Is Reality the X Factor?

Posted on May 5, 2016 by Rod's World

Looking for a subject today I notice The Green Guide: The best on Screen: Television, Streaming, Downloads & Radio was rating the reality TV judges. The Green Guide is the weekly entertainment section of our daily newspaper The Age, considered the more intelectual of the two papers that come out each day.

I cringed instantly that our society had sunk so low that this was considered news. What has become of mainstream society that this is what is considered entertainment for the masses. I checked out what people have quoted about reality over the years and have chosen a deft list to ponder. Here we go:

1. Each of us have our own reality, remember you are judging if you think your reality is more worthwhile than another persons.

2. Reality is that you will most likely end up with a partner at some stage in your life. I think that if you can achieve the above you are creating an awesome reality for the relationship.

3. Life is a game we all play at different levels, and we have our own unique devils. Meatloaf was one of mine: Bat out of Hell.

4. Growing up in rural country towns this above statements makes me relate to the time I went back to one of them as a Buddhist Calm Abiding meditation teacher. When I told people guess what they said?

5. From the first century A.D. Plutarch was a Greek historian, biographer, and essayist, known primarily for his Parallel Lives and Moralia. He is classified as a Middle Platonist. He had several other quotes which survived from that time, a famous one being: I don’t need a friend who changes when I change and who nods when I nod; my shadow does that much better.

6. Lisa Prosen is a passionate Sensitivity Coach, Speaker, and Author. She works with her clients so they can courageously look at their lives in new ways and navigate changes with new found confidence. She helps them learn to balance between their sensitivity and the things they are committed to accomplishing, so they achieve the life they truly want to live. Founder of the popular Facebook group “Practical Solutions for The Highly Sensitive Soul”, Lisa is familiar with the shackles of perfectionism and how living life for other people, ultimately disappoints everybody.

7. Or as the bard would have put it, Out damn spot, reality doesn’t go away even though it is an illusion as all our life is according to the chaos theory.

8. I think they wrote this for mainstream media and what they present as the news. Control, mayhem and evil are not my reality and never will be.

9. Before enlightenment wash the dishes, after enlightenment wash the dishes, welcome to reality.

10. Robert J. Ringer is an American entrepreneur, motivational and political speaker, and author of several best-selling personal-development and political books. The best known of these is a semi quote to the Bard, To be or not to be Intimidated.

11. Our current reality keeps changing faster and faster. A quote I read recently made me shudder. If our children are not taught to be alone they will grow up only knowing how to be lonely. The above quotes lies in that arena for me.

12. Reality lives in the now according to Eckhart Tolle, but what does Beyonce have to say about it : Me, Myself and I.

13. Lucius Annaeus Seneca (often known simply as Seneca or Seneca the Younger) was a Roman Stoic philosopher, statesman, dramatist, and in one work humorist, of the Silver Age of Latin literature. He was tutor and later advisor to emperor Nero. While he was later forced to commit suicide for alleged complicity in the Pisonian conspiracy to assassinate Nero, the last of the Julio-Claudian emperors, he may have been innocent. He clearly suffered more from imagination if he was innocent.

14. The ubiquitous to do list, how many of us are honest enough to write the one on the right when it is our reality.

15. This quote by Teal Scott supports my statement at the beginning of this blog. Society does now want to be aware, it would much rather remain in the illusory state that everything is OK as it is.

I have tried to drop judging society to much when writing this, Its just that I believe we were placed on this planet for more than what is churned out as mass entertainment these days.

Namaste until next Monday my dear friends.

What is Yours?

Posted on May 2, 2016 by Rod's World

I volunteer at an organisation called the Darebin Intercultural Centre where we hold programs that allow different culture to educate others on what inspires people about their cultures. We believe that this is the best way of integrating people in our multicultural municipality, there are over 150 different nationalities in Darebin.

