If the animals could talk

While working outside on a beautiful spring day, I heard a bird singing a perfect triad in a minor key.  Although its song was beautiful, minor keys are associated with sadness and I wondered why the bird would feel sad.  Is it possible that the birds can feel feelings just as we do?  Are birds so highly intelligent that they recognize music is a universal language and use it to communicate feelings?  There are countless examples of intelligent behavior in the animal kingdom.  Our planet possesses a complex ecosystem and it is important to realize how our daily actions affect our fragile island home.  Imagine a world without birds or without other animal life forms.  If the animals could talk to us, what would they tell us about the damage we are causing their environment?


Personal photo

In the Losing

In the losing I realized I won ten times what I lost

It is better to lose than never to have tried

Than never to have felt

Than never to have learned

Than never to have loved

Photo: Gettysburg Eternal Light Memorial, courtesy Wikimedia Commons

Synchronicity

"Synchronicity is choreographed by a great, pervasive intelligence that lies at the heart of nature, and is manifest in each of us through intuitive knowledge." ~Deepak Chopra

Journey On (original lyric)

Being so stuck in yesterday

Can’t grow when living in the past

That only leads to broken dreams

So trap those woes don’t let them last

Don’t reside in yesterday

You choose to laugh or choose to cry

So don’t repeat bad history

For you may choose instead to fly

So take the chance and fly away

<chorus>

Journey on

Sing your song

Bring your loved ones along

And journey on

Today is proof that we’re alive

Amazing things are found right here

Enjoy the moment, feel the joy

Sing and dance and do not fear

Strive for the best in all that you do

And love the special ones you meet

Realize though that we can not stay

Dive in search on and don’t be meek

So take the chance and dive right in

Journey on...

Our future is tomorrow

For there reside our hopes and dreams

But don’t just live for tomorrow

For it is not the only means

For it is about the journey

Experience of which we talk

The learning and the growing

And those with whom we choose to walk

Don’t walk alone; don’t walk alone

Journey on....

For it’s not about the finish

The end of the path, the clearing

Awaits us all; why the rush

Enjoy the trip and our being

Enjoy the trip and our being

So journey on....

Journey on....

~GMB

Our Purpose

“The creation of wealth is certainly not to be despised, but in the long run the only human activities really worthwhile are the search for knowledge, and the creation of beauty. This is beyond argument, the only point of debate is which comes first.” ~Arthur C. Clarke

Photo credit: Wikimedia Commons

A Blessing in Disguise

Sometimes in our journey we encounter an obstacle that prevents us from achieving a goal or arriving at our desired destination.  We may attempt to remove the obstacle or navigate around it with an alternate plan; however in some cases, it is not possible to overcome the roadblock.  It may be best to accept the obstacle for what it is.  Perhaps we are on the wrong path and we need to try something else.  Perhaps we are going the wrong direction and need to turn around.  Perhaps the goal is not worth achieving in the first place.  Assessing the situation from both objective means and from the depth of our hearts may prove that the obstacle is indeed a blessing in disguise.

Photo credit: David Wyatt, Wikimedia Commons

Positivity

Positivity is the antidote for sadness, difficult situations, and life’s various challenges.  Positivity attracts success.  Positivity brings us what we need for self-fulfillment.  Positivity invites the right people into our lives.  Positivity leads to great works and service.  Positivity is the catalyst for happiness.

Photo: Jordan Pond, Acadia National Park

Stay Alert to the Signs

Often, in the search for something, we try too hard to find what is missing.  In focusing on the search, we fail to see the signs and fortuitous crossing of paths that guide us in the right direction.  When what is sought is not found, relax…and stay alert to the signs and messages.

Photo credit: Gerhard H. Lehner via Wikimedia Commons

What's Really Priceless

“In my life I have found two things of priceless worth - learning and loving. Nothing else - not fame, not power, not achievement for its own sake - can possible have the same lasting value. For when your life is over, if you can say 'I have learned' and 'I have loved,' you will also be able to say 'I have been happy.’” ~Arthur C. Clarke

Photo credit: NASA

The Urging of our Artistic

“Science urges us to occupy by our mind the immensity of the knowable world; our spiritual teacher enjoins us to comprehend by our soul the infinite spirit which is in the depth of the moving and changing facts of the world; the urging of our artistic.” ~Rabindranath Tagore

