You can shake the World!!

Posted on August 25, 2016 by Rod's World

Arrived at one of my voluntary gigs yesterday and the collective potential team were having a brain storm as to where they were at. CP are a start up Personal Development company who I give my time to because I get heaps back helping people get real, here’s the link to check them out Collective Potential.

One of the things we got to was that we had lost touch with our community , so I volunteered to take on the Community Management role to see what we needed to restore it. Made me start thinking what does being part of a community mean ad how does society look at it, here we go :

1. Cute animal shot of the blog, but wise words about that in a community there are not always leaders that stand out, its more of a communal effort with everybody putting their bit in.

2. Lance Edward Armstrong is an American former professional road racing cyclist. He is the 1993 Elite Men’s Road Race World Champion, and he had won the Tour de France seven consecutive times from 1999 to 2005, but was stripped of his Tour de France victories in 2012 after a protracted doping scandal. He must have forgot the above: Lance sings.

3. We, Collective Potential are based in a co working space for women, these spaces are becoming more prevalent as people seek out communities to begin their solo entrepreneurships.

4. Star Wars for We are Family.

5. Community is not just about fitting in, it’s about standing up for what you believe in and dealing with evil.

6. A controversial figure both during her life and after her death, Mother Teresa was widely admired by many for her charitable works. She was both praised and criticised for her views. She also received criticism for conditions in the hospices she ran. But for her hundreds of people would not be alive as she partook in her adopted community of Calcutta. She treated people Just one at a Time.

7. What a great analogy, well done Mrs. Griffiths.

8. As a community grows and expands it creates the opportunity for transformation of all members not just the chosen few. Transformation.

9. Marianne Williamson is one of my top ten because of words like these ones. She is one of the greatest supporters of Love on the planet.

10. I do number 9, I cannot imagine that the people who do it do it in their own homes, so why do they do it in the street, I have no idea. Build me up Buttercup.

11. All the Nobel Prize winners gave something to the world to receive the accolade, it was not about the money they had accumulated or how they looked.

12. Stand out and make a difference, noble and beautiful words, please fulfil them sometime in your life. The Man in Black sings on making a difference.

13. My dear 89 year old mother spent her life doing this, it rubbed off for all of her kids. I teach English to asylum seekers, my brother does a radio show, the eldest of my sisters does sustainability stuff and the youngest plays Taiko drums in a community orchestra.

14. Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela was a South African anti-apartheid revolutionary, politician, and philanthropist, who served as President of South Africa from 1994 to 1999. He was the country’s first black chief executive, and the first elected in a fully representative democratic election. His government focused on dismantling the legacy of apartheid through tackling institutionalised racism and fostering racial reconciliation. Politically an African nationalist and democratic socialist, he served as President of the African National Congress party from 1991 to 1997. He oversaw South Africa ending apartheid without serious recriminations on the white minority which was a huge possibility : Free Nelson Mandela.

15. And finally a wall poster to remind you how to DIY community.

I am so glad my mother inducted us into being community members who value contributing to our different communities, it’s much better than sitting in front of the TV being a lounge lizard.

Namaste until next time, my dear friends.

I will Play while Unleashing!!

Posted on August 8, 2016 by Rod's World

Missed last Thursday, I was getting ready for a retreat I attended on the weekend called Unleashing the Dragon. It was with my mentor Arion Light through his Activation School. The school’s motto is What you Embody, You Create. It is body work that revolutionises how you come alive, heal & create. Dropping mental force creating and instead taps into the power of creating from an awakened body and your inner essence.

The definition of unleashing has two meaning in the dictionary:

unleash –

release (a dog) from a leash.

“they dig up badger setts and unleash terriers into them”

synonyms: let loose, release, free, set free, loose, unloose, unbridle, untie, untether, unchain,unbind, unshackle, unmanacle; More

2. cause force to be released or become unrestrained.

The latter was more what we were dealing with on the weekend although at times it felt like the former and my body is quite sore today.

