Migrant or Refugee?

Posted on April 4, 2016 by Rod's World

I went to my friend Kavisha Mazzella’s first solo art exhibition yesterday and she sang a song of her nonna’s story. Her grandmother was a refugee from Burma who had to flee when the Japanese started bombing and invading Burma and the Anglo Burmese had to flee the invasion. Here is the song: Fisherman’s Daughter.

It made me think how you become a refugee , the previous century had two world wars that saw many nationalities in the European sector become refugees and this century has seen more Asian, middle eastern and African countries due to civil wars and invasion by western countries.

What did the world do and what will it continue to do with these people who have suffered having to flee their own homeland because they have no other option.

The 15 quotes I have chosen cover statements about and people who have experienced being a refugee, let us begin the journey:

1. This pope has to keep reminding us that migrants and refugees are actually human beings as well , mothers fathers, sons , daughters , uncles and aunties as some nations have started to forget.

2. Each of us come on to the planet as a bouncing baby, some healthier than others, but none of us are illegal.

3. Communication between nations or Interculturalism: Love and Respect for All, Everyone Included would solve many of the problems that occur when people are branded migrant or refugee. I have created a Facebook Page to assist this to happen : Interculturalism.

4. On the page I talk about above I posted a quote that says if you call your self a christian or a muslim or an Italian or English you are being violent. On of you do not say you are from a particular religion or country are you not because you are owning being a human being totally. These flags above represent what is one of the major problems migrants and refugees face.

5. We can never tell what our journey will contain, unfortunately for the migrant and refugee the struggle is much more difficult than those who live in the country they are fleeing to.

6. For many of the families in my country of Australia, this is how they arrived, with one suitcase each. They made a successful life for their families from this difficult beginning.

7. One of the difficulties forced on migrants and refugees is that they must become …….., the question to be asked of the nation saying that is would your citizens do it if the situation was reversed and you were the Other.

8. We have all seen pictures of refugees camps and people crossing dangerous oceans in boats. Why do we wonder then when these same people make such wonderful citizens after putting up with these treacherous journeys to get to a safer country to call home.

9. This is a very broad statement, we probably do it to our own family at times, so how do we do this to people from countries we know very little about. Take the time to get to know people, especially new arrivals to your country.

10. This is what mainstream media forget when they place labels on people fleeing danger in their own countries. It is normally a label that has caused them to leave.

11. Tshibanda Gracia Ngoy fled tribal conflict in 2005 from Nigeria. In 2012 she was a finalist in the NSW Young Australian of the Year and a member of the NSW Multicultural Youth Network. A commerce and communications degree student at Wollongong University, Gracia Ngoy is also a caseworker for refugee families, a youth motivational speaker and a member of the Illawarra Regional Advisory Council and the NSW Multicultural Youth Network. Gracia, who speaks five languages, arrived in Australia with her family in 2005 after fleeing tribal conflict in the troubled Democratic Republic of Congo. After settling in Wollongong, she took up an offer of free homework tutoring, simultaneously signing up as a mentor for others. An accredited freelance journalist, Gracia recently published her first book entitled A Little Recipe for Success which aims to inspire young people to live successful, fulfilled and purposeful lives. She has also written numerous articles aimed at breaking down cultural barriers between her native Congo and Australia. Awarded the prestigious Australian Young People’s Human Rights Medal, Gracia was also named 2010 Wollongong Young Citizen of the Year. Drawing on the wisdom of personal experience, Gracia is determined to help the ‘many people living shattered lives who have been tied up by their past experiences and challenges.’

12. What you let your government get away with when dealing with members of their citizenship, especially their migrants and refugees build the future way you are treated as well.

13. This man is considered one of our greatest minds to have ever lived on the planet, he was a refugee.

14. António Manuel de Oliveira Guterres, born 30 April 1949) is a former Portuguese politician who was Prime Minister of Portugal from 1995 to 2002. He also served for a time as President of the Socialist International. He served as United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees from June 2005 to December 2015. This is what he say about accusing refugees of being terrorists.

15. This has been forgotten in our country, in fact we call them illegal and take away their rights to live as a human being saying they do not have a right to live here and send them to gulags.

So my request is that you spend time getting to know the migrants and refugees in your country. Only then will we realise that they are fellow human beings not terrorists. Love and Respect for All, Everyone Included.

Namaste until Thursday, my dear friends.

Beauty Begins the Moment …..

Posted on March 31, 2016 by Rod's World

At the Intercultural Centre I volunteer at, we are having an art project called Brighten the Jade. We are getting local artists to collaborate to paint the walls of our new meeting room, the Jade Room. It brought me to think what brightens my life up? I would include singing, dancing, time with my family and friends and of course blogging and my new thing creating PDF’s from webinars and podcasts.