Photo courtesy of NASA

No Good Deed Goes Unrewarded

A true story:

Last year our family was preparing to head out on vacation.  The night before we left, I was up in my office gathering some things I was planning on taking with us.  I picked up our digital camera – it is one of the fairly inexpensive “point and click” Samsungs, but takes great pictures.  When walking out to put it in my bag, I saw my daughter’s bedroom door, which she had very tastefully adorned with a collage of her life, and spontaneously  took two pictures of it, figuring she would like them for Facebook or for her friends.  This turned out to be serendipitous…

The following day, on a Sunday, we traveled up to Maine to visit Acadia National Park.  On Monday my daughter and went on a hike to Sand Beach, the one swimmable ocean beach within the park.  It was a beautiful mild April day, but it was off-season and there were not many people in the park.  Upon arriving at the beach, there was no one there and we had the beach to ourselves.  There were a few people hiking on Great Head, a nearby peninsula, and there were some workers working on the path from the parking lot to the beach.  My daughter and I took our shoes off and waded around in the ice cold water.  I took some pictures of her and the empty beach.  Just above where the waves were washing up on shore, I noticed that someone had left their belongings.  All of a sudden, a large wave came in, so I ran over and moved their things further up the beach.  One of the items was an expensive single-lens reflex digital camera; if we had not been there, the camera would have been lost.  After hanging out on the beach a little while longer, we put our shoes back on and headed back.  At that point, there were a few other people walking around on the beach.

We get back to where we were staying and after settling down, I realized I had lost track of the camera.  I thought I had absent-mindedly put it down somewhere, but after looking around for a while, I gave up, hoping later that it would turn up.  Of course, it didn’t, so I came to the conclusion I had either left it on the beach or it dropped out of my pocket.  The next day, we went on the same hike, looking thoroughly along the trail as well as on the beach, failing to find the camera.  At that point, I believed that it had washed out to sea and, even if it didn’t, it had rained hard that morning and I likely dropped it well below the high-tide line, so the water would have ruined it.  I was disappointed – I had some good shots including some amazing sunset pictures from two nights ago, but all in all, it was not a big deal and I wasn’t going to let it spoil our vacation.  The irony in the whole affair was that I had saved someone else’s camera; then I manage to lose ours.  My wife and I had a chuckle over that and forgot about it.

Later that week, after we had returned home, my wife and I went out on a walk, at which time I told her I would pick up a new camera in the morning.  Upon arriving home, there is a message on the answering machine from a woman who lived in Bangor, ME.  She said that she found a camera on the rocks on Sand Beach last Monday, looked at the pictures in the hopes of finding something identifying the owner, apologized for snooping, and came to the conclusion that the camera belonged to my daughter.  She looked for my daughter on Google and found a matching picture of her which identified the town where we live.  Knowing our last name at that point, she called several people at random with the matching last name.  (there are a lot of people in our town that share our last name, none of whom are relatives)  She confessed she was looking for a needle in a haystack, but wanted to try to return my daughter’s camera.

At that point, all I could say was “wow…”

How did she find us?  It was the picture of my daughter’s door that I took the night before our vacation.  On the door, she had a card on there with her full name written in yellow highlighter.  I have no clue how the woman could have made that out on the picture – I could barely make it out by eye!  Out of curiosity, I looked for my daughter on Google.  The first positive hit was on the third page, which showed her name on a church schedule.  The next positive hit was an article in the local newspaper where she was featured as one of the students of the month at her school.  None of us realized that she was even in the newspaper!  It was clear at that point that the woman had gone to a considerable effort to find the owner of the camera.  She searched on Google until she found a hit that had a regional match; then she successfully found a confirming picture.  At that point, she looked up our last name in the phone book and patiently called several phone numbers hoping she would find us.  As it turned out, I was very lucky to have taken the photo of my daughter’s door.

I called the woman to arrange shipment of the camera.  She graciously refused my offer to cover the shipping.  We sent her a thank-you note with a nice gift for her good deed.

“The irony in the whole affair was that I had saved someone else’s camera; then I manage to lose ours.  My wife and I had a chuckle over that and forgot about it.”  I’m sure many people have heard that sarcastic saying "no good deed goes unpunished."  Well, I knew the people who left the camera too close to the water would have been grateful that I moved it, so I looked at that action as opposed to the irony of losing our camera.  Every good deed indeed reaps a reward, even if not visible to us.  Additionally, I received reassurance that there are very good people out there who will go far out of their way to do someone a favor and to do the right thing.