So what does the world have to say about the noble art of unleashing, there are many derivatives so lets have a look at a few:

unleashing 1

1. For more than 40 years, Jim Rohn honed his craft like a skilled artist-helping people the world over sculpt life strategies that have expanded their imagination of what is possible. Those who had the privilege of hearing him speak can attest to the elegance and common sense of his material. It is no coincidence, then, that he is widely regarded as one of the most influential thinkers of our time, and thought of by many as a national treasure. He is famous for down to earth quotes as well.

unleashed1

2. Deep Inside You, many people got to discover this as they unleashed the dragon hiding in their caves. for some it was power, others rage, for some their sexuality and others their tenderness. Try a little Tenderness.

unleashed2

3. We actually saw people break through those fears that had been holding them back, an act of pure courage.

unleashed4

4. Things we do not confront build up pain in our bodies, it takes up more and more space unless you unleash it. Time to Start Over Again.

unleashed5

5. Sai Marie Johnson is a creative concept designer, graphics artist, activist writer, and author of several series. A mother of four children, and the proud wife of a US Army Veteran Sai enjoys many different activities. The owner of a dachshund, and two lovely cats Sai is an animal lover, and a woman who simply calls herself, “A woman with a dream, and a pen.” Here she is writing about to be careful about what you allow to unleashed by our governments.

unleashed6

6. Another way of saying unleash is to liberate, remember you are Awesome. It’s For the Good Times.

unleashed7

7. What we each unleashed on the weekend was a mystery to us, even though we were called to have an intention.

unleashed8

8. Another reason to be unleashed, actually 12 of them. Helps with the Communication in your life.

unleashed9

9. We went deep into the pockets of our fears and as this quote say, all that now remains is us. There are always fears to work on.

Unleashed10

10. My mind knows a lot, and then there is a saying You don’t know what you don’t know, go there: Who You Are.

unleashed11

11. OMG, I love lists, here is a great one.

Unleashed12

12. People had some sexy names on the weekend, here’s another, Ricardo Housham has his own quote page : Make your Move.

unleashed13

13. The greatest Love I have got from fairy tales is to believe in Unicorns, I have friends that I swap Unicorn pictures with.

unleashed14

14. Besides being a magnificent facilitator Arion is an awesome poet, here is one of his offerings:

Precious love, you are beautiful. I know that you cling to that steering wheel because you think all manner of bad things will happen if you let go, but I want to let you know its ok, that controlling everything is not much of a life for me or you.
Yes life can be harsh and brutal, but control doesn’t protect from that anyway, and here is the most beautiful thing….. Even though it feels like death to move to the back seat, it is so much more than that. Yes a certain rigidity dies, but you precious mind, can’t die, you are luminous brilliance and when you can let go of that steering wheel, in time your shell will crack away and your true nature of genius and light will be revealed.
So my love, let go, come and rest in the back of the bus, I have installed a jacuzzi and all you have to do is relax. I love you so much.

It’s Poetry in Motion.

unleashed15

15. Three words, YOU ARE ALLOWED, Unleash that dragon. This saying I acknowledge my other mentor and my Anam Cara, Emili Paulo. Here is a link to her work: Collective Potential

As I said in the beginning there are many cuts at Unleashing, be mindful about which ones you do or just go for it, both of these types of advise where given at the end of the weekend.

Namaste until next Thursday, I promise, my dear friends.

Namaste2

I’ve got the Music in Me!!

Posted on July 11, 2016 by Rod's World

I have 33,000 songs in my Itunes library, I subscribe to Apple My music, Spotify, have 130 albums on my Bandcamp play list, Mixcloud, Soundcloud and am subscibed to about 300 musicians webpages: so the above statement is my truth.

I cannot play an instrument as my right and left hand do not talk to each other but my dear friend Kavisha Mazzella taught me to sing as a member of The Moon’s a Balloon choir which I honour her for each and every day. The secret is learning to listen not to sing the words. Here is one of her songs to explain why she has such an exquisite ability to do so: Invisible Indivisible.

There are a lot of quotes about the love of music and it is my joy to select them and interpret what they mean to me: Here we go –

1. This statement is very truthful, I have never been able to get into death metal or people who are racist and sexist.

2. I am sure we all have our favourite up and down songs, probably two or three. Think of yours as you listen to one of my all time fave love songs: Let’s Stay Together.

3. Feelings are said to have colours, I agree with the sentiment expressed in this quotes that they also have sounds, rage is aargh and love is aaw to me.

4. You can be stock still to it, you can also be in a state of total chaos but there is always a solution to whatever problem you are facing in your music collection, it might even be the sounds of nature.20 minutes of natures bliss.

5. Because I like puns.

6. Seems Plato was a music dude as well as one of the worlds great philosophers. Here’s some Soul of the Universe music : I am a Soul.

7. Unlike native languages music is understood in every country on every continent of our planet. From Antarctica to Iceland the dulcet tones of an instrument can unite people from all races.

