RANDOM THOUGHTS AND LESSONS FOR TODAY by Katherine Ari

RANDOM THOUGHTS AND LESSONS FOR TODAY

Today is Wednesday, October 28, 2009 and I have not blogged since Oct. 15. The reason is Life got in the way – We had some pond improvement work. It was a challenging job and the customer seemed to be expecting us to rip him off or not do what we promised. By the time we finished, Doug and I had worked for little more than minimum wage. Something we usually find to be rewarding work became tiresome and dreaded. But it is my policy to look for the good in everything and for what was learned.

I learned that no matter how much someone likes to go on verbal word that you need to have things in writing and with lots of details. No matter how much you need some work and income, make sure there is a written lists of exactly what is expected. Inform customers of your company policies and maybe why you have them. Every time we have cut corners to please the client, we have regretted it. People get confused. They think they have said everything that is on their mind but that is not always the case. If you have it in writing, then they can look over the list and add on BEFORE you begin. If they want more, write it all down and just what is involved in their requests.

There is no doubt that as we “mature” our brains get filled up. I won’t say Senior Moments but that we just have minds full of lots of facts and figures. Sometimes things get pushed to the back of the pile. The next thing you know you are doing a lot of things that are not included in the bid. We don’t like to add on to estimates and I usually estimate a little high to account for unexpected issues. When you work with nature, it is really hard to predict just how long it will take to do something. People who are used to working with manmade materials and supplies don’t always understand that part of a job.

It all made us realize that we need a better idea about how to produce income. I want to work one on one with people seeking to improve their lives. I love people and seeing them unfold in their own empowerment. I have a wonderful office in our garden and no matter how much Doug complains about all the work, he really enjoys using his restlessness or hyperactivity to work on our garden. It is NOT about getting money but working doing the things I love most.

I also love writing – not just these blogs but writing my stories. I love painting. While we were finishing the pond job, the local Cultural Arts Center representative called to ask the Dannels family to produce an art show sometime next year, maybe April. Kyler, my son, and Doug, my husband, were in their National Juried Show last year and Kyler won the trustee award. My other children and my mother-in-law are also artists. We will put our best work together to show in the spring. Kyler also encourages his dad to put together his sculpture in bodies of work to present to galleries in Santa Fe. It is time for Doug Dannels to do what he really loves most – claim his incredible art and let the world see it.

I know we did a good job this week. I know that we did more than what we were paid for and that is okay. The customer seemed to be expecting to get ripped off and didn’t trust us but we did everything we thought he wanted with limited materials. It’s all good!

The Faith of Tim Tebow by Katherine Ari

Readers who follow football, especially college teams, will know the name Tim Tebow. Mr. Tebow is a senior at University of Florida. Two seasons ago, Tim won the Heisman Trophy and almost won it again last year. Watching him, he didn’t think Sam Bradford of Oklahoma would beat him and watching him this fall season, he wants to win it again this year.

Tim is also on the number one college football team in the nation and it looks pretty definite that his team will be in the BCS or national title competition again this year. Personally, I think that it was the University of Tebow that beat Oklahoma in the BCS the first of this year – not the University of Florida. Tim leads the team and pushes himself and the team hard to play smart football and defeat all of their competition. It’s working again this season.

I am an alumnus of the University of Oklahoma and Sam Bradford. I hate to see Florida win – over and over. Sam won the Heisman last time and people think he is a bit arrogant but it goes with the trophy and being that good. No one but other winners can tell them how to handle that much fame. So I try to dislike Tim Tebow. The harder I try, the harder it is to find fault in him. He is strong and a good player in all respects. He is a leader on the team and according to the media, off the field too.

Tim is the son of a missionary family. Tim gets a lot of press traveling with his religious family and ministering to people in foreign places. It isn’t that I want to follow his religion. I don’t. It isn’t that I believe that he is favored by God because of his faith. It is his faith, his absolute belief system that carries him all the way.

