Your contribution is a gift to the Community

Posted on December 22, 2014 by Rod's World

The news that has been being reported in my country is tragic at the moment, multiple deaths that are unexpalinable to anyone with a humane heart. it has made me think how does the community recover from such events when they become permeated in our history, Soon after the event an unknown person placed a bunch of flowers in Martin Place as a sign of the deep loss they felt for the people involved, they probably did not know them but they wanted to say i feel for you in some way.

In an amazing outpouring of compassion, thousands upon thousands of people have followed suit and it has simply become to be known as the martin Place Flowers Shrine.

This has brought me to think what options are available to you to mend a broken heart when something unimaginable happens that renders it asunder.

1. Seek professional help.

What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us. Ralph Waldo Emerson’s quote sums up succintly the power of what we are thinking about something has over us. When your thoughts start getting dark and are making it difficult to face the day its time to talk to someone who has been trained in releasing the grip those thoughts have on you.

2. Write about It.

They say it is better in than out and if you find it difficult to talk to someone about it then the option of writing how you feel gets it out of your head and on the page. As they say you can’t start the next chapter if you keep on reading the last in your head.

3. Physical Touch.

I find this one difficult when in the depths of thinking life is not great but in following this koan: Physical touch makes you healthier. Hugs, Massages and holding hands reduces stress while boosting your immune system I have allowed my friends and family to help get me back on the path to wellness.

4. Do what makes you Happy.

Be it spending times with friends and family, physical exercise, watching a film that cheers you up, making something, just do a little bit a day if that is all you can do now, and build it up gradually as this will improve your general demeanour.

5. Meditation.

Your vision will become clear only when you can look in your own heart, who looks outside dreams, who looks inside awakes. Carl Jung expresses very well what the benefits of a daily meditation practice are, meditation is just not for relaxation, its primary purpose is to respond skilfully and gracefully to life’s difficulties as well as its joy. There are many forms of meditation available, from calm abiding to chakra focus. Try one on until you find the type that suits you.

6. Spirituality.

Nothing goes away until it has taught us what we need to know – Pema Chodron, A Buddhist nun and profound thought leader of our generation covers it pretty well, if we think we know the answer there is no opportunity to advance by learning the lesson our circumstances are trying to teach us. Spending a few hours a week reading your favourite spiritual teacher can only enhance your understanding of the world.

7. Shake, Rattle and Roll.

Walking is the worlds oldest exercise and today modern medicine. In the days of driving to work and back home again simple exercise like an half an hour walk can transform your life. I started with this and have built up to cycling every where and three sessions in the gym a week.

8. Dancing.

Dancing with the feet is one thing, Dancing with the heart is Another. We all have our favourite music that touches our heart. Put some on and dance to it. As children this was one of our main pastimes, we have just forgotten the enjoyment we get out of it.

Sorry about the break in blogs, busy over the festive season, Namaste till next times my friends.

Finding the Now!!

Posted on December 10, 2014 by Rod's World

There are so many schools of thought how to be in the Now emanating across the airwaves these days one does not really know who to believe or where to begin to find the most useful amongst them. I have tried many of them over my sixty years so I thought I would pass on a few I have found useful.

1. Calm Abiding Meditation

“There are many stages in mental development, but as soon as we are able to maintain the mind in a calm state, at that very moment there is joy and peace. This is reflected in the body becoming relaxed, and then the mind becomes more relaxed. As the mind calms down, the hidden enlightened qualities emerge more and more.”

—Venerable Khenpo Rinpoche

This statement sums up pretty much what you can achieve in the daily practice of Calm Abiding meditation, a practice I did for 7 years, and which I have recently taken up again after a break of 5 years. I trained to become a meditation Teacher during those 7 years and look forward to using those skills again after my practice is established again.

2. Hatha Yoga

Hatha yoga describes the physical practice of yoga. In fact, sometimes the name Hatha is used interchangeably with “yoga.” The slow pace and simple breathing exercises make it a great place to learn basic poses and become comfortable on the mat. My breath cycle improved from 9 seconds to 44 while I was doing Yoga and only gave it up when I discovered the beauty of Tai Chi.