8. Well, I didn’t expect her to be a news anchor. Here’s a news musical Clip: Not the 9 O’clock news.

9. You can put her on in the mood you need to talk about at any time and it doesn’t cost you 200 dollars.

10. How often have you heard music being performed where you forget to eat and drink. I recently went to see one of my favourite ex rock gods Stephen Cummings, lead singer of one of Australia biggest bands in the 1970’s the Sports now a much loved singer songwriter who plays to crowds of 40, here is one of my favourite Steve songs: When Love comes Back to Haunt You.

11. Kavisha, who I mentioned before used to lead a session called Empty Sky, there would be 5 minute breaks of silence between silence. She believed that was where the magic and the healing lay.

12. Not Might mouse Modest Mouse, they are actually a band – The band’s name is derived from a passage from the Virginia Woolf story “The Mark on the Wall,” which reads, “I wish I could hit upon a pleasant track of thought, a track indirectly reflecting credit upon myself, for those are the pleasantest thoughts, and very frequent even in the minds of modest, mouse-coloured people, who believe genuinely that they dislike to hear their own praises. In Australia there is only one song you can use to depict the soul, here it is: Soul Kind of Feeling.

13. Best known for his Fanfare for the Common Man, Aaron Copland was an American composer, composition teacher, writer, and later in his career a conductor of his own and other American music. Instrumental in forging a distinctly American style of composition, in his later years he was often referred to as “the Dean of American Composers” and is best known to the public for the works he wrote in the 1930s and 1940s in a deliberately accessible style often referred to as “populist” and which the composer labelled his “vernacular” style.

14. Yes it’s mi-spelt but that is the joy of this form of music , its can be corny and yet so deep. My favourite is alternative country and my favourite artist : Gillian Welch.

15. As my musical ownership list proves , I totally believe in music, and I also believe in Unicorns.

Thanks for letting me write about my addiction once again, every little bit heelp on the path to recovery.

Namaste until next time my dear friends

It’s always Changing. Life that Is!!

Posted on July 4, 2016 by Rod's World

I found out recently a friend had passed. He was young and it was unexpected, it was not in a nice way. I’ll leave it to your imagination. Everybody said that their life had been changed by the event and that it was not meant to happen that way. A wise friend then stated that we needed to be living our lives like that each moment could be our last .

Someone stated that was impossible as our mind and thoughts were so static about what life consisted of. This led to a healthy discussion as to whether this was true for each individual. It turned out about 50/50, we are close friends who are willing to go the distance and support each other in what’s so for each other.

So what does society say about a changing life. Here are 15 views on it that come from both sides of the bench: Let us begin our journey.

1. I think they left the word belong out of this quote. Paulo Coelho de Souza is a Brazilian lyricist and novelist. He is the recipient of numerous international awards, amongst them the Crystal Award by the World Economic Forum. His novel The Alchemist has been translated into 80 languages. The author has sold over 200 million copies worldwide and is the all-time bestselling Portuguese language author.

2. This quote speaks to me of the power of remaining in the Now, not relying on the past or the future to sustain a life, but to enjoy the blissful moments we spend with our friends and family.

3. How many of us are in the careers that were suggested to us at the school counselling session. I was meant to be a school teacher, as was my dear dad. Unfortunately the high school principal did not agree and told me I was not returning for my final year of high school and my first job was an an apprentice french polisher. Mel B sings about this sort of thing : For once in my Life.

4. I recently posted about not knocking on closed doors because what is behind them is not meant for you. This would be a good thing to do, run to the open one this way.

5. Hands up who remembers what this is being typed on. The word typed gives you a clue. Like typewriters becoming obsolete so do the previous chapters of our life. Be brave and type something new each day.

6. How could you not thing of our beloved David Bowie when you read about changes: David Live.

7. Today, and Today , and Today. Step forward bravely allowing for what educates you now but not what was taken away.

8. ..it Happens, move on.

9. My sister pointed out after reading the blog that this is by Meister Eckhart not Eckhart Tolle. Meister was well known for his work with pious lay groups such as the Friends of God and was succeeded by his more circumspect disciples John Tauler and Henry Suso. Since the 19th century, he has received renewed attention. He has acquired a status as a great mystic within contemporary popular spirituality, as well as considerable interest from scholars situating him within the medieval scholastic and philosophical tradition.

10. Each time I walk into a new workshop or experience I understand that this is what is waiting on the other side.

11. I have not become an astronaut, a prime minister but I have been many things but I still have many to go at the tender age of 61.

12. Kelly Heroes was a war film about an operation where all the bridges were burnt and they were not expected to come back : Burning Bridges.

13. Unfortunately most of us meet someone or something in our lives that the above statement can be related to. Take the advice.

