Progress is 2 consecutive years of 5 days away from the desk!

I am thrilled to be able to journey back to Oregon two years in a row and have what used to be assumed in the American workplace, a little thing called Vacation.

I’ll be attending my college’s 25th reunion in Portland, bringing along my daughter and niece for the family salmon BBQ and a few short hikes with College Outdoors, let them see a most beautiful campus on the West Coast, and then drive them to the Oregon Coast for a music camp.   Next, it’s 2 days of complete solo R&R for me!!  Intention is to hike as much as possible in 48 hours in the glorious old growth along the North Coast before returning to endless butt-sitting at the desk.

How I wish I was a photographer with enough gear and know-how to be able to take one of this man’s workshops.  Weather permitting, I will try staying up on a coastal beach into the night to take a mental photograph of the sky.

Enjoy!

(Photo credit:  Mary Maguire, World Resources, Glacier National Park)

Sometimes information swirls in the collective consciousness to the point where I am confronted with the same message stated many different ways.  It is hard to avoid thinking “I’m supposed to get this.”  I ask, but what am I supposed to do with this information?  This week has been one of those weeks.

I am surrounded by, love and admire many skeptics.  But I also think to be a true skeptic we need to study the data that exists before we disregard something as fabrication.

1)  I finished reading Lynne McTaggart’s  book, The Field: The Quest for the Secret Force of the Universe, which is like a crash course in physics for the lay person and a collection of all the rigorous scientific study done by what is now termed “pioneer scientists.”  These are people documenting things they did not expect to find in their data and deciding to pursue that anomaly, often at the expense of professional reputations, rather than brush it aside and say “that can’t be.”

2)  I was shutting down the TV to sleep, and on popped a 2-hour documentary on my public station called The Quantum Activist, featuring lectures and discussion by Dr. Amit Goswami.  I had to watch and find him and his life story an inspiration!

3)  I heard about Renee Scheltema’s documentary, Something Unknown is Doing We Don’t Know What, viewed this fabulous film, and was amazed to see most of the scientists I had read about in “The Field” come to life and depth.  What I am most skeptical about is a clip I have seen elsewhere several times of Chinese healers causing a tumor to disappear real-time on an image.  Ultrasound imaging can be easily shifted and nowhere have I found verification of how the images were obtained or whether the measurements between the before/after structures are comparable.   (Part of my job involves typing radiology image results).

My favorite paraphrase from the film:

“4% of the universe we understand; about 96% of the universe we don’t have a clue about. Facing into that reality, one must be very cautious about saying something can’t be.”

4)  In this week’s homework for my class, I read this phrase by my teacher, Michael Cohen, who has spent 40 years living and working in nature, published over a decade ago:

“The immensely accelerated neural process of our body-mind is almost a hologram of the process by which over time Earth’s life community slowly and steadily communicates.”

5)  My direct experience with an experiment of reconnecting to nature daily by spending at least 10 minutes relaxing on the ground outside each day is a regenerating process, much like a battery in a charger.   I do notice the more time I spend consciously connecting to nature’s feedback loop, the more frequent my ‘intuitive/psychic’ experiences are, and I had at least 3 happen this past week.  Maybe I’ll compile and publish my notes on all my intuitive experiences someday, but for now I understand I have experienced many things over a lifetime that cannot be fully explained by standard scientific view of my capacity.  Many of us have had these experiences but cannot intentionally replicate them or receive them with enough consistency to make a living helping others through this gift.  But I find the understanding of consciousness the single most fascinating topic I could think about.  Brain considering mind!

6)  Let me add one more great source on this topic for thought, an e-book by my uncle:  The Picnic at the Edge of the Universe.  In truth, I have wanted to read this since publication (and would have wanted to even if the author was not related) but have not yet.  My excuse is lame, but I have an aversion to e-books simply because I spend so much of my life in front of a computer, have not been able to afford yet a single handheld device, and would rather have a paper book to carry with me as I ponder the Universe.  That said, I am glad it was brought to my attention from the back of my mind and I will intend to read it in full!

One of my favorite things about having a wee bit of spending money (as opposed to many summers without) is that I get to purchase goodies from my local farmer’s market a few times a month.  I love living near such an incredible quality of life boosting place!

Lettuce that should be painted by an artist:  Sky Root Farm

My favorite cooked greens and best pumpkin sauce ever:  Dorcas’ African

The best raspberry rhubarb jam ever to be created:  3 Generations Jam

Best scones of your life, baguettes and whole grain breads, sweet challah, marzipan/raspberry tartlets, and sweet/savory rosemary-corn-currant and chocolate-chili cookies surrounded by large crystal sugar.  Tree-Top Baking speak for themselves:

Need a great greeting card?  Stubborn Twig Design

Some body care products that smell incredible and are good for you?  Sweet Sisters

And someone without a website, Marcy Johnson of Weaving Wonders, creates fabulous finger-less gloves I use as typing gloves to warm my speedy fingers on the job.  She’s created such a huge collection, you can find any size, color or texture you want, and they are great for any occasion you might need a hand warmer.

