Project K

Today [Sunday, June 7], we are prepping for our biweekly gathering in the Pneumarium. Every two weeks, we gather with our dearly beloved friends and extended spiritual family, for a groupdiscussion of spirituality.

Re the transplant: This Tuesday, June 9, we are supposed to meet the docs and staff. (Some were met sixteen years ago, for the first procedure.) And the Main Event is still scheduled for Tuesday, June 16, barring some unforeseen circumstance.
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Planetary Reading

Were you aware that Jupiter has over sixty moons, and so does Saturn? There might be still more, if we include "micromoons." (When we were growing up, only sixteen moons of Jupiter were known.) And among those moons are the very famous Io, Ganymede, Callisto, and Europa, the latter containing ice and probably water. An extremely interesting and easy-to-read book was published in twenty-oh-eight. It was called Beyond Ufos by Jeff Bennett. Well worth reading.:) It will get you "all caught up" with the latest in astronomy, particularly in the search for
life.
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Greed and Spirituality

We are in one hundred percent agreement about the exclusivity of the wealthy in several religious (but not spiritual) groups.

Jesus made his Message available to all. Holding a religious conference in a luxurious hotel only betrays an economic motive, rather than an honest and more spiritual one.

This can be a real tragedy for an honest heart in search of truth. It is a real shame.:(

This reminds all of us just how pervasive, and hence, invisible, is this kind of conartistry. So-called "teachers" who have their eyes on only the big hbucks are a danger to themselves and to society. Greed is an especially horrible mindisease, and when it infects a "teacher," the infection is spread far and wide. One of the best approaches is to make sure that we never support such greed-mongers. An even better response is to expose them at every opportunity.
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____________________________________________________________

All Life Is Sacred

Fanatical rightwingers, even murderers, are so very proud, and selfrighteous, about the fact that they love to call themselves "pro-life." This is consciously designed to imply that anyone who disagrees with them, even in fine detail, is "anti-life."

Since there is no "anti-life" movement, it is just plain unrealistic, unfair, and inaccurate, to call these people "pro-life." And to call them "anti-abortion" also implies falsely that others are "pro-abortion."

This too is scandalously inaccurate. For no one in the world is actually "pro-abortion." No one celebrates abortion, and no one is thrilled with joy when this medical procedure must be performed. Even professionals often perform abortions through tears-- their own, and those of the mother.

The fairest, and most accurate, way of designating the two sides might be "pro-choice" and "anti-choice." This is perhaps the least offensive, and judgmental, of designations.

The anti-choice people claim that they alone value life as sacred. But are they at all consistent in this "formal" or "official" position? No, for they do not value human life enough to refrain from murder. Several members of the pro-choice community have been murdered by the anti-choice people during the last thirty years. Extremely rarely, if ever, has it worked the other way-- with a pro-choice person murdering an anti-choice person. The ghastly case of Dr. Tiller is but one example of a nightmarish trend among these Jehovist killlers.

The situation gets even worse: Most of the people who supported the extremely bloody war in Iraq, which killed altogether about a million people, were "anti-choice" religious zealots-- often described accurately as "fanatics."

In other ways, too, these people do not defend or support life. Most of them are voracious carnivores, killing truly sentient beings for food. In fact, they go much further, laughing at and mocking vegetarians.

A fact which they almost never realize is that this present life is not the whole, the totality, of life. For life survives death. And this is a matrixteaching of Christianity, as well as of Buddhism, and several other faiths.

Anti-choice people react as if the physical life of the physical fetus is the one and only one, or the only one that counts. They ignore the teaching of Jesus and all other enlightened people: For the masters, saints, sages, and general mystics of all history hold that death is a survivable experience. Thus, while life on earth is extremely sacred, holy, and inviolable, it is never "all that there is." (These same extremists seem terrified to have any faith in God, and for the same or similar reasons, they reject euthanasia.)

If the anti-choice people did not interfere, the Souls which did not incarnate in a physical body would simply return to their Home-- the lovely Homeworld.

We who are profound believers do not use this fine and beautiful teaching as an "excuse" to murder, or to be indifferent about physical life. Most of us hold all physical life to be so sacred that some refuse to take the lives of even animals, who are also beloved.

If nature herself is allowed to take the natural course, without interference, nature itself will destroy many, many fetuses in "miscarriage." Do the anti-choice advocates go so far as to blame God, or nature, for this? (It is something about which they simply do not want to think!)

So, the anti-choice position is untenable, because it must be inconsistent. For no one can save a life and make it last forever. If you do save a life, which can be a very good deed indeed, you can only postpone death. For, in a few moments, hours, days, or years, the person whom you saved must leave this earth anyway.

The solution is not to try to "save every physical body." The solution, offered by Jesus and others (and Jesus never said a word about abortion) is, instead, to awaken to the fact that earthly life, however much we might deeply, tenderly, and lovingly care for it, is a temporary phenomenon. It is but an eye-blink in eternity. We must become aware that our real and true lives are forever; for, although the physical brain turns to dust after death, the non-physical Soulmind existed before birth and will continue to exist long after "death."
*******

Right to Reject Cancertreatment

Thanks to Mick Gallagher.
***

Does "police state" ring a bell? What the hell is this?! If this kid's parents want to go the El Natural way-- religious, Spiritual, homeopathic, holistic healing-- the government/state should not interfere. I'm sorry but Corporate medicine, agribiz/farming, messing with the environment, food, water, corporate products(legitimate cigarettes, alcohol, prescription drugs, and our bizarre way of life-- all are what's killing us.

--written by Mick Gallagher

***

Arrest ordered for mom of boy, 13, resisting chemo.

"It's absolutely crazy. It's very disappointing," [noted] James Olson,
the attorney representing Brown County Family Services. "We're trying to
do what's right for this young man."

Webmaster's Commentary:
Really?

I might believe that if there were an absolutely clear proof that chemotherapy is a guaranteed cure for cancer.

But there is cause to doubt. My mother underwent chemotherapy for her cigarette-induced cancer and it didn't save her. Quite the contrary it made her very sick and wrecked the quality of whatever life she had left.

There is evidence of far more effective cancer cures in other nations which are denied here in the US in order to preserve the established cancer industry, which seeks not a cure but more costly treatments.

This is a government that has been torturing children in Iraq. Clearly, their only concern is to force this child to financially support the status quo. Given the disasters of the 1976 flu vaccine, which killed more people than the flu did, and the Bayer hemophilia medicine laced with AIDS, and the Baxter flu vaccine with live Avian flu in it, the mother is justified in doubting whether the chemotherapy, despite its hefty price tag, will actually be of any benefit.

