no more no less. My initial instinct was to assign meaning to the checks not showing up. "I must have done something wrong", "I am not practicing hard enough", "It was not the time to ask for the checks" and on and on it went, until I put a stop to it, and told myself, it just happened, and that is all.
Then the flip side of the event began to burst into my thought pattern. "Wow, how foolish you look", "everybody thinks you are crazy", "what a looser you are". Then I put an end to that by realizing, that may be some peoples opinion of the path I have chosen, and as we all know, opinions mean nothing. This process was not as short as it may sound, it took really digging deep inside to stop trying to "look good/not look bad". The icing on the proverbial cake was, it just happened, and it means nothing. Isn't it funny how that concept pops up again!
The strength of the breakthrough I had last month actually sustained me through this process. The other interesting element of this process is, I did it by myself with the help of the universe. I could have called Kristi or Lesley for coaching, but I chose not to. I was determined to grapple with this breakdown with tools I have. Though my, on going daily practice, I felt strong enough to do this on my own, and with the help of the universe, I did.
Are the checks still coming? Sure they are, and you can bet your bottom dollar when they do, I will write a piece about that. For now, I am happy and connected to the universe! Things are as they should be.
May you find your connection to the universe, and once you do, live in that connection. It is an incredibly infinite and powerful space!
The interesting part is my reaction to this event. The old me, would have gone right back to being resigned and cynical. To be honest that thought crossed my mind more than once, but as that opportunity to slide back into that old train of though presented itself, the stronger my commitment to my new self became. As I rolled in this sea of emotion, I realized that it would be my choice that would ultimately determine the outcome.
The checks had not shown up in time for Jaia and I to attend the class, and that is all that happened, no more no less. My initial instinct was to assign meaning to the checks not showing up. "I must have done something wrong", "I am not practicing hard enough", "It was not the time to ask for the checks" and on and on it went, until I put a stop to it, and told myself, it just happened, and that is all.
Then the flip side of the event began to burst into my thought pattern. "Wow, how foolish you look", "everybody thinks you are crazy", "what a looser you are". Then I put an end to that by realizing, that may be some peoples opinion of the path I have chosen, and as we all know, opinions mean nothing. This process was not as short as it may sound, it took really digging deep inside to stop trying to "look good/not look bad". The icing on the proverbial cake was, it just happened, and it means nothing. Isn't it funny how that concept pops up again!
The strength of the breakthrough I had last month actually sustained me through this process. The other interesting element of this process is, I did it by myself with the help of the universe. I could have called Kristi or Lesley for coaching, but I chose not to. I was determined to grapple with this breakdown with tools I have. Though my, on going daily practice, I felt strong enough to do this on my own, and with the help of the universe, I did.
Are the checks still coming? Sure they are, and you can bet your bottom dollar when they do, I will write a piece about that. For now, I am happy and connected to the universe! Things are as they should be.
May you find your connection to the universe, and once you do, live in that connection. It is an incredibly infinite and powerful space!
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Breakthrough!
breakthrough n. 1. the act, result, or place of breaking through against resistance, as in warfare. 2. a strikingly important advance or discovery
In the Landmark education system the term breakthrough is used extensively, that is the whole idea behind the system. To produce breakthroughs in peoples lives so they can achieve whatever dream they would like to create. When I went through the Forum, the first week in December, I had a huge breakthrough. I had shut down the constant chatter of logic and emotion and actually found silence.
Finding this clarity of mind has been an incredible experience, allowing me to be fully creative again. However life is more than just one breakthrough. Living a life of transformation means continually grappling with life, and creating more breakthroughs. Each breakthrough pushes the life experience into new realms of possibility, or more simply, a new more powerful way of being.
In the Landmark Forum we learn about being resigned and cynical. I was the poster boy for this concept, as I was probably the most resigned and cynical person on the planet! Even though I had a huge breakthrough in December, I was still grappling with resignation and cynicism. I could acknowledge it was there, I just could not figure out how to dismantle it, and thus eliminate it from my daily life.
The opening volley in my breakthrough happened on 7 March. It was a Saturday, and Kristi was in class all day, so I accepted an invitation from my sister to attend her Landmark class to see what was going on there. My share partner for the event was a truly remarkable woman named Lisa. In the last share, of the 3 hour event, she opened Pandora's box of events that would unfold over the next 5 days.
Lisa found my resignation and cynicism and began to explore it. When I am grappling with a concept I can get quite crafty, and sometimes downright stubborn, as I do not like the fact that I don't know, being exposed. As she prodded my soul she completely laid my resignation and cynicism right out in front of me. Bless her heart she took all of my negative emotions with out a flinch, never losing her composure. At the end of the class, I thanked her for helping me grapple with the troubling concepts I was struggling with. She did not think she had done much good, but I assured her that she had.
I arrived back at Kristi's to an empty house, as she was still in class. I was still reeling from the share I had with Lisa and still grappling. In the dazed state I was in, working on a creative project did not feel right, as I was not connected to the spirit. I found myself sitting on Kristi's bed looking at a book on her nightstand. The book had been sitting there for months, as dust was collecting on the jacket. I had noticed the book before, but figured Kristi would read it and give me the lowdown, and then I would get to read it. Now I found myself drawn to the book. I picked it up and brushed the dust off and looked at the cover. The Secret by Rhonda Byrne. It was time to read this book.
The Secret is shared in the first chapter as it explains the Law of Attraction. Essentially what the law states is that everything coming into your life, you are attracting into your life, through your thoughts, words, and actions. As I rolled this around in my head, I began to sense that I was on to something. As I continued to read it was almost like a veil was being removed and a new sense of clarity emerging.
I set the book down, and went outside to smoke a cigarette. Sitting there, I thanked the universe for all the abundance and prosperity in my life. A very simple statement, and yet the beginning of my clear dialog with the universe. I finished up my cigarette and went back inside to read some more, and learned how this concept works.
Everything in the universe is made of energy. That means that everything is connected to everything through this web of energy. Everything is transmitting and receiving through this force, and this is where our thoughts, words, and actions come into play. We are emanating what we are thinking into our world, and thus bringing our reality to ourselves.
As I was reading, I would pause and talk to the universe, on many occasions. Each time I did this it became easier to do, and after each talk, a subtle joy would tingle in my heart. It had begun to happen, I was receiving back the energy I was transmitting. These were the first baby steps in my new conversation with the universe.
Sunday morning I got up and as I was brushing my teeth, I looked in the mirror and thought about all the abundance and prosperity in my life, and I thanked the universe for my new clarity. At different times during the day I would spontaneously have a conversation with the universe thanking it for the beauty of the day, and the beauty of my life. Each time, the joy filling my heart, would get stronger.
On Monday I began the conversation with the universe with my waking thought, and practiced the conversation through out the day. I went to my class that night in a new space that I was beginning to create. I wasn't quite ready to share it with the class, as I was still discovering what was going on inside me.
Tuesday I again began the conversation with the universe with my waking thought, and pursued the conversation throughout the day. As the evening approached it was time to go to Kristi's class completion.
The Landmark environment is an awesome space to be in, as the spirit of sharing and connection is very strong. As I was listening to the instructor, she was talking about her first experience being the Landmark environment and her first question to her host was "what the heck are all these people smiling about?" I thought about that statement as it was ringing in my head. The Landmark smile, comes from a peaceful place we find, when we have our breakthrough. For some reason this thought stuck with me.
Wednesday morning my dialog with the universe began with my waking thought. I did have some issues that needed cleaning up with Kristi. We got that cleaned up, finished packing, and I headed home. I picked up my dialog with the universe again and thanked the universe for all the beauty around me. It was raining soft showers alternating with heavy mist, and yet there was a magic all around me. I could feel the rain dripping through the leaves of the trees. I could feel the Earth soaking up the moisture, and life coming back into the vegetation. I could even feel the rain draining through the hide of the animals standing in the pastures. This was intense, and I could feel this intensity welling up in my soul, to the point of having tears in my eyes. It was a beautiful feeling.
As I watched the birds flying in the rain, I could feel their joy as the moisture cleansed their feathers...and then it hit me. My resignation and cynicism were gone! The source of the two negative emotions was my thoughts, words, and actions! I was building this negative reality continually every day with every thought. Now that I had replaced that train of thought with a positive stream, things were beginning to change.
I got to the end of the toll way and turned on to 183 South. At this intersection there is a lot of construction going on. The ground was bare, and I noticed all these rocks were exposed. I pull off to the side and stopped. I got out of my truck and went looking for a rock, not just any rock, my rock. It took me about 5 minutes to find it, but when I found it, I knew it was the one. I picked it up and walked back to my truck.
After getting settled, I closed my eyes and began to focus on the abundance and prosperity in my life while holding the rock tight in my hand. I could feel the positive energy leaving my hand and being absorbed by the rock. I am not sure how long I sat there focusing on my new rock, but when I was done, I held up the rock and looked at it intently and verbally christened the rock, my rock of abundance and prosperity. I promised to keep the rock with me at all times, and that every time I consciously touched the rock I would be thankful for the abundance and prosperity in my life. Then I continued on my journey, in the same meditative state I had been when I started.
The more conversation I had, the deeper the feelings became. My focus became even more intense. This breakthrough seemed to be a rolling one, not one like the light just came on. It seemed to be a living breakthrough which was different than the breakthrough in December.
After I passed through Gonzales, I began to realize I had a small problem that needed addressing. The deadline for me to pay the remaining balance for my Advanced class was quickly approaching. The pending job that my company had contracted, had not started in middle February as originally planned, leaving me short of cash. Not good, as I cast this problem out to the universe I realized I could ask the universe for the money.
I had not asked for anything up to this point, as I was still thanking the universe for all the things in my life. I figured I was backed up on that aspect, and still needed to do a lot more thanking before I began asking! Yet somehow it felt right to ask. I was just fixing to form up the request and thought to myself hold on just a second, there is still something else that was on my mind regarding this very issue.
