Aretha Franklin ...

Here is my favorite quote by this great lady:

"Soul is something creative, something active.  Soul is honesty.  I sing to people about what matters.  I sing to people who accept it like it is.  There are tears when it's sad and smiles when it's happy.  It seems simple to me, but to some, feelings take courage". 

Amen.  

A writing by Pema Chodron

This profound writing by Pema Chodron, a wonderful and wise Buddhist nun and teacher. 

What Is Freedom --
But it's not impermanence per se, or even knowing we're going to die, that is the cause of our suffering, the Buddha taught. Rather, it's our resistance to the fundamental uncertainty of our situation. Our discomfort arises from all of our efforts to put ground under our feet, to realize our dream of constant okayness. When we resist change, it's called suffering. But when we can completely let go and not struggle against it, when we can embrace the groundlessness of our situation and relax into its dynamic quality, that's called enlightenment, or awakening, to our true nature, to our fundamental goodness. Another word for this is freedom -- freedom from struggling against the fundamental ambiguity of being human.

       

         ~Pema Chödrön  

Thank you, Ike, for sending me this post.

Ode To Harmony--Much More Than A Song

The harmony of the spheres and as above, so below.
Hear my Ode To Harmony lyric set to music on the song page of my website at www.claralandau.com. Copyright 2010 Clara Landau.

Spirit, spirit, spirit sings. Clears my mind of noisy things.
Gone now, clashings, Fears can cease.
Welcome, welcome ... sweet, sweet peace.

With compassion I will try, To ease the pain of those who cry.
When some wrongness, harm I see,
I won't turn away, uncaringly.

Make it right, I'll try my best, Til it's right I cannot rest.
Make it right, I'll do my best,
In the doing, I am blest.

Love can blossom like a flower ... Fill us with an awesome power!

Freedom, freedom, freedom rings! Spirit, spirit, spirit sings!
Wondrous harmonies release ...
Each and all to sweet, sweet peace.

My vision: A world in which the people of all races, faiths, and demographics and the animals of all species (flying, crawling, running, walking, swimming, slithering, galloping, hopping), all the flora and fauna of Nature and Creation ... will live according to the divine truism that we are all part of each other, connected at a cellular level. In the beauty of that light, we would/could/will find that love, compassion, cooperation, and respect can sustain and protect us (all).

Who Knoo?

That I might get a new vehicle?

That we’d have two straight weeks of rain in east Tennessee?

That the economy would start to improve?

That Chrysler would file for bankruptcy?

That I'd receive Victoria’s Secret mauve, lacey underwear for Mother’s Day?

That I'd receive a bottle of (immunity-boosting) food-grade H202 (hydrogen peroxide) for Mother’s Day?

That I'd love sci-fi TV series "Moonlight" and its handsome starring vampire?

That I would be pet-sitting a 19-year-old adorable little dog?

The 21 Polo Ponies --

Bless those dear, innocent animals. I've looked in the mainstream news for updates; the absence is very noticeable. Media sources, last Sunday, promised that conclusive test results would be available by week's end. Well, I guess that's tomorrow. I remember thinking, at the time, that a week gives a time and strategy buffer to whoever is responsible for poisoning the horses. A web search today found a report that says no cause of death has been determined, although blood was in the horses' lungs. Further, the report said that a Florida pharmacy made a mistake in the horses' medication. It also said that no ingredients were made public. My first question is: Was this really medication (if so, for what?) or was it a steroid or pain-numbing drug? My second question is: Why isn't this story still "news"? I hope the outcome will not be squelched or convoluted in a cover-up. Accountability is needed. Truth is needed.

Please Stick To The Real Issues ...

What I want to hear from presidential candidates and Congress is an emphasis on:

The economy and a sincere, sound plan to fix it;

Universal healthcare for all U.S. citizens, to replace our fragmented, non-system;

Getting out of the business of war (yes, I said "business");

Ethics (non-religious), truth, and humanitarianism.

Those are the things that matter to me and, I believe, to the survival of our country.

Our Status As Consumers --

Hellbender Press is a pro-environmental journal, published here in East Tennessee; it is a project of The Foundation For Global Sustainability, located in Knoxville. The current issue (Vol. 10 Issue 2) has a lively and truly relevant article which assesses the role-switching we "customers" have undergone, while being transformed (by the corporate world) into "consumers".