3. Tai Chi

Developed originally in China as a self-defense strategy, or martial art, tai chi—the “supreme ultimate fist”—is practiced in modern times primarily as a gentle exercise technique. Described as “meditation in motion,” tai chi consists of a standing person performing a series of postures or bodily movements in a slow and graceful manner, with each movement flowing without pause to the next. According to Chinese legend, the technique was created by a Taoist monk who was inspired as he watched a crane and a snake do battle. Impressed by the ‘snake’s ability to subtly and swiftly avoid the bird’s thrusts, he devised a series of self-defense techniques that do not involve meeting the opponent’s force with force, but rather stress evading the blow; causing the opponent’s own momentum to work against him. I do the Beijing 24 practice daily and am learning he Bamboo practice. I Also do a warm up called Qigong

4. Qigong

Qigong, literally: “Life Energy Cultivation” is a practice of aligning body, breath, and mind for health, meditation, and martial arts training. With roots in Chinese medicine and Philosophy and martial arts, qigong is traditionally viewed as a practice to cultivate and balance qi (chi) or what has been translated as “life energy”.^[1]

According to Daoist, Buddhist, and Confucian philosophy, respectively, qigong allows access to higher realms of awareness, awakens one’s “true nature”, and helps develop human potential. This noble practice has helped me regain my well being and is my current practice.

5. 5 Rhythms Dance

5Rhythms is a movement meditation practice devised by Gabrielle Roth in the late 1970s. It draws from indigenous and world traditions using tenets of shamanistic ecstatic, mystical and eastern philosophy. Fundamental to the practice is the idea that everything is energy, and moves in waves, patterns and rhythms.

Gabrielle describes the practice as a soul journey, and says that by moving the body, releasing the heart, and freeing the mind, one can connect to the essence of the soul, the source of inspiration in which an individual has unlimited possibility and potential.

Getting back to this has allowed me to free my body and be much more present in the Now of my body.

6. Philosophers Notes

Brian Johnson made mega dollars in the I.T. industry then went to Bali and read all the great books. His gift to the world is he can summarise them beautifully.

PhilosophersNotes are like healthy, energizing snacks for the mind, heart and soul! This is such a superb idea, and Brian has such a natural, infectiously appealing way of making it relevant to just about everybody. For avid personal-development aficionados, Philosophers Notes serve as a sampler plate of the very best reads out there, making it easier to decide which new books to crack open next, and which classics deserve a fresh look.

I did one of these for about 60 days in a row then read the books that really touched my heart. They say the day you die is the day you stop learning, in our busy world this is an excellent way to get to access the best quickly. Here’s a link if you are interested https://www.entheos.com/philosophersnotes

7. Communing with Nature

We forget that Gaia has been gifted to remind us that we are all part of the greater plan. A weekend away from the chaos of the city in a forest , or near a beach or river restores our sense of Now. Leaving your phone, computer and work behind for this period has us focus on things like trees, animals and the fresh air that these places are filled with.

8. Growing and Cooking my own Food

Supermarkets are not even 100 years old, how did humans get their food prior to the existence of what is now the major supplier of Food for the human race. We grew our own and prepared and cooked it ourselves or brought it from our local producers. The joy of planting you own vegetables and having your own chickens is immeasurable and making your own meals from fresh, non toxic produce bought from a local farmers market is so good for your health.

Well, I hope this has helped you a little, Namaste until next time my Friends.

Small Changes, Big Results

Posted on December 2, 2014 by Rod's World

These are the beginning of 300 foot trees if they survive their journey. This is the same for human beings, we are destined to be the leaders of the world if we fulfil our dreams or failed seedling if we do not. As seedlings/children we imagine amazing futures for ourselves and our friends, real or imagined. Then comes something called the education system that is more and more becoming about normalising children, packing them into little boxes so they all come out the same prepared for their careers in our economic world.

Would we have lost the space program if all the astronauts of the world have stuck to their childhood declaration and sought to walk on the Moon or Mars for that matter. Would we have the politicians we have today if all the 4 year old presidents and prime ministers who wanted to make a difference to their friends and family had followed their dreams and transformed their communities.

Ritu Ghatourey,a writer from India said – Your life is made up of little moments, little efforts, little changes, big smiles, and all your hopes and dreams. Don’t think any problem in your life is any different. Don’t accept defeat. You were built to triumph through. I admit there are times where I have not lived up to these ideals.