*******

Healing Touch

This donkey (body) heals more like you: It has to be touched a lot, and is a big believer in "therapeutic touch," now practiced by some nurses, and in integrative medicine (used to be "holistic," or "alternative" medicine).

People who are in absolutely splendid health need to be touched regularly, so it makes sense that those who are ill-- in need of positive energy-- need touch even more. What would the experience of a kitten, puppy, or other sweet critter be without being able to touch him/her?

So, at times, to love is to touch, and vice-versa. Everyone needs touch, although some pretend not to. ]They want others to think that they are "too tough" to need touch. (There is actually only one letter difference between "tough" and "touch.")]

Studies of infants and toddlers had to be discontinued when certain ones were selected not to be touched. These neglected children actually died! Scientists called this lethal condition "failure to thrive."

So, if young human beings are not touched, they die. Basically the same emotive processes and the same biochemistry and neurochemistry mark more mature members of the species. Thus, it follows logically that adults also need touch. And, as the absence of touch acts as a lethal toxin to the very young, it is also a toxic condition when adults do not touch.

This is a subtle and weak toxin, but its effects, in our cold society, can be cumulative. Needing to touch others, and to be touched by other positive people, is not a weakness, but an inherited or intrinsic need of human psychophysiology.

Thus, the more hugs, the more handshakes, the more sharing, the better! We must return to the simple ways of our ancestors, who lived without computers, cyberphones, ipods, and other isolating mechanisms. We must learn to reach out to one another, and offer our hearts through our hands. This is a very touching and touchy subject!:) But it is one that we all need to think about, especially those among us who have real interests in healing each other and the planet!:)

Letter about Party

Dear Friends of the Heart,

Here is a letter from one of the blessed "moms" who came to our Mother's
Day Celebration of Love:

"Dear shi and Adamaria,

I had such a good time at your Mother's Day party today. As always, I
love to come to visit you guys, because both of you are so funny,
interesting AND LOVING! I know I am loved by both of you, and I can feel
it..... and it feels soooo good!

I am so very, very happy and grateful to have you guys in my life. You
truly are family to me.

Again, thank you for making this day so WONDERFUL!

Love you both,

*******

Sunday's Delightful Celebration

Alas, my friend, you missed most delightful and joyful moments of shared pleasure with some of the best people in the area. We decided, in view of real time-limits, not to have any discussiongroup Sunday (yesterday), but to give the whole day to sacred motherhood and its celebration of Love. We had a real megablast as we gathered with some of our best friends. We shared together some delicious coconut cake, and happy spiritual and semispiritual conversation. This place will not see another like it for at least another year!:) We all left feeling refreshed, renewed, and very "high" on life!:)
*******

Sunday Celebration of Motherlove!

You missed one megasuperhyperblast of a Celebration yesterday! We shared so much fun, laughter, good food, and great conversation. There is no better way to have spent a day!:) It was a day just jam-packed with Love, joy, delight, and pleasure. Maybe you will be able to make next year's Celebration!:):)
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Sunday's Pleasures

You missed a real pleasure, and a very healing atmosphere, yesterday. We enjoyed, and created together, a "superparty" enjoyed by everyone. As far as donkeys (physical bodies) are concerned, it was certainly a healing and loving experience. Everyone "let her hair down," and we all enjoyed an ambiance that was relaxed, happy, and healing to both mind and body. The Party was so much fun, and so great, that we just had to share.:)

Beautiful Event!

It was because you came that the Mother's Day Party yesterday was such a smashing success! We are, of course, superdelighted always to "see" you and Frank [pseudonym] whenever we have a gathering in the Pneumarium, but yesterday was very special in many ways! We were also excited and uplifted by the sharing of Love, and yesterday was a real celebration of Love. For there is perhaps no greater human Love than that which binds a mother to her sons or daughters.:) Thanks again, so very much, for having come and made the special event such a smashing success!
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Sunday's Assorted Pleasures: Keeping Friendships Strong

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Thanks so much, dear friends, for having come to our delightful and joyful Celebration of Mother's Day at the Pneumarium. Social events such as this help weave, interweave, and maintain the important connections between the lives of the people who love each other, as we do!:):) Life would be so much poorer without them, and the many opportunities for Love-sharing that they bring.
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Bob Herbert Speaks of Republicans

Thanks to Barbara Baty.
***

Out of Touch By BOB HERBERT
Published: May 1, 2009

The incredibly clueless stewards of the incredibly shrinking Republican
Party would do well to recall that it was supposedly Abe Lincoln, a
Republican, who said that you can't fool all the people all the time.
Readers'

The Limited Value of Travel

Traveling around the world sounds very exciting! That, in fact, might be a core of a major problem.

Others will praise your decision to travel; as we will see, these people are not necessarily helpful either.

A person is not deeply, profoundly, or permanently enriched by simply moving her body around this little tiny, itsy-bitsy planet. For even if you go "everywhere," on this tiny planet, you have seen and experienced virtually nothing of the cosmos!:)

In order to gain any mental clarity, you must ask yourself why you feel such pride about your travels. Why is this so important to you? It is because most people on this little planet are unsophisticated and uneducated spiritually. Because of these factors, they are impressed when a person moves her body around on this planet. They go so far as to believe that travel itself enriches a person.

But this is wrong; it comes from limited experience and limited understanding. For travel in itself does not enrich a person. It does not give a person depth-- spiritually, mentally, or emotionally. It does not improve a person's wisdom, compassion, or morality; in other words, travel in itself does not improve a person. Travel in no way makes you "more important."

Travel can enrich only what you already have within. A person is made no "richer" by going to the furthest corners of the earth than by going to the corner store. Therefore, the common "pride" involved with travel is based upon an illusion, for this entire world is but a dreamworld.

As people questing after enlightenment, it is desirable for us to abandon all pride, including pride of travel, and pride of friendship, to which it is closely related. (Some people feel, deep down, that they are worthless, and so, they are always talking about "important" or famous friends. For the same feelings of low selfesteem, people always brag about their travels.)

One of the greatest (and most humble) writers of mysticism in all history was Lao Tzu (pronounced "Lah'-o dzuh"). He was a writer in China, whose writing was already four hundred years old when Jesus was born. He wrote, "The sage can see the whole world without moving her front gate."