I have become friends with Jaia through my Landmark classes, and was really disappointed that he would not be taking the Advanced class. I wasn't sure, but I figured it had do to lack of money. Since the law of attraction says I can't will anybody else anything, I would have to take matters into my own hands.
I thought about it and the number 1,000 popped in my head. I thought to myself, that should cover the both of us. So I formed up the request for a check for $1,000 to arrive in my mailbox in time for both of us to attend the class. I could see the check arriving in my mailbox very clearly, and I knew that my request would be fulfilled. A smile comes to my heart from down deep, and happiness overwhelmed me.I continued driving, and then an oops thought popped in my head. I had my numbers wrong, a $1,000 dollars is not going to cover it.
I also learned in the book, that once your request is made it is done, you don't have to keep asking for it, you just have to know in your heart that your request is being fulfilled. So I focused my thoughts again, and visualized another check for $500 dollars arriving in my mailbox, and again, I knew this check would also be arriving in my mailbox in time for us to attend the class. I could literally feel the check being produced. They were coming.
The drive and the conversation continued, and the rolling breakthrough feeling continued coursing through me. I got home and unpacked and went straight to the web site for the secret, www.thesecret.tv I printed up two blank checks from the bank of the universe and filled them out in the amounts I had requested and signed the checks. I then stuck them on the wall near my desk, and every time I look at those checks, I know they are coming, as the universe wants me to be happy.
In the Landmark education system the term breakthrough is used extensively, that is the whole idea behind the system. To produce breakthroughs in peoples lives so they can achieve whatever dream they would like to create. When I went through the Forum, the first week in December, I had a huge breakthrough. I had shut down the constant chatter of logic and emotion and actually found silence.
Finding this clarity of mind has been an incredible experience, allowing me to be fully creative again. However life is more than just one breakthrough. Living a life of transformation means continually grappling with life, and creating more breakthroughs. Each breakthrough pushes the life experience into new realms of possibility, or more simply, a new more powerful way of being.
In the Landmark Forum we learn about being resigned and cynical. I was the poster boy for this concept, as I was probably the most resigned and cynical person on the planet! Even though I had a huge breakthrough in December, I was still grappling with resignation and cynicism. I could acknowledge it was there, I just could not figure out how to dismantle it, and thus eliminate it from my daily life.
The opening volley in my breakthrough happened on 7 March. It was a Saturday, and Kristi was in class all day, so I accepted an invitation from my sister to attend her Landmark class to see what was going on there. My share partner for the event was a truly remarkable woman named Lisa. In the last share, of the 3 hour event, she opened Pandora's box of events that would unfold over the next 5 days.
Lisa found my resignation and cynicism and began to explore it. When I am grappling with a concept I can get quite crafty, and sometimes downright stubborn, as I do not like the fact that I don't know, being exposed. As she prodded my soul she completely laid my resignation and cynicism right out in front of me. Bless her heart she took all of my negative emotions with out a flinch, never losing her composure. At the end of the class, I thanked her for helping me grapple with the troubling concepts I was struggling with. She did not think she had done much good, but I assured her that she had.
I arrived back at Kristi's to an empty house, as she was still in class. I was still reeling from the share I had with Lisa and still grappling. In the dazed state I was in, working on a creative project did not feel right, as I was not connected to the spirit. I found myself sitting on Kristi's bed looking at a book on her nightstand. The book had been sitting there for months, as dust was collecting on the jacket. I had noticed the book before, but figured Kristi would read it and give me the lowdown, and then I would get to read it. Now I found myself drawn to the book. I picked it up and brushed the dust off and looked at the cover. The Secret by Rhonda Byrne. It was time to read this book.
The Secret is shared in the first chapter as it explains the Law of Attraction. Essentially what the law states is that everything coming into your life, you are attracting into your life, through your thoughts, words, and actions. As I rolled this around in my head, I began to sense that I was on to something. As I continued to read it was almost like a veil was being removed and a new sense of clarity emerging.
I set the book down, and went outside to smoke a cigarette. Sitting there, I thanked the universe for all the abundance and prosperity in my life. A very simple statement, and yet the beginning of my clear dialog with the universe. I finished up my cigarette and went back inside to read some more, and learned how this concept works.
Everything in the universe is made of energy. That means that everything is connected to everything through this web of energy. Everything is transmitting and receiving through this force, and this is where our thoughts, words, and actions come into play. We are emanating what we are thinking into our world, and thus bringing our reality to ourselves.
As I was reading, I would pause and talk to the universe, on many occasions. Each time I did this it became easier to do, and after each talk, a subtle joy would tingle in my heart. It had begun to happen, I was receiving back the energy I was transmitting. These were the first baby steps in my new conversation with the universe.
Sunday morning I got up and as I was brushing my teeth, I looked in the mirror and thought about all the abundance and prosperity in my life, and I thanked the universe for my new clarity. At different times during the day I would spontaneously have a conversation with the universe thanking it for the beauty of the day, and the beauty of my life. Each time, the joy filling my heart, would get stronger.
On Monday I began the conversation with the universe with my waking thought, and practiced the conversation through out the day. I went to my class that night in a new space that I was beginning to create. I wasn't quite ready to share it with the class, as I was still discovering what was going on inside me.
Tuesday I again began the conversation with the universe with my waking thought, and pursued the conversation throughout the day. As the evening approached it was time to go to Kristi's class completion.
The Landmark environment is an awesome space to be in, as the spirit of sharing and connection is very strong. As I was listening to the instructor, she was talking about her first experience being the Landmark environment and her first question to her host was "what the heck are all these people smiling about?" I thought about that statement as it was ringing in my head. The Landmark smile, comes from a peaceful place we find, when we have our breakthrough. For some reason this thought stuck with me.
Wednesday morning my dialog with the universe began with my waking thought. I did have some issues that needed cleaning up with Kristi. We got that cleaned up, finished packing, and I headed home. I picked up my dialog with the universe again and thanked the universe for all the beauty around me. It was raining soft showers alternating with heavy mist, and yet there was a magic all around me. I could feel the rain dripping through the leaves of the trees. I could feel the Earth soaking up the moisture, and life coming back into the vegetation. I could even feel the rain draining through the hide of the animals standing in the pastures. This was intense, and I could feel this intensity welling up in my soul, to the point of having tears in my eyes. It was a beautiful feeling.
As I watched the birds flying in the rain, I could feel their joy as the moisture cleansed their feathers...and then it hit me. My resignation and cynicism were gone! The source of the two negative emotions was my thoughts, words, and actions! I was building this negative reality continually every day with every thought. Now that I had replaced that train of thought with a positive stream, things were beginning to change.
I got to the end of the toll way and turned on to 183 South. At this intersection there is a lot of construction going on. The ground was bare, and I noticed all these rocks were exposed. I pull off to the side and stopped. I got out of my truck and went looking for a rock, not just any rock, my rock. It took me about 5 minutes to find it, but when I found it, I knew it was the one. I picked it up and walked back to my truck.
After getting settled, I closed my eyes and began to focus on the abundance and prosperity in my life while holding the rock tight in my hand. I could feel the positive energy leaving my hand and being absorbed by the rock. I am not sure how long I sat there focusing on my new rock, but when I was done, I held up the rock and looked at it intently and verbally christened the rock, my rock of abundance and prosperity. I promised to keep the rock with me at all times, and that every time I consciously touched the rock I would be thankful for the abundance and prosperity in my life. Then I continued on my journey, in the same meditative state I had been when I started.
The more conversation I had, the deeper the feelings became. My focus became even more intense. This breakthrough seemed to be a rolling one, not one like the light just came on. It seemed to be a living breakthrough which was different than the breakthrough in December.
After I passed through Gonzales, I began to realize I had a small problem that needed addressing. The deadline for me to pay the remaining balance for my Advanced class was quickly approaching. The pending job that my company had contracted, had not started in middle February as originally planned, leaving me short of cash. Not good, as I cast this problem out to the universe I realized I could ask the universe for the money.
I had not asked for anything up to this point, as I was still thanking the universe for all the things in my life. I figured I was backed up on that aspect, and still needed to do a lot more thanking before I began asking! Yet somehow it felt right to ask. I was just fixing to form up the request and thought to myself hold on just a second, there is still something else that was on my mind regarding this very issue.
I have become friends with Jaia through my Landmark classes, and was really disappointed that he would not be taking the Advanced class. I wasn't sure, but I figured it had do to lack of money. Since the law of attraction says I can't will anybody else anything, I would have to take matters into my own hands.
I thought about it and the number 1,000 popped in my head. I thought to myself, that should cover the both of us. So I formed up the request for a check for $1,000 to arrive in my mailbox in time for both of us to attend the class. I could see the check arriving in my mailbox very clearly, and I knew that my request would be fulfilled. A smile comes to my heart from down deep, and happiness overwhelmed me.I continued driving, and then an oops thought popped in my head. I had my numbers wrong, a $1,000 dollars is not going to cover it.
I also learned in the book, that once your request is made it is done, you don't have to keep asking for it, you just have to know in your heart that your request is being fulfilled. So I focused my thoughts again, and visualized another check for $500 dollars arriving in my mailbox, and again, I knew this check would also be arriving in my mailbox in time for us to attend the class. I could literally feel the check being produced. They were coming.
The drive and the conversation continued, and the rolling breakthrough feeling continued coursing through me. I got home and unpacked and went straight to the web site for the secret, www.thesecret.tv I printed up two blank checks from the bank of the universe and filled them out in the amounts I had requested and signed the checks. I then stuck them on the wall near my desk, and every time I look at those checks, I know they are coming, as the universe wants me to be happy.
Friday, February 27, 2009
Fear - Hate - Blame
What is the direct correlation of the three words in the title of this post? I thought long and hard about the order of the words, maybe the order should be Fear-Blame-Hate. The one thing that stood out to me is that Fear should come first, as to me that is the root word of the three. These three words form a ferocious whirlpool of emotion. These emotions can cause a person to spin out of control. This vortex, left unchecked, can kill a person much like cancer slowly eating away the body.