Here are 7 things that can keep you on the straight and narrow when you feel that the results you desire are slipping away from you.

1. You are exactly where you need to be.

All those thoughts that keep saying I’m not going to make it , I have failed are not correct, you are where you need to be right now on your life journey, you cannot be anywhere else as a matter of fact.

2. Trust yourself Vs. the Doubting monster.

Love and Respect for all, Everyone included. If you go through life with this koan there will be no room to doubt what you are doing will succeed because you will have the majority of people onside. People who exude love have to push away people who are willing to support them because there are so many of them lined up.

3. Give up resisting what life does every moment of the day , Change!

“Here’s to the crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. The troublemakers. The round pegs in the square holes. The ones who see things differently. They’re not fond of rules. And they have no respect for the status quo. You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them. About the only thing you can’t do is ignore them. Because they change things. They push the human race forward. And while some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius. Because the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do.”

4. Never stop learning.

There is a quote that goes “Anyone who stops learning is old, whether 20 or 80. Anyone who keeps learning today is young. The greatest thing on the world today is to keep your mind young. I would add your heart and soul to this as well, the access to the knowledge of the elders is growing and refreshening our heart soul and mind is essential to keep our dreams and projects alive.

5.Develop a Gratitude practice.

We can be grateful for what we have in our lives, or complain and judge them, here are some reasons that being grateful works and makes us an all round better person.

Feeling more connected (less lonely)
Strengthened immune system
Improved emotional equilibrium
Better sleep
Increased energy
More confidence in ourselves
Deeper relaxation
Appear more attractive to others
Increased creativity
Easier bounce back from difficulty

I sure would like some of these!! Gratitude journal and the writing of Thank you notes are great practices to help manifest this.

6. Sun Gazing.

The practice of sungazing closely resembles its name. At sunrise and/or sunset, when the sun is closest to the earth, sungazers stand barefoot on the earth and look directly at the sun for 10 seconds. Every day, 10 seconds are added and some sungazers eventually reach a duration of 44 minutes. This is meant to increase your melatonin and serotonin levels, our feel good hormones which also increase our overall energy.

7. Care with no Reason, Love with no Expectation.

Life rarely turns out exactly the way you want it to, but you still have an opportunity to make it great. You have to do what you can, with what you have, exactly where you are. It wont always be easy, but it will be worth it in the end. Remember that there is no perfect life, just perfect moments. And its these moments you must cherish; its these moments that make the whole journey worthwhile.

Another Ritu Ghatourey quote to end on, no attachments make it easier to walk your path and have more and more great moments in your life, projects , relationship, pretty well all areas in your life.

Namaste until next time, my friends.

Recreate Your Reality!!

Posted on November 22, 2014 by Rod's World

What’s life reflecting back to you? As you travel on your journey is your existence a proud statement about what your passions are. All the great thinkers and inventors changed the current paradigms that existed prior to the acceptance of their ideas or invention. I believe there is a new movement occurring that is changing the planets vibrations for the better and that we will have to go through a near cataclysmic transformation of our existing paradigms before we reach this space.

Throughout history there are continuing examples of empires rising and falling There is a great map of the persian empire from 8000 B.C. to current day that illustrates this perfectly in a soundscape that goes for a minute and eleven seconds. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c4ORmtZ2Go4, all these emperors and kings and queens imagined they would last for ever yet they did not.

So why do we live our lives like each and every moment is stuck and things will never change when the evidence points to the exact opposite. The market for something to believe in is infinite and our logical minds crave Belief even when it is not healthy for us and shuts down the possibilities available through the recreation of our realities moment to moment.

Each new meeting with another soul is an opportunity to recreate how we relate to the world. They say the greatest gift you can give another is to actually listen, not wait to people finish so you can pass on your own judgement or wisdom. What if you could relate something somebody said to you three months ago in a conversation, I admit to not being too great at this and have to keep practicing the noble art of listening.

I have been recreating my reality in the past few years and have notice that my tribe has changed and that most of the people I consider close I have not known more than three years. I love Albert Schweitzer’s quote –

In everyone’s life, at some time, our inner fire goes out

It is then burst into flame by an encounter with another

human being. We should all be thankful for these people

who rekindle the inner spirit.