14. My mentor Arion has a saying that you can get to a point in your life where everything is a gift. This would be after a lot of lessons learnt for me, I am not there yet.

15. Tomorrow is another day, I say take you first chances today, keep tomorrow in reserve. Here is my favourite Tomorrow song: Silverchair.

I hope that there is a song or saying that empowers you to get through your day, and always remember there is a new life possible in any moment.

Namaste until next time, dear friends.

Where we Wrong?

Posted on June 30, 2016 by Rod's World

Today I wrote on reconciliation. In our country there is a call for reconciliation to recognise the indigenous people who are not recognised in our constitution. There is one slight problem, most of the indigenous people don’t want reconciliation they want a treaty that recognises the fact the land was stolen off them.

This has caused much division, in the area where I live there is a call to change the name of the local electorate from Batman, named after explorer John Batman to recognising our indigenous people, the Wurrundjeri.

Batman is a controversial figure due to his dealings with Aboriginal peoples in Van Diemen’s Land/ AKA Tasmania and Victoria. The artist John Glover, Batman’s neighbour in Van Diemens Land, said Batman was “a rogue, thief, cheat and liar, a murderer of blacks and the vilest man I have ever known”.

The treaty Batman negotiated with local Aboriginal peoples in 1835, to acquire land in the Port Phillip area, was a matter of controversy in his day, and has remained an event of great historical interest and debate.

So what does the world say about reconciliation and is it essential that it occurs for the soul of the earth to be restored. Lets begin out journey:

1. Actually Thich Nhat Hanh, this beautiful man has been a peace and reconciliation activist since the days of the Vietnam War. He was interviewed by Oprah, a bit long but worthwhile: The Interview.

2. Recognised as one of the greatest peace activists on his release, he was originally jailed for being a guerrilla, he set up the famous truth and reconciliation commission after the end of apartheid so that chaos did not break out and that a new future could be created in South Africa.

3. Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra, was a Spanish writer who is widely regarded as the greatest writer in that language and one of the world’s pre-eminent novelists. What do you think he means by this statement?

4. It is said that we outgrow people but what about those times we made somebody wrong for what they said or did. I recently made up with a person who had been one of my dearest friends. My heart sung after I did it.

5. What if we could restore all the broken hearts we suffered in our life, would the world occur differently, fuck yeah!!

6. Nelson again, putting it in our faces. South African Songs

7. Practical action, Fraser was the last Liberal Party Prime Minister to practise Keynesian economics. In retirement, Fraser became involved in international relief and humanitarian aid issues and, domestically, as a forthright liberal voice for human rights. Shortly after Tony Abbott won the 2009 Liberal Party leadership spill, Fraser ended his Liberal Party membership, stating the party was “no longer a liberal party but a conservative party”.

8. In Victory someone usually loses, Reconciliation tends to be the opposite where both parties obtain what they desire.

9. García Márquez started as a journalist, and wrote many acclaimed non-fiction works and short stories, but is best known for his novels, such as One Hundred Years of Solitude (1967), The Autumn of the Patriarch (1975), and Love in the Time of Cholera (1985). His works have achieved significant critical acclaim and widespread commercial success, most notably for popularising a literary style labelled as magic realism, which uses magical elements and events in otherwise ordinary and realistic situations. Some of his works are set in a fictional village called Macondo (the town mainly inspired by his birthplace Aracataca), and most of them explore the theme of solitude. This powerful statement speaks to the gift of reconciliation.

10. The Fonz from the sitcom Happy Days could not say these words. How much pain has our inability to say them caused us? In my case quite a bit.

11. Have you ever met someone you keep running into in the most unusual situations. I saw one of these people on a TV program the other day.

12. Brother Roger was awarded the UNESCO Prize for Peace Education in 1988 and wrote many books on prayer and reflection, asking young people to be confident in God and committed to their local church community and to humanity. He also wrote books about Christian spirituality and prayer, some together with Mother Teresa with whom he shared a cordial friendship. A springtime to the Soul sounds like a wonderful place to hang out in. Leonard Cohen has a wistful song about reconciliation : Amen.

13. South Africa’s other great peace activist, Desmond Tutu calls us out that forgiveness and reconciliation are real things we need to take action on. Tutu’s admirers see him as a great man who, since the demise of apartheid, has been active in the defence of human rights and uses his high profile to campaign for the oppressed. He has campaigned to fight HIV/AIDS,tuberculosis, poverty, racism, sexism, homophobia and transphobia. He received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1984; the Albert Schweitzer Prize for Humanitarianism in 1986; the Pacem in Terris Award in 1987; the Sydney Peace Prize in 1999; the Gandhi Peace Prize in 2007; and the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2009. He has also compiled several books of his speeches and sayings.