What do people say around the world and throughout history about what has brightened their life up, its an interesting recipe of 15 quotes. Let us begin our journey

1. The American Poet John Holmes was known for his uplifting quotes, this being the most famous of them. Being buff brightens your day up but your heart gets fitter the kinder you are.

2. It took me two lengthy periods of working in government service then severals years of mental health issues before I got the health and spiritual value of this statement. Have read Richard’s biography he is a man who did not do this in his life.

3. Time for what was the anthem of my generation: Don’t Worry about a Thing.

4. Do you get tunnel vision on your projects and visions in life. The work I am doing with my mentor Arion Light through his Activation School. points to the above, if you are not attached to where you get your result from, you can get your result from anywhere.

5. We have days we jump out of bed screaming YES, YES, YES, then something happens and the Yes’s fade. Though its great to set by whens if it doesn’t happen on that exact date your dream is still there in your heart and soul.

6. Probably the song that best covers this type of deep love is the one and only All You Need Is Love.

7. Lots of people give up on their plans for supposedly logical reasons, what were their names, but we all know Galileo, Martin Luther King, Oprah Winfrey. Don’t give up brightening up your life.

8. There are so many quotes that express the above sentiment, that the way to brightening up your life is through others, I agree wholeheartedly.

9. Three formulas for brightening up your day. A lot of people do this with their cups, so to remind them when the going gets mundane.

10. This quote is another by the prolific philosopher Unknown – Its not great to have people who demean the sunshine around, heal them or move on.

11. Abhisek Tiwari is an Indian TV actor, this could be a line from his series or a great insight he has come up with that brightens our lives.

12. Just love the cheeky humour of this one.

13. It seems Hafiz is Hafez, words of great Beauty , always.

Hafez
An artistic depiction of Hafez
spiritual poet, mystic
Born	1325/1326 CE Shiraz, Persia (now Iran)
Died	1389/1390 CE Shiraz, Persia (now Iran)
Major shrine	Tomb of Hafez, Shiraz, Iran
Influences	Ibn Arabi, Khwaju, Sanai, Anvari,Nizami, Sa’di, Khaqani, A
Influenced	Subsequent Persian lyric poets,Goethe
Tradition or genre	Mystic poetry (Ghazal, Irfan)
Major works	Divan-e-Hafez

Khwāja Shams-ud-Dīn Muḥammad Ḥāfeẓ-e Shīrāzī (Persian: خواجه شمس‌‌الدین محمد حافظ شیرازی‎‎), known by his pen name Hafez (حافظ Ḥāfeẓ; 1325/26–1389/90),^[1] was a Persian poet who “lauded the joys of love and wine [but] also targeted religious hypocrisy.” His collected works are regarded as a pinnacle of Persian literature and are to be found in the homes of most people in Iran, who learn his poems by heart and still use them as proverbs and sayings. His life and poems have been the subject of much analysis, commentary and interpretation, influencing post-14th century Persian writing more than any other author.

14. Two of the greats, Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman starred in this movies that was about brightening the last days of their lives: The Bucket List.

15. And finally , lets get amongst the stars, after all we are starseed, but that’s another blog for another time.

Namaste until Monday my dear friends

Fashion, Turn to the Left.

Posted on March 24, 2016 by Rod's World

Do you consider your self stylish and what is style anyway? Today is one of my words off the wall blogs – we are having the documentary Advanced Style where the lives of Seven unique New York women are depicted. It looks fascinating, here is the trailer for it: 7 Unique Women.

I have not been known as a stylist belonging more to the alternative scene over the years, caftans and flairs do not make many of the fashion magazines although there were some very unique clothes worn by my fashionista friends. So lets have a look at what society has to say about advanced style, here are my 15 quotes that I have chosen to consider:

1. Albert suggests that it is difficult to walk through life with a sense of style through just having knowledge, as this is limited. Imagination is what has you stand out from the pack.

2. But with no education as exists in some places in the world it is also impossible to change your circumstances and break out from the mundane.

3. One of the great stylists who has re-invented the meaning of creating your own world, Oprah shows what determination can get you.

4. Don’t young kids dressed as adults look oh so cute, not if you ask them, it’s like putting them in prison garb.

5. Lynn is one of the stars of Advanced Style, does your mother look like this at the same age, I know mine doesn’t.

6. At one stage it was Grey is the new Black as they become the majority of the population this statement is now more the norm.

7. Susan Sarandon recently went to Burning Man, this stylish actress was interviewed about her experience of the major alternative festival in the states : What did she think?.

8. Definitely one of the more stylish dressers of his age, Mark Twain AKA Samuel Clemens was a believer in age was a made up concept, and that you were as young as you felt.

9. To look fashionable you need to be original, if you buy off the rack you have a very good chance you will turn up an event in exactly the same attire as another, no imagination , no originality.

10. A man who also redefined style was Stephen Hawking, a sufferer of Motor Neuron disease from an early age, he has not let this hinder him and is one of the most sought after speakers in the world.