If fear is the pivot word out of the three, it is also the key to unlocking the cycle. Fear causes hate and blame. When I use the word hate, I do not mean dislike. Although I do think Fear causes Blame somewhat, I believe hate actually causes blame. Blame is also an excuse to support the hatred, in the same way hatred is an excuse to support the fear. In essence we now have a bi directional whirlpool that is even more dangerous. One direction the emotions are being created, in the reverse direction the emotions are being supported as excuses. The perfect storm of emotion.
If you take fear out of the equation the triad falls apart, maybe not instantly, but with time. What makes fear so powerful? That would be simple, it's the unknown. In whatever context you put the triad of words, you will find that it all boils down to the unknown. Why is it human nature to fear the unknown? Obviously we like the comfort of familiar, but there has to be more to it than that. Could it be we had a bad experience in our youth discovering the unknown? Maybe it's genetic going far back into our DNA. Our distant ancestor were fearful of the night, and longed for the light of day. Perhaps it's the vulnerability of the unknown. The list could go on and on.
If the power in fear is the unknown, then understanding would eliminate the fear. This is a very simple idea, yet when caught in vortex of the triad it is so hard grasp the concept. The question then becomes how do we defuse the fear enough to allow understanding? How can you change the perspective of a person drowning in the triad? The frightening thing is some people actually thrive on hate. These people have lived with fear hatred, and blame so long it has become their perceived natural state.
I would also submit, that everybody has different degrees of fear, not so much in what causes the fear, but how deeply the fear is felt and reacted to. I believe fear is natural in human beings, it's the different degrees of fear among us that is interesting to me. Feasibly this could also be a byproduct of genetics, or maybe the experiences of our youth. This would be a fascinating topic for research for somebody more qualified than myself.
What spurred this train of thought was an news article on the CNN website written by Stephanie Chen called "Growing Hate Groups Blame Obama, Economy". As I read the article I began to see the relationship of Fear, Hate, and Blame, and just how out of control it is within the hate groups. Each of the groups of people have a fear of something. The fear is immense and therefore the hatred extreme with enough blame to support the out of control hatred.
The statics are very alarming.
"The center's report, "The Year in Hate," found the number of hate groups grew by 54 percent since 2000. The study identified 926 hate groups -- defined as groups with beliefs or practices that attack or malign an entire class of people -- active in 2008. That's a 4 percent jump, adding 38 more than the year before."
"On the day after Obama's historic election, more than 2,000 people joined his Web site, a remarkable increase from the approximately 80 new members a day he was getting, Black said. His Web site, which was started in 1995, is one of the oldest and largest hate group sites. The site received so many hits that it crashed after election results were announced. The site boasts 110,000 registered members today, Black said."
What is also interesting to me, aside from the race issue, is the struggling economy is also producing a surge in new members. The fear of losing everything produces a hatred by blaming a group of people for the struggling economy. In this case it is the Latino immigrants, legal and illegal, that are receiving the brunt of this hatred blaming. This is so sad, as nothing could be further from the truth.
"In the city of Detroit, Michigan, where the weak economy has taken a particularly devastating toll, Jeff Schoep serves as the commander for the National Socialist Movement, one of the largest neo-Nazi groups in the United States.
This is from a man in Detroit, where the UAW refused to budge on their demands of the automakers. Do you really think those unemployed men in the soup kitchen would harvest lettuce in California for $7 an hour or less? Much less work in a kitchen restaurant washing dishes for the same? Preying on fear and causing hatred to grow, with enough blame for anybody interested.
I acknowledge that hate groups are an extreme sect, and not representative of the general population. I also understand we are dealing with radical examples of emotion, but I also think by examining these emotions, in this context, makes it much easier to see the relationship each emotion has to the other.
Do you see how quickly the triad turns into vortex, swallowing all logic and decency in it's path?
Should you be interested the article would be here
http://www.cnn.com/2009/US/02/26/hate.groups.report/index.html?eref=rss_topstories
If fear is the pivot word out of the three, it is also the key to unlocking the cycle. Fear causes hate and blame. When I use the word hate, I do not mean dislike. Although I do think Fear causes Blame somewhat, I believe hate actually causes blame. Blame is also an excuse to support the hatred, in the same way hatred is an excuse to support the fear. In essence we now have a bi directional whirlpool that is even more dangerous. One direction the emotions are being created, in the reverse direction the emotions are being supported as excuses. The perfect storm of emotion.
If you take fear out of the equation the triad falls apart, maybe not instantly, but with time. What makes fear so powerful? That would be simple, it's the unknown. In whatever context you put the triad of words, you will find that it all boils down to the unknown. Why is it human nature to fear the unknown? Obviously we like the comfort of familiar, but there has to be more to it than that. Could it be we had a bad experience in our youth discovering the unknown? Maybe it's genetic going far back into our DNA. Our distant ancestor were fearful of the night, and longed for the light of day. Perhaps it's the vulnerability of the unknown. The list could go on and on.
If the power in fear is the unknown, then understanding would eliminate the fear. This is a very simple idea, yet when caught in vortex of the triad it is so hard grasp the concept. The question then becomes how do we defuse the fear enough to allow understanding? How can you change the perspective of a person drowning in the triad? The frightening thing is some people actually thrive on hate. These people have lived with fear hatred, and blame so long it has become their perceived natural state.
I would also submit, that everybody has different degrees of fear, not so much in what causes the fear, but how deeply the fear is felt and reacted to. I believe fear is natural in human beings, it's the different degrees of fear among us that is interesting to me. Feasibly this could also be a byproduct of genetics, or maybe the experiences of our youth. This would be a fascinating topic for research for somebody more qualified than myself.
What spurred this train of thought was an news article on the CNN website written by Stephanie Chen called "Growing Hate Groups Blame Obama, Economy". As I read the article I began to see the relationship of Fear, Hate, and Blame, and just how out of control it is within the hate groups. Each of the groups of people have a fear of something. The fear is immense and therefore the hatred extreme with enough blame to support the out of control hatred.
The statics are very alarming.
"The center's report, "The Year in Hate," found the number of hate groups grew by 54 percent since 2000. The study identified 926 hate groups -- defined as groups with beliefs or practices that attack or malign an entire class of people -- active in 2008. That's a 4 percent jump, adding 38 more than the year before."
"On the day after Obama's historic election, more than 2,000 people joined his Web site, a remarkable increase from the approximately 80 new members a day he was getting, Black said. His Web site, which was started in 1995, is one of the oldest and largest hate group sites. The site received so many hits that it crashed after election results were announced. The site boasts 110,000 registered members today, Black said."
What is also interesting to me, aside from the race issue, is the struggling economy is also producing a surge in new members. The fear of losing everything produces a hatred by blaming a group of people for the struggling economy. In this case it is the Latino immigrants, legal and illegal, that are receiving the brunt of this hatred blaming. This is so sad, as nothing could be further from the truth.
"In the city of Detroit, Michigan, where the weak economy has taken a particularly devastating toll, Jeff Schoep serves as the commander for the National Socialist Movement, one of the largest neo-Nazi groups in the United States.
Schoep said he has seen membership grow by 40 percent in recent months, mostly because of the dire economic circumstances. It is the "most dramatic growth" he has seen since he joined the movement in the mid-1990s. The group does not reveal membership numbers to the media, he said.
"You have an American work force facing massive unemployment," Schoep said. "And you have presidents and politicians flinging open the borders telling them to take the few jobs left while our men are in soup kitchens."
This is from a man in Detroit, where the UAW refused to budge on their demands of the automakers. Do you really think those unemployed men in the soup kitchen would harvest lettuce in California for $7 an hour or less? Much less work in a kitchen restaurant washing dishes for the same? Preying on fear and causing hatred to grow, with enough blame for anybody interested.
I acknowledge that hate groups are an extreme sect, and not representative of the general population. I also understand we are dealing with radical examples of emotion, but I also think by examining these emotions, in this context, makes it much easier to see the relationship each emotion has to the other.
Do you see how quickly the triad turns into vortex, swallowing all logic and decency in it's path?
Should you be interested the article would be here
http://www.cnn.com/2009/US/02/26/hate.groups.report/index.html?eref=rss_topstories
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
Time: The Prison of The Mind
When talking about living in the present moment many people become confused. The confusion comes from figuring out how to deal with time. We have appointments schedules, and plans. There is also the dilemma of the past, and what needs to be remembered, such as lessons learned and memories. The question becomes how can you live in the moment while still acknowledging the past and the future.
Do dogs comprehend time? They have learned tricks so they remember the past or they would not be able to perform the trick. They also have a sense of future as they know when the sun goes down you will come home and feed them. Does a dog comprehend time? No. What about an infant? Again the answer would be no.
Time is taught to us, it is not inherent. Throughout our formative years, 1-6 years of age, we are constantly reminded of time. "You're going to be late...", "You're wasting time...", "If you get done you will have more time..." On and on this diatribe continues, and soon we accept all things revolve around time. We begin living inside the clock. Our concept of time is; things that are going to happen, and what has happened. We live our lives this way and never question why. How can we question time?
If you have an analog clock, that you can see, look at it and what do you see? The second hand ticking away the minutes. You actually anticipate the hand moving through the moment, as if you were waiting on the bell to ring to end class. Do you watch the second hand, and look backwards to the past? No, you follow it around expecting it to move through the moment, as that is what time does.
We become a prisoner of the clock, because we live inside the clock. We look forward to the future, or backward to the past. We become occupied with these two concepts of time. There is something we need to do, or there is something we should have done. There is no concept of now.
When we draw a bead on the actual moment we are in, through becoming aware, the concept of future and past disappear. In Stanley Block's book, "Come To Your Senses", he calls finding this awareness, bridging. It is a very simple exercise you can do anywhere, anytime. Slow your mind down, and become acutely aware of where you are. The sights sounds smells, and the textural feelings that are around you every second of the day. The things we never pay attention to due to our distorted concept of time.