What does culture mean, here is the Oxford dictionaries definition :definition of culture – the arts and other manifestations of human intellectual achievement regarded collectively:

“20th century popular culture”

synonyms: the arts · the humanities · intellectual achievement(s) ·

intellectual activity · literature · music · painting · philosophy

a refined understanding or appreciation of culture:

“men of culture”

synonyms: intellectual/artistic awareness · education ·

cultivation · enlightenment · discernment · discrimination · good taste · taste · refinement · polish · sophistication · urbanity · urbaneness · erudition · learning · letters · belles-lettres

the ideas, customs, and social behaviour of a particular people or society:

“Afro-Caribbean culture” ·

“people from many different cultures”

synonyms: civilization · society · way of life · lifestyle · customs ·

traditions · heritage · habits · ways · mores · values

the attitudes and behaviour characteristic of a particular social group:

“the emerging drug culture”

biology

the cultivation of bacteria, tissue cells, etc.. in an artificial medium containing nutrients:

“the cells proliferate readily in culture”

a preparation of cells obtained by culture:

“the bacterium was isolated in two blood cultures”

the cultivation of plants:

“this variety of lettuce is popular for its ease of culture”

synonyms:cultivation · growing · farming · agriculture · husbandry ·

agronomy.

This gives me a wide access to what I could choose as the 15 quotes for today’s interaction, I hope I do it justice, here we go:

1. In my country Australia when they arrived in 1788 the British declared Terra Nullus – vacant land and went on a genocidal attack on the native population who had resided here 60,000 years. Luckily for us they failed and we have a growing culture to look back on and learn from the first Australians.

2. The first thing conquerors do when they take over another is attempt to destroy their languages, music and knowledge of their past. In Tibet speaking their native tongue is banned by the Chinese.

3. Wade Davis CM is a Canadian anthropologist, ethnobotanist, author, and photographer whose work has focused on worldwide indigenous cultures, especially in North and South America and particularly involving the traditional uses and beliefs associated with psychoactive plants.

4. I am a language tutor for 4 people and find I am learning as much as I am supposedly teaching. I have taught 2 doctors. a Council member of a city three times as large as the one I live in and a structural engineer who was responsible for constructing the largest projects in his country until he was blacklisted by the Taliban.

5. I have visited several countries in my 60 years and one of my unique experiences was visiting a housing museum in Tbilisi, Georgia. The building went back 1,300 years and were a fascinating way to learn about the culture of the region.

6. I just had to include this one, as an editing professional I don’t know if the spelling mistake is a deliberate part of the message they are trying to expound or not.

7. And in my very core is one of the main cultural paths, music of many nations. Here is one of my favourite tracks: Culture – Wings of a Dove.

8. What has the world become where the basics of our life have become unaffordable for some, it is hurting the heart of our planet.

9. I believe mainstream’s media portrait of Iran to be a classic example of creating what is meant to be the culture of a country. In my work I have meant a lot of Iranian asylum seekers and become friends with an Iranian musician Studying here. Gelerah’s music is magnificent: Magnificent Tones.

10. Raymond Douglas Bradbury was an American fantasy, science fiction, horror and mystery fiction author. Widely known for his dystopia novel Fahrenheit 451 as well as his science fiction and horror story collections The Martian Chronicles The Illustrated Man, and There Will Come Soft Rains. Bradbury was one of the most celebrated 20th- and 21st-century American genre writers. Hitler tried to destroy German Intellectualism by doing this prior to WW2.

11. When Governments forget that cultures are not to dominate but strengthen the hearts and souls of their citizens quotes like this appear, unfortunately they are occurring at a growing rate.

12. Credited with creating modern Finnish culture Hugo Alvar Henrik Aalto was a Finnish architect and designer, as well as a sculptor and painter. His work includes architecture, furniture, textiles and glassware.

13. Gaining insight into 4 different cultures at the same time can be quite invigorating, I spend some hours investigating what they tell me about each of their unique upbringing, one spent 25 years in a refugee camp, being born there.