14. The great Chinese philosopher Unknown asks us to walk powerfully on the earth, so do I.

15. And we must never forget the magical powers of the Unicorn of Reconciliation, they can help heal the world.

I believe that we can heal the planet through reconciliation, not with just fellow human beings, but the other animals and the plants as well.

Namaste until next time , my dear friends.

Do they really love us and can they talk?

Posted on June 27, 2016 by Rod's World

I am back on the air. After washing my phone and not having access to my verification codes to do an article for several weeks I have my beloved I phone 6 back. I saw an elderly woman walking her beloved pooch this morning on my walk to work, she was dressed in black so I assume that her beloved had passed and that her little white poodle filled her heart in the physical sense at least.

This made me think as a pet-less one, putting me in the minority in my country, 63% of households have one, 40% dogs and 23% cats and probably like my sister Ruth having both ,what it is that pets fulfil in people lives.

I tried not to choose 15 images of cats and dogs, but they are definitely the favourite, so lets go on our journey about the love between the furry ones and their two-legged friends who bizarrely think they are the masters.

1. I never got into pet ownership as a child due to our family having several disasters occur. Dog poisonings, pigeon fox attacks etc. etc. I would enjoy the company of a cat but my lease says nada to that.

2. I am in-laws to a cat and a dog, Suki and Lhasa. How much attention Suki gets my brother in law said once that he wants to come back as her next time around to receive the attention that my sister pours on her. Lhasa is an old cat who rules the roost.

3. Unknown must secretly be a dog or a cat. This speaks so strongly about the bond between the pets and their owners that I know. This song by Patti Page does also : How much is that Doggie in the Window.

4. Those nights watching our favourite life’s a little bit hard at the moment” with our beloved moggie or puppy are so, so special.

5. One knows that as soon as you begin cuddling or patting yours or someones pet you next half an hour has just been taken up.

6. This is the contract you take on with an animal, are you ready for it?

7. I just had to put this one in, it’s funny and explains some of their cuter expressions.

8. Research shows that hugging (and also laughter) is extremely effective at healing sickness, disease, loneliness, depression, anxiety and stress. Research shows a proper deep hug, where the hearts are pressing together, can benefit you in these ways:

1. The nurturing touch of a hug builds trust and a sense of safety

2. Hugs can instantly boost oxytocin levels, which heal feelings of loneliness, isolation, and anger.

3. Holding a hug for an extended time lifts one’s serotonin levels, elevating mood and creating happiness.

4. Hugs strengthen the immune system. The gentle pressure on the sternum and the emotional charge this creates activates the Solar Plexus Chakra. This stimulates the thymus gland, which regulates and balances the body’s production of white blood cells, which keep you healthy and disease free.

5. Hugging boosts self-esteem. From the time we’re born our family’s touch shows us that we’re loved and special. The associations of self-worth and tactile sensations from our early years are still embedded in our nervous system as adults. The cuddles we received from our Mom and Dad while growing up remain imprinted at a cellular level, and hugs remind us at a somatic level of that. Hugs, therefore, connect us to our ability to self love.

6. Hugging relaxes muscles. Hugs release tension in the body. Hugs can take away pain; they soothe aches by increasing circulation into the soft tissues.

7. Hugs balance out the nervous system. The galvanic skin response of someone receiving and giving a hug shows a change in skin conductance. The effect in moisture and electricity in the skin suggests a more balanced state in the nervous system – parasympathetic.

8. Hugs teach us how to give and receive. There is equal value in receiving and being receptive to warmth, as to giving and sharing. Hugs educate us how love flows both ways.

9. Hugs are so much like meditation and laughter. They teach us to let go and be present in the moment. They encourage us to flow with the energy of life. Hugs get you out of your circular thinking patterns and connect you with your heart and your feelings and your breath.

10. The energy exchange between the people hugging is an investment in the relationship. It encourages empathy and understanding. And, it’s synergistic, which means the whole is more than the sum of its parts: 1 1 = 3 or more! This synergy is more likely to result in win-win outcomes.

9. Did the philosophiser Immanuel Kant creator of I think, therefore I am also come up with this classic statement about the human part of the partnership of animal and owner?

10. I’m sure most pet owners have nightmares about this. Cat Stevens would like you to sing you a song : I love my Dog!!.