11. We don’t appear to be that far off when our style of transport will change dramatically. Using Doctor Who in this image points to what will be available some time this century.

12. And the greatest style advantage we have in life is that we are uniquely us, no one is more Youer than You.

13. Luckily the internet revolution has turned around people’s ability to find out what styles are relevant and allows them to learn and move on from where they are these days. Libraries are also a valuable place to attain this.

14. Malala Yousafzai (Malālah Yūsafzay: born 12 July 1997) is a Pakistani activist for female education and the youngest-ever Nobel Prize laureate.She is known mainly for human rights advocacy for education and for women in her native Swat Valley in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of northwest Pakistan, where the local Taliban had at times banned girls from attending school. Yousafzai’s advocacy has since grown into an international movement. Her Passion and style have influenced many organisations and celebrities to take on her cause.

15. David Bowie became a stylist by writing awesome songs and changing his persona every few years. The title of this blog is taken from one of his greatest songs : Fashion, David Bowie Style.

Style is a much used word, how do you use it , in your clothes, in your ride, I have the first triathlete pushbike released in Australia, it’s very smick, or in the way you relate to others. There are many ways to be stylish.

Namaste until Easter Monday my dear friends.

Unadulterated Joy for Me!!

Posted on March 21, 2016 by Rod's World

I have just completed the first Activation program by my friend and mentor Arion Light : Activation Schools Web Page. On the final evening we came up with an Essence for our Vision for Life, My essence flowed immediately , it was Unadulterated Joy. I just have to write about it as much of the six week journey if the course was spent in this Essence.

What does unadulterated mean, here is my favourite on-line dictionaries meaning:

un·a·dul·ter·at·ed

1. Not mingled or diluted with extraneous matter; pure: unadulterated coffee.

2. Out-and-out; utter: unadulterated joy.

unadulterated

not debased or made impure

So I am residing in the Essence of out and out utter joy, my logical mind fights this on a regular basis but luckily the training works and works well. So what does the world have to say about unadulterated joy. lets have a look with these 15 beautiful quotes:

1. Bernie Mac,recently deceased comedian believed that the way to be joyous in your life was to simply be yourself, and as he says in this quote if they don’t like it …………………!!

2. Jim Bishop was an author who wrote historical books, here he is pointing out that unless we focus on Joy it will fade as will other diverse thing such as grief.

3. Don’t we all wish we could return to the joy we feel as very young children, their world is definitely the most peaceful and joyful we spend on the planet. We don’t know what racism, jealousy and corruption are.

4. Frederick Philip Lenz, III, Ph.D., also known as Rama and Atmananda, was a spiritual teacher who taught what he termed American Buddhism, including the teachings of Tibetan Buddhism, Zen, Vedanta, and Mysticism. One of the great premised of Buddhism is humility, as taught by HHDL.

5. Playing just because he loves to, unadulterated joy. They wrote a song about this : Song of Joy.

6. Joy can come from anyone, even MF’s Had to think for a while what it stood for, guess that means I’m not one.

7.Suzie Orman is a financial wizard, but states that happiness works in all areas of your life and brings her partner joy along for the ride.

8. Relief is another area of life that can generate unadulterated joy, all those fears leaving your body and mind as you enter the blessed space of relieving the pressure from them.

9. One of Bobs great 60’s videos using the cardboards signs depicts unadulterated joy for me Most Likely you’ll go your way and I’ll go mine.

10. I’m working on this , has been a long long time.

11. People with Down Syndrome have no barriers to their expression. Empathic, truthful to the max you know they live life with unadulterated joy.

12. I have attached the fascinating and funny TED talk by Robert Sapolsky, its a bit long, but worth it, yes other species think the human race is bizarre : Funny Joyous Humanity.

13. Dr. Bob Rotella writes golfing books, many golfing widows may not agree with this but to me its a great way to obtain joy in your life.

14. How could I leave the Buddha out in a discussion on Unadulterated Joy. Here is a short musical offering to attain the state via meditation : Relaxing Buddhist Music.

15. I have found that with residing in Unadulterated Joy the latter part of this quote is true, I have stopped explaining my life to others, no explanations, just Sacred Love and Sacred Stories.

Will I complete my vision and hang out in the Essence of Unadulterated Joy, time will tell and its purely up to me.

Namaste until Thursday my dear friends

What makes a Hero?

Posted on March 17, 2016 by Rod's World

Each of us has different heroes, my 89 year old mum’s are Barack Obama and Nelson Mandela and she has never been to South Africa or America. I am sure for most very young children it is their mum and dad. How do you get to be deigned hero status, is it through an act of immense bravery in battle, myself I believe the heroes are those who refuse to go and kill another human being in the name of some political cause or should we say even Oil.