14. Pretty unique way to teach multiculturalism to your citizens, build different countries into your infrastructure, wonder what effect it will have on the inhabitants of each suburb.

15. Sound familiar with what is happening in the current era, Herman Hesse wrote this back in the 1940’s prior to the war to end ll wars, they got that wrong too . He was a German-born Swiss poet, novelist, and painter. His best-known works include Steppenwolf, Siddhartha, and The Glass Bead Game, each of which explores an individual’s search for authenticity, self-knowledge and spirituality. In 1946, he received the Nobel Prize in Literature.

I believe the best of each culture will overcome the evil that is being used at the moment to corrupt the world. That is why I have created a Facebook public group: Interculturalism to have a space where people of all cultures can sing the praises and what they love about their life.

Namaste until Thursday, my dear friends.

Purpose, do we have One?

Posted on April 21, 2016 by Rod's World

On the 6th May I will be part of the crew for RAW: Purpose and Meaning, a deep conversation that will make a difference for about 100 people. My friend Emeli will lead us through a process which will move people closer to seeing what they are on the planet for.

I have spent a lot of my life seeking mine, thinking I have found it at different times, doing some extraordinary things on the way. I have run the Moscow Peace Marathon the year before the Berlin Wall came down in the name of ending world hunger during one of these times. I have done an 8 week silent Calm Abiding meditation retreat during another and been the editor of a national Community Development journal for two years which also gave me purpose in my life at the time.

What does the world have to say about finding your purpose. There are quotes from some well known individuals to that most well known philosopher Anonymous, lets take a journey through 15 of them.

1. As a child new from the womb we are pure unbridled potential, we all could be president of the United States, the most powerful position on the planet. As we journey through life it takes something to remember this.

2. It’s wiser to look out there for your purpose because without others involved its hard to make a difference that has much affect.

3. Sometimes it gets dark along the path of our purpose, luckily you will have your trusty companion passion to light your journey for you.

4. In her songs Diana Ross sang about this, such a one is Ain’t no Mountain High Enough

5. All the great people who are remembered for their grand purposes used this simple formulae in their day to day progression towards them.

6. Purpose makes you jump out of bed, especially when they are fulfilling that dream you were having. I must include the classic number by Lou Reed and his friends: Perfect Song for a Perfect Day.

7. Did Mark Twain realise he would be one of the early pioneers of a self development movement that would have millions of people seeking their Why, their purpose. I don’t think so.

8. Love this one, just make you absence felt, perhaps you will have a day named after your purpose if you do it well enough.

9. Are we commissioned by the creator if there is such a being? A lot of people have purpose in their life without believing this.

10. Howard Washington Thurman 1899 – 1981 was an influential African American author, philosopher, theologian, educator, and civil rights leader. He played a leading role in many social justice movements and organisations of the twentieth century. He definitely spent his time on the planet alive.

11. Purpose makes many friends on her journey, travelling with one or two of them and at sometimes all of them to achieve the result she is seeking.

12. An essential part of the recipe in fulfilling your purpose is to locate the Self Love within you because this allows you to give it away and receive it in buckets. You cannot imagine how much easier this will make your journey.

13. “Buechner uses words with such transformative power that any comment on them is like the moon palely reflecting the sun.”

14. Don’t just find your purpose, give it away to as many people as you can.

15. As the three examples I gave at the beginning show you your purpose will change throughout your life, never give up looking for them. Remember there is always climbing after all.

I am looking forward to the 6th May, I love conversations that make a difference.

Namaste until Monday , my dear friends.

Sex is a 3 Letter Word!!

Posted on April 18, 2016 by Rod's World

As my regular readers now I have a mentor, Arion Light. On the Weekend I did a Sex and the Soul Retreat that he and our friend Leyolah Antara lead with 20 courageous men and women.