You know those dreams?  The big kind that get in your craw and stay with you for years.  It’s the dream you have that once you get there you will have lived a big part of your life purpose.  Mine has been to walk some long distance as a fundraising vehicle for pediatric cancer and caregiver support.  When I was in greater physical shape and less realistic, I envisioned walking the length of the entire United States.  Dream version 2.0 is walking across Washington State.

This kind of “big risk” dream takes planning and overcoming internal obstacles, and the motivation ebbs and flows.  I decided to write down my list of speed bumps and how I intend to overcome them.

• I’m out of shape and can’t do this.
• I need logistical support I don’t have to accomplish this dream safely.
• I need to be assured significant financial contributions to make this walk feasible and profitable for my cause.
• I’m a single parent.  How can I possibly take this dream on now?

How to overcome them is Operation Just Start.  It’s a simple strategy.  Just start on any piece of the dream.

Yesterday was my first day in 21 with a break from desk work, and I walked 8 miles in perfect temperature sun.  I just started!   I currently weigh more than I did at 9 months pregnant years ago, so I envisioned this sign attached to me for a long distance journey:

I have a lifelong pattern of being confronted with bumper stickers that reflect what I need.  The one in front of me halfway through my 8 miles was “Enjoy Being.”  That says it all!  Self talk “fat woman walking” is now officially replaced with:

Enjoy Being.

Actually, the best thing about being a hefty woman trying to be athletic is no heckles from drivers or creepy men slowing down in cars, both of which happened when I was shapely in a different way.

People I have never met are inspired by my child’s story of survival (and countless others) enough to run 100 miles.

Skagit Justice UltraRunners newest member

They helped reignite my dormant dream.  The way that things go around and come around, they happen to train a lot at a spot I wrote a poem (below) about 20 years ago when I lived nearby.  Each will be doing separate 100-mile journeys.  At end of September, my daughter and I will be at Lake Padden at the final leg of the 100 for Shannon to cheer him on.

Lake Padden Spring

The salmon-berry blossom has arrived

like an obstinate star-petaled rose.

Skunk cabbage megaphones announce

their yellow swampy smell.

Lady finger and licorice ferns

unbend spines in slow-motion yoga;

fourteen human days to straighten

a single frond.

Winter-brown Equisetum brushes stand

ready to paint this season’s green-tiered bristles.

Guards survey the territory stock still,

orange-bellied half-moons suspended

from their witch-broom backs.

A blond-haired child begs his mother

to keep pushing the tire swing chains

so he can spin in the gyroscope of spring.

A girl shouts, raises an arm

sending all the ducks skidding

over the water, back where they belong.

Wind pushes clouds and waves–

water changes, pressure changes

April showers.  Even the mowing

machine has its green hair swept away.

This kid does not need any help from me, as his videos have received 5 million hits around the world, but I find his brand of laughter medicine to be contagious and well worth a few minutes of your time.  Enjoy!

What the heck does elucubrating mean, you ask?  I’ve been “burning the midnight oil” this week with several contract jobs and studies, and the verb elucubrate meant to work studiously by candle light.  Because this word has become extinct, I decided to bring it back.

The car repair has a lot to do with this extra hard elucubrating, because on a level from 1 to 3, with 1 being my car will stop dead while driving 50 mph on a freeway and 3 being it would be nice to replace a part that won’t cause a fatality, the repairs have been in the 1 category.  To the tune of 1 K this month.

Now, here’s the deal.  I am definitely seeing a pattern (a law of the  universe?), over the course of my life where as soon as I start creating more earning power than the poverty line, as I have the past 3 months for the first time in a decade, some unanticipated expense rises to meet the attracted funds.  The effect this has upon me is to believe there is some purpose to my not overreaching the grasp of my station in life.

In other words, as soon as I start squirreling away something toward some different future, life has a way of saying, “Not so fast.  You have everything you need in this moment, and that’s all you need to focus on.”

Because I am determined to give my daughter the opportunity of a music camp next month and have a car that will get her there safely, pardon me while I elucubrate some more.  I may never own a house in my lifetime or dine fancily or afford all the travel I’d like to do, but I do know how to save a word from extinction.

Happy Mother’s Day to all Mothers!

This weekend my local community held some fabulous street theater reenacting women’s fight for the right to vote, ratified in the US in 1919 and my town’s first all women council and mayor.

Suffragist’s March in Langley, WA

I Love Langley Facebook page

Half a world away, some powerful messages about women struggling between humanity’s highest good and present reality:

Most of us are only a few degrees from living a rich life.

