Wisdom From a Fortune Cookie - Stuff Happens

"Stuff happens. It is your response that counts."

Things happen to us everyday. Some things are great, but for some reason we hold back our excitement so that others think we didn't really care or it didn't matter to us. Other times, bad things happen and we go right away to the deepest, darkest place we can imagine.
I am guilty of this at times, as I am sure many of you are. When those good things happen, what holds us back from rejoicing in the moment? Are we afraid to be happy? Are we conditioned to believe that we are unworthy of happiness?
How many of us fall into that martyrdom feeling when the bad things happen? What, am I the only one with their hand raised? I tell you, the past year has been rough. long hours at the job, car died and had to get a new one when I couldn't afford it, and other minor setbacks, that became major because of my perception. That is the key, perception.
It is easy to fall into the trap when negative things happen on a somewhat frequent basis. When they do, even the smallest of things can get blown out of proportion. Before we know it, we find ourselves trapped in a paradigm of martyrdom. Once in it, even the good things are treated like we are waiting for the shoe to drop. We can't enjoy the good moments in our lives because we keep looking for that bad thing to come.
Well, it is time for us to change our perspective. Or rather, start putting things in their proper perspective. We need to change the paradigm of "Whoa is me". Only in doing this will we get to the point of life is great! So, how do we go about doing that?
Well, the first thing is to start taking stock of these things. One of the biggest measures when something goes wrong? Is anyone going to die? I think for most of us, the answer is no. Okay, so it isn't life critical, so can't be all that bad. Next measure is to look back over our life to similar situations and how they played out? Yes, we had a set back, but what happened next? Did we overcome it and move on? Hey, you are here and so am I, so I guess the answer is yes.
I look back over my life and I can see so many times where my life just plain sucked. Yet, here I sit in a nice modest home with a large yard so I can have my gardens and even room for an orchard. We fenced it all in so the dogs can just go out and run around on almost an acre of land. Yes, my car died, but now I have one that gets me almost thirty miles per gallon, so between the bike and the car, I am saving gas. We managed to get a pellet stove before the money runs out, so we can save on electricity. I will have my gardens again. I do miss growing things.
So I have a lot of positive going on in my life, but I have been holding back my excitement, because I am waiting for the other shoe to drop. The thing is, that shoe may never be there and it might even be just a sandal. So I have wasted all this time not enjoying what I have.
So it is time to stop letting stuff happen and always responding negatively. Rather than have things take control of me, I will let things happen and wash over me and on by. Life is like a river. We can either fight the flow, or go with it. It is time to once again embrace life and put things back in their proper perspective. How will you respond?
My heart to your heart, one heart, one spirit.

The Demise of National Holidays

Got paged early in the morning for a problem at work. I logged in to clear things up and while waiting for a job to finish, I figured I would check FaceBook. Surprise, surprise, Kohl's had posted about their three day sale. They were opening up on New Years Day. Yeah, some surprise given that stores seem to open every day now except for Christmas and Kmart tried to do that a few years back. Well, I just had to respond and I wrote on Kohl's page that they should be closed and allow families to be together. Boy, did that ignite a firestorm. There were many comments, some as sedate as "No one is forcing those employees to work at Kohls. I'll bet they're glad to have a job" and "Edward, you need to act a little bit more adult. In retail, nobody is FORCED to work unless they are management. Usually when management is forced to work, it is because their employees ELECTED NOT to work." and "Seriously people, if retail stores didn't stay open then they wouldn't be able to pay thier employees. If they didn't pay thier employees, then the employees would be out of a job. Therefore bringing the economy back down... Happy New Year to you all too... wow".
Then there were the more serious ones "If you don't like corporate greed, then you don't like capitalism, and then you must hate "FREE" Enterprise. If that's the case then you fit right in with Obama's Socialist agenda. Stalin and Lenin are smiling somewhere right now." and the personal attack, "Get a clue Edward White. How old are you, 12? Do you know how many stores -- even NON-CORPORATE ONES that are open on New Years' Eve. To make you look even more foolish, you're a "fan" of a corporate retailer. Yeah, you're starting off the year looking like a fool."