I don’t believe in a God in the sky or a white bearded man that judges and picks favorites. I believe that the Universal Force that is called God acts impersonally. Whatever we put in our minds is what we get. All thought is creative because it goes into the mind of God that is in all of us. Tim Tebow believes so strongly in his religious beliefs without doubt that he creates that which is in his mind. I will be totally surprised if he does NOT win the Heisman again this year. He had a concussion two weeks ago and everyone prayed for his swift recovery. He believes in those prayers and those prayers got him ready to play again last Saturday.

He does not inspire me to change religions. He DOES inspire me to believe in what I want to create in my life. He believes so strongly, so completely with no doubt, in his beliefs. There are no doubts. He creates exactly what he believes in. We all have that ability. We can all show that kind of faith. There is no place for doubt because if we think doubt, that is what we will create. I strive to have the absolute faith and belief that creates what I want in life. “Tim, you are a fine example of faith helping you to create exactly what you want. It isn’t that I have to believe the same dogma you believe.” It is that I need to believe in my own beliefs with that same amount of unfaltering conviction. I declare that I put into my mind what I want to create and nothing else. And that is what Tim teaches me and everyone else.

Racism - Jesus was NOT a White Man

Racism – Jesus wasn’t a White Man
October 14, 2009
Katherine Ari

I grew up in a traditional Baptist home in a small town in Oklahoma. For the most part, the Choctaws and other native people were respected but people of African descent were treated unfairly and a few other words much worse.

We sang, “Jesus loves the little children of the world. Red and yellow, Black and white, they are precious in His Sight. Jesus loves the little children of the world.” I believed that and when my love extended to the African American fellow students, my mother and dad got upset. I felt I knew Jesus, that I had a personal relationship with Jesus. I believed then and I believe now that if he walked among us he would be loving to everyone.

The idea of being unkind and hating someone because they have skin that is a different color or different hair or different anything is absurd to me. To hate someone whose ancestors came from a different country is even more ridiculous because Americans ALL came from different countries and continents.

The fact that this intolerance is carried on in churches, in people who act all religious, righteous, and pious while practicing racism or other intolerance, like towards gays, toward anyone different with different beliefs is incomprehensible. Jesus would not do that. A friend once said you could take the Bible out of many churches and they wouldn’t know it was gone. Jesus would not preach hatred and bigotry. Jesus would love everyone. Jesus is humble and kind. If someone walked in and said he was Jesus and then acted angry and hateful, he would be kicked out of the church as a pretender.

I do not believe I am better than anyone else. It seems so many fundamental groups and individuals need someone to hate, someone to judge, someone they think is not as good as them.

No one has my skin color, my hair, eyes, lips, and genetics. All humans have blood, bones, muscles, and similar parts but there is one thing we all have in common. Everyone wants love. Loves takes many forms. We desire it. We seek it. When we feel it, we know it. Real Love is the same for everyone – even atheist. They may not believe in a man-God out in the sky, but they believe in Love. This One Power, Love, is God. And if Jesus is the son of Love and we are the sons and daughters of Love, then we must Love. If you hate, you are not living God or Jesus in your life. People who feel insecure in their own lives look for someone to put down. “Well, at least I’m smarter or prettier or something better than that person, that kind of person.” If Jesus were standing before me right now, he would love me. He would love my neighbors, black or white or Mexican or Gay – everyone. “What would Jesus do?” What would Love do? - Love. Remember, if you are really honest, Jesus was not a White Man. If you turn your back on dark skin, you may be turning away from him.

Find Your Own Ceremonies

Today is October 12, officially Columbus Day, a holiday for banks and the mail. Columbus did NOT discover this country as he never set foot on North America and how can you discover a country populated by over 20 million people? But it sedgeways into another topic - that of Native Americans or the people that met the boats and the Spirituality of their lives.

In the news this weekend, there was tragic news of 2 people dying an a pseudo Native American sweat lodge ceremony. No one should ever die in any kind of sweat lodge ceremony. Ego, personality, carelessness, irresponsibility, sexism, and other such human errors can enter any sweat lodge whether it is an elder or a non-native pouring the water. I was not there and so I am not going to get into judgments, but I do KNOW that something was out of balance.