At the tender age of 60 I have done many things in my life, some extraordinary, some flakey. I discover my passion two years ago, it is the ethos of Interculturalism: Love and Respect for All, Everyone Included. I wish to see a world where that is the paradigm we live by. I work at an Intercultural Centre https://www.facebook.com/DarebinInterculturalCentre and have created an open Facebook group for people to get on board sharing this world wide https://www.facebook.com/groups/Interulturalism/?fref=ts . When it gets all too much and I fall into but this is impossible I talk to one of these new friends across the world I have made that believe in the change that is coming and get rekindled each time.

So three questions to assist you in helping you recreate your reality when it starts to weigh you down.

1. Is your perception true ?

– Byron Katie makes this the first question of her inspirational worksheet attached to her transformational process in The Work http://www.thework.com/index.php . If the only person we ask is our selves with our attached judgements and evidence the answers we come up with are somewhat limited.

2. Have you found your passion ?

Bored doing what you do, Many thought leaders say you will never work another day in your life when you discover what you truly love doing. Don’t accept that you have to stay where you are, begin your passion as your hobby and work towards it becoming your livelihood, one step at a time my friends.

3. Who is your Tribe ?

I had a real problem with all my new friends being half my age until I got to see that its about who you really are not how old you are and it was these people who were my soul people and would be the ones who are up to making the difference that is happening to have the new paradigms occur on the planet.

There is no reason to get stuck in a reality that does not empower you, all the tools and people are out there.

Namaste until next time, my friends

Everyone’s Right of Place.

Posted on November 16, 2014 by Rod's World

Do you ever feel out of place? There is a fabulous quote that says we are all geniuses within but try to get a fish to climb a tree and it doesn’t get very far. Its points at that age old wisdom that one has to find our passion in life to truly discover the genius within. Albert Einstein liked lists as I do so I would like to feature one of his to back up that everyone has a right of place and what we can do to find ours.

1. Follow Your Curiosity.

The world has billions of things to learn, from different cultures to new scientific discoveries. As we grow older we are trained to settle down, fight this with every muscle in your mind, body and heart.

2. Perseverance is Priceless.

I posted a quote about that every one has the same 24 hours as Mother Teresa, Martin Luther King, Nelson Mandela etc. etc. It drove my brother to distraction. Things get done by people who see roadblocks as opportunities not reasons to stop.

3. Focus on the Present.

Eckhart Tolle is visiting my city, Melbourne Australia on Tuesday. His book The Power of Now says it all about the power contained with in this statement. You can’t do anything about the past, The future is yet to happen and will be a past moment of the time that make a difference, the present is the instant in which it occurs.

4. The Imagination is Powerful.

I love the joy of children playing together, they don’t need computer games and video’s, all they need is their pure, uninhibited imaginations. They can create dragons, imaginary super heroes and countries. Education systems seem to try and crush this out of them as they grow up and become more “mature”, perhaps it should be called the clone system.

5. Make Mistakes

It is said Edison broke thousands of lightbulbs on his journey to discover the one that worked. Don’t wait to have everything perfect before you have a red hot go, you will not start. Mistakes can also be called new opportunities to expand.

6. Live In the Moment.

86,400 seconds in a day. We sleep a lot of them so that we can be alert in the others we are awake. If you are in a funk about something somebody did to you 10 years ago who is missing the opportunity to be the best you can possibly be in the moment. Answers itself. I used to do this but took action about it as I sensed it was costing me my vitality day to day.

7. Create Value.

I have lots of friends who are in the healing profession and face the dilemma of how to charge appropriately for their services. The price of what I am willing to pay for an item or service to me is determined by the answer to the question did I get value being Yes. So this is one time you do not look inwardly for the answer but focus on your audience, did they get value.

8. Don’t Expect Different Results.

How often do you think If Only? This is the booby prize in your life education. What happens happens for a purpose, it may not be nice but our job is to not repeat the dose and grow from the experience. Yes we will go through grief, anger, frustration but the premise is to get the coaching, It couldn’t have happened any other way than how it did.

9. Knowledge Comes From Experience.

As we age we have the opportunity to gain Knowledge. This is different from existing and repeating the same things over and over again. We experience an event in our lives and some times we get an aha moment from it and our knowledge grows which we can pass on t those following in our path. Aboriginal elders in Australia live by this premise “In our culture, decisions are made for the communal good and the community is considered above the individual need.”