Okay, the last two are some serious points. If you don't like stores being open on holidays then you are a commie pinko and twelve year old. Hmmm. Let's look first at the holidays. There are seven National Holidays, President's Day, Memorial Day, 4th of July, Labor Day, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years. I know New Years is the beginning of the order, but we usually clump it with Christmas because they are within a week. Out of these seven, the only one we don't open stores on is Christmas. Though I remember a big stink a number of years back when Kmart announced they were going to open Christmas day. They quickly backed down from that.
Seven days out of 365. Of course, if you live in Massachusetts and work for the government then you get Patriots Day too, though no one else does. Interesting how government employees get all the holidays off while many of the rest of us have to work. Our taxes paying their salary so they can get the day off. But that is another issue.

Okay, so now we know the holidays and I would like to respond to some of the points raised by the people who responded to my original post.

First off, the huge jump to me being a socialist or communist because I think that we ALL should have National Holidays off. What kind of sense does that make? How am I anti-capitalism for simply stating that a holiday is a holiday and should be a day off for all people. Okay, unfortunately, health care, fire and police, aka emergency services would have to be staffed, but why, oh why, do retail stores have to be open? The idea that if they aren't they can't pay their employees, they economy will suffer, etc, is pure garbage. Many stores did just fine back in the days of "blue laws" and the economy was robust. Stores were closed not only on holidays but also on Sundays. Families could get together on holidays and celebrate together. If taking seven days off a year and just closing everything down is going to bring down the economy, then we are in more dire trouble than has ever been reported. It would also stand as proof that capitalism doesn't work.

Now, let's look at the remark that people aren't forced to work. I beg to differ. Many know that it is implied that if you do not work, then your hours will get cut, or they will find a reason to let you go. Granted some do work, because they need the money and put aside family in order to get money to survive. The thing is, why do they have to be there in the first place. Well, like this person said, "alot of us prefer to shop new year's day rather than sit and watch football all day. my daughters and i usually go shopping while the guys watch the games. guess you could call it family tradition lol." So basically, people are bored and have nothing better to do, so rather than get together with family and friends they want to go shopping. So they demand the stores be open, so stores push to be open and then compel their workers to come in.

So all those people who did get the day off, decide that they want to spend it shopping so that others can't have the day off. The real question is why? Why do we feel the need to go shopping all the time? This year, New Years fell on a Friday and many of the people who responded to my remarks said something akin to what this last quote said. Many of them were going shopping because they had nothing better to do. I had asked, tomorrow is Saturday, you can't wait one day? Nope, sales are on, got to go! Have we bought so deeply into the material world that we are now subjugated by it and are compelled to shop every single day? I would like all those people who felt they just had to shop, to stop when you are in that check-out line and look that person in the face. That is another human being that YOU are forcing to work because you are addicted to material goods and can't go one day without shopping.

So have we become more like India with a class system with those who work retail as the lowest class? All these other people get the day off and because they are bored, they force all the people who work retail to leave their families, some of whom would have liked to spend time with their families.

Seven days folks. Seven days out of 365. Are you really that addicted to shopping? You can't take seven days off so that people in retail can actually spend the holidays with their families? As to the person above who said that they didn't want to sit and watch a football game so all the women go shopping, hey, you tell me you don't have any imagination to think of anything else to do? How about playing a game? Playing cards? Doing arts and crafts? Gardening in the summer? Volunteering somewhere so that someone who does want to be with their family can.

As far as me being a commie socialist pinko, well if that equates to me putting my family before a corporate entity, then yup, guilty as charged. If stores are going to go under because of being closed for these seven days, then maybe those corporate execs could kick in some of their big paychecks and bonuses to save the economy. When we are reading of corporate handouts in order to save the companies and at the same time they continue to pay out their big bonuses, because hey, they were contracted to do so, I think closing retail stores for seven days a year is not the problem with the economy.

I make a motion that a law be passed that returns holidays to the people. Close all retail outlets on National holidays, those seven days. If that cannot be done, then do away with holidays all together and make all those people who had the day off and chose to force others to work, have to go in to work too. Maybe if we did that, and people started losing their holidays, it would mean more to them.

Just had to get that off my chest.
My heart to your heart, one heart, one spirit.