Written by John Lynn, who lives in California, the article is entitled "Endless Waffles". Mr. Lynn very artfully and effectively connects the title with his important message, the bottom line of which is that the customer-turned-consumer is now actually "the Consumed". This is a timely and compelling piece of writing. To subscribe to Hellbenders or obtain a copy, please contact Hellbender Press, Box 1101, Knoxville, TN 37901; (865) 524-4771. Locally, you can pick up a free copy at Carpe Librum (my favorite bookstore) or a number of other regional locations.

Ethanol -- And Our Fuel Ailments

Gasoline mileage declines with the use of ethanol-mix gasolines, with the decline being proportionate to the extent of the mix. The currently common mix is 10%, which someone has calculated to bring a loss of about a mile per gallon, compared to gasoline without ethanol. That loss will increase though, as more ethanol is put into the equation. The biggest ethanol threat, though, is beginning to be seen in car repair shops, where parts of engines are requiring major work to de-gunk their fuel intakes. I’m thankful I’ve got an old truck that has a carburetor; not that carburetors can’t become clogged, but fuel injectors clog more easily and require more work to fix.

Aside from our vehicles, there are lawn mowers, weed whackers and other gasoline-driven tools that may choke on the ethanol mix.

There is a lot of discussion going on that questions the feasibility and wisdom of turning food farms and other lands into corn fields for ethanol production. One of the immediate results is the twin problem of a rise in food prices and reduced food production. Also, the new excuse for the clearing of trees – and the accompanying impact on air quality, along with the aesthetic loss – are and will increasingly be a serious result of the push to grow enough ethanol-producing crops to fuel the gazillion cars that are on the road.

I see a major change in our lifestyles on the horizon. Industry is going to need to be honest with us soon. Or, maybe not. The truth will speak for itself.

Cartoons Of Note ...

I don’t know how widely published the Bizarro cartoon is; however, it does appear in the Sunday issue of the daily newspaper here in Knoxville. I read it because it really isn’t bizarre, as the name implies; rather, it often puts a type of unique, artistic focus on topics that would be hard to bring up in discussion. Well, that surely is one of the main purposes of the art forms ... I know, from my own experience, it is characteristic of music to express truths, even socially suppressed and/or repressed truths, that the artist feels need airing. The cartoonist, Dan Piraro, really is both clever and wise. This past Sunday’s strip shows a peaceful garden scene with a man and a woman and animals of several different species, against a peaceful tapestry of trees and foliage. From a cloud in the sky, the voice of God is heard speaking to the two people and it instructs them to eat fruit and to learn how to multiply and it explains that, in so doing, they would be healthy, would not negatively impact the planet with animal farming methods that would cause pollution or pain, and they would, by virtue of their math multiplying skills, know enough not to populate the earth with more people than the planet could sustain. In the next frame, the couple realizes that they should have written down the instructions ... they then sum up what they remember as ‘be fruitful and multiply’.

I’ve been aware for some time that no politician or industry wants to talk about overpopulation, (Al Gore mentions it briefly in his excellent book, "An Inconvenient Truth") even though our species has passed the 6-1/2 billion mark and is growing exponentially. Several years ago, a minister at a church I attended asked the congregation to submit their questions (on little pieces of paper) around which he would later prepare his answers and build a future kind of smorgasbord sermon. I remember carefully wording a question about the topic of human population growth and its impact on earth’s resources and the other species with which we share the planet. He later told me that he could not include my question because the topic is too controversial; I did notice, though, that there were several other questions in the smorgasbord sermon that were about very serious issues. Anyway, kudos to Mr Piraro, for his courage and artistry. The strip’s website URL is http://www.bizarro.com/.

Another comic strip I admire is entitled "Mutts". It is animal-friendly and always warm and fuzzy, even when conveying an important humanitarian message. The two main characters are a cutely-drawn cat and dog named Earl and Mooch; often included are their pals. They and their friends shine light on the concept of kindness to animals, adopting homeless animals, getting pets spayed or neutered, and taking good care of the earth that is home to all. Patrick McDonnell is the thoughtful and gifted cartoonist and the website URL is http://www.muttscomics.com./.