10. Learn the Rules and Then Play Better.

Each of our Societies are governed by a set of rules for each area of its existence. If we want to make great change its our job to know these rules and manipulate them and play the game better than the mediocre players such as many of the political parties that exist as our “rulers” these days.

We all have a right of place and it is our responsibility to discover what that purpose is for each of us individually. Albert has written a very powerful list that can help you access this for yourself. get out on the track and place one foot in front of each other and begin.

Namaste until next time , my friends.

Its like swimming back to the sinking ship because its Too Cold

Posted on November 7, 2014 by Rod's World

There are hundreds of images of freighters sinking on Google Images but its not the same as a fully rigged ship, the grand masters of the sea during our formative exploratory years entering the murky depths. This is like the statement above that was made at our last session of Raw, there are no limits. I googled it and it seems its an original so kudos to the member who came up with it.http://changemakersfestival.org/event/raw-there-are-no-limits/.

It was prominent during the night and has stuck in my mind ever since, how many times am I guilty of this seemingly foolish practice. If I did not do this ever I would have lived a life full of wonder with no hiccups. But there are many masters modern and ancient who point to the fact that this sort of life leaves you short of a life well lived. If we are always sailing on a flat ocean with no storms how do we know if we have risked our all.

Helen Keller reminds us that “Life is a daring adventure or it is nothing ” Do we remember those days in our lives where we just got up went to work for 10 hours, came home and fell asleep or do we remember those days we spent realising a new possibility that could transform our relationship to life.

“When you are inspired by some great purpose, some extraordinary project, all your thoughts break their bonds: Your mind transcends limitations, your consciousness expands in everydirection, and you find yourself in a new, great, and wonderful world. Dormant forces, faculties and talents become alive, and you discover yourself to be a greater person by far than youever dreamed yourself to be.”
~ Patanjali – the author of Yoga Sutra

It helps to have a purpose in your live, as Patanjali, the author of Yoga Sutra intimates, the forces that will become available to you are immeasurable and what you will be able to achieve is unimaginable to your mind, it is more located in your heart. My purpose is the ethos of Interculturalism Love and Respect for All, Everyone Included https://www.facebook.com/groups/Interulturalism/ It took me 59 years of journeying through addictions, mental illnesses, Buddhism, meditation and banal Government jobs to get there but it was well worth the journey, I intend to transform the world with your help.

Zig Ziglar is considered one of the greatest American Success coaches and his quote ” People often say that motivation doesn’t last. Well neither does bathing – That’s why we recommend it daily ” hits home as to what it takes. Get up, do stuff that has your purpose move forward, don’t expect it to magically happen, being in action is what it takes, the law of Attraction does not leave action out of the picture.

I couldn’t wish to be an astronaut as a child because they didn’t exist, I wanted to be a Ships captain because we used to go down to our Aunty Ruby’s farm outside Leopold and you could see the ships in Corio Bay, I’m not a Ship’s captain, the closest I became to a man of the trades was an apprentice French Polisher, the rest of the time I spent behind a desk. As I said I have found a purpose and I’m sure the child back in Pakenham when it wasn’t on the Metro line would be proud of me.

“I love you, not only for what you are, but for what I am when I am with you.”
~ Roy Croft

Roy Croft is a little known poet who wrote a poem called Love which begins with the above line http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roy_Croft, I believe that this line applies to both friendships, self friendship and other friendship, heck you could probably replace friendship with love if you wished to. You will keep going back to the sinking ship if you do not have both of these in your life, the water will get awfully cold very quickly with out them.

“I know for sure that what we dwell on is who we become.”
~ Oprah Winfrey

Oprah Winfrey is loved by millions of women worldwide for her earthy summation of day to day events and is a living example of the above statement. Willing to share it all she is also a disciple of Zig Ziglars statement “You can get everything in life you want if you will just help enough other people get what they want.” So if you do not wish to have to swim back to the Sinking ship take some of the advice that these modern and ancient thought leaders have to offer

Namaste until next time my friends

Is there Hope?