Year of Balance - Circles

And I say the sacred hoop of my people was one of the many hoops that made one circle, wide as daylight and as starlight, and in the center grew one mighty flowering tree to shelter all the children of one mother and one father.
Black Elk


All life is a circle. The moon is round and circles the earth, which is round and circles the sun. A birds builds its nest in a circle. Water going down the drain goes in a circle, not a square, or a triangle, though that would be interesting to see. When you throw a pebble in a placid pond, (got to love alliteration), it causes ripples that go outward.

We are the pebbles in the pond. The things we say and do can have a ripple affect touching and affecting others. If we are not in balance, we can take on the negative ripples from others and have them affect us as well. Case in point. My daughter was all excited when she was with me last week. That Friday night felt an air of excitement and expectation, not only because of the holiday, but because my daughter was heading up to New Hampshire to stay with her boyfriend and his family for a few days. However, the very next morning found her fit to be tied. She stomped around the house slamming things. That air of excitement was gone and a dark pall was over the house. As it turned out, her mother had called her and told her that she was calling the boyfriends mother and setting ground rules for her visit. They were not to be left alone. They couldn't go snowmobiling and various other rules. My daughter was fit to be tied. I tried to find out what was going on and got a curt answer. So, I got caught up in it and responded in kind.
"Well, I guess we are going to have to put up with a pissy attitude all day!". Fortunately, age and wisdom intervened and I realized that I was getting caught up in it. I told her that we would talk about this when I took her to work. It was good for her to get it out. I asked her why she was wasting all of this energy for something that has not happened yet. I explained to her how I used to do the same thing. I would leave work for the three hour ride to pick them up expecting a confrontation with their mother over some silly thing and would be ranting and raving in the car all the way down. Ninety percent of the time, I never saw their mother and their was no conflict, but I had gotten all worked up and it affected my mood with them for the night. I told her to just get back thinking about being with him. Forget what her mother said and just deal with whatever comes, that the most important thing was that she was going to be with him. Her mood changed, my mood changed, and we were both the better for it.
Now, the effects we have on others isn't always negative. Sometimes those ripples can be very amazing. Just this past Christmas, I believe in was in Pennsylvania, there was a diner that experienced the ripples of goodness. As a man went up to the counter to pay his tab, he looked back over the people eating and told the waitress to give him another tables bill also. He paid both and went out. The waitress thought, what a wonderful thing to do for someone you don't even know. Well, the person whose tab he paid came up to pay their bill and was told that it was paid for by the man who just left. Instead of just saying, gee great, and walking out, that person then turned and said, I will pay theirs, and paid it and walked out. This went on for most of the day. The waitress was almost in tears seeing the generosity of this one person spreading through all of these others. When she was interviewed, she told the reporter that never, in all her years of waitressing, had she ever experienced such a thing.
The Lakota have a saying, Mitakuye Oyasin, "We are all related" or "All My Relations". Quantum Physics tells us that we are all connected. Our mood, our actions, can have a ripple affect that touches many people. Those people can touch others, and they in turn others. We can have a positive or negative affect on many people in this way. So it is very important that we find balance for ourselves so that we can absorb some of the negative without passing that on, and put forth positive influences. In most cases, all it takes is for us to take note of how we are acting and learn to live in the moment.
How many moments do we miss because we got caught up in someone else's drama, or worrying about something that has not happened yet. The latter being my major weakness. Try something with me. Take a dime and trace around it. Now take your pen or pencil and think back through your life at all the positive moments. Keep going until you can't think of anymore. If you run out of space inside your dime, pull out a quarter and trace a larger circle around the dime. Continue on until you just can't think of anymore. Now, look at all those dots. Think hard about how many of those moments there are and how many you missed because you were upset, angry, or worrying about something else. How many of them did you miss when you didn't have to? Maybe if we become more aware that we are in a moment, we can purposefully put aside the worry, anger, or other negative feeling and take advantage of the moment. Be "in the moment" and enjoy it for what it is. Maybe if we can break the paradigm of worry and anger and start taking up more and more of these moments, or even starting to make them, we can increase the positive energy that we put out. In this way, the ripples that emanate from our pebbles have a positive affect on people. I will try over the coming year to be positive and upbeat in my writings. Sorry, as Yoda said, "There is no try, there is only do and not do". I will over the coming year, work to be more positive and upbeat. I will put forth a more positive attitude and break the paradigm of worry and anger that has plagued me. So I guess I will just have to laugh and sing more.
My heart to your heart, one heart, one spirit.