Photo credit: Wikimedia Commons

Harbor No Resentment

It is inevitable that we have one of those days where we wish we had never gotten out of bed.  Everything seems to go wrong, everyone around us either seems to be upset about something or is treating us poorly, and a storm of emotions threatens to overwhelm us.

One day I was having dinner with a business associate and we were talking about living a long, fulfilling, productive life.  He told me that the secret was to “harbor no resentment.”  This advice sparked many thoughts. We all have good and bad in our lives; the key is to remember to keep everything in balance and not let one bad day overwhelm all the good days.  Even in the bad, there are learning opportunities.  In harboring no resentment, it is possible to muster a smile or say a kind word that quenches someone’s anger.  In harboring no resentment, it is possible to handle poor treatment in a constructive and assertive fashion.

Harbor no resentment and a bad day will quickly pass.  In letting it go, positive things will come in its wake.


Photo: Acadia National Park

The Road Built in Hope

“It has never been, and never will be easy work! But the road that is built in hope is more pleasant to the traveler than the road built in despair, even though they both lead to the same destination.”  ~Marion Zimmer Bradley

Photo credit: Wikimedia Commons

Risk Must be Taken

“To love is to risk not being loved in return. To hope is to risk pain. To try is to risk failure, but risk must be taken because the greatest hazard in life is to risk nothing.” ~ Leo Buscaglia

A Walk in the Rain

One day I was feeling down and was having trouble getting myself motivated.  It was a gray day and light rain was falling, which was intensifying the feelings.  A chaos of thoughts was coursing through my mind and I was having trouble shutting off the inner dialog.  On impulse, I put on my jacket and went out on a walk.  Walking on a sunny day has always been an uplifting experience for me, but I wasn’t sure if a gray rainy day would work in the same way.  After a few minutes, I realized that there was something very different about walking in the rain – it was invigorating!  Uplifting!  Feeling better, I was able to better channel my thoughts and start to focus on what was really important.  As a result, what could have been a depressing, unproductive day became more positive and fruitful.  Anchoring on this experience, I often look forward to a rainy day to go on a walk or a run…  ~GMB


Photo credit: Ian Paterson

The Gift of Authenticity

We all go through life attempting to discover our authentic selves.  Self-discovery is one of the most valuable exercises we can undertake because we learn our true talents, desires, and life purpose.  As we learn who we are, it is often challenging to stay true to ourselves, succumbing to the pressures of society and the opinions of others in our lives.  Yet, the best gift we can give ourselves is the gift of authenticity.  Additionally, authenticity allows us to see others in their own light as opposed to our own expectations.  That is the greater gift, for in allowing ourselves to be fully authentic; we help others to be themselves in our presence and accelerate their own self-discovery.

Nature's Rebirth

“I think that no matter how old or infirm I may become, I will always plant a large garden in the spring.  Who can resist the feelings of hope and joy that one gets from participating in nature's rebirth?”  ~Edward Giobbi


Stock photo

Our Deeply Interconnected Nature

"At a fundamental level, as human beings, we are all the same; each one of us aspires to happiness and each one of us does not wish to suffer. This is why, whenever I have the opportunity, I try to draw people's attention to what as members of the human family we have in common and the deeply interconnected nature of our existence and welfare." ~Dalai Lama

Photo: World Flag, from www.worldflag.org

Live, Love, and Be

I spent most of my earlier years planning the perfect life and, despite all the planning it has been far from perfect.  Then it dawned on me that I could reach the end of my path and realize that I forgot to live.  So starting today, I will stop planning and start living.  For it is about living life to our fullest, loving everyone around us, and being all we can be.