A "sage" or enlightened person does not have to follow slavishly the often uncomfortable or even harsh task-master of traveling, for her selfesteem does not in any way depend on impressing others. She knows that she is singularly and uniquely important because she is a daughter of Love (God); she has nothing to prove, nothing with which to impress strangers or friends. She is completely selfcontent, and does not need to "impress" anyone. She is content and happy, satisfied and fulfilled,
in her own deep interior nature. She is happy in her own skin, and in her own backyard, and does not have continually to "flee" from her home.

Most people do not feel this much at peace with themselves, and so, have to "prove to themselves" and to others, that they are "important." Sadly, in our culture, one way that people artificially "prove their importance" is by travel.

But real Love, of course, has nothing to do with geography.

Most people, unfortunately, are highly impressed by simple travel (because they do not at all like their home). You cannot, and will not, receive reliable advice from them, even though they love you profoundly. For they cannot be objective about this question. And you must find an objective answer in your own heart. The importance of doing so cannot be overemphasized.

Travel is interesting, and can be even exciting, when you are young. Like all other things of earth, in time, it becomes boring and wearisome, losing much attractiveness. It is good to travel when young, for when older, you might have lost the desire, and even the ability.

But please just do not confuse the excitement of travel, which always marks an inexperienced person (for it is a "new experience") with falling in Love-- a fabulous, fantastic, ultimate "high" that is the best thing that can happen to a human being.

You must sort through your thoughtfeelings and decide how and why mere travel has become so important to you. Do you feel, deep down, that you are inferior?

Love wisely, carefully, slowly, and selectively when it comes to your life-choice of a Soulmate, Love-partner, or monogamous companion. For one thing, you need to know much more than you do right now. So, be patient, dear friend; this is not the time to leap before looking, to act prematurely, impulsively, or impetuously.

You have a great need to love, as you have to eat. But although a stack of candy might be truly attractive, it will never give your body, mind, or Soul the nutrition that you need.:)

Project K: Update

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Believe it or not, we do have a date for the surgery of Project K! It is currently planned for June 16, so please focus your kind hearts and thoughtful minds on the donkey that day; he can use all the energy that he can get! Brother Donkey, the body, is showing some peripheral tiredness and lack of energy. We continue regular bloodtests, and regular conferencing with the nephrologist (kidney-specialist) whom we have known now for nearly twenty years.

The last transplant, the donor was a taurus. This time, she is also a different taurus, and the doc is also a taurus. Although I am a pisces, I do have a taurusmoon. So, maybe there is a cosmic pattern behind all that is happening; we like to think so, at any rate.:):)

Thank you for your continued interest in this important lifevent, and thanks for asking, dear friends. Thanks also for any silver energy that you can send. (We are requesting this from all our friends.:)

May you have a most beautiful and temperate day as we together celebrate the return of the Goddess of flowers with springtime.:)

Sitchin's Ideas

Yes, we are a little familiar with Zechariah Sitchin and his theories.

From the viewpoint of traditional or mainstream scholarship, his ideas represent an extreme. He is thought to have extrapolated much much more from the small amount of data that we have re the Sumerians. Most of his work is purest speculation, and it could be wished that it were more "grounded" in solid fact. But, often at crucial areas, his theories do lack some necessary factual data, and he goes very much "out on a limb."

This, of course, does not mean that he is "wrong.":) But Sitchin is not the very best basis for a cosmic philosophy, to which he aspires. Many of his concepts are attractive, but, again, it is difficult to justify building an entire philosophy on this rather tenuous basis.

As you can tell, we are not "true believers." In order for us to embrace any datum into our personal philosophy, we must be convinced that it is at least in harmony with the immense mountain of factual data in philosophy, history, science, and other related areas of knowledge.

But neither are we skeptics or cynics. Perhaps no one on earth has the data necessary to adopt or accept this position either. At present, we prefer to take a "wait and see" attitude towards these ideas re "the tenth planet," and related concepts, especially those regarding chronology and calendars.

One example is the wide, but not wise, spectrum of worldenders. It is still very, very fresh in our minds how, ten years ago, thousands of native American leaders, channelers, new-agers, and fundies of various stripes were anxiously holding their breath and predicting with utter certainty that the year twenty hundred would bring "the end of the world," through the "y2k" crisis.

It was one of the very rare years, in fact, specifically used by Nostradamus in his famous "prophecies," and Ed Cayce also had dire predictions for this "marked year." Worldenders were madly coming "out of the woodwork," and people thought it a bit "freaky" that we did not jump on this bizarre bandwagon. But now, we are very glad that we maintained a skeptical position.

When I was a fundy, we also made, in retrospect, the rather foolish error of predicting a certain specific year for the "end." That year, 1975, came and went without a single global disturbance, proving to any reasonable person that the fundy cult was wrong. This was no mere matter of interpretation. They were just plain wrong-- undeniably.

Sitchin has also predicted the return of Niburu. So far, no "tenth planet" has been discovered whose trajectory intersects with the orbit of the earth. So, this comes down to a remarkably simple truth that is not speculative, or even controversial: If he was right, this planet should have appeared, or else, it will do so shortly. And if it does not, then he was in error.

I am no specialist in either ancient Sumerian or astronomy. My specialty is spirituality. But, in Sitchin, the three areas overlap, and he claims to be an "expert" in all three. But almost no one in the academic or scientific community has been convinced either of his expertise or of the validity of his more radical theories. Only time, dear friend, will tell; and it will tell all.:)
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The Pacific Nightmare-Monster

The Pacific Nightmare-Monster
*******

Thanks to Barbara Baty.
*****

The Feds want to survey, possibly clean up vast garbage pit in
Pacific...impossible to clean up

Justin Berton, Chronicle Staff Writer

The so-called Great Pacific Garbage Patch, a stewy body of plastic and marine debris that floats an estimated 1,000 miles west of San Francisco, is a shape-shifting mass far too large, delicate and remote ever to be cleaned up, according to a researcher who recently returned from the area.

But that might not stop the federal government from trying.

Charles Moore, the marine researcher at the Algalita Marina Research Foundation in Long Beach, who has been studying and publicizing the patch for the past 10 years, said the debris-- which he estimates weighs 3 million tons and covers an area twice the size of Texas-- is made up mostly of fine plastic chips; [it] is impossible to skim out of the ocean.