Year of Balance - Regaining Balance in Troubled Times

Every year I write at the end of the year to introduce a theme for the new year. In the past, there was the Year of Unity and the Year of Hope. These served as an anchor to my writings for a continued theme through the year. These were accompanied by the occasional Wisdom From a Fortune Cookie. I had enjoyed writing these as besides hopefully inspiring others, they helped me to reflect on my own journey and things I might do to reconnect with others and try to bring unity in this world. This past year, though, was spent mostly working. A major project occupied most of my time throughout the year leaving me little time for my own spiritual journey or writing. Most of the time, I was just plain exhausted and couldn't even think let alone write. This preoccupation with work left me spiritually devoid and sometimes even depressed. My life was mostly my work, which left me unbalanced.
What is balance? Balance is finding that equilibrium between physical, spiritual, emotional, and learning. Some use a medicine wheel symbol to remind themselves to keep this balance. Each direction, East, South, West and North, represent a different facet. When we put too much emphasis in any of these "directions", we become imbalanced. This manifests itself in many forms from simple uneasiness to deep depression. Outwardly, the frustrations felt can manifest themselves as anger, withdrawal and even mental illness.
I watched myself as I slowly withdrew, fighting to maintain a sense of spirituality. I saw myself getting increasingly angry and snapping at times. The added stress of trying to find a new home, trying to sell ours, and then when finally sold, moving. We have a great house now with a large yard that we fenced in so that the dogs can run free in the back yard. Yeah, dogs, we added a brother for Brandy so that she would have a playmate. So we have a beautiful yard, great dogs, and nice neighbors. We are in the country and I have a little pine grove I can retreat to and space for a couple of gardens for herbs and veggies. Yet, I was so caught up in work, I have had little time to enjoy it all.
How many of us go through things like this. How many of us find ourselves more heavily involved in one of the directions forsaking the others? Do we spend so much time in spiritual pursuits that we fail ourselves physically? Do we spend so much of our time trying to accumulate all the knowledge and wisdom of the world, that we forget to live in it? Do we get so wrapped up in the drama of our life that we miss the simplest of wisdoms that may help us get through?
So what can we do to find that balance. First, we must remind ourselves that we must live in balance. Create a symbol to reflect that, which we may put up to remind ourselves each day. When you look at this symbol, be sure to speak each "direction". For example, east is spiritual. Remind yourself to take time during the day to be in touch with your spiritual self whatever path your follow. Look towards the next, say south and emotional. Emotion is not just anger, but also joy, happiness, and love. Looking towards the west and physical, we have to remind ourselves to make sure we eat right, get exercise, and take care of our physical self. Finally moving to the north and intellectual pursuits, knowledge and wisdom. We must always nurture our minds by always seeking knowledge. In acquiring knowledge and combining that with our life experiences we gain wisdom. Over time that collection of knowledge and wisdom is what we will use as elders to help those who follow on their journeys.
So, where do I go from here? Well, for one, I need to stop playing games online. Caught up in the games on Facebook and Tagged, I have used it to escape for the past year. I have managed to write a few times, but very infrequent. So with the demands of the job easing just a bit, and the new year on the horizon, I am going to play for one more week and use the new year as a jumping point forward. Come the new year, I will start reading more. I have a whole stack of books to go through. I had been devouring two books at a time, but this year, I think if I read four books I was lucky. I plan on getting out and hiking a bit more to take care of my physical self. I also plan on eating better if I can. Which means, no more working through lunch. I will be trying to have a piece of fruit or two a day. Probably the most important is to take more time with my family. I have been so disconnected from them while my mind was engrossed in work, that I had put them second. So I will be trying to spend more quality time with them.
If I find that work's demands just won't allow any of this, then maybe it is time to move on. As I learned after putting work ahead of all else only to find they were considering outsourcing it all, they do not have my best interests at heart. I will give it a few months and see how things go. If things don't change, then it is time.
So here's to 2010. I pray for all of us that it is a year that turns things around to a brighter future. Remember, we have the ability to change our perspective. We can see the negative in everything or we can see the positive. There is always something positive even if just a lesson to be learned. The past year or so has been a great struggle. However, I am going to work to change my perspective and regain that balance in my life. "Leaders don't force people to follow - they invite them on a journey" (Charles S. Lauer) I invite you to join me on my journey. Seek each day to find balance and harmony. Then go a step further and extend that out into the world around you. Maybe when we relearn to bring balance and harmony into our own lives, we will echo that into our external world and all we come in contact with.
My heart to your heart, one heart, one spirit.

