Going within to serve that which is without

 How amazing to realize it's been so long since my last blog entry. I've taken the last couple of days off to sleep and fast, something I haven't done in a while. It feels really good. It gives me a chance to release some stress and give my body a break, and for my mind to travel and dream. I encounter lots of emotions, memories, visions of the past and the present, and to ask for visions of a possible future that is of humanity as we evolve towards our fullest potential. I'm definitely biased in favor of a future that in my mind is positive, so I envision humanity as kinder and more conscious, and harmonious with the rest of life on earth.

The strife, the cruelty, the suffering of life forms; all of what is happening now with humanity is so sad to me. I know it's not the only way, but it is what we're doing, and wishing it would change is not enough. We humans can only make this a better world by changing ourselves.

There are so many life-affirming harmonious, beautiful directions that humans take. I just interviewed two women who wrote a beautiful gardening book that people can learn from and enjoy. Grow food and build community with. That's happening all over the world. People are rescuing forests, and lakes, and the animals, and each other. There is so much of the goodness that we love. The horrible stuff is by no means all that humans are doing, but there's so much of it.

I really don't know what it will take for us to turn this whole thing in a healthier direction. Maybe we're doing it and it's just taking a while, or maybe we're really going in the wrong directions and we can't see it. I don't know. I know that every day I do my best to be in service to my intentions of healing and encouraging and affirming those beautiful, loving parts of humanity. That's what I can do. Maybe there's something I'm missing that I could be, should be doing. If there is, I hope it is revealed to me soon.

My message to you, to anyone reading this, is that I hope you take the love and give out the love, and that your days are also in service to your most loving intentions. I hope to that the suffering, the sorrow, the cruelty, all that stuff, becomes less and less a part of your life, less and less a part of our world.

The Making of The Prophet

I did this project a few years ago.  It came out really well. The person who made it happen is Dennis Lind-Beery.  I met him because I was looking for carpets for a dirt floor in an Earth Ship and he had some really amazing handmade Indonesian hemp carpets that he was allergic to. We became friends and at some point he told me he'd been wanting to produce an audio version of The Prophet by Kahlil Gibran, would I be interested in reading the part? Dennis is a Musician and Recording Engineer so he had the tools to do the recording. 

Dennis lived about an hour's drive, and I went to his studio every week for nearly 3 years to read.  Dennis worked on the studio acoustics and made a really great setup with zero noise. Dennis also directed me.  I would read and he'd give me notes.  After nearly three years we did a reading and recording that we were both happy with.  

I had the master files from Dennis and was tasked with the editing.  We also needed a second voice for the part of The Priestess/Narrator.  I did the edit and a couple of people read for the part but were not right for it, so it sat for about 8 years.  I don't remember how I got the idea for Starhawk to read the part, but it was the perfect choice.  By now Dennis had moved back to Alaska and we were out of touch.  I contacted him and he said "Run with it!" so I asked Starhawk, and she agreed, I booked recording time at the legendary Hyde Street Studios in San Francisco. Starhawk did the reading in one sitting! Her voice is perfect for the part and she brings her Priestess self to the part. That gave me the material needed to finish the piece.  

Those files sat for another couple of years, and then I decided to publish the audiobook. Alternatives made a beautiful website with original artwork commissioned from Marie Davis and through Lantern Audio it was published.

It has barely sold at all, which is too bad.  I had no PR budget, and proper promotion is costly. I was hoping it'd be a vehicle to bring funds to the folks who worked on the project and also some non-profits I admire.  So it goes.  But The Prophet is out there, it's a good piece of work, and perhaps more people will discover it over time.

Jimmy Carter and Robert Redford

 Thinking about lots of things, but I was recently reminded that the flags were NOT flown at half mast for Jimmy Carter, so I am honoring him here.  And Robert Redford. Both cut from similar cloth in terms of being altruistic, believing in service, and humility.

Jimmy Carter was human, he never claimed to be perfect, and he wasn't.  My beef with him was over nuclear power, he was in favor of it and as President supported the development of nuclear power. Other than that, as US Presidents go, he was a mensch.  He brokered Peace in the Middle East.  That has since been sabotaged and now Israel/Palestine is the site of genocide, but Carter did good work in that regard. He understood that we needed to care for the Earth, and put solar panels on The White House. Reagan subsequently took them down.  He was married to one woman and from all accounts they were very devoted to each other. None of their offspring are sleazy drug addicts. They lived modestly.  The Carter's spent decades building houses for people who otherwise would never have a house. 

Redford, arguably the epitome of the handsome movie star, was so much more, he was a Person.  He had values and stood by them. He was wise enough not to be ruined by his stardom.  He defended the Earth, he encouraged creativity in others. He was not scandalous. He was an artist. I have never heard a bad word said about him.

Both of these men behaved responsibly in that they responded to the challenges they faced, and they both chose to undergo significant challenges on behalf of the greater good. They both endeavored to leave the world better than they found it. Alas, not everyone in such positions has such aspirations.  

Life and art

It is said that "Life imitates art" and also that "Art imitates life."  Classic chicken & egg question, but the answer is...it doesn't matter which came first, we respond to/are affected by the gestalt.

Case in point; as protests in Los Angeles are now being met by 300+ National Guard, which means more violence and further erosion of Democracy, we are fed bread and circus. So I looked at the circus.

The movies coming out this summer are pretty much all violent, murderous, rife with humans being cruel to other humans in many contexts, from the personal to the political.

What was the last movie made in Hollywood about people having transformational personal psychological spiritual (not religious) experiences?

We humans love story. Telling, hearing, reading, seeing, story is part of most people's lives in one way or another. Stories are vehicles for communicating values, beliefs, history, and aspirations. A story can enlighten, doom, inspire, discourage. We are affected by the stories we ingest.

The old saw about "violent games do not encourage violence" even though brief commercials do encourage behavior, often trotted out when the violence in media is pointed out, is so tired, so I am preemptively saying this...the idea that humans are not affected by what they see and hear, by what's on the screen, especially in the US where average screen time keeps increasing, is idiocy. More people ingesting more media, more and more of which is violent and designed to stimulate fear and anger, affects the collective psyche. Prove me wrong.

To the media producers who produce all this violent content, please stop. Start producing material that encourages people to grow, not to become murderous psychopaths. If you have a conscience then you must value a healthy society over your own profits.  If that is NOT the case, you are a psychopath and should stop producing any content and go into therapy ASAP. If you'd rather be part of the problem than part of the solution, something is wrong with you.