"Any attempt to remove that much plastic from the oceans boggles the mind," Moore said from Hawaii, where his crew is docked. "There's just too much, and the ocean is just too big." The trash collects in one area, known as the North Pacific Gyre, due to a clockwise trade wind that circulates along the Pacific Rim. It accumulates the same way bubbles gather at the center of hot tub, Moore said.

A two-liter plastic bottle that begins its voyage from a storm drain in San Francisco will get pulled into the gyre and take weeks to reach its place among the other debris in the Garbage Patch.

"While the bottle floats along, instead of biodegrading, it will "photodegrade," Moore said . The sun's uv rays will turn the bottle brittle, much like they would crack the vinyl on a car roof. They will break down the bottle into small pieces and, in some cases, into particles as fine as dust.

"The Garbage Patch is not a solid island, as some people believe," Moore said. Instead, it resembles a soupy mass, interspersed with large pieces of junk such as derelict fishing nets and waterlogged tires-- "an alphabet soup," he called it.

Also, it's undetectable by overhead satellite photos because it's 80 percent plastic and therefore translucent, Moore added. The plastic moves just beneath the surface-- from one inch to depths of 300 feet, according to samples he collected on the most recent trip, he said.

By Moore's estimation, the "floating landfill" is also simply too far from land to conduct any meaningful cleanup operation. It's about 1,000 miles west of California and 1,000 miles north of the Hawaiian Islands-- a week's journey by boat from the nearest port. It swirls in a convergence zone located about 30 to 40 degrees north latitude and 135 to 145 west longitude.

There's no doubt that a stew of marine debris exists in the convergence zone of the gyre, said Holly Bamford, an oceanographer and director of the marine debris program at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, but there is some debate as to its size.

Moore has led most of the research and publicity surrounding the Garbage Patch, so Bamford said her federal agency, which oversees ocean conditions, is collecting its own data to assess the area and density. Bamford said she has noted some "gaps in the research" that suggest the affected area is not as large as Moore estimates. Yet there's no question that marine debris is gathering in the area and is having a negative impact on marine life, such as fish who mistake the particles for food.

"But before we embark on a huge removal process," Bamford said, "we need to understand what we're dealing with."
Bamford added that the agency had attempted to take satellite photos of the area last year, but the overhead photos were inconclusive. "It's hard to distinguish a whale reaching the surface versus a piece of plastic," she said.

Still, Bamford said the agency is considering flying unmanned aircraft that can be launched from boats to skim the ocean's surface and collect data.

But launching the drones is 18 months away, Bamford said. It could be two years before a federal plan is enacted to remove the plastic-- if it's warranted, Bamford said.

"Once we get to that stage, we'd need to ask, 'If we can remove it, what would be the best way? And what would we do with it afterward? If we collect it, would we bring it back to shore - and then what-- put it in a landfill?'"

In the meantime, as the production and the use of plastic continue to grow, so will the Garbage Patch, Moore said. The only way to reduce marine debris, all sides agree, is to cut it off at its source-- on land.

The dramatic growth in plastics use over the past two decades is what distresses activists [such as] Moore. The annual production of plastic resin in the United States has roughly doubled in the past 20 years, from nearly 60 billion pounds in 1987 to an estimated 120 billion pounds in 2007, according to a study by the American Chemistry Council, which represents the nation's largest plastic and chemical manufacturers.

Keith Cristman, a senior director of packaging at the American Chemistry Council, said the plastics industry is aware of its connection to marine debris; [he] said the council is working with federal and state agencies to put more recycling bins on California beaches in an attempt to stop plastic bottles and bags from making their way to the sea. At the end of November, Cristman said, the council is co-sponsoring
its first marine debris workshop with state and federal agencies.

Cristman said he'd rather see more plastic recycled than production slowed.

"Plastic is a valuable resource," he said. "It shouldn't be wasted. It should be recycled."

Asked [whether] the council would assist in any cleanup of the Garbage Patch if the federal government called on it, Cristman said, "We're always interested in working with NOAA and the EPA."

Moore said his crew had collected new data that suggested more plastic is entering the gyre, yet he was hesitant to elaborate until he finalized the research.

"The ocean is downhill from everywhere," Moore said. "It's like a toilet that never flushes. You can't take these particles out of the ocean. You can just stop putting them in."

Scammers are Taking Advantage of Swine Flu Fear

Thanks to Mick Gallagher.
*****
Man am I shocked. what happened to United We Stand? I thought the bird flu, SARS, Y2K, 9/11 WAS THE LAST OF IT.

And the hoaxes just keep on coming!! I guess they know how to effectively use the widely impressive corp media to browbeat us into complete submission---
What's it all about Alfie?

Mick Gallagher
*******

-----Forwarded Message-----
From: Ohio Attorney General Richard Cordray
Sent: Apr 30, 2009 4:30 PM mctgal@earthlink.net
Subject: Scammers are taking advantage of Swine Flu fear

Dear Friends of the Heart,

What's in the news often drives companion scams. My office has received
complaints related to the Economic Stimulus Package, tax returns, and
television conversion to hd. It appears that the same predators are now
attempting to take advantage of people's fear about swine flu.

According to the Better Business Bureau and online security companies,
emails from spammers about swine flu already make up two percent of spam
emails, and hundreds of Web sites using the term "swine flu" have already
been registered.

In addition to making you aware of this trend, I need your help to
identify the scams.

Here's how you can help:

Forward suspicious e-mails to the Federal Trade Commission at:
spam@uce.gov, then delete them from your inbox.
File a complaint with the Attorney General's office about e-mails, phone
calls, direct mail, or other attempts to scam you. You can do this by
logging on to www.SpeakOutOhio.gov or by calling (800) 282-0515.
Forward this e-mail to friends and family so they can be aware.
For reputable information and updates on swine flu and fighting the
outbreak, go to www.CDC.gov/swineflu
And remember: to protect yourself from any kind of scam, NEVER send
personal information, such as bank account numbers or Social Security
numbers, via email. If you're asked for this information in an email,
don't respond and don't click on links in the message.

Thank you for helping protect the pocketbooks of Ohioans.

Sincerely

Richard Cordray
Ohio Attorney General
*******

Worried about Swine Flu? Here's something you can do.

The United States needs to allow all working people to earn paid sick days to ensure our economic security, and protect public health.