This ceremony to me is about going into a rebirth situation and the experience is between the individual and Spirit. It is for Spiritual healing of the person's soul. It is the job of the leader to pour water AND pay attention to everyone in the lodge. If he or she wants to sweat for their own "stuff" they should not be leading. When the leader is totally turning it over to Spirit, Spirit or God will tell them that someone is having a hard time and needs assistance - and I have been in many lodges and every leader I have had ALWAYS knows. Their outside ego may have been ass holes or a mess but inside they turned it over to Spirit.

Many ideas float around about what the rules are. One time, a woman came to a lodge of another elder I know and pitched a fit because the lodge wasn't built out of willow. But in Georgia, most of the red willow has died out because of some kind of disease caused by pollution. My own understanding of the ceremonies was that the people of a particular area developed it in tune with their particular circumstances. That's why, the people in this area did not do above ground sweat lodge ceremonies. The inipi hut made of red willow was not called for here. Spirit did not lead them to do that. When the lodge is built that way it is a Western lodge used mostly on reservations.

There were ceremonies that developed over time and done the same way but they had to be flexible because sometimes Spirit would say - do it this way this time. As a way to express this, three summers ago, we were hit by a drought. We had water shortages and had to adapt to the situation. Today, we were awakened all night to rain, rain, and more rain to an area that was hit by a flood in September. Rain dance ceremonies were more than successful - too much so. The elders would not continue to do a rain dance for more rain if it was flooding because they always did a rain dance.

Several years ago, we wanted to build a lodge on some land owned by a friend of ours. We wanted to do it Cherokee style and put it in the ground. There were books out then about a couple of celebrities that built houses out of discarded car tires. They packed them inside with clay and then covered them with adobe mud. The days came when we were about to create our own style of lodge - down in the earth and someone dumped a whole load of tires along the side of the road. We don't have the same kind of clay as New Mexico or Arizona, but we have Georgia red clay. Doug collected the tires and put them in a circle around the chosen area and as he dug the red clay he packed it inside the tires and then outside - adobe style.

We listened to the land and the other world spirit helpers that showed up to help us. We built it totally unique to the needs of the land around us. It actually was the second one we built there. The first we did Western style and had to use poplar saplings. It didn't work very well. But the one in the ground that was three feet high at the highest point with an almost flat roof was powerful. You crawled on your knees into it like a birth canal. Over the time we used it, we had several water pourers. No one ever died or got burnt but one woman insisted there was a scorpion in there that stung her. I kind of think that the difference of the lodge for that land instead of a traditional red willow Western lodge was too much for her. But the leader was a Native American elder and he did not have any complaints about our lodge.

I have gone the route of teachers and I honor and respect their ceremony. It isn't that I do not believe in the old ways. What I believe in is listening to Spirit and I believe in helping others listens to their own inner guide. As some people find their most rewarding Spiritual food a traditional Christian church, some people find God in other ways. One friend sat in my private garden and said to her it was such a Spiritual experience that it was a cleansing ceremony. "This is a lodge!" She said. So I believe in praying and listening to Spirit and letting Spirit tell me what ceremony to use. Maybe it will be the same as the indigenous people because Spirit is Spirit - all the same Power and maybe it will be different. A Cherokee man by the name of Chief Two Trees said being Native American is believing that God is in everything and being in tune with nature.
There are many "elders" and traditionalist that would disagree with that. They expect their students and followers to follow their rules. But that's like saying that there is only one set of rules for worshiping God and anyone that does not believe THAT set of rules will go to hell.

Elder Jeni Pearlsong told me if any elder pressured me to take peyote to speak firmly and say that is not my truth. Every elder that poured water in a sweat lodge I was in did it differently. That does not mean that anyone was wrong. But a lodge where people died and others were sent to the hospital - that was beyond personal differences. Mistakes were made.
But I wasn't there and it is not my place to lay judgment on what happened. I am sorry for all involved.