There were many images showing soldiers in the background, I deliberately did not choose them, heroism is not killing another, heroism to me is stepping outside what your fears tell you you can do and going for it anyway. Here are the 15 quotes I have chosen to use to recognise the heroism that exists on our planet.

1. Maya Angelou is a heroine to many an activist, in an age when African Americans were not recognised as people she strode through the civil rights movement, With the publication of I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, Angelou publicly discussed aspects of her personal life. She was respected as a spokesperson for black people and women, and her works have been considered a defence of Black culture. Attempts have been made to ban her books from some U.S. libraries, but her works are widely used in schools and universities worldwide. here is Maya performing And Still I Rise.

2. In our country, we have a status in life called the tall poppy syndrome, don’t rise to high or you will be chopped down at the knees. This makes the above statement very poignant, Its up to us, because we can, its our time.

3. Joseph Campbell, American Mythologist who created The Heroes Journey and the quote “Follow your Bliss” covers the moments when we become bigger than ourselves and enter hero status.

4. As children we love our superheroes, their colourful capes and costumes and super powers, because they are special people. Later we realise we don’t have the same powers and learn to become our own hero or heroine.

5. Hard times, we all have them in our lives, some much worse than others and the time it takes to recover to the hero status within us is unique for each person, Gillian Welch wrote a beautiful song about them: Gillian’s Hard Times.

6. Talking about superheroes Christopher Reeve was the actor from the first Superman movies, everyones hero. On May 27, 1995, Reeve became a quadriplegic after being thrown from a horse during an equestrian competition in Culpeper, Virginia. He required a wheelchair and a portable ventilator for the rest of his life. He lobbied on behalf of people with spinal-cord injuries and for human embryonic stem cell research, founding the Christopher Reeve Foundation and co-founding the Reeve-Irvine Research Centre. He remained a hero to the day he died of a heart attack at the tender age of 52.

7. I can imagine most of us living the comfort of our lives today would imagine travelling on one of these vessels was a heroes journey. There is still the opportunity to take such journey these days, go out and discover them for yourselves.

8. The criminals were always trying to unmask Batman in his movies and comics to discover his identity, true everyday heroes do not need masks, they just get the job done.

9. I/We can do this, enough said.

10 And Mum.

11. Mary McCarthy was an American author who parents died when she was 8 in the great flu plague of 1918, sent to abusive relatives she moved around until going to University. During the 1940s and 1950s she became a liberal critic of both McCarthyism and Communism. She maintained her commitment to liberal critiques of culture and power to the end of her life, opposing the Vietnam War in the 1960s and covering the Watergate scandal hearings in the 1970s. She visited Vietnam a number of times during the Vietnam War. Interviewed after her first trip, she declared on British television that there was not a single documented case of the VietCong deliberately killing a South Vietnamese woman or child. She wrote favourably about the Vietcong.

12. Some people go as far as tattooing their favourite quote on their body, often about heroism or their heroes.

13. Peter Alexander McWilliams (August 5, 1949 – June 14, 2000) was an American self-help author who advocated for the legalisation of marijuana. The condition he died of is now treated by marijuana in the states that have realised the medical qualities of Marijuana. It is often quoted he was murdered by the state. For the people now benefiting from his struggles he would be considered a hero.

14. The human story, the heroes path. if you think you have fallen off yours look for your passion and change direction, you are your own hero.

15. And I have chosen to finish with one of my musical Heroes : David Bowies Heroes

Are there more heroes than ordinary people, for the worlds sake I hope so.

Namaste until Monday my dear friends

Pay as you Feel or Donate, its all Giving.

Posted on March 14, 2016 by Rod's World

I wanted to write todays blog on the pay as you feel ethos, there is a chain of restaurants in my hometown of Melbourne, Australia called Lentil as Anything who do just that, you eat there and pay what you can afford. There are not many pay as you feel quotes so I have had to move over to what it is to donate or give of our time.

I give a lot of the little money I have that I can afford to give. I support guide dogs as I have a blind friend, I support Green peace and several other organisations who do good stuff around the planet and volunteer my time as well as an English teacher and a Social media nerd.

I have chosen 15 quotes that i think will allow for some interesting comment. Here we go:

1. I have a friend Emeli who runs an organisation called Collective Potential whose target audience is corporate types who have realised that the $100,000 job does not provide the satisfaction they are looking for. Frankly they never do.

2. At least several times in out lives the chance will come to make a difference to someone. I once met a person in the street who told me that I wouldn’t remember him because he used to be a drug addict but that I had saved his life in the way I had treated him as a human being and not a number when I worked for the government welfare agency. He was right, I didn’t.

3. What makes the greatest difference, the child talking to the homeless man who has not spoken to someone in five days or the millionaire making a six figure tax deductible donation. I know which one does for me.