11. James Alfred “Alf” Wight, OBE, FRCVS (3 October 1916 – 23 February 1995), known by the pen name James Herriot, was a British veterinary surgeon and writer, who used his many years of experiences as a veterinary surgeon to write a series of books each consisting of stories about animals and their owners. He is best known for these semi-autobiographical works, beginning with All Creatures Great and Small in 1972. The British television series adapted from the books is also titled All Creatures Great and Small.

12. My nephew was afraid of dogs for many a year after hearing a German shepherd bark for an extended period of time. Many things can cause phobias towards our furred ones. What would you name your snail?

13. Not always the most logical creatures, are they. Just tricksters at heart really.

14. Cutest animal picture of the blog, and best quote as well.

15. How could I look at this photo and not think of Michael Jackson’s first hit: Ben.

Being one of the 37% minority in my country who do not do this I feel I am close to having the illegal cat. We spend close to 1 billion dollars a year on our furry creatures and they love us for it.

Namaste until next time , my dear friends.

Are you telling a great Story?

Posted on June 6, 2016 by Rod's World

My friend Emeli has chosen Stories as the theme of her next workshop, based on stories can carry us, or break us: Collective Potential. At different times in our lives we listen to different stories, some empowering , others that take us to the depths of despair. What is it that has us choose to stop listening to the empowering ones? I have a friend who never seems to do this , he says he does it by concentrating on living in the moment.

There are many varieties of quotes that relate to our stories, I think I have chosen wisely in the 15 I have selected today, let us begin our journey.

1. Delicious ambiguity, what a beautiful term. Add some zest to your life by not knowing what the next moment is going to be.

2. What were your favourite kids stories, I liked Charlie Brown. Sir Terence David John “Terry” Pratchett, OBE was an English author of fantasy novels, especially comical works. He is best known for his Discworld series of 41 novels. Pratchett’s first novel, The Carpet People, was published in 1971; after the first Discworld novel, The Colour of Magic, was published in 1983, he wrote two books a year on average. His 2011 Discworld novel Snuff was at the time of its release the third-fastest-selling hardback adult-readership novel since records began in the UK, selling 55,000 copies in the first three days. His final Discworld novel, The Shepherd’s Crown, was published in August 2015, five months after his death.

3. That voice in your head speak in words like I am and I always. The stories of our life link us, such as I have two sisters Ruth and Jann and an older brother Hugo. Christina Baldwin is founder of , Peerspirit.com living on our planet with Nature powerfully.

4. As young children we have imaginary friends, believe in Unicorns and the fae. Society seems to delight in suppressing these as we grow older. Terry Prachett speaks to those of us that survive this.

5. My writing teacher Catherine Deveny, The Dev says you should always be truthful in your words. then you don’t have to remember what you said or wrote, because it is the truth.

6. 7 billion of them, each unique. Make it as good a one as it can be.

7. This to me is a Sacred Story from a life of Sacred love.

8. Perfectionism is the booby prize, how do you enjoy the journey?

9. Memories are often written in a song – some Elvis : Memories.

10. Neil Gaiman gave one of the most inspirational commencement speeches ever about making some art, its long but worth the time : Make some Art.

11. Putting Yellow stickies on our fridges to express our feelings to our beloved, a noble past time.

12. Sacred Love – to be told or tell someone I Love You and realising that It never has to be said again but that it will for the rest of their lives.

13. Terry Prachett again. Who is going to write your story, moi or someone else?

14. ANNA QUINDLEN is a novelist and journalist whose work has appeared on fiction, nonfiction, and self-help bestseller lists. She is the author of eight novels: Object Lessons, One True Thing, Black and Blue, Blessings, Rise and Shine, Every Last One, Still Life with Bread Crumbs, and Miller’s Valley. Her memoir Lots of Candles, Plenty of Cake, published in 2012, was a number one New York Times bestseller. Her book A Short Guide to a Happy Life has sold more than a million copies. While a columnist at The New York Times she won the Pulitzer Prize and published two collections, Living Out Loud and Thinking Out Loud. Her Newsweek columns were collected in Loud and Clear. She loves London : Streets of London.

15. A reminder for number 15. Only you can remember how you see the world, so tell those stories proudly. You are a divine being.

Remember behind every favourite song, there is an untold story. Please tell your Sacred stories.

Namaste until next time my dear friends.

Space is the Place!!

Posted on June 2, 2016 by Rod's World

My friends Emeli and Jodi run a social enterprise called Collective Potential, their mission is to: Create spaces for people to connect in real life and provide experiences and resources to create fulfilling lives: Collective Potential website.