I wish to also share with you a prayer that I used to say every day. It helped me to keep in balance and I hope to return to it. You may use it if you like to fashion your own daily spiritual routines and prayers if you like.

White Wolf's Prayer

Creator, I thank you for my life and journey. I pray my heart will be open for your teachings and guidance. I pray that I will be open to do your will and be of service to the people with an open heart. I pray my heart open for your guidance and wisdom, my heart to your heart, one heart, one spirit.
Sky Father, I give thanks to you. I thank you for the air I breathe. I thank you for the healing waters of rain and snow. I thank you for Grandfather Sun and Grandmother Moon and the Star people. I pray we will realize what we are doing to the skies and will work to bring healing to you and in turn ourselves. I pray my heart open for your guidance and wisdom, my heart to your heart, one heart, one spirit.
Earth Mother, I give thanks to you. I thank you for the healing herbs and the herbs to flavor the bounty which you provide. I give thanks for the trees that filter our air. The grasses, the flowers, the fruit, the vegatables and all that grows. I give thanks for all the beings that give of their life so that we may live. I pray that we will come to realize the damage that we are doing to you and work to bring healing to your and ourselves. I pray my heart open for your guidance and wisdom, my heart to your heart, one heart, one spirit.
Spirit of the East, I give thanks to you. I thank you for your spiritual guidance. Help me to walk in beauty, to be a spiritual person, and to help others along their path. I open my heart to you and to the other spirits. Let my heart be open so as to hear the spirits and heed their guidance. Help me to be in strong in spirit to help others. I pray my heart open for your guidance and wisdom, my heart, to your heart, one heart, one spirit.
Spirit of the South, I give thanks to you. I thank you for the emotions that help me to live life. Help me to temper my anger with wisdom. Help me to find joy in the simplest of things. Help me to open my heart to others and to share the joy and love of life with all who come near. I pray my heart open for your guidance and wisdom, my heart, to your heart, one heart, one spirit.
Spirit of the West, I give thanks to you. I thank you for the strength you give me. Help me to be strong for the people. Help me to be strong in all I do. Help me to be strong of spirit, of wisdom, of body, of soul. Help me have the strength of the thunder beings and the mighty buffalo so that I may be strong for the people. I pray my heart open for your guidance and wisdom, my heart to your heart, one heart, one spirit.
Spirit of the North, I give thanks to you. I thank you for the wisdom you bring. Help me to be wise for the people so that I may help others along their path. Guide me in all I do so that I may do things in a good way with wisdom and knowledge. Help me to be the teacher and to return the gifts of knowledge and wisdom shared with me. I pray my heart open for your guidance and your wisdom, my heart to your heart, one heart, one spirit.
And so we return to the east and the circle is complete. I will remember always that life is a circle and will honor this.
To all the spirits who have come before, I give thanks. I thank you for the times you have carried me, for the times you have held me up, for the times you have showed the way. I give thanks for the wisdom that you have shared with me. I give thanks when you have only pointed the way. I pray my heart will always be open to hear your words, to feel your spirit. I pray my heart open for your guidance and wisdom, my heart to your heart, one heart, one spirit.
To all the spirits who have yet to come. Who may come into my life for a moment, a minute, a day, a month, a year, or a lifetime, I give thanks to you. I thank you for helping me on my path, for teaching me, for helping me to grow so that I may serve the people well. I pray that my heart will always be open to your guidance and wisdom. I pray my heart open for your guidance and wisdom, my heart to your heart, one heart, one spirit.
To the Sacred White Buffalo Calf, I give thanks. I pray you strength and safety on your journey. I pray as a symbol of peace and harmony that you will touch many hearts. I pray that those hearts will bloom and spread love to other hearts until we have created a new world, the fifth world of peace and harmony. I pray my heart open to you, my heart, to your heart, one heart, one spirit.
Sacred Turtle, you whose spirit called me to the desert. I give thanks. I thank you for the honor to have gone to the desert to perform ceremony. I am humbled for I am not worthy of this honor. I give thanks for your welcoming me into your heart. I pray you safety and strength on your journey. I pray that you will touch many hearts and those hearts will open and blossom and spread love across the land. You are the symbol of unity. You are the symbol of peace. Let your spirit touch many hearts. I pray my heart open for your guidance and wisdom, my heart to your heart, one heart, one spirit. Aho.
Mitakuye Oyasin Pilamaya, Wado, Thank You We Are All Related

Wisdom From a Fortune Cookie - Aim High!