As we went through the process it brought up a lot of stuff for me around sex and sexuality as the processes were to heal and empower different parts that you experienced over your lifetime and for each person it was different.

I got to experience my mistrust of women because of an incident early in my childhood and was able to clear it, I feel like a brand new person as the tender young age of 61. What does the world have to say about this often taboo subject. Let have a look at 15 powerful quotes on the subject.

1. When you get shamed in this area we often shut it down and it remains the age the incident occurred at. It takes an act of courage to rekindle the journey down to a mature sexuality.

2. Portia de Rossi is often best known for being Ellen De Generes partner but she is also a well known actress which she has been doing for nearly 30 years.

3. We come on to this planet with our sexuality in tow. Society tries and tell us that it should be one certain way, unfortunately it isn’t that simple.

4. Probably one of the areas in life that is judged the most. A lot of people get on their moral high horse if people’s sexuality is different to theirs in their preferences or choice of partner. As Janet Jackson wouldn’t it be great if as a race we didn’t do this.

5. One of the greatest spontaneous women in the world, Marilyn Monroe had no qualms in saying I want to be loved by You.

6. This is one area that should come under the category of fun and pleasure, does it for You?

7. I think it pisses God off if you walk by the color purple in a field somewhere and don’t notice it.

8. The women on the weekend got to do this , to be proud and steadfast and sexy in their power.

9. Graham Greene is one of my favourite wordsmiths, this quote says a lot about sexuality.

10. Thrust, thrust, thrust. This is not sexuality.

11. Maria Manakova is a Serbian Chessmaster, I agree with her, why not Chess.

12. If you find your sacred lover F. Scott says you will never recover, Who would want to.

13. Sent by his parents to become a priest, the founder of the gnostic movement soon disavowed the Catholic Church and started his own movement and journey.

14. I can’t read the name of the woman who said this but I agree wholeheartedly with her conviction.

15. Annie Lennox, sensual lead singer of the Eurythmics sang a powerful song back in 1984 : Sex Crimes. One of the great crimes to me is that sexuality is split between the sexes. That is what was so great about the weekend, both were included.

I look forward to what my life will include in the area of sexuality, its never to late. Namaste until Thursday my dear friends.

There was No Peace!!

Posted on April 12, 2016 by Rod's World

One of the things I do is tutor refugees who need to Improve their English. At the moment I have very two different students. One was born in a refugee camp in India 25 years ago, yes thats right, she had been in a refugee camp 25 years. Then she was put in three detention centres by our government before being released. She has lived in a free community 4 months of her young life. The other is a doctor who was on the council of the capital city of the nation she comes from , I asked her why she left. Her reply was poignant , there is no peace Teacher, she calls me teacher. I have a sense they will both be great citizens of our country given what they have been through.

I have been thinking about that statement , there is no peace since, what truly gives us peace, is our nation of Australia we live in relative peace from war but to a lot of people They do not feel so, ramping up the threat to our nation. So I have chosen 15 wide ranging statements about peace to comment on the subject.

1. That great philosopher Unknown comes up with on of the most powerful definitions to my mind, peace belongs in our heart not the physical surrounds that we are in.

2. Peace has a few allies in making the world a better place, I love the last one Everybody not just us, no hate, no war.

3. Maura is 9, with more people of her age thinking like that I give Peace a Chance, Join in with John and Yoko.

4. Be in the Now, that is where peace lives, I resist this a lot. Need to read The Power of Now again.

5. Robert Brault is a writer of forty years standing, he points to the fact where our peace really lives, within.

6. We have all seen those silly cartoons with aliens looking on as there are explosions all over our world. Silly or Not?

7. One of the world’s great peace activists, a man who lead a nation to freedom peacefully, hits the spot with this one. Makes me think of Cat’s Peace Train.