It got me to thinking about what does this term creating space mean? Perhaps its talking about astronaut space, physiological space, acreage space, there are many to choose from. I have chosen from a wide range of modalities for the 15 quotes today, lets begin:

1. One of the two most famous philosophers in the world Unknown and Anonymous, Unknown says that we need to let go to allow better things to happen to us.

2. Never devalue your worth for another, never.

3. Well known blogger Melanie Koulouris is famous for her Life has taught me poem. This is a beautiful quote about the need for space on your spiritual path.

4. If you are leading a totally full life, there are time you may need to delete some of it to allow for growth. Randy Gage, author of Mad Genius, a manifesto points out that this means people as well.

5. Busyness means that life can become a bit hum drum with all of that doing, remember to have space for a creative outlet amongst it all, mine are dance, Tai Chi and singing.

6. Something borrowed, something new, something blue: that space that is happening is occurring for the new shiny you to emerge from the ashes. Time for the title song : Sun Ra’s opus.

7. Our job is to turn our minds down and listen to the body, our home. In the silence we can welcome the rest of the world.

8. Saying Hello to the new and goodbye to the old. There was a famous song written about this in the sixties by the lads from Liverpool : Hello Goodbye, check out those outfits.

9. Little boxes all in a row, modern architecture of convenience has seen the beauty of previous time periods be eroded into fitting in as many people as we can on one block.

10. Come home my darling, you know where I am. How many of us enter our sacred space on a daily routine. The bliss king Joseph Campbell says this is where to go to when you feel lost.

11. I promise to laugh with you, cry with you, and grow with you. I will love you when we are together and when we are apart. I promise to support your dreams and to respect our DIFFERENCES, and to love you and be by your side through all the days and nights of our lives.

12. Turn around, you are going the wrong way. Yes you, are you listening?

13. You can be anybody in this space, most definitely not the authentic you.

14. Enter your space ship of light. Back in 1972 David had something to say about this : Space Oddity.

15. Democritus was an influential Ancient Greek pre-Socratic philosopher primarily remembered today for his formulation of an atomic theory of the universe. He was born in Abdera, Thrace, around 460 BC, although, some thought it was 490 BC. Atoms and empty space, puts it in perspective doesn’t it.

In other words, all of those points that I made about how to hold space for others can and should be applied to yourself first. Give yourself permission to trust your own intuition. Give yourself only as much information as you can handle. Don’t let anyone take your power away. Keep your ego out of it. Make yourself feel safe enough to fail. Give guidance and help to yourself with humility and thoughtfulness. Create your own container for complex emotions, fears, trauma, etc. And allow yourself to make decisions that are different from what other people would make.

Namaste until next time my dear friends.

The Quality of Happiness!!

Posted on May 30, 2016 by Rod's World

I chose this subject because I have begun reading Luminita Saviuc’s AKA the Purpose Fairy’s 15 Things you should give up in order to be Happy. Luminita had been faithfully writing her blog when this particular one received over one million hits.

What fascinates people about being happy? it is the most popular answer when we are asked what do we want in life and one of the most common things sung about, remember the iconic song by Pharrell Williams : Happy!!

There are thousands of words that have appeared on happiness quotes over the centuries and I have chosen some featuring the word and others that point to it for our journey down our happiness trail: Let’s begin.

1. There are many forms of happy throughout the word, possible 7,000,000,000 of them as we are all unique individuals.

2. Have you been told you are gorgeous today? There, I bet that put a smile on your face.

3. Will I listen to one of my 30,000 – 98 days worth of music on my Itunes, watch a Netflix documentary or read one of my favourite Brian Johnson’s Philosophers Notes, you have the ability to choose to do what makes you happy moment to moment, it is not in the hand of others.

4. Sorry for spilling it everywhere, with happiness comes awesomeness.

5. Mandy Hale is affectionately known as The Single Woman TM around the world. In just over two years, Mandy has garnered a massive Twitter following of a half a million people from across the globe. With a heart to inspire single women to live their best lives and to never, ever settle, Mandy cuts to the heart of the matter with her inspirational, straight-talking, witty, and often wildly humorous take on life and love.

6. Is it kosher to put another list in the middle of an existing list? I’m not sure but it’s a great list.

7. Lots of films on happiness are made with a magical happy ending. Methinks they have forgotten the main gist of life.

8. Too much thinking, that’s what my brain used to say to me during my mental health period. Luckily I discovered the work of Arion Light : The Activation School. This has allowed me to make this a possibility in my life.