Sign the Petition Today


Dear Friends of the Heart,

The news over the weekend was scary -- outbreaks of a potentially pandemic flu virus, called the "swine flu" are being reported all over the world, including in the U.S. As of now there have been 64 confirmed cases of swine flu in the U.S., with the first fatal U.S. case reported this morning from Texas.1 White House officials monitoring the situation are recommending that: If you're sick, stay home, get treatment, go see a doctor.2

This is easier said than done. In the U.S. today, nearly half of workers aren't allowed to earn paid sick days (i.e. they don't have a single paid sick day to take when illness strikes in order to keep our communities healthy and not spread illness). And more than half of the workforce does not have or cannot use paid sick days to care for sick children. The numbers are even worse in industries where people need paid sick days the most: 92% of waiters and waitresses, and 79% of childcare workers aren't allowed to earn any paid sick days3.

How do the experts expect people to stay home when they're sick, if they don't have any paid sick days?

Sign the petition today! The United States needs to allow all working people to earn paid sick days to ensure our economic security, and protect public health.

http://momsrisingaction.org/petition.jsp?petition_KEY=1924&source=TrueMajority

In this economic downturn, folks need to work, sometimes whether they're sick or not. I talked to a coffee shop employee today who told me, "I go to work sick sometimes; I need the hours so I can pay my rent!" We've all been there. When people go to work sick, it puts us all at risk. The recent swine flu outbreak is a powerful reminder that we need paid sick days for public health.

In New York, where there is a small outbreak at a school among students who recently traveled to Mexico, health officials told the Wall Street Journal that one way to reduce the spread of the disease is to "stay home until 48 hours after the symptoms have passed to avoid spreading the disease,"4 Clearly, folks need paid sick days to do the right thing and stay home to care for themselves and their children when they show these symptoms, so more people don't get sick.

Sign the petition today, and pass it on to your friends and family!
Everyone should be able to earn paid sick days to ensure our health and economic security.

Thank you,

--Katie, Mary, Kristin, Sarah, Anita and the MomsRising.org Team

P.S. See the CDC Website for more information about the swine flu
outbreak: cdc.gov/swineflu/swineflu_you.htm

1. Read the NY Times compilation of information about the swine flu here:
topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/subjects/i/influenza/swine_i
nfluenza/index.html?scp=1-spot&sq=swine%20flu&st=cse

2. Quoted in:
cnn.com/2009/HEALTH/04/26/swine.flu/index.html?eref=rss_topstories

3. Institute for Women's Policy Research analysis of the March 2006
National Compensation Survey, the November 2005 through October 2006 Job
Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, and Highlights of Women's Earnings
in 2005 (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Report 995).
iwpr.org/pdf/B254_paidsickdaysFS.pdf

4. Quoted in: online.wsj.com/article/SB124077900486757017.html

Joyful Announcement of Love

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Dearest Friends of Humanity, Friends of the Heart,

As you know already, Love Ministries has been directed to start the Love Ministries Federation. Frankly, this work has entailed some rather discouraging efforts, and so, as of 040109, we put a temporary stop to it; gathering donations has been like pulling teeth-- without an anesthetic! The responses of our friends has been lukewarm at best, and cool at worst.(:

But we have never claimed to be "in charge" of Love Ministries. We are not. The One, the Supreme, the Ultimate, the Lovegod(dess) is in charge of Love Ministries, and today (041909), she directed that we once again try to elicit support for the poorest people in the world. To stand by and let God's children-- our sisters and brothers-- drop dead from starvation, because we are fearfully clinging to our dollars, guarantees a future life of dire and extreme poverty.

Besides, Sophia, the Goddess of Love, wants these people to be aided; and she wants you and me to do this.

So, Love Ministries USA is again open to striving to gather a few dollars to aid our strugglling and starving friends-- the poorest people in the world. Please allow the Light of Love to penetrate your heartmind in a practical way, and donate what you can; we are accepting, as before, donations of as small as three dollars. It is not just the quantity that counts, but the Lovexpression.

So, won't you please, today, support Love Ministries of India, Love Ministries of Kenya, Love Ministries of Pakistan, Love Ministries of Rwanda, Love Ministries of Sierra Leone, and Love Ministries of Uganda? The poor orphans of these countries are literally dying to hear from you!

Please discuss this important issue with the interior God(dess). There is no more important way to invest money than by investing it in other living human beings. Thank you in advance; thanks from the hundreds of orphans to whom you are giving the great gift of life itself!

Please send snailmail donations to:

Love Ministries USA
5100 Liberty-Fairfield Rd.
Hamilton, OH 45011.

Thank you for all eternity.
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Angels

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Mine has always been a practical approach to spirituality based on what I have been able to evidence to my own mind. As I have had no interactions personally with "angels," this spirituality has been free of "angels." I do leave the question, and the heartmind, open to them; they could well exist and might have even wings! But angelology has never been a specialty, or special interest, of this life. This is probably all to say that... direct access to the One, without any "middle men," has
worked just fine.:)
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Angelic Activity?

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One of the major advantages of being free spiritual people is that we are not forced into agreement or conformity about every little detail of our spiritual lives. We are free to agree to disagree about minor things, while remaining friends, with deep respect for each other. While it is understood that finding parking spaces makes you feel cared for, and that is good (even healing), I find it hard to believe that beings of immense, vast cosmic power, working on a planet where thousands of human beings and many other species are suffering from terrible pain and suffering every day, use the finest energies of infinite Love to find a parking space for your convenience. I have also met a few others who, when lucky enough to have found a parking space, have assured me that this was due to "angelic intervention."

The real danger here is that we can trivialize the enormous Power of God, the higher Power that is designed to heal and enlighten the planet, and the universe (someday). The polygalactic Lord of Love is not directly involved in trivial or petty matters; it is like assuming that Barack Obama will take the time from his active and busy schedule to come to your house to repair a broken sugarbowl.:):) Of course, you are always completely free to believe whatever you choose and want to
believe, as am I.:):)
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A Certain Craziness

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The sky is falling! It is the end of the world! This kind of dark fantasy seems to have haunted unbalanced and borderline minds with an unprecedented ferocity since ancient times. There has not existed a single year in the history of the planet during which someone somewhere did not predict the "immediate advent" of the "end of the world"!

Not at all surprisingly, it is happening all over again. Sick rightwing whackos-- extremists all, who often get their material from each other-- have declared Obama a "radical," a "socialist," an "anti-Christ," and much, much worse. Talkshow hosts have poured billions of gallons of gasoline on this "fire"!

Of course, extreme conservatives hate and misunderstand almost everybody. This is due partly to the fact that they do not seek objective or scientific foundations for their ideas, and partly because they refuse to read or listen to anyone who is not already in fullest agreement with them. They rant and rave, and often preach, in screeching voices about to break from the sheer tension.