8. A disturbing image with a powerful message. Yes its up to you to be a Rider of the Storm

9. MLK, in my favourite top ten speakers, I listen to him regularly, his passion for peace was extraordinary.

10. To one of the young things who have replaced Martin Luther King, the youngest recipient and possibly the most deserving winner of the Nobel Peace prize. Malala speaks the words of peace for her generation.

11. Closer and closer, the world is becoming a smaller place, may we use the words above in our recipe.

12. I’m sure each parent wishes this for that bundle of joy they hold in their arms as they raise them with love. A question though, How does war replace this scene later in Life?

13. One of John Lennon’s more obscure Peace quotes, but a chance to listen to You’re not the only One.

14. Yes a cute dog photo peace quote, works for me. Who is Antsy McClain, watch this: Living in Aliminium.

15. And finally a Sacred Meditation to complete with, may there be peace in your life and the world.

Namaste until next Thursday my dear friends.

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.

To Love Vs. I am Loved

Posted on March 28, 2016 by Rod's World

I follow the Cored Desired Feeling from the remarkable The Desire Map process by Danielle LaPorte. One of the cheapest transformations around : Gateway to Your Freedom. My 5 CDF’s are I am Peace, I am Bliss, I am Love, I am Helping Other People Evolve and I am Loved.

I am excellent at the first four but have recently taken on the fifth I am Loved. I write daily love memes on Facebook and am going to produce a book of them soon, giving love out comes easily, accepting is another matter all together. I used to cringe inwardly several years ago because my self worth had taken several battering including five admissions to psychiatric wards for a period of 6 months. I have been on a journey ever since to change my reaction and allowance of love into my life.

A lot of I am Loved quotes are quite cheesy so it took me a while to choose the 15 for todays discussion. Here they are, lets go:

1. This is the journey I am own, That all parts of this statement are as strong as each other. I think each person has to work on at least one part of it daily.

2. I once had the younger sister of a friend of mine since You made me Love You, I didn’t want to do it at her 21st Birthday party in front of all her friends. I was embarrassed not taking in what she was expressing to me. It never happened.

3. I think why we are finding this difficult is because our society has lost contact with Sacred Love. The time where someone says I love you or you say it to them and both of you know you never have to hear it again. People have stopped telling each other their Sacred stories .

4. Are we expected to change our partners to fit into our expectations of who they really are, watch as they walk out the door, refer to number three.

5. The Meaning of beautiful

pleasing the senses or mind aesthetically:

“beautiful poetry” ·

synonyms: attractive · pretty · handsome · good–looking ·

of a very high standard; excellent:

“she spoke in beautiful English”

synonyms: excellent · splendid · wonderful · magnificent ·

6. To be in a loveable state means to accept all of you , whatever mood is coming at you down the hallway. Its your choice after all.

7. How to attract Love in you life is to love it right back, heres a song about it : Mary J Blige – I am.

8. Sometimes I have done this , apologised for who I was in the hope that I would be love, it didn’t work.

9. Now here is someone who knows she is Loved, how could you not.

10. Mickey Mouse brought us humour in our lives as children, do statements like this turn you off or think I am loved because they are revealing their vulnerable parts to me.

11. How many times have you been told I just don’t love you that way, can we just be friends, bring on the tequila.

12. What is the furtherest distance that this has happened to you, to me it was a Russian sailor who pushed the nuclear missile buttons on a submarine based in St. Petersburg.

13.Eric Fromm was a German social psychologist, psychoanalyst, sociologist, humanistic philosopher, and democratic socialist. He was associated with the Frankfurt School of critical theory. When accepting I am Loved there always must be I Love as well.

14. If Elvis Presley loved you, what song would you choose: The Wonder of You.

15. And we finish with a beautiful quote by that famous philosopher – Unknown.

We choose how I am Loved goes with our words, be wise in your choice.

I still wonder if I will ever break the hold Am I loved has on me for it to become I am Loved. Its a worthwhile journey.

Namaste until Thursday , 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

Rod Has a Way with Words.