Personal photo, Acadia National Park

Near Death Experiences: Understanding Death…and Life

"For any culture which is primarily concerned with meaning, the study of death - the only certainty that life holds for us - must be central, for an understanding of death is the key to liberation in life." ~Dr. Stanislav Grof

Life is perhaps the most amazing and mysterious phenomenon in the universe.  Inevitably, all living things must die, and what happens during and after the moment of death is more enigmatic than life itself.  The world’s major religions center on the concepts of life, death, and the afterlife.  Science is not able to directly study what happens after death as there is no way to collect data from those who have died; therefore it can only speculate on the matter based on what is known about the human brain and human physiology as well as more spiritual sources of information.  Some believe that we simply cease to exist when we die.  There are, however, people who have been clinically dead before being resuscitated back to life and many of those have returned to tell of an amazing spiritual experience.  These “near-death experiences,” or NDEs, may provide clues as to what happens during and after the moment of death.

The #1 The New York Times non-fiction bestseller Heaven is For Real features a story about Colton Burpo, a four-year old child who had an NDE while nearly dying of a burst appendix.  After Colton recovered from his illness, he shared a remarkable story about going to heaven, where he met his great-grandfather, Jesus, John the Baptist, the Biblical figure Samson, and even a sister who was miscarried and never born.  [1]  The detail in his story was so vivid, especially coming from a four-year old, that it is difficult to believe the story was contrived.  Given that Colton’s NDE was a decidedly Christian experience, it is easy to see how many would be skeptical of his story, especially from the standpoint of non-Christians.

In 1982, Mellen-Thomas Benedict experienced an NDE while clinically dead for over 1 ½ hours.  [2]  Benedict, who was suffering from terminal cancer, considered himself neither religious nor spiritual.  One morning, he knew that it was time and instructed his caretaker not to disturb his body for six hours.  He fell asleep and then was standing up, fully aware, and capable of seeing through walls even though his body was still lying in bed.  He then saw a most beautiful light and, knowing that he would die if he entered the light, asked if he could talk to it first.  His request was honored and he interacted with the entity, which resembled at different times Jesus, Buddha, and other spiritual images.  He learned that the Light would approach the soul based on their spiritual understanding; for instance, a Buddhist would perceive the Light as Buddha.  He also discovered that all humans are connected as one being.  He then went on a tour of the Universe, finding out that there was life on other planets.  After that, he entered the pre-Big Bang “void,” where he felt “at One with Absolute Life and Consciousness” and learned that “we are immortal beings, part of a natural living system that recycles itself endlessly.”  He felt an intense love throughout the entire experience.  Returning to his body and reawakening, he found his caretaker sobbing after finding him dead 30 minutes before.  Three months later, his cancer was found to be completely healed.

In Anita Moorjani's NDE, [3] she was suffering from terminal Lymphoma and was told she had 36 hours or less to live.  Passing in and out of consciousness, her spirit left her body and she heard her husband and her doctors talking 40 feet down the hallway despite lying in bed with the door closed.  The conversation was confirmed by her amazed husband.  She then entered the spiritual realm and felt an overwhelming sense of love.  At this point, she had a life review, learning her life purpose, why she had cancer, and the purposes her family and friends played in her life as well as in past lives.  She noted “the clarity and understanding I obtained in this state is almost indescribable…”   She found out that everything was made of energy and that illness was due to energy imbalances.  She learned that humans are capable of amazing accomplishments and if she chose to return to life, she was to share this with others.  She had the choice to return to life, and if she did, she would be completely cured.  Choosing to live, she woke up just at the time the doctors rushed into her room to tell her family that her organs were still functioning, despite their earlier belief that they had shut down.  She recovered rapidly much to the amazement of her doctors and upon later testing, she was found to be cancer-free.

Dr. Kenneth Ring and Dr. Raymond Moody, a leading NDE researcher and author of Life after Life, conducted interviews with a broad spectrum of people that experienced NDEs and found that there were many common themes: [4,5]

(1)  During an NDE, people may experience a strange buzzing, or ringing noise while having a sense of being dead.

(2)  They undergo an out-of-body experience.  Even if in intense pain, as soon as they leave the body, the pain vanishes and they feel at peace.

(3)  Then they move through a tunnel-like dark toward an amazing bright light.  Upon reaching the light, they felt intense, compassionate love.  They may meet departed friends and relatives.

(5)  They meet an incredible being of light, the source of that love.  At this point, the being goes through a life review with the dying person, gives the person the option of living or dying, and ends with the message that love is the most important aspect of life. 

(6)  They often rise rapidly into the heavens, sometimes seeing things in outer space and the universe.