4. Cornelia “Corrie” ten Boom was a Dutch Christian who, along with her father and other family members, helped many Jews escape the Nazi Holocaust during World War II. She was imprisoned for her actions. Her most famous book, The Hiding Place, describes the ordeal. She certainly lived the meaning of the above quote.

5. As the example of the person I met in the street who said I had saved his life thorough my actions and that of children who talk to strangers like they know the person needs love these are both moments of the above.

6. This man is a frigging saint, enough said.

7. Can I put a Dolly Parton song in this blog , yes I can : Put a little Love IN Your Heart.

8. What would it take to make a statement like this. Anne Frank was a teenage jewish Schoolgirl hiding from the Nazi’s who wrote the Diaries of a Young Girl which was made into the iconic film The Diary of Anne Frank, she did not survive.

9. Sir Ken Robinson has done four TED talks on the danger of rigid education. He points out if you buy into the mainstream you will not know how to give your gifts to the planet, they will be drained out of you.

10. In the United states there are over 100,000 people waiting for live saving organs, why do we get buried intact when we could just as easily save another’s life. I don’t think your God would notice the difference.

11. There are people who are worshipped for what they gave in their lifetimes, this man is one of them, and yes we killed him as well.

12. What every person thinks who this happens for, they may not be able to say it physically or mentally.

13. It is always valued by someone, at times you will be rewarded in person, in other times it may be your next lifetime, if you believe in that sort of thing.

14.The Tao Te Ching, Daodejing, Dao De Jing, or Daode jing, also simply referred to as the Laozi, is a Chinese classic text. According to tradition, it was written around 6th century BC by the sage Laozi, a record-keeper at the Zhou dynasty court, by whose name the text is known in China. The text’s true authorship and date of composition or compilation are still debated, although the oldest excavated text dates back to the late 4th century BC. It is full of wisdom like this.

15. The great Buddhist concept of compassion as spread by the Dalai Lama is well spoken in this quote by Steve Maraboli, the worlds most quoted man.

Will the people who are the givers of the world withstand the attack of the takers,is it really the beginning of the Age of Aquarius as is being promoted on the internet, I hope so.

Namaste until Thursday, my dear friends.

From the Ashes Rises?

Posted on March 7, 2016 by Rod's World

I attended a seminar on the weekend called Prosper from your Passion run by Ben Harvey’s Authentic Education. The point that really stuck with me was the term you are only as sick as your secrets. The premise was if you can rise above the worst thing that has happened to you nobody can do anything to you and there is nothing you cannot do in your life because they have nothing on you.

So what does it take to rise up, rise above these secrets. The world has much to say about it, here is one definition:

rise above something to deal well with a difficult or unpleasant situation

.To successfully deal with a problem or difficulty:

cope, overcome, carry off…

to be morally good enough not to do something bad, especially something that most other people do.

To be morally good or correct:

rise above, be in the right, look good/bad…

rise above something to be better than other things of the same type

To be the best or better than someone else:

surpass, outdo, rise above…

Many people have commented on what it takes to rise up above where you have been, the 15 quotes I have chosen go as far back as 384 B.C. to Aristotle’s time, so lets begin our journey of the phoenix:

1. I sure all cat owners have seen that look at some stage in their lives, well here is the reason why. They have not given their beloved moggie their morning coffee.

2. Bruce Hornsby is an American singer and keyboardist known for the spontaneity and creativity of his live performances . As he says when we are at the beach we do not wait for the tide to rise: The River Runs Low.

3. Love or Hate is a choice. MLK’s famous quote “Hatred paralyzes life; love releases it. Hatred confuses life; love harmonizes it. Hatred darkens life; love illuminates it.” It takes a strong mind to rise above the weakness that allows hate.

4. The look on this swimmers face says it all. She has definitely risen above whatever concerns she had to totally enjoy the moment.

5. I have a mentor who believes that when we have risen above it all we see everything as a gift, that nothing is a mistake. Not many people have reached this lofty position as yet, we are all still rising.

6. You are a unique human being and have gifts for the planet. Some of us have just forgotten this, time to Rise UP!! I’ll Fly Away.

7. Perhaps the most famous rising quote by one of America’s founding fathers, Benjamin Franklin was a renowned polymath, Franklin was a leading author, printer, political theorist, politician, Freemason, postmaster, scientist, inventor, civic activist, statesman, and diplomat. He certainly lived a live that followed the premise of his quote.

8. Jalāl ad-Dīn Muhammad Rūmī (Persian : جلال‌الدین محمد رومی‎‎), also known as Jalāl ad-Dīn Muhammad Balkhī (جلال‌الدین محمد بلخى), Mawlānā/Mevlânâ (مولانا, “our master”), Mevlevî/Mawlawī (مولوی, “my master”), and more popularly simply as Rumi (1207 – 17 December 1273), was a 13th-century Persian poet, jurist, Islamic Scholar, theologian, and Sufi Mystic. Rumi’s influence transcends national borders and ethnic divisions: Iranians, Tajiks, Turks, Greeks, Pashtuns, other Central Asian Muslims, and the Muslims of South Asia have greatly appreciated his spiritual legacy for the past seven centuries. His poems have been widely translated into many of the world’s languages and transposed into various formats. Rumi has been described as the “most popular poet” and the “best selling poet” in the United States. His poems go from several lines as above to several pages long enquiries into subjects. Coleman Barks is considered the greatest interpreter of Rumi, here is some of his work: Coleman reading Rumi.