I spend time daily within my own ceremonies. Many times the wild life in my area talk to me. I listen to their calls and sometimes my personal Spirit guides take me into ceremony. I have not been led to a sweat ceremony for many years now. I believe it is because I spend so much time in ceremony in my own way. I do highly encourage anyone that considers going into a sweat ceremony to ask many questions. It is a good idea to learn with an elder or two first, one that HAS been taught by Native American tribe elders that really, REALLY knows what a sweat lodge is about. It isn't about seeing how much heat you can take - if that is what you want go to the gym to the sauna. No one should ever go into any kind of ceremony without knowing what it is about. If they can't tell you, maybe they don't know. And the participant should know what is in integrity. You go in to have a personal connection with the earth and Spirit but it is really important to have that before hand to know when it is safe and when it is not, when the water pourer knows what they are doing. Beware of water pourers looking for followers and supporters. Their motives may be less than altruistic.

And here is another caution. Just because you have sweated with someone before does not mean that today, if it is a sweat lodge day, that person IS in integrity. Ask questions or check out your inner feelings and pay attention to those inner red flags. I am not going to call a name but here is why I say this. There was an elder who poured water in our earth lodge. He was in integrity and did a powerful lodge. A few years later I heard that the local Native leaders had to put him into the VA hospital or else have him prosecuted for molesting young girls in his lodges and giving greenhorn wannabes peyote. His own personal ego issues had interfered with the integrity he had when he lead our lodge. He has not been heard of around here since.

Find your own cermonies you do in your own private home. Don't let anyone make them wrong. Believe in yourself but it is okay to learn from others. One man can say oh no, do it this way - my way. The next will tell you something different. You have your own understanding of say a dream and what it means to you. You feel good about it. Then that elder or man that wants you to follow them comes along and says No, this is what it means. If you learn to Trust your own inner guide you probably won't even discuss it with a teacher or guru.

And that is what is on my mind today.

Wrinkles are Magnificent

Wrinkles Are Magnificent by Katherine Ari, September 30, 2009

It’s still so unbelievable Michael Jackson died even though I feel I understand why. He hated aging – I hear that – but when you don’t get to the point of accepting where you are now and loving where you are, you just don’t live. The media does more to foster eating disorders and premature deaths than people realize. Aging gracefully – rather than beautifully – is the catch phrase. Wrinkles, age spots, gray hair or no hair, and weight redistribution are considered unattractive. Certainly, they are rather annoying. But an old tree or a huge old rock are magnificent because they have endured. The bigger the tree the older it is. It is honored. Why then can’t humans be honored for their ability to endure as they age rather than shunned and put down. Our priorities are mixed up. And as we age, we get caught up in the imbalance as well. We get discouraged and frustrated that our bodies, our faces, and abilities are not what they were when we were young. No one else seems to believe we have more now than in the past.

The old oak is stronger and gives more to the environment. We do too. We are the “rocks” of society. We have stories to tell. Our age characteristics are like the layers of bark on a tree or sediment on a rock. The whole of who we are and what we know lies inside. A tree or a big ancient rock has much to tell us if we listen. So too do the elder humans. But the trees stand in their place, quietly storing more layers, more stories, more history, more wisdom. If someone comes along and asks them, they will share – if the seeker listens with their heart. And we humans will share also. We know things. As my husband Doug Dannels said in a video about his sculptures of old people’s faces, “The wrinkles are marks of our experiences.” They are good things. They are beautiful.

If I were standing near MJ when he said aging sign were ugly, I would have taken him outside to my own garden. “Look at this oak tree and look at this small pecan seedling. Which is more beautiful, more magnificent, more important for the earth?” Would anyone choose the seedling? No, I think not. Everything in nature is connected. Everything has a season and increases in importance as age increases. Humans should become more valuable as they age – not less valuable.