9. Don’t be burgled by this, stay Happy.

10. Johny Cash agreed by covering this classic song : You are My Sunshine.

11. One of the world’s greatest philosophers, Unknown points out the pleasure of dancing in the rain : Too much fun, We’re so Happy.‘

12. Ben is an author and psychologist, he was widely known for his syndicated column, “The Marriage Clinic,” and for his many books, including I WILL, and I CAN.

He was active on the West Coast as a consulting psychologist and was much sought after as a lecturer throughout the states.

He’s best-known books are:
* Haste Rico Mientras Duermes/Become rich while you sleep (published by Editorial Sirio, Dec 1996)
* I Can (published by Wilshire Book Company, May 1985)
* I Will (Dec 1978)
* Grow Rich While You Sleep (Dec 1976)
* I Will The Art of Discovering Life’s Riches Gracefully (published by Prentice-Hall Inc, 1961)
* I Can! the Key to Life’s Golden Secrets (published by Cadillac Publishing Co. Jan 1955)

13. Austin O’Malley was brave enough to write a book entitled The Cure for Alcoholism, unfortunately for society it wasn’t a big seller. I’m not sure what he means here but I think it means to live a quiet life.

14. Cute quote photo of the blog, not sure I fully agree with this as I add service to happiness.

15. Henry David Thoreau (July 12, 1817 – May 6, 1862) was an American author, poet, philosopher, abolitionist, naturalist,tax resister, development critic, surveyor, and historian. A leading transcendentalist,Thoreau is best known for his book Walden, a reflection upon simple living in natural surroundings, and his essay Resistance to Civil Government (also known as Civil Disobedience), an argument for disobedience to an unjust state. I love the beauty of this quote, Thoreau certainly lived it out in his busy life.

As I meander down the annals of time, I find I have more not less to be happy in my life about, to travel the journey with a smile on my face.

Namaste until next time, my dear friends.

What’s that Aroma?

Posted on May 19, 2016 by Rod's World

Back into it one again, on the journey of living from my great purpose, living my life from contentment and Self Love, providing service to the world via the transformational work of Arion Light via his Activation School. We refer to it as our Essence, others refer to it as God, Consciousness, Gaia or many other names. Access to it is through the body not the mind, in moving all those learnt lessons that inhibit us from living a switched on life.

So how does the world hold Essence, Is it an aroma or a state of being, my 15 quotes look at both these areas in life, lets begin our journey:

1. Seeking out an essence to live your life the best you can may invite change in your life. The requirement to stop listening to what your mind tells you what to do comes to mind to let life flow freely.

2. One thing that helps you attain your essences in Life is good old persistence, in my case it is to do the daily meditations that come with the course.

3. “Live Today! Do not allow your spirit to be softened of your happiness to be limited by a day you cannot have back or a day that does not yet exist. But remember the next second in you life, you have to relate to this again.

4. O.K. I’ll go with this. I have made many of these in my life. Attimes I have not been very good at learning from them.

5. Remember you astronaut and Fairy Queen dream of childhood, what would you need to give up, to surrender to to return there. Time for an Essence song, Lucinda Williams, one of my favourite Americana artists : Essence, Live.

6.Gordon H. Hinckley was an American religious leader and author who served as the 15th President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from March 12, 1995 until his death. Considered a prophet, seer, and revelator by church members, Hinckley was the oldest person to preside over the church in its history.

7. Essence travels with companions: secrets,adventures, challenges and finally ecstatic joy.

8. Last night I lost my house keys and washed my Iphone, I know if I was not residing in the essence of contentment, my reaction would have been very different to making two logical phone calls to resolve it.

9. I attend a weekly meeting with Arion because he is my mentor, this week we got to the fact that I could live from the word Enough and see what the world created for me, staggering.

10. Bow down to the queen of Essence, Oprah Winfrey. She is the prime example of someone living from the essence of energy. Leona Lewis sings a perfectly titled tune: The Essence of Me.

11. This deeply relates to both self love and external love, the former allowing for the latter to flourish. Love yourself with all your might and essence.

12. This is so kooky I just had to include it.

13. This quote fulfils what is available when you live in pure essence, everything is a gift.

14. There are parts of me that have been numb for decades as I shut down possibilities with my life from decisions I made, often as a child, they are waking up. What parts of you are numb?

15. Aaw, the cute animal post for the day. The quote is powerful as well, Tejas Patel started Wisdom Quotes on Facebook after a lengthy spiritual journey. Here is the link to his website of extensive collection of powerful quotes : Wisdom Quotes 4U.

I am discovering that the path to my true essence does not lie in my head but my dear slightly misused body that is becoming freer and freer. I look forward to the journey.

Namaste until next Monday my dear friends.