I woke up one morning recently to discover I DO lead a rich life and am happy!  The past few weeks and months, small shifts– a matter of degrees– made a huge impact in my awareness of life’s riches and my connection to them.

The shift started last year with lots of visioning and intention setting about a life I wanted to lead, and the protractor of my life moved a few degrees in December when immediate family members supported me with brainstorming session and small commitments of funds to nudge me toward some breathing room.

Then came a transition to self-employment and higher wage contracts, discovering a rewarding program in Ecopsychology I can afford and manage one class at a time, a gift of an entry fee for a women’s choir that allowed me to find my voice for the first time, and ability to pay for daughter’s enrichment activities– and suddenly my life had moved a few degrees toward richness in many realms.

Thanks to a homework project I shared with my daughter based on one of the exercises in Michael Cohen’s book, Reconnecting With Nature, her enthusiasm led to me being able to lead these activities in a pilot project with two middle school science classes next week!  It remains to be seen if someone without a teaching degree but simply blind enthusiasm can manage this task.  Stay tuned.

Here is the workshop write-up:

Class Title:  “Naturography – Let Nature Teach”

Introduction:  Come learn about yourself by reconnecting to the natural world using the Natural Systems Thinking Process. See what happens when you learn to think like nature.

Curriculum:

Q:  Have you ever had a positive experience in nature?  What did you feel?

Q:  Can anyone think of a way we are connected to nature every moment?

Each student will be handed a journal.  The class will be divided into 4 activity groups and progress through activities #3, #4, #8, and #9 from Reconnecting With Nature (p.28, 33, 74, 88).  Due to possible safety concerns for the “blinded” activity, those who want to defer activity #4 may move to another group, as this activity will only be done with partners who commit to safety.

~ ~ ~

Over the past few weeks:

1) My daughter completed 6 fabulous performances of “The Little Prince” at our wonderful children’s theater:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?eature=player_detailpage&v=Fw_TofBrmDw

She was part of a movement ensemble that created sunsets, windstorms, baobabs, roses– basically a human set.  Having seen the production several times, I can say it was inspiring to see these kids do such a beautiful job!

2) The choir I am part of (Chanteuse) held 2 performances in Oak Harbor and Langley, and I survived wearing nylons and a dress shirt for the first time in 15 years and commuting with a “clown car” of 5 women of a certain age in a Prius.  It was a blast!

3) I accompanied piano for a solo & ensemble workshop for the first time since I was in high school, while my daughter performed 4 pieces on saxophone.  Amazing motivated middle school musicians abound!  Who knew Mozart could be arranged for alto sax?

~ ~ ~

In all this richness, it occurs to me how I have in the past postponed embracing the things I want in life due to waiting for some magical moment when everything would just “fall into place.”  I have been single a long time and finally deeply get this is only one piece of life.  Being one of those rare children of an intact family, I had few models for how to do my own path well.  How many women (and men) hold off living the life they want, waiting for some perfect relationship, some perfect support system?

Well, I am now done with waiting and planning to live the fullest life I can, partnered or not.  In fact, I now am able to see solo time as a blessing that allows one the increasingly rare commodity of time (America’s Real Deficit Crisis) in order to figure out what a person wants in their life and how to go about finding the places where their energies can most benefit the world.

As the Fox told the Little Prince (Antoine de Saint-Exupéry):  Here is my secret. It is very simple: It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye.

I just finished reading Dr. Eben Alexander’s book “Proof of Heaven,” and am thrilled there is a reputable scientist with courage to push the boundaries of what science thinks is possible.  Frontier science it is.   It is my understanding that the original title of his book was to be something about “consciousness” but publishers landed on “heaven” knowing that concept is familiar to all.  As someone who is highly spiritual yet not following any single religion, I was a bit put off by the title.

Regardless of your background, you can benefit from reading the remarkable medical and transcendent story of a critically ill man who survived.

Anyone can go to his new nonprofit organization to find out more information and support for their own experiences with expanded consciousness that are as yet disregarded by many scientists as “kooky” or impossible to explain:

Eternea.org

The Seven Postulates dovetail with what I am learning firsthand in my reconnection to nature experiences through my degree program in ecopsychology and provide an added dimension for my focus.   So many thesis possibilities. . . I feel like I need a Wheel of Fortune game for thesis projects.

Common ground revelations are that life can be a magical interaction with all surrounding webstrings that connect us, and that antidotes for almost all that ail us are found in reconnection to the natural world of which we are a part.

In addition to the tragedy in Boston, news of several sudden passings have reached me this week, so I am posting a great resource for grief and loss that came my way:

Golden Willow Retreat: A Sanctuary for Grief and Loss.

Here is a mandala to be used as a visual prayer wheel to send Love to anyone.  Click on the image to be taken to the artists’ website.