I suppose a stag deer that lives beyond the normal age in the wild might be tough to eat. An observant hunter would see its maturity. He might still pull the trigger for the prize of the beauty of its antlers but not because the meat is desirable. But do we want to be eaten and mounted on someone’s wall as a trophy? If the buck has dropped his antlers and the hunter recognizes his age, he won’t shoot him even if it is still in hunting season – but most of the time when antlers have dropped it is NOT hunting season.

On the PBS series about the history of the National Parks, people came in and started cutting down the ancient Sequoias. Through the efforts of John Muir and others, they are protected. Signs of age in a tree, a giant rock, or a human are notices in big letters – Behold, mature age. Stop. Listen. They have so much to give and are beautiful. They are wise and contribute so much to the strength, stability, and health of the earth. Honor them. Respect them. Marvel at what they have endured and accomplished and be proud they have blessed you with their magnificent presence in your life!

Flood 2009 - in Douglasville, Ga, my home

I haven’t written on the blog for the past week or so. My mind and energy have been wrapped around the flood in my area last week. There is a lot to say readers and I encourage you to take some time to read the longer than usual post.

Today is September 28, 2009, one week after the floods that hit the Atlanta, Georgia area. The floods hit several areas but Douglas, Carroll, Paulding, and Western Cobb Counties were the locations where the most people died and homes were destroyed. I live in Douglas County. A man on the news said he was able to save his dogs but not his cats. He didn’t say whether he found them or just that he had no way to take them with him when he fled for safety. The background pictures of his mobile home and cars were covered in mud, which means the water covered his home, his belongings and probably his cats.

In 1991, a couple of tornadoes came through Douglasville – the county seat of Douglas County, west of Atlanta. Officially there was one recorded but I know that there were two that merged into one because my family we in the path. One went over the top of my house and the other at the back of my yard. We lost thirteen trees and one was a 200 year-old red oak tree. The tornado got down in the hollow of the old tree that was the home of the babies – baby birds, baby squirrels, baby chipmunks, and various insects. But the wonderful great-grandmother oak would not fall on the house. All the other trees went east, the directions of the tornadoes but she went north and wrapped herself around to the back of my house hitting only the roof of the kitchen.

When the final bills were in to the insurance company, we had almost $30,000 damage and $14,000 was that one tree. The tree specialists had to get her down to the ground because she was resting against another tree. One wrong move and she would have fallen toward the house and destroyed it and us. We also lost the majority of our monthly business and income but the insurance company for the business wouldn’t pay what we lost.

In the days following that natural disaster, we were confused and scared - and thankful. But we did not know how to deal with the people coming around and the contractors and insurance companies. Our next-door neighbor had had the same insurance for over 40 years and had never filed a claim. That insurance company was not going to pay for her roof to be replaced because there was some rotting on the trim boards and because the city required the roof to be brought up to code. She was an elderly lady and her adult children had to get attorneys and fight the company. The adjustors treated the woman rudely and just didn’t care.

Last year, our area had two really big hailstorms with grapefruit size hail. We called our insurance company and roofers in August. It took until May and three different roofing companies to get things worked out. Meanwhile, all those different people walking on the roof caused it to leak in places that it hadn’t leaked before. So that had to be fixed also. I am grateful to the company that eventually did the job because they went to the courthouse and city hall and went to bat for us to get the insurance company to do what needed to be done as well as comply with the historical society rules because our house is 120 years old and in the downtown historical district.

Are you asking now if we had damage during the flood? At this time we do not know of any structural damage. Business in the current economy was non-existent and the flood has not improved that situation. We have pressure washers, wet vacs and pumps and do yard clean up all the time. We are reducing our rates and making the contacts we can find to help people however we can. We have to prove we are local & will be here in the future.