Posted on October 24, 2014 by Rod's World

Why is this picture of runners in black and white, because it relates to a time in my past I was a member of Worldrunners, a running group who ran to spread the message of ending world hunger back in the early 90’s. When I joined the group I smoked 40 cigarettes a day and had not run for approximated 15 years since I left school. They were going to Moscow to run the Moscow Peace marathon, yes the 42 Kilometre jobbo, If one is going to put their foot in why not go the whole way.

I was at a party about a month later and I looked at the cigarette I was smoking put it out and declared that this will be the last smoke I ever have, on that day I gave up cigarettes and dope, i didn’t realise I was giving up the second but it was an added benefit. I thought it would be a good idea to run the melbourne marathon as I did not want to go all that way and appear like a dick not being able to do it. This meant I had to train through melbourne’s winter and back then it used to rain in Melbourne. I had a training partner named Gemma and when I didn’t answer the door two days in a row at 6 a.m. because it was pouring with rain she reamed me and we did the training it took to run from Frankston to Melbourme, every time I drive it i still shake my head that I used to be able to run that far. I ran it a second time when we got back into a headwind and driving rain just to prove marathon runners are a little bit crazy.

So off to Moscow we headed six months later not knowing a great deal about the country besides the fact that it was run by communists, this was the year before the wall came down. We nearly didn’t make the connecting flight in Narita Japan because the Toyko to Moscow flight was considered a domestic flight and we were waiting in International, a kind JAL official walked us through the lines that make Tullamarine’s look like it takes 5 minutes to check in. We arrived safely at Moscow to be told by our guide not to exchange too much money, the reason for this being he had a friend who gave you a better deal, the black market and Moscow mafia was rampant back then and I have heard it is still quite prominent to this day.

We had a few days to assimilate into Moscow lifestyle and visited the touristy sights the highlight being Gorky park where hundreds of circus performers did acrobatics all through the park. Come the day of the race we go down to the starting line to find out they were saying they did not have the Australian contingents entries. Linda, a wild Texan woman, part of the Worldrunners organisers would have none of this and we got to run. Moscow is a beautiful city with some amazing building and we set off along the river, being handed water by real life soldiers at the water stops. 35K in my knee decides to start popping out, and these two burly gentlemen says you can not come this far and not finish and carried me between them to the finish line, I gave one of them my runners as they were heaps better than what they were wearing and I had a spare pair.

We then went on our 30 days tour of the region, first stop was Tbilsi, capital of he federation Of Georgia. Tbisli is Georgian for warmth as it is located on a lot of hot springs and we all went off to experience the local fare which ended in us meeting our guide for the next few days as when we came out it was pitch black and the only place we could find that we recognised was Bar, they sold coffee and ice-cream as sale of alcohol to the public was banned. The two highlights of Tbilsi were the speech that a Georgian poet gave, we could not understand a word but were all in tears at the end and the underground clubs our new friend took us to. Georgian brandy is famous worldwide and they may not sell it but people certainly knew were to get it.

Next stop was Kiev, capital of Ukraine, they have a great tradition of having dancing in the public parks and we went there three nights in a row and danced with the locals, so much fun. We couldn’t work out why no body was swimming in the river until someone told us Kiev was downstream from Chernoybl, site of one of the worlds great nuclear disasters a few years before. e ran into the Australian youth rowing team in a park one day, its a small world. With the trouble between Russia and the Ukraine these days we were advised back then it was not wise to call Georgians or Ukrainians Russians, not much seems to have changed

Off to Leningrad, know known as St. Petersburg, this is where the two most memorable events of the trip occurred. We visited the Summer Palace, my main memory of this is not the half mile long stretch of solid gold statues that the Nazi’s pinched but the fountain of a duck, a dog, a hunter and the assistant blowing the horn with the cages that the people making the appropriates noise lived in. We were looking for Alex, a gold medallist athlete we had met in Moscow who ran an Athletic club and instead of finding him the hotel sent us to the ministry of sport. Linda, previously mentioned was not fussed at all and told them why we were there. We got a phone call telling us that we would be running down Nevetsky prospect the main thoroughfare at 5 pm that Friday. They had arranged to all. so the Minister for Sport, the mayor and about 20 people ran with us, the Australian Ambassador back in Moscow would not believe us until we showed him Photos, those things people used prior to smart phones.