Now you are zoned out feeling the weight of your body pressing against against the chair, feeling the clothes on your body, and listening to the computer hum. What good does that do? You have become aware of now. You can recognize what it is, you have defined the moment. Now that you have a definition of the moment, you become aware of when you are in the moment, and when you are not. This is the first step of freeing yourself from the prison of time. The more you practice being in the moment, the easier it becomes. Over time it becomes second nature to live in the moment.
You are free from the clock, you become aware of the clock, but from a different perspective. It's just a clock on the wall, that is all. The second hand becomes insignificant as you are in the moment. You still know you have a Doctor appointment tomorrow, and that you will be going on vacation in 2 months, but does it matter right now? You have not forgotten the lessons you have learned, or the memories you have, but are they important right now?
The only thing that matters is now.
Do dogs comprehend time? They have learned tricks so they remember the past or they would not be able to perform the trick. They also have a sense of future as they know when the sun goes down you will come home and feed them. Does a dog comprehend time? No. What about an infant? Again the answer would be no.
Time is taught to us, it is not inherent. Throughout our formative years, 1-6 years of age, we are constantly reminded of time. "You're going to be late...", "You're wasting time...", "If you get done you will have more time..." On and on this diatribe continues, and soon we accept all things revolve around time. We begin living inside the clock. Our concept of time is; things that are going to happen, and what has happened. We live our lives this way and never question why. How can we question time?
If you have an analog clock, that you can see, look at it and what do you see? The second hand ticking away the minutes. You actually anticipate the hand moving through the moment, as if you were waiting on the bell to ring to end class. Do you watch the second hand, and look backwards to the past? No, you follow it around expecting it to move through the moment, as that is what time does.
We become a prisoner of the clock, because we live inside the clock. We look forward to the future, or backward to the past. We become occupied with these two concepts of time. There is something we need to do, or there is something we should have done. There is no concept of now.
When we draw a bead on the actual moment we are in, through becoming aware, the concept of future and past disappear. In Stanley Block's book, "Come To Your Senses", he calls finding this awareness, bridging. It is a very simple exercise you can do anywhere, anytime. Slow your mind down, and become acutely aware of where you are. The sights sounds smells, and the textural feelings that are around you every second of the day. The things we never pay attention to due to our distorted concept of time.
Now you are zoned out feeling the weight of your body pressing against against the chair, feeling the clothes on your body, and listening to the computer hum. What good does that do? You have become aware of now. You can recognize what it is, you have defined the moment. Now that you have a definition of the moment, you become aware of when you are in the moment, and when you are not. This is the first step of freeing yourself from the prison of time. The more you practice being in the moment, the easier it becomes. Over time it becomes second nature to live in the moment.
You are free from the clock, you become aware of the clock, but from a different perspective. It's just a clock on the wall, that is all. The second hand becomes insignificant as you are in the moment. You still know you have a Doctor appointment tomorrow, and that you will be going on vacation in 2 months, but does it matter right now? You have not forgotten the lessons you have learned, or the memories you have, but are they important right now?
The only thing that matters is now.
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
I Jam Therefore I Am
jam 3. [slang] to improvise freely, esp. in a jam session.
There is something magical about jamming with other musicians. I know this feeling well, as through out the years I have set in on many jam sessions. From full blown sessions with drums, bass, guitar, keyboards and P.A. to just 2 acoustic guitars on the back porch. I have jammed on electric and acoustic guitars, and drums. I have spent countless hours jamming with me on drums and just a guitar player, or just a bass player. Heck even one time with just a DJ scratching!
It doesn't matter how large or small a jam is, or in what configuration of musicians/instruments it happens to involve. The fact is musicians involved in a jam, are playing what ever comes out of their heart in that moment. That is where the miracle of jamming happens. There is a give and take among those involved. For instance, as a drummer, I can control the dynamics of the music by laying back, or not playing so loud. As soon as I begin to lay back, the rest of the musicians will follow along. Sometimes, a guitar player can mark a crescendo causing me to begin opening up behind the kit or, I can start it myself.
There is also a give and take if you have multiple guitars playing. One takes a lead spot and the other two lay back by palm muting the guitar, or bring texture to the music by playing different chords. The two guitar players laying back can also accentuate the musical highlights creating syncopation, by strumming differently. The list goes on and on, and is only limited by the musicians creativity and skill on their instrument.
This is not to imply that every time a musician jams something miraculous happens, because trust me it doesn't. For a myriad of reasons jams have different degrees of enchantment. There can be opposing trains of though among the musicians participating, or there can be too much life chaos that one cannot block out, causing the musician not to be fully present. There can be technical difficulties, or equipment failure that can blow a vibe right out of the water. Sometimes, you have an off night. Whatever is effecting one musician effects the jam, to one degree or another.
Unless something drastic happens, all jams can be categorized into three simple areas; good, great, and Awesome! Each time a musician jams they expose themselves, causing them grow musically. When the jam is good, you walk away satisfied, but with a feeling something was missing. When a jam is great, you see the smiles of the musicians reflected in the music. When a jam is awesome it's like the floor disappears and you are floating in a serene space. You are simply free, in the moment. There is no effort, the music just happens. This is what we strive for when we are jamming, to sync up in the moment, and let it happen naturally.
Last night a pickin' buddy of mine showed up with acoustic guitar in hand. I have not played my guitar in over 2 weeks so I was a little apprehensive. Rust starts to develop real quickly, especially when you get older! We get tuned up, and take off on the first tune. I wanted to play rhythm and let Earl take the melody/lead so I started off the first tune and he just fell in. Earl was weaving around, over/under, and side by side the rhythm I was laying down. I wound that tune down and started another, not giving Earl a chance to start a rhythm. I could feel myself beginning to warm up, and get more comfortable with the guitar in my hands. Earl was having a great time playing lead, and I was having big fun playing rhythm. I wound that song down, and I needed to re tune. While I was tuning Earl said he wanted me to play lead, and I reluctantly agreed.
He takes off on a new idea he is working on and I tip toe out on the fretboard. As I am playing I begin to focus on the moment, and just let my fingers go where they want. Playing lead is not a strong point of mine. I have messed around with it over the years, and I can get around the fretboard a bit, but that is about it. I can't think about music theory when I am making it, it just happens.
I was lost in the moment when Earl started to wind the song down. When we finished the song Earl was just staring at me, so I ask him what was wrong? He started smiling and said that was beautiful! Earl does not give compliments very often so I knew that I had struck something inside of him. I told him, I didn't do anything special, in fact it's the same old stuff I have been playing around with for years. He said it was different, so I ask him how was it different. He said it just felt right. I thought about it and said if you say so, not really believing what was happening.
He takes off on another idea he is working on, and again I tip toe out into the music, focusing the moment, and let my fingers go where they want. When I am playing a lead I can hear it in the distance, but I am really focused on what the rhythm is doing. Trying to accentuate, or articulate, what the rhythm is saying to me. I feel like I am meandering along...which is essentially what is happening. I hear Earl winding the tune down and we end it. Again he is sitting there smiling and I say what? He said you did it again, and I have no idea what he is talking about. It sounded like it always sounds, nothing more nothing less.
You would think if I was doing something that was out of this world I would feel it, but I did not. I believe there is a reason for this. I was so focused on the moment, the moment I was in was all that mattered, not the next and not the past. I could feel the notes work as I played them, but that was all there was no context other than the moment. I had found the space of an awesome jam and was too focused to see it.
When I am behind a kit jamming, I am much more comfortable than I am with a guitar. In that comfort zone I can feel the the different types of jams I described above. I think it also is the fact that drumming is pure rhythm, meaning, no musical notes if you will. With me usually being the only drummer I can play what fits the music without having to worry about another drummer or percussionist.
When I am playing guitar, my monkey gets fired up and begins beating me with a passion. So to get to the space I found last night, I have to really focus on the moment forcing the monkey back into the jungle. This phenomenon can happen to me behind the kit as well, it's just the comfort zone provides distance between me and my monkey.
In the studies I have undertaken, especially since completing the Landmark Forum, focusing on the moment is the single most fascinating thing to me. All music being performed happens in the moment, for better or worse, it is happening in that moment. I remember reading The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle and thinking if I could harness this idea my music could push through to a brand new level. I believe that is beginning to happen, and it is effecting my performance in ways I could not have fathomed.
PS. The photo above is one I did a couple of years ago. The guitar on the left is a Ibanez JS1200 which I call 'Vette because she is so sleek and sexy and curves in all the right places (GRIN)! The one on the right is a Seagull S-6 which I named Sweetie because she has such a sweet sound and is so comfortable to play.
Monday, February 9, 2009
The Camera
While serving in the US Army Signal Corp in the late 80's I finally had the opportunity to get a 35mm camera. I did my usual research for something I was interested in. I learned about f-stops, shutter speeds, film speeds, as well as artistic techniques such as framing, light, texture, and dimension. I would go on walks just to take pictures. My eye began to develop due to study and practice of the art, and was soon taking some decent pictures. When I got out the Army my camera starting having problems so I took it to a shop to have it repaired. They called and told me the camera was worn out, and it would cost more to repair it than the camera was worth. That was the end of that.
This past Christmas my girlfriend, Kristi, decided to get herself a new Digital SLR. I was was staying at her house while I attended a Landmark class. It was 2300 when I got home from class. She excitedly ask me if I wanted to see the camera, I said yes, and she hands it to me. I looked it over, and except for the LCD screen it looks like any other SLR I have ever held. I told her it looked like an awesome camera and was looking forward to seeing her photos. I handed her the camera back and walked into the kitchen to grab a beer. I sat down at the kitchen table and begin reviewing my notes from class, and looking over the assignment for the upcoming week. Kristi walked through the kitchen, and I could sense something was wrong. I ask her what's wrong, and I get nothing.