(7)  Often reluctant to return, when choosing life, they were touched by the experience for the rest of their lives, losing their fear of death.  They developed a greater sense of caring for others and became more spiritual.  Their remaining lives were a testament to the experience.

(8)  The experience was not specific to religious belief, age, race, gender, and other social factors.  Many NDEs were experienced by atheists.  The Being of Light speaks to each individual in a manner that they understand whatever their native language, religion, and spiritual understanding. 

(9)  Dr. Ring ruled out drugs, anesthesia, and medication as factors in NDEs and concluded that they were too coherent to be hallucinations.

Skeptics, however, dismiss these types of stories and put forward their own theories.  [6]  Dr. Susan Blackmore has proposed the “Dying Brain Theory, suggesting that the NDE is purely due to how the brain shuts down at death, citing as her evidence the dramatic similarity of the stories.  Some scientists suggest that NDE’s are elaborate hallucinations caused by the secretion of endorphins or another hormone.  For instance, the anesthetic ketamine and the psychotic drug LSD are capable of producing some aspects of the NDE.  Yet, it seems too coincidental that hallucinations would all be so similar to one another.  Another group of scientists believe in the Temporal Lobe Theory, where the stress of the act of dying stimulates this lobe.  They use as evidence that electrical stimulation of the temporal lobe causes some elements of NDEs to occur.  However, these lobe stimulations also cause fear, sadness, and loneliness, which is opposite of the love experienced in an NDE.  Dr.  Ring counters these arguments by noting the consistency of the NDE stories, suggesting that they would be difficult to explain just through how the brain works.  Jean Ritchie writes: “If there is no afterlife, and NDEs are just the last throw of a fevered and dying brain, why does it bother?  If everything including the soul and personality is going to dust and ashes, why does the brain lay on this last wonderful floor show for people near-death, or facing actual death…?”  [7]

Based on NDE research and the stories of those who returned to life, something profound and intensely spiritual happens just before and at the moment of death.  After the NDE, through meditation, Benedict was able to experience the light and despite his non-religious background, was certain that he met God, learning that “our hearts are the wiser part of ourselves.”  [8]  The Being of Light encounter and the feeling of immense love strongly suggest a universal force behind not only humanity, but all life forms in the Universe.  Through the experience, we learn that we are spiritual creatures inhabiting living bodies and, after life, return to the Light from where we originated.  An amazing picture of the Universe emerges from these stories, and life has a purposeful existence in furthering its evolution.  Humanity, with its great gifts of intelligence and industry, is in a prime position to achieve its spiritual destiny.  If we support each other, fill the world with love, and protect the fragile environment of our planet, that destiny will be fulfilled.

References

1.         http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/12/books/heaven-is-for-real-is-publishing-phenomenon.html

2.         http://www.weboflove.org/neardeathexperience

3.         http://www.wanttoknow.info/inspiration/near_death_story_inspiring

4.         http://www.near-death.com/experiences/experts04.html

5.         http://www.near-death.com/experiences/experts03.html

6.         http://www.near-death.com/experiences/experts01.html

7.         See 6.

8.         See 2.

Photo: Quasar, courtesy of NASA.

Being True to Ourselves is Our Compass

Fear is often a roadblock to personal growth, especially fear of change and fear of the unknown.  Reflection on how we may be true to ourselves will help alleviate the fear and make that first step easier to take.  Being true to ourselves is our life compass.

Photo credit: Denelson83 - Wikimedia: creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en

New Dawn, Fresh Opportunity

Every new dawn provides a fresh opportunity to forgive, to make amends, to heal, to find happiness, to acquire new insight, and to perform great service.

Photo credit: Mike DelGaudio via Wikimedia

Help Oneself...Help Others

“When you become detached mentally from yourself and concentrate on helping other people with their difficulties, you will be able to cope with your own more effectively. Somehow, the act of self-giving is a personal power-releasing factor.”  ~Norman Vincent Peale

Photo Credit: University of Illinois Alumni Association 

Advancing Views

“In science it often happens that scientists say, 'You know that's a really good argument; my position is mistaken,' and then they would actually change their minds and you never hear that old view from them again. They really do it. It doesn't happen as often as it should, because scientists are human and change is sometimes painful. But it happens every day. I cannot recall the last time something like that happened in politics or religion.” ~Carl Sagan

Photo:  An infrared picture of the Milky Way galaxy.  Courtesy NASA