But the real reason I am writing this is to address the emotions of being in a natural disaster. According to the predictions, it is just the beginning for the next 3 years. When the rain was coming down and falling and falling and not stopping, it was frightening. My dog is afraid to sit in her chair in the room by the door where she could see raging water running by the door while sheets of rain and thunder and lightning were happening. I had a cat outside and I had to stand outside for about an hour trying to get her to come out from under the cabana in my yard. It eased up a little and she peaked out the edge of the building when I grabbed her. She was so frightened. Today is the first day I have allowed her to go back outside.

It rained again on Saturday. I felt scared reminding myself, it is just rain. It is just rain. We lost our water for 2 days and when they got it back on, it wasn’t fit to drink or wash clothes in – well, they said we could wash clothes and after three days added we could wash clothes in hot water. They didn’t put that in the first messages.

They post to only hire local contractors but not to pay anyone up front. The first part is good because people from South Carolina and Alabama and other states are showing up – and they won’t be there after the work is done is they stay around to do the work. But that admonition not to pay anyone up front is really hard on honest small businesses. There have been problems with contractors taking the money and disappearing. But only big companies can afford to buy materials up front. Small companies in the current economy especially do not have the capital to buy things especially when the customer might not be honest. The customer may have no intentions of paying the contractor or perhaps their “damage” is not flood damage and they are taking advantage of the situation. The dishonest on either side hurt the ones – like during Katrina – that really need the help.

The local FEMA programs are doing everything they can to protect the ones who really lost and they need to protect the contractors as well. My husband had all sorts of anxieties about going to clean up the smelly messes and being taken advantage of after taking risk with his health and equipment.

It is all scary. Mother Nature can be fierce when things are out of balance. And you get scared. You don’t know whom you can trust but you have to trust. When the tornado hit, there were hundreds of houses damaged and destroyed. But things were different afterwards. We got a new roof over my kitchen and we needed that. A few years later, a tree that died because of the 200 year-old red oak tree had died. A big wind came through and broke off the trunk of the tree and landed it on our back porch. The washer and dryer were not damaged. We needed a new porch and used some of our own money to fix the foundation at the back of the house and build a patio with good drainage that pulled the rain water away from the back of the house and down hill to the front of the house. What we did because of that storm damage kept the flooding water from running inside the house this time and kept water away from the whole foundation at the back of the house which is low and on the ground – downhill from the entire back yard.

For anyone in a disaster such as a flood, hail, or a tornado, it hurts to lose your belongings and pets and homes and vehicles. But things will get better. Good will come from it. You must keep your faith strong. Know that the God in others is going to be there to help you. People will help. You must keep calm and let go of your anger, your pain, your fear, and let your understanding of God help you through the difficult time. Chaos always precedes growth. Find the good in your situation and what you can learn from it. If and when there is a next time, you will know how to keep your sense of humor, riding the waves if need be. Go to the Internet when you can and find what FEMA says to prepare for your pets for instance. Don’t try to drive through floodwaters. And maybe we all need to reduce our material possessions and spend less money on “things”. And there are basic things such as what to look for when you buy or rent a new house. Many of the places that went under water should never have been built in those areas. But that doesn’t take away the feelings you have about the things you lost. I know myself that it hurts. I have been there. I also know that the longer you dwell on the pain, that the longer you will feel the pain. When you start to look for the ways you can grow forward, you are making a choice to live in the now and let go of the pain. You will heal much faster and find some really wonderful things in your life ahead. I know this is true. I have been through it and looking forward to the new part of my life.

My children, now all grown, went through the tornado also. I know how scary it can be for them. I can help and if you find yourself or someone you know in the aftermath of a natural disaster, refer them to me. I want to assist others. I don’t have a lot of money but I have a big heart and I will share.

Katherine Ari.

Mistakes and Moving Forward

MISTAKES and Moving Forward

Everyone makes mistakes. That is called being human. Many things others do are regarded as mistakes when there is just lack of understanding. Unless any of us are as famous as Michael Jackson, no one can know what his life was like. I remember a person once that told my parents all sorts of things about me that were nonsense because the person did not understand what we were doing.