She was sitting on the couch and I sit down beside her and ask what's wrong. Still no answer. Finally she says she's upset due to my response to her new camera. My immediate reaction is what did I do wrong? I acknowledged the camera, told her how bad ass it was, and I looked forward to seeing her pictures. What more was there to say? While I am rolling this around in my head she goes out side to smoke a cigarette. I am sitting there still trying to figure out what I did wrong. In my minds eye I had done the appropriate wow.
Then I began to see something I had not seen at the time, and it was ugly, really ugly. This ugliness was jealousy. The love of my life had got her dream camera, and as opposed to being really happy for her, I was jealous. I felt sick. I went outside and told her I was sorry for my reaction, and that I had no idea I was presenting myself that way. I explained to her that I was extremely jealous of her new camera. Thank God she has a big heart, because I hurt her deeply. She accepted my apology and my honesty.
It's scary to see who we really are, not who we think we are. Most of us are pretending to be pretty people, the pretty people we think we are. When you come face to face with reality it's a disgusting feeling.
I remember another example of this. I attended the final night of Lesley's Forum to see what it was all about. After talking with Lesley I decided to sign up for the class. We went to the registration table to fill out the paperwork. Everything was going just fine until we got to the question about what I wanted to get out of the Forum. The people at the registration table told me I could put down anything I wanted. I looked at the entry and there were a bunch of blank lines. I thought about it for a moment and boiled it all down to one thing, in a very simple statement. "Freedom from fear". I told them that was it. They told me I could put as much as I wanted in the blank space, and I told them that was it. They kept prodding me, and I remember telling them if I could conquer my fear everything else would fall into place. They kept on, and I remember jokingly telling them that was all I wanted.
I attended the Forum the first week in December. Sunday night, after 2 long days of struggle, I got it. I had found the silence of my mind, I had transformed. The last night of my class I ask Lesley to come with me, since she had exposed me to the Forum. After the class was over, she wanted me to meet Amanda one of the girls working at the registration table. Lesley introduced us again, and she remembered me instantly. She put on a mock angry face and said "Freedom from fear!" Then she said something about the change in my face and how proud she was I finished the Forum.
The angry face I was presenting, was very nasty. Same thing with the camera. How I thought I was being was, way off from what I was actually being. This is sickening reality to face, and takes a lot of fortitude to do so.
The chatterbox creates that false reality for us. It does so seamlessly and we never notice it. It is very common to think we are our little voice, since we have had it for as long as we remember. The chatterbox is a very complicated little critter once you start to pay attention to it, and that is the first step to getting control over your little voice. First you acknowledge it, then you pay attention to it.
The reality is you are not your internal dialog.
This past Christmas my girlfriend, Kristi, decided to get herself a new Digital SLR. I was was staying at her house while I attended a Landmark class. It was 2300 when I got home from class. She excitedly ask me if I wanted to see the camera, I said yes, and she hands it to me. I looked it over, and except for the LCD screen it looks like any other SLR I have ever held. I told her it looked like an awesome camera and was looking forward to seeing her photos. I handed her the camera back and walked into the kitchen to grab a beer. I sat down at the kitchen table and begin reviewing my notes from class, and looking over the assignment for the upcoming week. Kristi walked through the kitchen, and I could sense something was wrong. I ask her what's wrong, and I get nothing.
She was sitting on the couch and I sit down beside her and ask what's wrong. Still no answer. Finally she says she's upset due to my response to her new camera. My immediate reaction is what did I do wrong? I acknowledged the camera, told her how bad ass it was, and I looked forward to seeing her pictures. What more was there to say? While I am rolling this around in my head she goes out side to smoke a cigarette. I am sitting there still trying to figure out what I did wrong. In my minds eye I had done the appropriate wow.
Then I began to see something I had not seen at the time, and it was ugly, really ugly. This ugliness was jealousy. The love of my life had got her dream camera, and as opposed to being really happy for her, I was jealous. I felt sick. I went outside and told her I was sorry for my reaction, and that I had no idea I was presenting myself that way. I explained to her that I was extremely jealous of her new camera. Thank God she has a big heart, because I hurt her deeply. She accepted my apology and my honesty.
It's scary to see who we really are, not who we think we are. Most of us are pretending to be pretty people, the pretty people we think we are. When you come face to face with reality it's a disgusting feeling.
I remember another example of this. I attended the final night of Lesley's Forum to see what it was all about. After talking with Lesley I decided to sign up for the class. We went to the registration table to fill out the paperwork. Everything was going just fine until we got to the question about what I wanted to get out of the Forum. The people at the registration table told me I could put down anything I wanted. I looked at the entry and there were a bunch of blank lines. I thought about it for a moment and boiled it all down to one thing, in a very simple statement. "Freedom from fear". I told them that was it. They told me I could put as much as I wanted in the blank space, and I told them that was it. They kept prodding me, and I remember telling them if I could conquer my fear everything else would fall into place. They kept on, and I remember jokingly telling them that was all I wanted.
I attended the Forum the first week in December. Sunday night, after 2 long days of struggle, I got it. I had found the silence of my mind, I had transformed. The last night of my class I ask Lesley to come with me, since she had exposed me to the Forum. After the class was over, she wanted me to meet Amanda one of the girls working at the registration table. Lesley introduced us again, and she remembered me instantly. She put on a mock angry face and said "Freedom from fear!" Then she said something about the change in my face and how proud she was I finished the Forum.
The angry face I was presenting, was very nasty. Same thing with the camera. How I thought I was being was, way off from what I was actually being. This is sickening reality to face, and takes a lot of fortitude to do so.
The chatterbox creates that false reality for us. It does so seamlessly and we never notice it. It is very common to think we are our little voice, since we have had it for as long as we remember. The chatterbox is a very complicated little critter once you start to pay attention to it, and that is the first step to getting control over your little voice. First you acknowledge it, then you pay attention to it.
The reality is you are not your internal dialog.
Thursday, February 5, 2009
The Power of Sharing
Sharing is such a simple act. We acknowledge when others do it, and feel good about ourselves when we participate in the gesture. Is there more to this practice of sharing than feeling good? I believe there is. All relationships depend upon communication, this is a form of sharing. Could it be said that this exchange of words and feelings is the glue that bonds people together? Granted the intent of the exchange is important to understand. Communication in the form of demands can cause problems, as choice has been eliminated.
I have witnessed the power of sharing in the Landmark Forum. From sharing in a group, with a partner, or observing others share and being engaged in what is going on. It produces a sense of connection to something larger than ourselves. Sharing gives us access to a potent force that can have a profound affect on not only ourselves, but others as well.
A perfect example. My Mother is a technophobe in the most extreme sense of the word. I can remember my sister buying a CD player and some CD's for my Mom many years ago. Although she loves music she would not touch the player, it was information overload, causing her to shut down. The CD player did nothing but collect dust.
This past Christmas my sister, Lesley and her husband, came home for the holidays. She had a new I-phone that she was showing us. Lesley took advantage of having an internet connection by showing Mom a music video on You Tube. Lesley picked a tune from the early 70's that Mom had a strong connection to. Mom became interested instantly, and Lesley played another video. Then to engage Mom Lesley ask her to pick a song. Mom thought for a second and came up with a title, Lesley found the song and played it. Mom then came up with another title Lesley found it and played it.
We were all sitting in the living room and the anticipated football game came on, so the focus in the room changed, but Mom was still coming up with song titles and Lesley was running them down on the internet. They finally went to the bedroom to continue this call and response type of sharing. An hour or so went by and it was time for me to leave. I went to the bedroom to let them know I was leaving, and they were still going strong. I smiled bid my adieu, and headed home. I found out later that this sharing went on late into the night and continued the next day. Lesley had connected with Mom through music.
The holidays passed Lesley and her husband headed home, and life seemed to go back to normal. A couple of weeks after this event, unbeknownst to me, Mom called Lesley and ask if she could find her a personal CD player. My technophobe Mother asking for a CD player! Lesley found her a Walkman type CD player and picked up a Creedence Clearwater Revival CD. I was in Austin the following week for a Landmark class, and Lesley told me about what was going on. She asked me to take the CD player to her and explain to her how to operate it.
On my way home from Austin I stopped in to give Mom the gifts Lesley had sent. To explain the operation of the player I had to put the CD in the player as an example. The moment I hit play Mom's face lit up like a Christmas tree. It was the most incredible sight to behold. I sat there in amazement not wanting to finish explaining the rest of the button functions, as that would interrupt the moment. Finally the song ended and I finished explaining how to operate it.
On my way home I was thinking about what I had observed. Lesley had created a possibility of connection, for herself, by sharing music. That opened up the possibility for my Mother to overcome her fear of technology so she could connect to the music she has always loved.
This is the power of sharing.
I have witnessed the power of sharing in the Landmark Forum. From sharing in a group, with a partner, or observing others share and being engaged in what is going on. It produces a sense of connection to something larger than ourselves. Sharing gives us access to a potent force that can have a profound affect on not only ourselves, but others as well.
A perfect example. My Mother is a technophobe in the most extreme sense of the word. I can remember my sister buying a CD player and some CD's for my Mom many years ago. Although she loves music she would not touch the player, it was information overload, causing her to shut down. The CD player did nothing but collect dust.
This past Christmas my sister, Lesley and her husband, came home for the holidays. She had a new I-phone that she was showing us. Lesley took advantage of having an internet connection by showing Mom a music video on You Tube. Lesley picked a tune from the early 70's that Mom had a strong connection to. Mom became interested instantly, and Lesley played another video. Then to engage Mom Lesley ask her to pick a song. Mom thought for a second and came up with a title, Lesley found the song and played it. Mom then came up with another title Lesley found it and played it.
We were all sitting in the living room and the anticipated football game came on, so the focus in the room changed, but Mom was still coming up with song titles and Lesley was running them down on the internet. They finally went to the bedroom to continue this call and response type of sharing. An hour or so went by and it was time for me to leave. I went to the bedroom to let them know I was leaving, and they were still going strong. I smiled bid my adieu, and headed home. I found out later that this sharing went on late into the night and continued the next day. Lesley had connected with Mom through music.