Mick Gallagher, Barbara Bady, and other contributors to the uld have pointed out the real and rational dangers that these people pose to the mind, as well as to the collective mind of the community. The latest gambit of these rightwingers is the sad illusion, a lie, that Presidennt Obama of the USA has a "hidden agenda" to take away all their guns. (This type always feels incomplete without a gun, as if you had stolen her literal arms and fingers; and she will fight tooth and nail to keep whatever deadly weapons that she owns with great pride. (In this way, she imitates extremists of the past, including nazis and fascists.) The only way, they say, that you are going to "get their gun" is when you "pry it from their dead, cold fingers" after they have died for this "cause."

Many are "worldenders," and are troubled nonstop by the idea of "race-wars," criminals running riotously through the streets, and related horrors. They live in a nightmare torture-chamber! (How true the spiritual principle that it is what is within the mind, not the "outside world," that determines how we feel.)

The best way to deal with such fanatics is simply to ignore them. We can also regulate their power by education in the truer and more satisfying Way of moderation, which turns its back on extremes. But all that we really have to do is wait around; for the passage of time will prove how false, ludicrous, absurd, and ridiculous are their ideas. Let us also work hard every minute of every day to fill this world, this cosmos, with the peace and joy manifested by Love. For it is Love, not guns, in which all people of Love place their faith.
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It Is Time To Speak Up and Speak Out Loudly and Forcefully!

Thanks to Mick Gallagher.

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I will now shut up & sit down, for I am incapable of not losing my temper when discussing the hate & lies propagated over "our public airwaves." Yes, there are 'free speech' arguments here. But free "hate" speech? Where is the fcc?!

The latest tragedy involving the massive weaponry owned by Americans involves the sad low point of the 3 Pittsburgh Police officers gunned down there by a young man, who lost his job, and also 'thought' the Obama administration was going to take all his guns, including the AK47 he used to kill. And would the police officers [take away forcefully his rifles?] [This is]a threat used by the right for twenty-five to
thirty-five yrs!

Now where did he get this idea? Well, it's been the latest in a long line of rumors/threats from the GOP, RNC Neocon's through corporate rightwing media-- which millions listen to every day, and believe all that they hear as if it's Gospel Truth.

Perhaps they confused this administrations desire for a reduction in nuclear weapons... and the reigning in of roguestates.

But we all need to sit down, take some time to have a short, concise, rational letter to an editor written soon. This nonsense has gone on for too long!

During the [2008 Presidential] Campaign, they spewed hate & lies towards Obama, with threats about assassination, [and that] the blacks would riot, if they didn't get their way. The [rightwingers] used every hateful, incendiary, inflammatory lie they could to try to defeat the positive changes we desperately need, and [which] the world awaits. I also suggest the call in comment lines on C-SPAN, MSNBC, CNN, RUSH,
O'REILLY, SEAN HANNITY(FOX),etc. Those rightwing shows rarely get calls from intelligent liberals [progressives], maybe because we are not confrontational in general. But we need to speak up strongly & forcefully now--to set the record straight, once again! Please call in lines to newspapers too. When we don't speak up, it is taken as weakness, and [in some cases,] it is true. This "new," different guy is "rushing socialism and massive guncontrol." [The same policies were interpreted very differently] when they were [suggested by] the neoconmen bankers, etc, along with the bush Cabal's "free for all" de-regulation legislation to grease the skids of cronie unbridled capitalism.

Once again, as when Clinton came in, we have to clean up. [The economy, military, foreign policy, and government are]a real, real mess-- not imagined. I know the Fed reserve Rueben, Summers, Greenspan were fully in charge during the time of bush; and they're still there!
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Hopeless Reaching for Goddess

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Happily, the most important things in our lives do not at all depend in any way on our belief in them. Whether we believe it or not, Goddess is Love; and even if we lack the ability to believe, She remains Love. Even when Love is inaccessible, or incomprehensible, It/She is still present within the Core-mind, deep inside you and inside me. Even when we have lost the ability to cry out (or, in) to this Love, It/She knows our sufferings; She heals us through each other.


She enters the heart most often through our discovery of personal helplessness. That means that we must completely give up on, abandon, any personal desires to "fix" our lives, and step out of Her way.

We cannot solve every problem in the universe; but at least, we can share our tears and fears.

So, whether you know it or not, Love is an interior Force for good that is always working to heal you-- make you whole. But please try to be patient, for healing does take time. If you want to discuss this or any related matter personally, please give me a quick call. [The number is (513)737-LOVE (5683).]
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Education!

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Congratulations; you are making a most wise decision to invest in your own mind. No better, more important decision is possible!:) Education will repay you many times, very richly, and continuously, for the rest of this life, and beyond! It is a great delight and pleasure to hear that you are taking a course in "world religion."

We can all learn so much from each other; closed-minded and closed-hearted "Christians" could learn an immense amount of spirituality from the beautiful symbolism of Hinduism and the spiritual psychology of Buddhism.

Keep up the good work, my friend.:) Never stop learning, listening, and growing!:)

"Lovelight" magazine

"Touching" the hearts of dear spiritual friends is one of the genuine "highs" of this life. It is our reason for being, and one of the great pleasures and delights of this life to aid in the creation of Lovelight magazine! It is truly joyful to hear that you are reading and enjoying it; thanks for the uplifting feedback!:)
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The Poorest People in the World

Dearest Friends of the Heart,

As most of you know, Love Ministries has recently started the Love Ministries Federation. This is a Lovebased, cooperative communion of small, independent ministries which care for orphans in the poorest countries on earth.

Many of these orphans have had homes, brothers, sisters, and parents torn away from them through military violence. Some have had their homes, all possessions, pets, and even family-members burned before their little innocent eyes. This is in turn supported by greed, commercialism, and religious bigotry.

These do represent the poorest people on our little planet. The Way of Love is often marked by how we deal with strangers.

As beautiful spring grows into summer, what is the very greatest, the most fundamental, gift that you can give to another?

It is the gift of continued life. We now have a great and wonderful opportunity to give to God's children this very special gift. For only the amount that you would pay for one cd, or one hamburger, you can make the ultimate difference between life and death, survival and perishing. We are accepting donations of as small as three dollars. Due to an almost complete absence of response to this fine program, we are
canceling it for now, as of 033109.