The other thing that happened was the highlight of the trip for me. We had met Sergei, Lydia and Michael Jackson in a cafe, they wan’t to improve their English and worked out we were nor from Russia by our garish clothing. Lydia invited us to her place for dinner, spending precious money on the black market to buy us Western food so we felt at home, her toilet had been on the waiting list to fix the leak fir 10 months. We were due to catch the Leningrad to Moscow midnight express and Sergei was giving us a lift. We took off but seemed to be going the wrong way as we were going deeper and deeper into the High rise units that made up most of the accommodation in Leningrad. Sergei drove us to one of these unit blocks and gestured for us to wait. He came down 5 minutes later with his fiancee whom he said that he wanted her to meet us as she had given up hope and we proved that it still existed. It was getting awfully close to midnight and we arrived at the railway station 5 minutes after midnight. Miraculously the train was still there, good old Linda has convinced them to wait. AS the soldiers and officials approached the three of us Sergei stepped in and explained what had happened. We all got our photos taken with the Engine driver and the head of security in front of the train

The Berlin Wall came down the following year and we received a letter from Ivan, A Georgian teacher who slept on the verandah of his parent house with his wife and small child and who had organised a 2,000 people Worldrunners run the following year that he felt that actions like ours in coming to Russia had helped it happen. I don’t know if this was true but it was worth going to give lena, Sergei’s fiancee hope again.

namaste to next time, my friends

Do you Mean to Kill Them?

Posted on October 21, 2014 by Rod's World

My carbon footprint in getting around is fairly low, Walking , Pushbike and Public Transport. I used to ride a motor bike for a few years but had an accident whilst drunk driving and lost my license for two years and never got it back.

On my journey around our fair city of Melbourne I cannot but notice the laziness of the general public in disposing of rubbish. It is discarded everywhere but in the receptacles provided it would seem. Cigarette packets and cigarette butts , junk food containers and alcohol bottles seem to make up the majority of it pointing towards a certain kind of person being the main contributor to this malaise.

And what does this have to do with the cutie in the picture above, she is an albatross who lives on Midway Island. Fleetwood Mac in the 60’s wrote a magnificent instrumental about these birds https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dAefTj7GXwQ, they have survived happily on the Island for many years or have they. Where is Midway Island you ask, heres a map to give you an idea.

It s in the middle of the pacific island thousand and thousands of kilometres from the nearest land but this cute picture does not tell the harrowing tale of what is occurring on Midway Island these days. I attended the Sustainable Living Festival last year with my friend Kavisha and happened to be in BMW edge when there was a speaker by the name of Chris Jordan set down to speak. I forget the name of his talk but after being transfixed by the content not the subject matter. Chris is an American photographer with an interest in Environmental issues and had been producing a documentary about the albatrosses on Midway Island for the past few years.

Why he has been doing this is because we have been killing them with plastic. Adult albatrosses have been feeding their young with plastic gleaned from the ocean all those kilometres away and they are dying in their thousands. Here is a link to Chris sharing about the documentary https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-M9t2fm__K0. The only way the plastic gets in the ocean is because we as a race are too lazy to carry our rubbish with us to the nearest bin or to our homes to dispose of it in our own bins and it is washed into the ocean. Next time you are tempted to throw something away because there is no where to put it think of this image.

On my way walking to work or the market I have begun picking up rubbish as I come to it on the footpath knowing it will always be there because we are unthinking when it comes to the costs of dropping rubbish. I hope this little rant makes a few of you think.

Namaste until next time, my friends

You can Dance if you want to!!