The holidays passed Lesley and her husband headed home, and life seemed to go back to normal. A couple of weeks after this event, unbeknownst to me, Mom called Lesley and ask if she could find her a personal CD player. My technophobe Mother asking for a CD player! Lesley found her a Walkman type CD player and picked up a Creedence Clearwater Revival CD. I was in Austin the following week for a Landmark class, and Lesley told me about what was going on. She asked me to take the CD player to her and explain to her how to operate it.
On my way home from Austin I stopped in to give Mom the gifts Lesley had sent. To explain the operation of the player I had to put the CD in the player as an example. The moment I hit play Mom's face lit up like a Christmas tree. It was the most incredible sight to behold. I sat there in amazement not wanting to finish explaining the rest of the button functions, as that would interrupt the moment. Finally the song ended and I finished explaining how to operate it.
On my way home I was thinking about what I had observed. Lesley had created a possibility of connection, for herself, by sharing music. That opened up the possibility for my Mother to overcome her fear of technology so she could connect to the music she has always loved.
This is the power of sharing.
Thursday, January 22, 2009
Tree Cemetery
Driving home from Austin Tuesday, I was looking for dead trees. Now that I am actually taking pictures, my awareness has increased dramatically. Most of the trees that I photographed I had noticed before, not this one.
I was coming out of a river bottom and just happen to glance off to my left at the last second and I spotted this incredible sight in the distance. I made a U-turn and headed back to the tree. I parked my truck walked up the hill to the fence line and stared in amazement at what was before me. This incredibly inspiring tree, standing alone, with a cemetery right behind it! When I first spied the tree I could not see the tombstones behind it as my vantage point from the road was too low. As I stood at the fence line I knew my camera would not zoom close enough to frame the shot properly. I am very leery of hopping fences, even though all I want to do is take a few photos, yet this tree called to me. I surveyed the pasture to make sure there were no critters to contend with, and over the fence I went.
As I got closer to the tree the beauty and power really began to stand out. The contrast and texture was so rich I was completely taken over by the sight. I framed it up from 3 different angles and took 15 shots. I finished turned my camera off, and started walking back to the truck. When I approached the fence line I turned to look at the tree one more time. It was irresistible. I turned the camera on, set it to color, and snapped one more shot, a reference of what I first saw.
The Monkey In The Jungle
I was typing an e-mail to a friend describing my loss of center. As I was typing, a story about my chatterbox began to unfold. When all was said and done I had actually defined my chatterbox in a way I had never thought of before.
In the e-mail I began describing the racket in my head as a "900 pound gorilla on the loose" and that caused me to think. "If it's 900 pound gorilla when I loose my center what would it be when I was focused?" It dawned on me that it would be monkey. Then I began to think, "What kind of monkey?" As I sat there I began to visualize a chimpanzee and I thought "That can't be right" my chatterbox is a vile disgusting thing not a cute chimp, but the visual would not go away. Then I began to realize it was a chimp, but with the attitude of one of those small hyper/aggressive monkeys. Now it was beginning to make sense. It looks cute as a way to trick me into thinking it is harmless, but in reality it's the nasty abuser it has always been. Then I began to visualize the monkey loose in the jungle of my mind, and it all came together.
Living my life is like walking through a jungle never knowing what is fixing to happen, and my monkey is always with me. It use to be that the monkey would set on my shoulder and harass me constantly. Now that I have a degree of control over it, it follows me through the jungle. Sometimes it is real close, screaming at me, and other times it's distant still harassing me from afar. The funny thing is how tricky the little bastard is! I can hear him in the distance and then instantly he is popping out of the foilage in front of me, scaring the daylights out of me. I am not quite sure how I know its a male. Maybe I just figure that a female could never be that crude.
When I lost my center my little monkey became a gorilla in an instant. The racket inside my head was horrendous. After being in relative silence for over a month it was amazing to realize how loud the noise use to be. It was a very scary sensation, it literally petrified me. I could not think, nor could I take action. I was frozen in my tracks.
Once my sister shared the tool with me I needed, my gorilla instantly became the monkey again. I know my monkey will always be with me, and it will be a constant battle to keep him in perspective.
The monkey is loose in the jungle of my mind, and life is as it should be.
In the e-mail I began describing the racket in my head as a "900 pound gorilla on the loose" and that caused me to think. "If it's 900 pound gorilla when I loose my center what would it be when I was focused?" It dawned on me that it would be monkey. Then I began to think, "What kind of monkey?" As I sat there I began to visualize a chimpanzee and I thought "That can't be right" my chatterbox is a vile disgusting thing not a cute chimp, but the visual would not go away. Then I began to realize it was a chimp, but with the attitude of one of those small hyper/aggressive monkeys. Now it was beginning to make sense. It looks cute as a way to trick me into thinking it is harmless, but in reality it's the nasty abuser it has always been. Then I began to visualize the monkey loose in the jungle of my mind, and it all came together.
Living my life is like walking through a jungle never knowing what is fixing to happen, and my monkey is always with me. It use to be that the monkey would set on my shoulder and harass me constantly. Now that I have a degree of control over it, it follows me through the jungle. Sometimes it is real close, screaming at me, and other times it's distant still harassing me from afar. The funny thing is how tricky the little bastard is! I can hear him in the distance and then instantly he is popping out of the foilage in front of me, scaring the daylights out of me. I am not quite sure how I know its a male. Maybe I just figure that a female could never be that crude.
When I lost my center my little monkey became a gorilla in an instant. The racket inside my head was horrendous. After being in relative silence for over a month it was amazing to realize how loud the noise use to be. It was a very scary sensation, it literally petrified me. I could not think, nor could I take action. I was frozen in my tracks.
Once my sister shared the tool with me I needed, my gorilla instantly became the monkey again. I know my monkey will always be with me, and it will be a constant battle to keep him in perspective.
The monkey is loose in the jungle of my mind, and life is as it should be.
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Centered
Living in that somewhat "elusive" space of being focused on the moment is an incredible challenge. There are different degrees of "losing it", as we swim in the sea of possibility. Some times it's a little wobble, and sometimes it's a big wobble, but you can still stop the wobble, and gain control over your internal dialog...your chatterbox.
I have read The Power of Now, by Tolle, and it was was a powerful, moving, experience. Yet, I felt like a little man looking at a mountain, with a big ball, I am supposed to push up this hill. I would push the ball up the mountain and get it to the top. The ball would balance for just a brief moment, and fall to the other side. I would climb down the mountain, walk around to the ball and begin to push it up the mountain, and again the ball would balance for a moment, and then roll down the other side. On and on this went, as the moment I had the ball balanced, a brand new world opened up. I just could not balance the ball.
Once you find a way to balance the ball, it becomes easier...and when the ball slips a little you know how to catch it, and return to center. Today, I lost the ball, the mountain, all of it, due to the racket/noise in my head.
Thanks to my amazing sister, I am now centered again. She has done the Landmark forum, as well as the Advanced course, and is an incredible coach. Even though she is my sister, she ain't pullin' no punches. She went in to the trenches with me and shared a tool to see where I was going wrong.
"Stop fighting it, by fighting it you are feeding it"
That brought everything back to center...the silence...
"Hey Todd...Let go of the banana!"
Peace All!
I have read The Power of Now, by Tolle, and it was was a powerful, moving, experience. Yet, I felt like a little man looking at a mountain, with a big ball, I am supposed to push up this hill. I would push the ball up the mountain and get it to the top. The ball would balance for just a brief moment, and fall to the other side. I would climb down the mountain, walk around to the ball and begin to push it up the mountain, and again the ball would balance for a moment, and then roll down the other side. On and on this went, as the moment I had the ball balanced, a brand new world opened up. I just could not balance the ball.
Once you find a way to balance the ball, it becomes easier...and when the ball slips a little you know how to catch it, and return to center. Today, I lost the ball, the mountain, all of it, due to the racket/noise in my head.
Thanks to my amazing sister, I am now centered again. She has done the Landmark forum, as well as the Advanced course, and is an incredible coach. Even though she is my sister, she ain't pullin' no punches. She went in to the trenches with me and shared a tool to see where I was going wrong.
"Stop fighting it, by fighting it you are feeding it"
That brought everything back to center...the silence...
"Hey Todd...Let go of the banana!"
Peace All!
My Chatterbox
You know that internal dialog you have with yourself? That is what I call my "Chatterbox". My chatterbox, is a very ugly, vile thing, that can be quite nasty and mean. Recently, through the Landmark Forum, I learned to control the chatterbox to a degree. When I am really focused and centered the chatterbox get's pushed way into the background. When the chatterbox tries to come back, I can usually push it away. When I am not focused, the chatterbox is around in varying degrees. Since my completion of the Forum in early December, I have been in control more or less of the little box.
Today, I lost my focus, and the chatterbox is in complete control, which is not a good feeling.
I am in a Landmark seminar, and the assignment was to be unreasonable at least once every day. For the first 7 days, I was unreasonable at least once a day. We all have our reasons why we can't do this or we can't do that. Those reasons are a byproduct of our little voice...the chatterbox. So, in essence the assignment was an exercise in getting control over the internal dialog.
Yesterday, I was not unreasonable, not intentionally anyway.
I made a commitment to do my homework assignments in this seminar. I broke that commitment, and therefore I have gone back on my word. This is where I began to loose my focus. Once I lost my center, the chatterbox took over, and it's beating me up with a vengeance. It almost seems as though it is making up for lost time. It is not a pretty space I am in, and it's not getting better.
I must find my center...
Today, I lost my focus, and the chatterbox is in complete control, which is not a good feeling.
I am in a Landmark seminar, and the assignment was to be unreasonable at least once every day. For the first 7 days, I was unreasonable at least once a day. We all have our reasons why we can't do this or we can't do that. Those reasons are a byproduct of our little voice...the chatterbox. So, in essence the assignment was an exercise in getting control over the internal dialog.