Been going to Oriental Pearl lately, but they don't give out fortune cookies for some reason. So tonight, we went back to Orchid of Hawaii and actually had some pretty good Szechuan Shrimp. Best of all, fortune cookies. So I have a new stash to tap for inspiration. So what was today's fortune? it was interesting as I had spent four years in the Air Force.

"Aim High, Time Flies"

Sound familiar Lindsey? Kind of timely on this. I had just been talking to my daughter about school, college, and life in general. i told her, Aim High. That was the Air Force motto for a number of years. The point i was trying to make is that she needed to push herself just beyond where she believed her limits were. if she was going to get the good jobs, get the good colleges, she needed to excel in school now. Otherwise, she may end up having to struggle through life as I have.

We all can take a lesson in this. We can spend our lives just getting by, or we can challenge ourselves to move beyond the limitations. We can do this just an inch at a time. One of the things that has kept me in my job all these years is that I try to keep learning. In computers, you have to. Technology changes about every six months or so. So you are always having to move beyond your comfort zone and learn new things.

While my daughter may think it is a drag to have to study and press herself to do well in school, the second part of the cookie reminds us that time does fly and before she knows it, she will be off and on her own. The lessons she is learning now, both in school and from what we tell her we hope will help her have an easier life than I did. So she has to remind herself that time does fly and soon she will be out of high school and hopefully on to college.

As for myself, well, I do try to Aim High. I keep trying to learn. I keep trying to excel in all aspects of my life. I may stumble, fall down, and even fail at times. What makes me successful is that I keep getting up and moving on. During the struggling time, I remind myself that time does fly. I look back at all I have faced and overcome and know that the things that I face at this time in my life will just be a memory a few years from now. All a matter of perspective when you think about it. I keep inching towards that retirement age and hoping that I can make it. Time flies. Soon, I will be sitting by the fire in my backyard telling stories about my life. Grandchildren at my feet. Really, Grampa, you saved the President? Oh, um, of course, I was great hero. Oh well, maybe not stories like that.

Aim High. Yes, to be able to get through the next ten years or so and keep my integrity intact. I just need to keep true to myself, keep balance in my life, and keep dreaming of a time when i don't have to get up at 5am and fight traffic for an hour or more to get to work. Of course, if they keep moving the bloody retirement age out, I'll be 90 before I can retire.

And to my old Air Force buddies, Aim High! Or as my squadron motto in basic said, "Lead, Follow, or get out of the way!"

Okay, this really fries me. Now, I am not a big baseball fan, so whether Jason Bay stays or goes is of no matter. What bothers me most is the importance we place on guys like this. America's pasttime? Not hardly. How many American families can afford to go see these whiny spoiled brats play a game? I know I can't. The last time I was at Fenway, Wayde Boggs was playing third. I had seats right there, but he wasn't playing, nor were any of the other "stars" because they made it into the playoffs so they were off resting. Instead we got Pawtucket level players. i am just glad that I didn't spend money for the tickets, they were given to me, for just this reason. The person who bought them was upset because he paid so much and was going to only get to see the second string.

So what has me speaking up? Well, it was announced that Jason Bay rejected a four year, sixty million dollar offer. Okay, now how many of you will see one million in four years? Yeah, I didn't think so. These guys play a game. A game that many of us played in school yards across America. The insanity of it is that they get paid millions and that is before endorsements, to play a game. Bottom line, that is it, they are doing the same bloody thing we did as kids in the school yard. Granted they are better at it, well marginally at times. Yet, we are all struggling. We are worried about our jobs, if we haven't all ready been outsourced and put out of our homes. Yet, these guys think that they deserve tens of millions of dollars to play a game! It is a game! These whiny, spoiled brat, egotistical bums, believe that they are so great. For sixty million, I expect Jason Bay to bat a thousand. I expect no balls to make it over the fence because for sixty million he should be able to snag them out of the air like the six million dollar man. Heck, he was ten times less money and could run faster than Bay, jump higher than Bay, and probably when it comes to hitting it out of the park, well, I think he could hit Cleveland from Fenway. So what makes Jason Bay think he is worth more than the cop on the street or the firefighter, or even that serviceman who is facing bullets and mines every day?