9. “The Phoenix rising from the ashes.” . As the story goes, the phoenix is a mythical bird with fiery plumage that lives up to 100 years. Near the end of its life, it settles in to its nest of twigs which then burns ferociously, reducing bird and nest to ashes. And from those ashes, a fledgling phoenix rises – renewed and reborn. At times we are like phoenixes , we feel like we have been reduced to ashes. It is our journey to arise new and reborn.

10. In our country of Australia, we have a situation called the tall poppy syndrome, it fundamentally speaks to the fact that you are not meant to rise above your calling, Luckily for the new generations it is becoming an outmoded principle and we can stop bring people down. We need to have it be OK to rise up and blossom.

11. Another quote I like about rising up is Marianne Williamson’s If you’re not being crucified , you’re probably not on your mission. It takes something to achieve your dreams and at times you will feel like you are dying inside because people are still listening to you pre dream fulfilment stage.

12. The Dark and the Light, its what gives us the opportunity to rise again, So called negative emotions are not bad, its just how we relate to them. Let them overcome you then you will suffer, learn from them and you are on the rise.

13. The worlds first philosopher, his books still sell 2000 years later. He is remembered for his wisdom and propriety. He was very much a supporter of the middle way.

14. Maya Angelou is one of life’s great female orators, she is a stand for people being as unique as they can and rising as high in the sky as their efforts allow them.

15. Maya’s most famous poem is Still I Rise. Here is a recording of her reciting it. Still I Rise.

It is up to up to Rise. Whether your dream is to be the worlds greatest mum, our children’s preschool dream of being an astronaut or a fairy, to have a number one hit single it is our responsibility to fulfil our dreams, that is what we were sent here for.

Life is about learning; when you stop learning, you die. Tom Clancy

Namaste until Thursday , my dear friends

Creativity is very Messy, and I am Very Creative!!

Posted on March 3, 2016 by Rod's World

Hello dear friends. Was sitting here wondering what to create when I had an Aha moment, why not Creativity. What lights up your creativity juices. For me it is the word, My company is called Rod has a way with words My Business website and I write two blogs a week. Other things would be Transformation and Dance.

There are lots of cute quotes in the 15 I have chosen and even some that do not need words. Lets begin our journey:

1. Remember those beautiful days spent playing with our friends the dragons, the unicorns and the faeries before we were dragged off to that prison known as school. Some of you survived the journey and are now our creatives.

2. Know mainly as a scientist and considered one of the planets wisest individuals here are some lesser known facts about him Other Einstein Facts. He had a lot to say on creativity.

3. From the author of The Seven Hats principle Edward De Bono, I love the way this poster has been designed to support what it is pointing out, that you have to break the established pattern of a column for creativity to be involved.

4. To me color is part of the creativity process, even if it is the wrong color we can give it another try, creativity is not about perfection.

5. More wise words from Einstein, Its not in the area of logic that creativity dwells , its thinking what no on else has thought, good man Albert.

6. Vivien Greene was the widow of the distinguished novelist Graham Greene and an authority on doll’s houses. This famous quote sums creativity up very well for me. Its not on the perfect days that your creativity are tested its on the rainstorm above your head days.

7. It doesn’t even say who wrote this but it doesn’t need to. One of the greatest lines ever written about human creativity.

8. No words needed here for this image. Pure creativity. but here is The Creativity Song

9. Love the simplicity of this one, try something else if its not working.

10. Danny Kaye was an American actor, singer, dancer, comedian, and musician. His performances featured physical comedy, idiosyncratic pantomimes, and rapid-fire novelty songs. You either loved or hated his creativity.Danny at his best.

11. Martin Luther King Jnr. points out that is the creative who make the difference in the world and help it be a better place.

12. Brian Thomas Littrell is an American singer-songwriter and occasional actor, best known as a member of the Backstreet Boys. He definitely landed among the stars in two different areas, music and film..

13. Along with creativity goes imagination as in the previous quote Lauren Bacall, famous actress stated that one must fly high to fulfill your creative potential, just walking along in life doesn’t achieve it.

14. Taken from Lewis Carroll’s Alice In Wonderland and made by the Cheshire Cat we must arm ourselves against the reality mainstream media push onto us.