As of 040109, we have collected and/or donated the following:

New Anonymous Donor: $50
Anonymous: $20
Anonymous: $20
Anonymous: $20
Anonymous: $20
Anonymous: $20
Anonymous: $20
Anonymous: $20
Anonymous: $20
Anonymous: $20
Anonymous: $20
Jim and Maureen Dwyer: $50
Friend from New Hampshire: $5
lmiusa: $100
lmiusa: $95
Barb and Dale Siler: $100
______________________________________________________

Total 040109: $600

The only reason that we were able to meet our relatively tiny financial goals for the Federation was that Love Ministries USA (lmiusa) added the missing amount. So, as of 040109, we have sent $100 to each of the Federation ministries/orphanages.
***
Since we have six ministries in the Federation, i.e., Love Ministries of India, Love Ministries of Kenya, Love Ministries of Pakistan, Love Ministries of Rwanda, Love Ministries of Sierra Leone, and Love Ministries of Uganda, our goal for this month was $600.

While donations to larger charities are often ending up in the files or accounts of service-providers and solicitors, phone-bills, electric bills, etc., one hundred percent of all donations to Love Ministries Federation are guaranteed to go straight to the children in need.

Love, from the Heart,

shi and the staff of the Love Ministries Federation
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Procrastination

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I used to procrastinate often (like you, I have a taurusmoon, and taurus is the sign of procrastination). But it was realized that it was the result of unstructured inactivity, avoidance, fear, or laziness-- none of which was at all desirable or spiritual.

The key for us is that, when we think of something that needs to be done, we don't just think about it, talk about it, but we actually do it; the "secret" is all in the "getting moving" or "getting started."
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Learning Real Love-Taoism through Suffering

Learning Real Love-Taoism through Suffering
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Happy April!:) A touch early, but it arrives tomorrow!:)

I am so delighted that this world, with its donkeygifts, has "driven" you towards two directions at once-- greater compassion, and total reliance on [the Goddess of Love,] Aphrodite. For these are the two best gifts in the universe. And there is no better way to teach them than to put the donkey in "danger," or, as you imply, in serious uncertainty.

Any kind of suffering, although we would rather see our friends avoid this aspect of life, teaches and increases compassion. She who suffers little often loves little, not because she is unkind, but because she is unaware, almost oblivious. There is no finer teacher than personal suffering. If we take it "to heart," and carefully examine it, suffering gives us many positive gifts-- but none better than these two (releasing control and loving others more deeply), without which we cannot become
"spiritual adults."

That is why good people have always suffered, often for others, often for the karma of the whole world. (This is a major theme, and cannot be overlooked, in the life of Jesus, as well as of Francis and many other saintmystics and sages.)

This is the universe's way of saying, "Welcome to the human race." It is a real initiation into deeper, and much brighter, spirituality. It aids us to practice Love-Taoism-- the real thing, not just words. For no one follows Tao more, or more sincerely, than she who has given up, abandoned, all desires to "control, all hopes of control." She has truly turned her life over to the higher Power of Love, trusting that Love can and will move in her without her interference. We do not, she finally realizes, make Love happen; we can only permit It.
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God's Bottomless, immeasurable Love

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At Love Ministries of India, Pakistan, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, Uganda, and the USA, we have only one mission-- to publicize and teach the infinite Love of God, which saves through wonderful grace. Please try to make sure that all people are exposed to this glorious message: People are saved only because of the greatness of the Love of God, not because of "works."

This Love is infinite and bottomless, and the heart of God contains a galaxy of Love, immeasurable and limitless. To say that there exist a sin greater than God's Love is blasphemy. For God's Love is the greatest, most immense, vast Power in the universe.

Jesus told us to forgive seventy times seven; God's Love is greater. All our sins are forgiven, allowing us to live through grace.
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Love is the Beginning

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The path of truth in spirituality begins with the discovery of interior Love. So, try to find someone or something that needs your Love. (Our little planet is starving for Love, so this should be relatively easy.)


Every creature-- every dog, cat, llama, camel, elephant, horse, and every human being-- needs Love. Love is where the Journey to the interior Spirit always finds its beginning, and Its end.
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Men's Brains and Women's Brains

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Despite differing neurocircuitry between the brains of males and those of females, I hold to the standard psychological view that "men are from earth, and women are from earth." Exactly when this became "radical" appeared after the "men from Mars" and "women from Venus" syndrome. This divisive perspective infected seriously and deeply the entire culture, society, and community, despite its falsehood, for it was catchy and pseudo-clever.

It did succinctly state that there are differences, but simply (often, terribly) overstated the case. It reinforced unhealthy sexism on both sides, and its effect was catastrophic. The sexes stopped talking, and often, even stopped wanting to talk. There was a kind of "destinarian" giving up on intersex communication. This was extremely unhealthy, and very damaging, as it posited major and irrevocable differences between male and female brains.

The truth, both physiologically and anatomically, is that our brains share much more in common than their real and important differences. (We are, after all, the same species.)

My brain, for one, does not work with a million little "boxes" at all-- despite the fact that the male brain is "supposed" to work this way. Like the "female" brain, I am capable of making millions of interconnections; indeed, I believe that everything is interconnected. Does that make me "female"?

I don't think so, for I find the female of the species too enjoyable, indeed, too captivating. Their yin polarity is superattractive to my own yang. This is indeed how nature has created all of us, and I find it not only comfortable, but highly enjoyable.

Mysticism itself, as a philosophy, is the first to confirm and support the "all is interconnected" worldview. This does not make mysticism "female," even though very much in it leans in that direction. (Mystics are often more comfortable with a "Goddess" than a traditional "god," for example.)

As long as one is processing through "boxes," whether she/he be male or female, that person is cut off from the vital Flow or Tao of the universe. She has missed her Christnature (Buddhanature) entirely, and is lost in illusion.
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Intro to Love

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When we give Love, we demand nothing in return. Love is its own delight and its own reward: Each time that we love, we are rewarded immediately; a burst of healing energy rushes throughout the brainbody system. This is often subtle, even undetectable; but these add up and, in time, bring the mind, body, and Soul into harmony. For Love is what we were created to do, and it simply does not matter how people respond.

Jesus taught Love and ended up on a cross; other lovers of humanity have been persecuted and even driven away from their communities. Love is almost never rewarded by the "lower" nature of the earthly senses, or by the "material" world; its blessings are all internal, personal, and spiritual. Love is always the right path, the correct response, to any situation.
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Pretty Good Idea

Thanks to Barbara Baty.
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"Members of Congress should be compelled to wear uniforms just like NASCAR drivers, so we could identify their Corporate Sponsors."