People read things that are assumptions by a reporter in the newspapers or magazines and then gossip about what they read – not knowing the whole story and what really happened. They tell others and they tell others and each time the story is repeated, it changes – we all like to tell a good story. Do we all remember playing the game of Gossip when we were kids? The end story was always different .

The story may have been years ago but these talkers keep talking about what they think they know wanting to sound important not thinking how their words are hurting others and in turn hurting them. But these are mistakes also and we all make mistakes.

I think about some times when I lost it, or had a meltdown. I don’t like myself very much for being so over the top. Of course, in a heated argument we justify our behaviors and say that the unkind things we said or did were justified or provoked. But is it ever okay to spew hurtful words or do anything to invade the space of another being? [It doesn’t have to be another person as it could be a pet or even a plant.]

We are tired or stressed out. We don’t think clearly and do something unkind or inconsiderate. Sometimes, the act is so bad that the consequences are major, even life changing. But life goes on and one has to move on. It isn’t easy to forgive yourself and then there are those pesky gossips that just won’t let it be in the past. I want to yell at them – let the PAST go people – see me or see us as we are now and see how much I have changed. I know I have grown. I know what I did wrong and I am committed to not repeating those errors again. But if I bring up the past trying to get them to let it go, then I am guilty of living in the past. I am whole, perfect, and complete and I live in the now with love. I learned from my mistakes and grow. Today I am loving and kind and artistic. I move on!

Look at the One in the Mirror and Make a Change

It's 9-11-09, eight years after the terrorist attacks on New York. So much has happened since then. It was so surreal and you kept asking "Is this really happening? It just can't be real, but it is real. And what's going to happen next?"

We mourned. We came together and helped each other. And many, many good things have happened since then as well as many not so good. Many changes have come about because of it but it wasn't necessary to kill innocent people to bring about those changes. But people still don't get it.

Hatred never is necessary, but yet people still choose to hate, to be intolerant, to hold on to bigotry, racism and judgments, to work for separatism, to destroy, to act like they can tell others what to believe, what to listen to, who to love. But it is not just the "other" places. It is just as prevalent here in this country - in some cases more so. Can't they see that the very hatred they are angry about is their own hatred reflected back to them?

One of the Michael Jackson songs I continue to hear is the "Man in the Mirror". The best way to make a change is to change yourself. I personally like President Obama and I think he really is sincere. The medical system needs change and I ask readers, what are you doing to make the change? Fighting these new ideas is not helping unless you can suggest something better.

What are you doing to make the change about hatred and intolerance? Are you still being judgmental about people being judgmental? Am I? Are you giving love and respect because you want to be loved and respected or are you expecting it without giving it out? Do we stop anymore 9-1-1 attacks by war and more hatred or do we stop them before they happen by opening our eyes and making changes inside?

I hear people on Facebook looking for every reason they can to put our President down. I guess I was guilty of that with President Bush as I did not like his politics. (Although I would NEVER have been disrespectful if I had met him. He WAS the President of the United States, an honor.) These people who find loopholes in the health care ideas are the very ones that have suffered many health problems because the health care was not adequate for their problems.

I think of it like unions. There were these big companies that followed big plantation owners that got big and powerful by using/abusing the laborers. The unions came into power to protect the laborers. Then the power structure swung the other way. The unions became corrupt and too powerful. Either way, the government has had to step in. On the plantations, slave labor was wrong and eventually the society and the government stopped it - for then.

Big corporations and big medicine and big pharmaceutical companies have been making their money and the individual has suffered. The government is having to stop the Bernie Madoff's and the insurance companies but they aren't attacking the drug companies. Some effort to stop the current cheap labor also known as slave labor is coming around in the effort to stop illegal aliens from taking away the jobs of natural born Americans - but the real issue is SLAVE labor! But the media isn't saying let's stop slave labor because the politicians and lawyers and people with money like their cheap - slave - labor. They defend their rights to only want to pay a grown man $60 a day for hard work when they are getting $250/hour or more.