15. I chose this one because it blows apart what is reality, a creative way of depicting a watermelon. Bing Crosby and Peggy Lee love watermelon: Watermelon Weather

To finish off here is my favorite poem about creativity:

Creativity

I have no name
Until you name me.
I have no form
Until you shape me.
I don’t exist
Until you make me,
I am creativity.

I am waiting deep inside you
Touch my spark
And let me light you,
Give me life
And I’ll revive you
I am creativity.

Source: http://www.familyfriendpoems.com/poem/creativity#ixzz41nayqx9G
Family Friend Poems.

Well I will see you all next Monday , my dear friends, Namaste until then.

Trusting in Allowing!!

Posted on February 29, 2016 by Rod's World

I read an article from the Goddess Circle which started with this quote :

“My daughter,” the Goddess said. “The sooner we release the grip on what is no longer serving us, what no longer fits and what is no longer in alignment with our highest good, the sooner what is meant for us can flow into our world. The sooner you let go of a life that isn’t yours, you open yourself to one that is.”

It made me think of how what we allow in our life can control how it turns out, here is the full article, its very good, Trusting.

So what does to allow or allowing mean here is one dictionaries definition.Expand

allow

/əˈlaʊ/

verb

(transitive) to permit (to do something); let

(transitive) to set aside: five hours were allowed to do the job

(transitive) to let enter or stay: they don’t allow dogs

(transitive) to acknowledge or concede (a point, claim, etc)

(transitive) to let have; grant: he was allowed few visitors

(intransitive) foll by for. to take into account: allow for delays

(intransitive) often foll by of. to permit; admit: a question that allows of only one reply

(transitive; may take a clause as object) ( US, dialect) to assert;maintain

(transitive) ( archaic) to approve; accept

Word Origin

C14: from Old French alouer, from Late Latin allaudāre to extol, influencedby Medieval Latin allocāre to assign, allocate.

So as we can see there are many different meraning, actually there are probably as many different meanings as there are human beings on the planet.

There were many different quotes, I have chosen some serious ones and a few light hearted ones to explore, lets begin out journey.

1. Dodinsky is the author of the NY Times best-selling book IN THE GARDEN OF THOUGHTS. His intent was simply to share his reflections about life in order to help heal the wounds inflicted by life’s troubles. At the time, the man known by his readers as Dodinsky had no idea that within months of starting his blog In The Garden of Thoughts, thousands of readers would find healing through the modest words he planted. Don’t allow your most beautiful dreams to become homeless. Dodinsky’s website.

2. In alllowing the reverence of gratitude in our lives, this allows for the possibility of any single moment to transform how we relate to life.

3. Possibly Mark Twain’s most famous quote. Do you put self love at the top of your list, as your priority. This allows you to realise when you are an option in someone else’s life. My suggestion is to walk away.

4. Thích Nhất Hạnh is a Vietnamese Buddhist monk, teacher, author, poet and peace activist. He lives in Plum Village in the Dordogne region in the south of France, travelling internationally to give retreats and talks. His chief message is don’t allow the suffering in your life to keep you from being happy.

5. What does kindness allow in life. According to Mark Twain it is universal and does not have to be spoken as the deaf can hear it and the blind can see it.

6. Allowing or Attracting, as this quote points out it is always there so it is better to allow it than attract it, controversial I might say.

7. Tony Gaskins is a motivational speaker, author and life coach. Having appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Show, The Tyra Banks Show and TBN’s 700 Club, Gaskins has become one of the most sought after speakers in the US. I like this quote a lot, it is very powerful.

8. But what if this happens, or they don’t turn up. Complaints don’t make a great deal of difference, Stop allowing it in your life or letting it happen is a more positive solution.

9. We reflect in our lives what we put in to the mix. From my experience of mental health issues where I held on steadfastly to my negative beliefs I have to agree with this one. I am so much healthier now that I have taken the time to do things that help me counter the effects of this.

10. Perhaps the most famous song about Allowing is the Rolling Stones Sympathy for the Devil. This quote points out the danger of allowing our corporations who are driven by the almighty dollar have too much influence, Monsanto and Nestle come to mind, one trying to control the world food industry, the other the worlds water supply.

11. I like this quote, we will all make mistakes, its just part of the human condition. The Art in life is learning which one to move forward with and turn it into our Art.

12. As hard as we try, we cannot avoid feeling insulted, attacked and taken for granted at some stage in out lives. When this occurs you must allow yourself forgiveness or events that happened on the past will keep controlling how you relate to current time.

13. Esther Hicks is an American inspirational speaker and author. She has co-authored nine books with her husband Jerry Hicks, presented numerous workshops on the law of attraction with Abraham Hicks. Here she talks about Allowance being as a result of appreciation. Here is their theme song ,If you want it, It can Happen.

14. Here is the light hearted one which has a slight dig at Facebook, you can stare at people with out getting caught.

15. Who doesn’t want inner peace, renowned Buddhist practitioner Pema Chodron points out not allowing other people or events to control your emotions is the middle path to achieving this.