Yesterday, I was not unreasonable, not intentionally anyway.
I made a commitment to do my homework assignments in this seminar. I broke that commitment, and therefore I have gone back on my word. This is where I began to loose my focus. Once I lost my center, the chatterbox took over, and it's beating me up with a vengeance. It almost seems as though it is making up for lost time. It is not a pretty space I am in, and it's not getting better.
I must find my center...
Sunday, January 11, 2009
"Ok, We're Rolling...On Two"
Ever since I can remember I have wanted a drum set. I can remember being about 10 or 11, and digging different sizes of boxes out of a nearby dumpster. I drug the boxes home and assembled them in the walk in closet in the shape of a drum set. There were probably 5 or 6 boxes total. I went to the kitchen and raided Mom's large spoon drawer for some large wooden spoons. I "borrowed" Dad's AM/FM radio, which was pretty big for that era and had plenty of volume. Tuned in a Top 40 radio station and began playing my "drum set". I think Mom lost more spoons through my drum set adventures.
Years later when I was 15 or so, I got a little more inventive with drum set creations. By this time I had my own room separate from the house. I had an old recliner that I would tilt back for the perfect "tom" height, put a hardshelled suitcase on the floor for the base drum, and I had gone to the lumber yard and bought a dowel rod and cut to the approximate size of drum sticks. I sat all this up near a wall in my room so I could use that as a ride cymbal. By this time I had a stereo and albums. I was jammin'.
Finally in 1977 I had saved enough money at a part time job to get a used drum set. Whoo Hoo! The real thing! I was playing every day to all kinds of music, Legs Diamond, Moxy, Rush, Kansas anything I could get my hands on. Mom became kind of concerned as she saw "Rock Star" all over my face. How is it Moms know everything? One day she asked me "What are you going to do with your life if you don't make it as a rock star?" That was an interesting question that I did not have an answer for.
So I thought about it for quite a while. I knew I wanted to be involved in music some how, but if I could not play what would I do. Then it dawned on me, I would be a recording engineer, I could actually be involved in making music, just not performing. Even at that age, I could see one the benefits of being an Audio Engineer, I would not have to be on the road all the time...go figure. Mom and I never finished that conversation, but I had solidified the thought of being an AE in my head.
In 1980 it was time to graduate from High School. I knew what I wanted to do, there was just no financial way to pull it off. Back in those days very few Colleges had Audio Engineering programs. There was an independent tech school in Florida that was offered an associates in Audio Engineering, but the school was not accredited, therefore no traditional funding sources were available. So, after graduation I attended a local Junior College for three semesters floundering around in the Liberal Arts program. I really felt like I was wasting my time so I dropped out.
I was going through some counselling at the college I had been attending, and the councillor had a contact to somebody in the music industry. She did some research and found out about a class put on by the RIAA at a major studio in San Antonio. The cost was around $500 and it was a 40 hour hands on class. Mom and I talked about it, and she agreed to help me accomplish this goal. I was working for Holiday Inn at the time as a bartender, so I transferred to a Holiday Inn in San Antonio taking a job as banquette houseman. I stayed in a cheap hotel room until I could find some place to stay.
I will never forget walking into the studio the first time, I was completely awed! The live room was so huge, the grand piano looked tiny. The control room was equally impressive a 32 channel mixing board, 2 1/4 inch 24 track MTR, and outboard gear out the wazoo. I was completely dazzled. Most of the people in the class were there for fun, but I was there for business, the business of learning. I was taking notes in every class, and absorbing everything I could. To complete the class there was a final written test, and each student got a chance to mix down the material we had recorded earlier in the class. We also had a final interview. After reviewing the mix down I had done the engineer giving the class said he had noticed that I was taking the class very seriously. I told him that I wanted to be an AE. He said I had potential as my mix had impressed him. He told me that if this was what I really wanted to do, go to an electronics tech school, as studios will almost always take an intern with electronics in their background.
So, off I went searching for a school to attend in the San Antonio area. I did attend a tech school for a year and was doing good in class. Love ended up getting in the way, and I missed to many days in one semester and got booted from class. Funding dried up, and I ended up in the US Army Signal Corp.
My last duty station was a mountain top in Northern Germany with six guy on a Microwave radio site. I had been playing acoustic guitar as opposed to drums, as guitars fit better in a wall locker! So I was still playing music while I was in the service. The last 6 months I was in Germany, I decided I wanted to engineer and produce a demo tape. So, with three $20 mics bought at the PX, two cassette decks, my home stereo equipment, and a small consumer mixer, I worked my butt off in almost every spare minute I had, to track and mix a 7 song demo tape of my original music. I was proud of my accomplishment.
Upon honorable discharge from the Army in 1989, I went to work in Houston working in the telecommunications industry. I was making more money than I had ever made in my life and all of the money was going to buying gear and instruments. After 3 years of hard work, and a lot of luck, I ended up building a small demo studio. I began producing demos for local musicians and bands. I was having a blast and producing some pretty good recordings with the limited equipment I had. I was beginning to get a small reputation in certain circles as being a good engineer.
That all came to a screeching halt in 1996, when somebody decided they wanted my gear more than I did. They kicked open the front door and walked off with almost $8K in gear. By this time, technology had replaced my telecommunications job, so the good money I was making was not there anymore. I put what equipment was left in storage and gave up on my dream. I did not want to play anything, or have anything to do with music. Heck, I couldn't even listen to the radio for over 6 months.
Fastforward to 2004, I am out in the office, and I get the bug to play my acoustic. I dig it out of storage, tuned it up and played for almost 2 hours. The connection to the music was back, and along with it the desire to record again. I decided, it was time to begin the rebuilding process. Little by little, piece by piece, I am rebuilding the dream of playing and engineering/producing music.
Years later when I was 15 or so, I got a little more inventive with drum set creations. By this time I had my own room separate from the house. I had an old recliner that I would tilt back for the perfect "tom" height, put a hardshelled suitcase on the floor for the base drum, and I had gone to the lumber yard and bought a dowel rod and cut to the approximate size of drum sticks. I sat all this up near a wall in my room so I could use that as a ride cymbal. By this time I had a stereo and albums. I was jammin'.
Finally in 1977 I had saved enough money at a part time job to get a used drum set. Whoo Hoo! The real thing! I was playing every day to all kinds of music, Legs Diamond, Moxy, Rush, Kansas anything I could get my hands on. Mom became kind of concerned as she saw "Rock Star" all over my face. How is it Moms know everything? One day she asked me "What are you going to do with your life if you don't make it as a rock star?" That was an interesting question that I did not have an answer for.
So I thought about it for quite a while. I knew I wanted to be involved in music some how, but if I could not play what would I do. Then it dawned on me, I would be a recording engineer, I could actually be involved in making music, just not performing. Even at that age, I could see one the benefits of being an Audio Engineer, I would not have to be on the road all the time...go figure. Mom and I never finished that conversation, but I had solidified the thought of being an AE in my head.
In 1980 it was time to graduate from High School. I knew what I wanted to do, there was just no financial way to pull it off. Back in those days very few Colleges had Audio Engineering programs. There was an independent tech school in Florida that was offered an associates in Audio Engineering, but the school was not accredited, therefore no traditional funding sources were available. So, after graduation I attended a local Junior College for three semesters floundering around in the Liberal Arts program. I really felt like I was wasting my time so I dropped out.
I was going through some counselling at the college I had been attending, and the councillor had a contact to somebody in the music industry. She did some research and found out about a class put on by the RIAA at a major studio in San Antonio. The cost was around $500 and it was a 40 hour hands on class. Mom and I talked about it, and she agreed to help me accomplish this goal. I was working for Holiday Inn at the time as a bartender, so I transferred to a Holiday Inn in San Antonio taking a job as banquette houseman. I stayed in a cheap hotel room until I could find some place to stay.
I will never forget walking into the studio the first time, I was completely awed! The live room was so huge, the grand piano looked tiny. The control room was equally impressive a 32 channel mixing board, 2 1/4 inch 24 track MTR, and outboard gear out the wazoo. I was completely dazzled. Most of the people in the class were there for fun, but I was there for business, the business of learning. I was taking notes in every class, and absorbing everything I could. To complete the class there was a final written test, and each student got a chance to mix down the material we had recorded earlier in the class. We also had a final interview. After reviewing the mix down I had done the engineer giving the class said he had noticed that I was taking the class very seriously. I told him that I wanted to be an AE. He said I had potential as my mix had impressed him. He told me that if this was what I really wanted to do, go to an electronics tech school, as studios will almost always take an intern with electronics in their background.
So, off I went searching for a school to attend in the San Antonio area. I did attend a tech school for a year and was doing good in class. Love ended up getting in the way, and I missed to many days in one semester and got booted from class. Funding dried up, and I ended up in the US Army Signal Corp.
My last duty station was a mountain top in Northern Germany with six guy on a Microwave radio site. I had been playing acoustic guitar as opposed to drums, as guitars fit better in a wall locker! So I was still playing music while I was in the service. The last 6 months I was in Germany, I decided I wanted to engineer and produce a demo tape. So, with three $20 mics bought at the PX, two cassette decks, my home stereo equipment, and a small consumer mixer, I worked my butt off in almost every spare minute I had, to track and mix a 7 song demo tape of my original music. I was proud of my accomplishment.
Upon honorable discharge from the Army in 1989, I went to work in Houston working in the telecommunications industry. I was making more money than I had ever made in my life and all of the money was going to buying gear and instruments. After 3 years of hard work, and a lot of luck, I ended up building a small demo studio. I began producing demos for local musicians and bands. I was having a blast and producing some pretty good recordings with the limited equipment I had. I was beginning to get a small reputation in certain circles as being a good engineer.