We are spending over $18,000 a year for insurance. The deductible is very high. Benefits have been reduced because our children are not in college and over the age limits. And we are healthy and spend less than $200 a year on health matters. But we have to keep the insurance because we might have an emergency even though we don't go to the doctor because we can't afford it because of the high deductible.

The corporations and high medical care have gotten us into these problems because of their greed. The government is stepping in to try to help the whole of society. You can label it socialized medicine or attack it because you are a Republican or a downright bigot. Maybe you talk a liberal talk but just plain walk a path of intolerance and fixed ideas you don't want to change. Your life is unhappy and unhealthy but you don't want to let that Black president come up with a new idea. It doesn't matter. You and I are all entitled to our own opinions.

But then that is a big part of why 9-1-1 happened. We ARE allowed to have our own opinions. We have so much to be grateful for. We have the government that will step in and try to do what it takes to protect the people of this wonderful country rather than continue to allow the government to suppress, control, and deny individuals their right of birth to choose and control their own destinies. We have all heard that, "You can't fight city hall - they make the rules and only they can change them." Well, that is the bottom line. City hall or the government itself is the only way that the government can change BUT we do have the way to get the government to make it change itself. It is NOT by hatred, more judgments, narrow-mindedness, and terrorist attacks. It is not by disrespectful behaviors liking screaming out at President Obama or teaching our children that is it okay to be rude to the President of the United States. It is not by telling more lies and undermining all attempts to make some changes by manipulating the media and the American public.

I'm looking at the one in the mirror. If you want to make a difference, look at the man in the mirror and make a change in what you see. Thank you, Michael, for reminding me what I NEED to DO.

Announcement

Katherine Ari, Wise Woman Guide is

OPEN FOR BUSINESS Monday September 7, 2009

Story - I sit under my trees and Attract others to Me

Many years ago, over ten in fact, I had a meeting with an elder named Grandfather Jerome. He would go into his kind of meditation or trance burning the sacred herbs and then tell his visitor what his inner voice told him to say about the person. Grandfather said, "I never do anything to get people to come to me. I just sit under a tree and they come." That was the message.

I have said to many that I have the tree and I am sitting under it. When are THEY going to come?

When am I going to get followers and supporters of the blog? When am I going to see people in my garden office where I can share my love, energy, talents, knowledge, and experiences to help people realize what is inside of them and how to manifest it in their lives?

A couple of weeks ago I did the Aura Feel Good Day at Inner Space in Atlanta. I was pleased and saw several people. The day is set up for the Healers to see people for 15 or 20 minutes and in that short time I found the most effective way to show them my work was to use Soul Cards by Deborah Koff-Chapin. Soul Cards do not have any set story or meaning. The picture drawn has YOUR story and interpretation. I felt really good about using them. The short time was enough but longer time is even better.

I came home and after resting from the big day, I did my own cards - a past, the present and the future. My present had me sitting petting a small lizard like dragon. The future card had me releasing a person like dragon through my words - releasing the fire dragon of creation from me and for anyone who comes to me. I am ready for the future card. I have petted the dragon within my "cave" long enough. It IS ready to be released into fruition.

This morning I asked What Do I do Next and again pulled out the cards? How do I bring people to me and make income? I asked for two cards. One card pulled me to pick it first. I turned it over and there she - I was sitting under that tree with a Higher self face coming from my hand reaching out to many hands in the tree (of Life?). It is amazing - there is the same image of me sitting under the tree helping others.

But one of the things I realized as I pondered this message is that I have always turned to the oaks in my garden but have somewhat ignored the other trees and shrubs. Outside my office door is a Grandfather Elm, several sweet gums, a pine, a red bud at the foot of the elm, cherries, azalias, honeysuckle, Nandina or heavenly bamboo, maples, and a palm tree.

I take the messages from ALL the trees. I sit under them especially the elm with my hands open and the next card is a beautiful woman - light being or angel - giving out wonderful, loving, healing energy, a picture of who I want to be and who I am. I love what I can do and I want to share it with others.