What do you allow to control your life, your family, your friends, your thoughts, to me it is a life long journey and is something you need to spend time on daily as we are influenced by what we come in contact with moment to moment.

Namaste until Thursday my dear friends. Happy Allowing.

Is it Abundantly Clear what Abundance Is?

Posted on February 25, 2016 by Rod's World

Good Morning, My dear friends. I have decided to work through my five core desired feeling I base my life on. They are peace, bliss, love , Helping other people evolve and the one I have chosen to comment on today, Abundance. These CDF’s are from the inspiring Desire Map Process by Danielle LaPorte : Link to a new Life.

So what is Abundance: money in your bank account, overseas trips every year, a Ferrari in the drive way or is it good friends, a loving family, listening to your favourite music or a combination of both.

I noticed as I was choosing my quotes that they were all by males so the last few are from Oprah Winfrey and Maya Angelou. Lets begin our journey:

1. Sufism is a mystical–ascetic aspect of Islam. It is not a sect, rather it is considered as the part of Islamic teaching that deals with the purification of the inner self. By focusing on the more spiritual aspects of religion, Sufis strive to obtain direct experience of God by making use of “intuitive and emotional faculties” that one must be trained to use. One of their principles is that by acceptance of what is, abundant feeling prevail.

2. Sue Krebs is the voice behind the poplar Soul-shaping blog. My friend Jeffrey Slayter discovered how to make money first, lots of it then found that did not deliver the total feeling of abundance for him, so he is on a journey to discover what this is whilst helping people who work in fields that are commonly known for hearing having lots of money being a bad thing change thia listening : Free Humanity

3. When I paint my masterpiece. I love the Bands version of this song much more than Bob Dylan’s: The Bands beautiful song. As Joe Vitals states fun and abundance go hand in hand.

4. Gabrielle Bernstein is a motivational speaker, life coach, and author.^[1] She grew up in New York and attended Syracuse University, where she received a degree in theatre. In 2008 she founded HerFuture.com, a social networking and mentoring website for women. Bernstein has written three books, Bernstein has also worked as a public relations entrepreneur and founded the PR firm SparkPlug Communications as well as co-founding the Women’s Entrepreneurial Network, a non-profit professional organization that connects female entrepreneurs. For her its all about self worth.

5. a·bun·dance

a. A great or plentiful amount: an abundance of rain.

b. The condition of being in rich supply: bananas growing in abundance.

c. Degree of plentifulness: “Species of low abundance are ignored in the calculation of predominance” (William M. Lewis).

d. Chemistry The amount of an isotope of an element that exists in nature, usually expressed as a percentage of the total amount of all isotopes of the element.

e. Affluence; prosperity: living in abundance.

this quotes slides easily under definition e.

6. The thing I most enjoy in life costs me $20 a night, dancing , it fills me with abundant joy.

7. When we tune into we have acquired Abundance inside. One of the last things Wayne Dyer did before he passed was his beautiful movie the shift, Here is the theme song : Song Inside

8. Big Tony has people fire walk to show them that their fear holds them back from many things, once they do it their life has the possibility of becoming abundant.

9. Acknowledgement is the basis of all of Eckhart Tolle’s work, the Power of Now , not yesterday or tomorrow but what is so right now.

10. As I said before what I love doing is dance, I dropped it out for several years and my mental health suffered accordingly. So doing what you love affects all areas of your life. I would love to be to do this: The Lindy Hop.

11. Those words the world seemed to have replaced with Profit: Integrity and making a difference. I’m sure Bob wrote Positive Vibration about it.

12. It would work out only if I had this or that. Concentrating on this aspect of your life will mean you never, never have enough in the words of Oprah.

13. I love being fulfilled with what I do, Dancing, English tutoring, Copy writing, I use the expression Find the others. This means the things that I love doing as well.

14. My choir the Moons a Balloon sing Sally Oldfields: Celebration, There are three lines where you shout Hey, praising the moment of celebrating life. This is letting Abundance flow in your life.

15. With the publication of I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, Maya Angelou publicly discussed aspects of her personal life. She was respected as a spokesperson for black people and women, and her works have been considered a defence of Black culture. Attempts have been made to ban her books from some U.S. libraries, but her works are widely used in schools and universities worldwide. Angelou’s major works have been labelled as autobiographical fiction, but many critics have characterized them as autobiographies. She made a deliberate attempt to challenge the common structure of the autobiography by critiquing, changing, and expanding the genre. Her books centre on themes such as racism, identity, family, and travel. Her quotes are used all around the world as examples of how to thrive and prosper in all areas of your life.

I also love the quote History teaches us that men and nations behave wisely when they have exhausted the other alternatives, the journey of what abundance is to me has been a bit like that.

Namaste until Monday , my dear friends.