That all came to a screeching halt in 1996, when somebody decided they wanted my gear more than I did. They kicked open the front door and walked off with almost $8K in gear. By this time, technology had replaced my telecommunications job, so the good money I was making was not there anymore. I put what equipment was left in storage and gave up on my dream. I did not want to play anything, or have anything to do with music. Heck, I couldn't even listen to the radio for over 6 months.
Fastforward to 2004, I am out in the office, and I get the bug to play my acoustic. I dig it out of storage, tuned it up and played for almost 2 hours. The connection to the music was back, and along with it the desire to record again. I decided, it was time to begin the rebuilding process. Little by little, piece by piece, I am rebuilding the dream of playing and engineering/producing music.
Friday, January 9, 2009
My Grass Is Blue
My Girlfriend had a mandolin occupying space at her house. It actually belonged to her ex-husband and had ended up in her possession after her divorce. I had been eying the mandolin for almost 6 months or so, and I finally ask if she thought her ex wanted it back. She was not sure, but stated that she would ask him the next time she spoke to him. So, she did and he did say that he wanted it back.
Well the mandolin sat around for almost a year and he never picked it up, although he came by every other week to pick up the kids. Finally in March last year I told her, I was going to clean it up and restring it and see what I could do with it. I headed to the local music store and picked up a couple of sets of strings and an instruction book that looked appropriate.
The mandolin was in pretty bad shape as paint had been spilled on it and it was just dirty. I went to work on it getting the paint off of it as well as cleaning and polishing it up. I oiled up the tuners and did some other light maintenance on it, put the strings on it and tuned it up.
Being the fact that I play guitar, I figured the mandolin would be a little easier to pick up. I figured out a few basic chords and I was off on my new adventure. The mandolin is a fascinating instrument in it's own right. The small scale and the fact that it is tuned in 5ths as opposed to as to 4ths like a guitar make it a unique sounding instrument. Plus it's a blast to play!
I get home with the mandolin, and begin searching the Internet for related sites. I wanted to know more about the history as well as the different types of music that mandolin is prominent in. Of course I am also looking for lessons, tips, sheet music. On the Internet all mandolin roads lead to The Mandolin Cafe web site. While looking around I happened on a thread about a picking festival scheduled for late April called Pickin' In The Park in Fayetteville Texas. I went to that web site to see what it was all about, and it looked really interesting. My interest was definitely piqued.
Let's back up here a minute and talk about my musical background a bit. I come from the Rock and Roll side of things. I was essentially raised on Top 40 radio in the early 70's as my Mom did not listen to country music at all. Top 40 evolved into Rock and Roll in my teens.
The Pickin' In The Park event was a bluegrass/old time music event. Something I had never experienced in person before. The extent of my exposure to bluegrass would have watching Hee Haw with my grandparents, and The Ballad of Jed Clampett from the Beverly Hillbillies.
The weekend came, and I ended up getting to go. The premise behind Pickin' In The Park is, you bring your instrument and set in with musicians and jam. The event is scheduled the second weekend of every month but the one in April was the kick off for the season. There were all kinds of vendors as well as Bluegrass bands scheduled to play on different stages through out the weekend. The best part is...it's FREE!
I did take my guitar, leaving the mandolin at home as I was still to new to the instrument to feel comfortable trying to jam with other people. I arrived at the festival around 11:00 on Saturday, and was completely blown away! There were pickers everywhere, of all ages, playing all kinds of instruments. Upright bass, banjo, mandolin, guitar, bouzoukis, dulcimers, resonator/Dobro guitars and probably a few other instruments I am forgetting.
There were groups of musicians jamming all around the town square. These groups would form and dissolve as the musicians would move from group to group. Some of these groups would get really large, especially if the core pickers were really talented. As I walked around listening to different groups I was so deeply touched by the music. The music was refreshing to me...all acoustic, no electronic processing, no gadgets, just the pickers and the music. Of course I was not familiar with any of the songs, but that did not stop the music from tugging at the strings of my heart.
Bluegrass and Old Time music are often referred to as "Front Porch Music", as was usually where it was performed. In this case I felt like I was on a revolving front porch, all of these incredibly talented musicians forming jams/groups spontaneously was like something out of a dream. What was more amazing were the teen pickers, I saw a kid that was probably all of 15 tearing a banjo up, he was so good he impressed the old timers in the groups he played with. There was another youngster probably around 17, that could fiddle his heart out and then turn around and play the mandolin, resonator, as well as regular guitar with the same finesse. And not a one of them looked like they had fallen face first into a tackle box!
I finally left around 1800 as it had been a long day, but I was seriously moved by this event. For the next 6 months all I listened to was Bluegrass music, what a wonderful world that is.
Thursday, January 8, 2009
Dead Trees
Ten years ago I was driving through the country heading to a near by town. There was a dead tree that immediately captured my attention. I slowed down to take in all of the details of this carcass of a tree. It had been a tall strong tree when it was alive and yet some how the strength remained even in death. Most of the limbs had fallen to the ground surrounding the base of the trunk with decay. The stubs of limbs still attached, pushed up into the clear blue sky, the contrast between life and death was mesmerizing. I continued on my journey, and yet the vision of the tree followed me.
Every time I drove by that tree it was just as powerful. Over the years the tree continued to decay, limb after limb falling to the ground, yet somehow it still retained the magical beauty of the first time I saw it. I began to notice more dead trees, each one unique, all incredibly moving. Through the years I kept telling myself, "one day you need to get some photos" and yet talk myself out of actually doing it.
Yesterday I took action. With camera and tripod in hand I hopped in my truck and took off on a slow cruise looking for dead trees. I started out down the road wondering if the first tree was still there, as I don't drive that road very often. I found the tree...it was a pile of rotting wood. I slowed down and paused to remember the inspiration that tree had given me so many years ago.
Three hours and a few miles later, I had 60 photographs of dead trees. After uploading the photos I decided this shoot was just a beginning as I will carry my camera in my truck and I will take the time to capture this phenomenon every time it moves me.
In The Moment
In The Moment
In the moment,
Your life transforms…
What was… is gone.
You are now free to perform.
A miracle in the making,
Right before your eyes.
The impossible, is possible,
You are now free to fly.
Let your vision guide you,
The light is the way.
A dream taking shape,
There can be no other way.
You accept the challenge,
For you know it is true.
From dream to reality,
This, you know you can do.
Nothing can stop it…
No holding back,
You give it your all,
You are on the right track.
Make the difference,
For all to see,
Along the way,
Your dream sets you free.
The love you share,
Will return three-fold,
For a dream taking root,
Is a sight to behold.
TRY
12 DEC 08
In the moment,
Your life transforms…
What was… is gone.
You are now free to perform.
A miracle in the making,
Right before your eyes.
The impossible, is possible,
You are now free to fly.
Let your vision guide you,
The light is the way.
A dream taking shape,
There can be no other way.
You accept the challenge,
For you know it is true.
From dream to reality,
This, you know you can do.
Nothing can stop it…
No holding back,
You give it your all,
You are on the right track.
Make the difference,
For all to see,
Along the way,
Your dream sets you free.
The love you share,
Will return three-fold,
For a dream taking root,
Is a sight to behold.
TRY
12 DEC 08
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
Welcome
Welcome to The Silence of Your Mind. This blog is intended to be a creative outlet, where I can share not only creative babble, but poetry, photos, and music that I create as well as things that capture my creative spirit.
After a 20+ year hiatus, I am finally writing again. What spurred this creativity? I took a class offered by Landmark Education called the Landmark Forum. This class caused a profound transformation in my life, and that transformation is unfolding in this moment.
In fact, "In The Moment" is what I wanted to call this blog, as that is the title of the first poem I wrote after completing the forum. Unfortunately, that title was taken, so I chose the second poem I wrote for the name of this blog.
I am looking forward to the challenge of staying creative, through the ups and downs of everyday life. With this blog I intend to share all of my thoughts regarding my day to day struggle of staying focused, and being fully creative in my life. The successes, the failures, and everything in between will come out here.
I will explore The Silence of My Mind.
Peace Always...
After a 20+ year hiatus, I am finally writing again. What spurred this creativity? I took a class offered by Landmark Education called the Landmark Forum. This class caused a profound transformation in my life, and that transformation is unfolding in this moment.
In fact, "In The Moment" is what I wanted to call this blog, as that is the title of the first poem I wrote after completing the forum. Unfortunately, that title was taken, so I chose the second poem I wrote for the name of this blog.
I am looking forward to the challenge of staying creative, through the ups and downs of everyday life. With this blog I intend to share all of my thoughts regarding my day to day struggle of staying focused, and being fully creative in my life. The successes, the failures, and everything in between will come out here.
I will explore The Silence of My Mind.
Peace Always...
The Silence of Your Mind
The Silence of Your Mind
Logic and emotion,
The voice of each, go round and round.
Throughout the day, into night,
Incessant churning, a never-ending sound.
Your mind grinding away,
With nary a thought.
There can be more to life,
Than this continuous onslaught.
The concept of “now”
Has become so clear.
The voices in your mind,
Grapple with fear.
Neither past nor future,
Come into play.
Silencing the voices,
Along the way.
With voices gone,
Between space and time.
Infinite beauty,
The silence of your mind.
Now you are at rest,
No expectations, no regrets.
Logic and emotion,
No longer your mindset.
Freedom abounds,
Your beauty is true.
Nothing clouds your senses
You are free to be you.
TRY 19 DEC08
Logic and emotion,
The voice of each, go round and round.
Throughout the day, into night,
Incessant churning, a never-ending sound.
Your mind grinding away,
With nary a thought.
There can be more to life,
Than this continuous onslaught.
The concept of “now”
Has become so clear.
The voices in your mind,
Grapple with fear.
Neither past nor future,
Come into play.
Silencing the voices,
Along the way.
With voices gone,
Between space and time.
Infinite beauty,
The silence of your mind.
Now you are at rest,
No expectations, no regrets.
Logic and emotion,
No longer your mindset.
Freedom abounds,
Your beauty is true.
Nothing clouds your senses
You are free to be you.
TRY 19 DEC08
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