Posted on October 16, 2014 by Rod's World

We have come to be danced.
Not the pretty dance.
Not the pretty pretty, pick me, pick me dance.
But the claw our way back into the belly.
Of the sacred, sensual animal dance.
The unhinged, unplugged, cat is out of its box dance.
The holding the precious moment in the palms.
Of our hands and feet dance.
We have come to be danced.
Not the jiffy booby, shake your booty for him dance.
But the wring the sadness from our skin dance.
The blow the chip off our shoulder dance.
The slap the apology from our posture dance.
We have come to be danced.
Not the monkey see, monkey do dance.
One two dance like you.
One two three, dance like me dance but the grave robber, tomb stalker.
Tearing scabs and scars open dance.
The rub the rhythm raw against our soul dance.
We have come to be danced.
Not the nice, invisible, self-conscious shuffle.
But the matted hair flying, voodoo mama.
Shaman shakin’ ancient bones dance.
The strip us from our casings, return our wings.
Sharpen our claws and tongues dance.
The shed dead cells and slip into.
The luminous skin of love dance.
We have come to be danced.
Not the hold our breath and wallow in the shallow end of the floor dance.
But the meeting of the trinity, the body breath and beat dance.
The shout hallelujah from the top of our thighs dance.
The mother may I? Yes you may take 10 giant leaps dance.
The olly olly oxen free free free dance.
The everyone can come to our heaven dance.
We have come to be danced.
Where the kingdom’s collide.
In the cathedral of flesh.
To burn back into the light.
To unravel, to play, to fly, to pray.
To root in skin sanctuary
We have come to be danced.
We have come.

Jewel Mathieson is a 5 Rhythms teacher and an award winning performance poet who lives in the United states, she would like you to link to her on https://www.facebook.com/jeweldancerpoet or obtain her poetry from her webpage www,jewelm.net. Jewel has two books of poetry dedicated to dance.

There is a thriving expressive dance scene in Melbourne, Australia. On many different nights of the week you can go to a dance and shake off your daily worries and enter the space mentioned in the poem above. The largest of these groups is definitely the 5 Rhythms dance practice created by Gabrielle Roth in the states over 20 years ago https://www.facebook.com/groups/5Rhythmsmelbourne/ Led by Woodend couple Meredith Davies & David Juriansz in the north and country Victoria and in the southern suburbs by Madhuma Thompson, http://www.5rhythms.com/teachers/Madhuma+Thompson . On Tuesday nights David gets between 150 to 200 dancers and on every second Sunday Madhuma gets well over 100 who generate an amazing vibe and shift many of their issues through the wave that is danced , here is a youtube clip of Gabrielle herself explaining the wave –https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8cYYzcTzm6Y.

Smaller gathering are Dancing Freedom from the ground Up https://www.facebook.com/events/968650966484666/?ref_dashboard_filter=calendar run by Lydia Marolda one of the convenors of Synergy IDE a fantastic all night drug and alcohol free dance experience held approximately every three months https://www.facebook.com/synergy.ide.australia?fref=ts. Another freeing dance practice is Mojo Trance Dance run by Jules Sutherland, one of many things this powerful shaman offers one to open your heart space, https://www.facebook.com/events/1495720137342784/?ref_dashboard_filter=calendar, these events normally have about 50 people so are a little bit more manageable if you require your private space not to be in your face.

Theres theres No Lights, No Lycra https://www.facebook.com/pages/No-Lights-No-Lycra-Melbourne/474387869320625?fref=ts, a concept where you dance with the lights dimmed, they say people do not crash into each other because your senses are heightened, I haven’t been but the concept fascinates me..

Then we come to my personal favourite, a lot smaller than the other but the most powerful I believe, Kundalini dance, developed by Leyolah Antara from Byron Shire, you dance focusing on your chakras and use Kundalini breath practices to open them up, i had my most profound heart opening on the night I did the Heart Chakra with Nemone Sloane https://www.facebook.com/groups/ecstaticbeings/?fref=ts Theres no classes at the moment but if you moved to the shire Leyolah runs regular classes.

I feel like a list so here are what I see as the benefits of dancing expressive dance in Melbourne, Australia

1. Community – This inspired group of people have one of the strongest senses of community that I have come across. Welcoming all newcomers it doesn’t matter what your skill or experience level is, you are a part of their tribe as soon as you pay your first entry fee.

2. Fitness – Attend a couple of sessions a week and its probably the best aerobic work out available, and much more enjoyable that pumping weights.

3. Educational – If your music collection is getting stale you certainly will hear new and funky music you can add to it and you can do the Wave at home.

4. Spiritual – The Wave is the entry to listening from your heart not your head, as you dance more and more you release endorphins that unstick your stuck bits and give you access to your heart space.

5. Sensual – As you free yourself up through the dance, you realise that all bodies are beautiful and have the right to be loved. Many a soulmate are discovered on the dance floor even though that is not the focus.

Well, Namaste my friends until next time