Posted on March 10, 2016 by Rod's World

I recently have been become resistant to a growing power within me. I went through a process with my mentor Arion Light the other day and he asked me where I was resisting it most. I answered in having my new business be a success My website.

Life is based on a premise for me that to change one must be willing to step forward or your life will keep teaching you lessons until you get them. I had worked in Federal Government service until my heart told me to to leave and I did not listen and was retired never to work again.

During this time I have kept up my knowledge of editing in all its facets as I was an editor of a National Development journal back in the early 80’s. I have had a love of words my whole life and am very good at expressing them even to the point of getting my cigarette money at high school by writing other peoples essays for them. So in retirement my friends who run businesses said why don’t you start your own as they were willing to pay me to do what I was doing for them for nothing.

So what does Power mean to us, I have chosen 15 rather different quotes on the subject, lets begin our journey.

1. Knowledge gives you power when you are partaking in interactions on a daily basis, but if you have no enthusiasm for the subject the power involved tends to wane over time.

2. My business started off with a flourish, I am now working on my determination to keep going in the face of no results from my actions.

3. The only thing that is certain is our life that is it will change, we have to realise at times our mind will not want to do this as it will be uncomfortable and what our mind loves most is being comfortable.

4. In the process I mentioned at the start of this blog, Arion asked me to look at what I was no being passionate about that I loved. I think Midnights Oils Power And the Passion expresses this the best for me. Surprisingly the lead singer Peter Garrett succumbed to the power of becoming a federal politician and gave up many of his passions.

5. You cannot locate real power outside yourself, this is a lesson well learnt by many after seeking it through their career status, their amount of possessions and then they reach a point of dissatisfaction and begin the journey within.

6. Abraham Lincoln February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. Lincoln led the United States through its Civil War—its bloodiest war and its greatest moral, constitutional, and political crisis. In doing so, he preserved the Union, abolished slavery, strengthened the federal government, and modernized the economy. He was one of the great examples of what a man can do with power if they do it with character.

7. Power is defined as follows:

Someone with power has physical strength or they’re in control of things. So a weakling who’s in charge of a business still has a lot of power.

Power comes from the Latin word potere, which means “to be able.” But things with power are much more than able — they’re able to exert a lot of force. “The powers that be” are those who hold authority, and “the power behind the throne” refers to the people who exert influence without being formally in charge. When used as a verb, power means “to supply with mechanical or electrical energy,” as in a nuclear-powered submarine. It is not very useful if you are going through life asleep.

8. “Do I dare Disturb the universe?”
― T.S. Eliot, The Wasteland, Prufrock and Other Poems sums up what governments do not want people to know, that they really do have the power if they are willing to take it.

9. Jimi Hendrix only lived to be 28 years old, he was one of the magic bus people along with Janis Joplin and Jim Morrison, iconic figures of their time who sang and spoke about the greatest power being Love. Here is Jimi’s opus to it Power of Love.

10. Reclaiming your Power can return you to being back on track in all areas of your life, in owning that you are off in one and doing what is needed to restore balance you are actually working on all areas.

11. When you stand in your power, your Sparkle shines through. All the colours of the rainbow included. Sparkle was a film made in 1976 and remade in 2012 that was a huge success with African American audiences loosely based on the life of Diana Ross and the Supremes Filmclip.

12. The halls of Power are not an easy climb for Women, on the way there they have many bricks thrown at them, its what they do with them that leads to the final result.

13. Many people fall by the wayside when it comes to the abuse of the power they have been gifted by their position. They did not handle the responsibility that came with the position, something I feel a bit in my business , I am learning to provide the level required.

14. John Ray was an environmentalist from the 16th century, he is best remembered for this quote around the power that comes with being considered beautiful.

15. The Power stance is part of a TED talk by Amy Cuddy that 32,154,177 have watched so it must be very informative on the subject of power : Amy’s Ted Talk. Hunched shoulders are not a sign of power

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Namaste until Monday 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