That is the crux of it isn't it? We have put so much emphasis on these spoiled brats while we fail to pay people who are putting their lives on the line. Many of our service people live near the poverty line. They are just getting by, yet they are out there on the front line watching their brothers and sisters drop by enemy bullets and land mines. They watch in horror as the man next to them gets blown apart, arm there, leg over there. The horrors they have to endure for a meager salary. What of that fireman who goes into the burning building to rescue the family pet because all life is precious. What of that cop who takes a bullet while trying to stop a drug dealer from selling dope to your kids?

In our town, they had a special election to vote on a Prop 2 1/2 override. There is a cap on raising taxes in the state unless the voters vote an override. Because the state was in a crunch, they cut the amount they sent back to cities and towns, so towns everywhere were facing shortfalls. Well, many people have been laid off during this economic downturn. A company that had taken tax payer money to come to MA and start up a solar panel manufacturing facility with the promises of jobs for MA residents, just announced recently they were cutting those jobs and moving manufacturing to China. More jobs gone, more on the bread line. So the people said enough, we have to struggle, we can't continue to pay when we aren't getting anything. So the town had to lay off fireman, police, minimize town hall hours, and other cuts including schools. So for sixty million, maybe Jason can come here and fill in for some of those policemen lost because we can't afford to pay them.

We need to start reviewing our priorities in life. Is a man who plays a bloody game worth more than that cop, the fireman, the serviceman, the teacher? What I don't get is when our paychecks have been frozen, when our jobs have been shifted overseas, when many are struggling to put food on the table or pay the healthcare mafia, why, why, why, do we continue to support these spoiled brats!

If you like baseball and live in New England, stop supporting the spoiled brats up in Fenway. Go to family friendly venues like Pawtucket. Go see the Portland Sea Dogs, the Lowell Spinners, or some other A,AA,AAA league where the ticket prices are still reasonable and snacks can be had at a decent price. Stop paying these spoiled brats!

Oh, and Jason, go play for the Yankees, you fit in with all of those Prima Donas.

2012 - End of Time or a New Beginning?

There is a lot of hoopla over this new film, 2012. Once again, Hollywood has latched on to an idea and twisted it so they can try to capitalize on it. i have not seen the film and can only base my feelings about it from the commercials. I don't plan on seeing it. I don't have a lot of disposable cash at the moment. From what I have seen of it, we are all doomed.
Many people are unaware of the significance of 2012. So let me back track just a moment. The date December 21st, 2012, is supposed to be a significant date based on the Mayan calendar. Now this date is suspect because it changes depending on what scholar you talk to. The basic principal is this. The Mayans, who were renowned astronomers created a very precise calendar that spans a time period of about 5200 years. The current 5200 year cycle is slowly coming to a close. Now I won't get into an interpretive lesson on tuns, baktuns, nights, days, etc, that make up this calendar. I will leave that to you to investigate for yourself should you find yourself interested.
Now there are two distinct camps, or more depending on how you want to look at it. The first camp is the ones that probably inspired the movie, the doomsday squad. They have bought into this idea that the end of the Mayan calendar signifies the end of the world. Makes for great movies but is far from the truth. The second camp are the ones who see it as a time of renewal and new beginnings. i suppose a smaller third camp would be those who say it is simply the end of their calendar much as December 31st is the end of the Gregorian Calendar. December 31st has never meant that the world was going to end, why should December 21st, 2012? Of course it is a significant date in that it is the end of the Mayan Calendar of 5200 years, but think back to December 31st, 1999. How may doomsayers came out saying THAT would be the end of the world? All I remember was how much a PIA it was from a computer programming point of view as many programs were written with just a two digit date and 00 would suddenly be before 99, so that would mess up a bunch of calculations. (I had all ready built calculations into my programs to account for that and added fifty more years life to my programs. lol)
So in the end, is 2012 going to be a big bust as 2000? Well, let me throw some things out there. First, the calendar that many of us know, based on the supposed year that Jesus was born. (Some theological scholars believe that the date was actually four years earlier which would make it 2013 now. See, we made it through it. ) Well we survived that supposed Apocalypse fairly well though some would argue the point. The calendar though has gone through a number of shifts and transitions until it arrived at the current form. So our dates may not be as accurate as we believe. However, the Mayan Calendar is set in stone, literally, it was carved in stone. Our place on that calendar is mostly educated guesses, though I think there are still 'time keepers' in the jungles of South America. I read from one scholar who believes that our perception of where we are in the calendar is off and whatever changes predicted will actually happen in 2011. So there is a lot up for speculation.
Okay, back to the calendar. You remember that I mentioned that it is broken up into days, nights, tuns, baktuns, etc. Well, just as the Mayans built their temples in a pyramidal shape, so is the time of the calendar. While the calendar is a stone wheel, the time can be seen as a pyramid. Each level, time is more compressed. When we get to that final level, time is really accelerated and compressed. Do you feel like time is just flying by and you never have enough time to do the things you need to do? Yet, if you look at the base of this pyramid, time seems so expanded.
Let's leave the Maya for a moment and look at another view of time. It has been a while since I read of this so forgive me if I am not spot on with the terms or time periods. I offer it here only for comparison as it bears a striking similarity to the Mayan calendars perspective of time. There is another view which I believe is called the Golden Age. If I remember correctly, it also spoke of 5200 year cycles. Now here is the interesting part. To envision this, think of a globe. Most of us have seen a tornado, so we will use that image to describe the vortex coming from the top to the center of the globe. Going from the center to the bottom is an upside down tornado. Where the two tips meet is the end time, beginning time, the time of 2012 if you will. Now time starts from the point and swirling out to the bottom and half way up the outer side. This is the Golden Age. It is said to be a time of great enlightenment. A time of peace and harmony for all beings. As you progress up the side, you go into the silver age. It's duration is half that of the golden age. So in other words, time compresses. As you get to the top of the globe, you are in the bronze age. Time is getting very compressed now and beginning to accelerate as you head in to the vortex at the top. As you go through the vortex, you enter into the iron age where time is extremely compressed and things just seem to be spinning out of control. It is said, that is where we are now. We are heading to that point of time where we will hit the junction where the two points meet and then spurt through to the other side, like new born beginning a new life. From what I have heard and read from Mayan elders in South America, that is what will happen at the end of the Mayan calendar. We will be reborn into a new age, a new beginning.
Now there are many indigenous cultures that speak of these "rebirths". Some call them worlds. Depending on the culture we may be entering the fourth world, or the fifth world. If their stories have truth in them, then we are going to go through a rough time for a while and then be reborn into this new world. This new world will be one of peace, harmony, and balance for all of creation. Some stories have said that the past worlds have met their end by one of the elements. Fire, earth, water, or air. There are many flood stories, including that of Noah and the ark. What if the last world ended in a flood? Maybe the one before was fire, which wiped out the dinosaurs. We can only speculate until someone can create a time machine and we can go back and get the real truths.
Now every good legend or story has just enough truth in it to make it believable. I have read many prophesies about the coming times in my studies. One thing that most of the same is that we are coming to a choice point. We as individuals will have to make a choice. We can continue on the path we are currently on and destroy everything in our wake in order to garner material goods. Or, we can choose the way of right relations and learn to walk in harmony and balance. If what I read of the Hopi Bear Clan prophesy is true, though there is a lot of misinformation on the Internet, then we are coming to that juncture. Those who choose the path of right relations and return to a spiritual path, a path of harmony, balance, and respect for all life, including the earth itself, will be spared. Those who continue on the path of destruction that we are currently on, will be destroyed. Hmmm, maybe there is an Apocalypse coming after all.
There is an saying attributed as a Chinese curse, "May you live in interesting times". Well, I think they have been very interesting and soon to get more interesting yet. I pray for all that we do make it through 2012. I pray that the doomsayers are wrong and those with visions of a new world of peace, balance and harmony for all of creation are spot on. That is a world I could enjoy living in.
Watching the calendar
your brother in spirit
My heart to your heart, one heart, one spirit
White Wolf