-- Unknown

Great Idea!

Thanks to Christine Finer.
***

This was an article from the St. Petersburg Times Newspaper on Sunday. The "Business Section" asked readers for ideas on, "How Would You Fix the Economy?"

"Dear Mr. President:
Patriotic retirement: There's about 40 million people over 50 in the work force; pay them $1 million apiece severance with stipulations:

1) They leave their jobs. Forty million job openings -- Unemployment fixed.
2) They buy NEW American cars. Forty million cars ordered -- Auto Industry fixed.
3) They either buy a house or pay off their mortgage -- Housing Crisis fixed.

Much cheaper than the trillions being ineffectively spent on the financial industry.

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Myopically Misled by Appearances

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Thanks to Barbara Baty.
***

A lady in a faded gingham dress and her husband, dressed in a homespun threadbare suit, stepped off the train in Boston, and walked timidly without an appointment in to the Harvard University President's outer office.

The secretary could tell in a moment that such backwoods, country hicks had no business at Harvard and probably didn't even deserve to be in Cambridge.

"We'd like to see the president," the man said softly.
"He'll be busy all day," the secretary snapped.
"We'll wait," the lady replied.

For hours the secretary ignored them, hoping that the couple would finally become discouraged and go away. They didn't, and the secretary grew frustrated and finally decided to disturb the president, even though it was a chore she always regretted.

"Maybe if you see them for a few minutes, they'll leave," she said to him!

He sighed in exasperation and nodded. Someone of his importance obviously didn't have the time to spend with them, and he detested gingham dresses and homespun suits cluttering up his outer office.

The president, stern faced and with dignity, strutted to ward the couple.
The lady told him, "We had a son who attended Harvard for one year. He loved Harvard. He was happy here. But about a year ago, he was accidentally killed. My husband and I would like to erect a memorial to him, somewhere on campus."

The president wasn't touched. He was shocked. "Madam," he said, gruffly, "we can't put up a statue for every person who attended Harvard and died. If we did, this place would look like a cemetery."

"Oh, no," the lady began quickly. "We don't want to erect a statue. We thought we would like to give a building to Harvard."

The president rolled his eyes. He glanced at the gingham dress and homespun suit, then exclaimed, "A building! Do you have any earthly idea how much a building costs? We have over seven and a half million dollars in the physical buildings here at Harvard."

For a moment the lady was silent. The president was pleased. Maybe he could get rid of them now. The lady turned to her husband and said quietly, "Is that all it costs to start a university? Why don't we just start our own?"

Her husband nodded. The president's face wilted in confusion and bewilderment. Mr. and Mrs. Leland Stanford got up and walked away, traveling to Palo Alto, California where they established the university that bears their name, Stanford University, a memorial to a son that Harvard no longer cared about.

You can easily judge the character of others by how they treat those who they think can do nothing for them.

--A TRUE STORY By Malcolm Forbes

***
People will forget what you said,
People will forget what you did.
But people will never forget how you made them feel!
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Medicine, Healing, and Love

How right you are about my Soulmate, who has made this life far better than we could or would have ever predicted!:) She is gentle cool clear water on a planet that is so often a harsh superheated desert.:)

Re the transplant, we have come to cease expecting anything from the docs, who almost never communicate "from on high;" and their nurses are useless when it comes to information re the timing of the transplant, guarding any with their lives as a "deep, dark secret." This is ludicrous to absurd. So, we have come to expect precisely nothing from either group; when it is convenient for them, they might let us know; just hope that we have time to prep and pack!:)

There is little to no empathy in the entire system of modern medicine; the whole interaction has been computers speaking "digitese" to other computers; hardly a human communication has occurred. In fact, I have received not a single email message from any doctor or any nurse from thebeginning.

This proves how far medicine has drifted from healing; for, in healing, the human aspect, especially the alleviation of suffering, is always in the top one percent of cares; in this ultratechnical system, the human element is eradicated as far as possible. No wonder that they are planning to use robots for surgery; that will rid the system of its last technical imperfection-- human input. Medicine, already frosty and snowy, just gets colder.

You are right on target, by the way, in your hard-earned lesson that there are people to whom you can give Love, and those to whom you cannot. To find those "hungry" and "thirsty" for Love-- in both its giving and receiving-- is truly a blessing. But trying to love Martha [pseudonym] and her ilk is a spectacular waste of timenergy, and of even life itself. For she still has very much growing to do, and it is not likely that she can accomplish this during one little lifetime.

So, to sum up, we are where we began: in the dark. But we have promised the Spirit that we will attempt an honestly Taoist attitude towards this entire matter of the transplant: Just trust and wait, not fret, worry, or manipulate. And the reward has been increased peace.:)

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Movie Review: "Something the Lord Made"

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This movie (2004) sounds as if it has a religious theme, but it does not. Instead, it is thoroughly sociospiritual, defending equal opportunity for all. It is the dramatic story of an African American doctor (Vivian Thomas) who was born with the creative genius to understand the depths of medicine. Originally a carpenter, he aided a caucasian physician to perform the first heart-surgery. The caucasian doc got all the credit-- no surprise in the old days of bigotry and ignorance. (Until then, surgeons were prohibited from ever touching the
heart.)
This is the story of how this brilliant man was ignored, neglected, even abused, in the United States because of his race. The story is not a blast of excitement; in some areas, it feels almost like a documentary.
But it tells a story that badly, desperately needs to be told, of how society often ruined itself by ruining the lives, or preventing the educational development, of minority-persons. Due to this blind and ignorant pressure, any number of good, even great, minds went to waste. The hero of the movie, Vivian Thomas, was the exception. After years of hard and even genius-level work, he was rejected by several minority universities; and too little, too late, he was finally granted a
doctorate from Johns-Hopkins, which his life and discoveries greatly benefited.
This movie is a reminder that, no matter how humble a beginning, a Soul has a history that might grant it genius, or gifts, in many areas. We should never take any person, any Soul, for granted. Each should be given an equal chance to participate in, and give to, the Whole.
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TV Review: "Millennium"

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This one-hour series was produced, not surprisingly, near the Millennium's beginning, from about 1998-2000. It is probably too intense for the sensitive, as it takes a scorpionic look into the twisted minds and motives of killers.
In one episode, the audience is encouraged to think about a most important subject: Does a person have the "right to die" in dignity rather than suffer through years of pain and agony? Even more to the point, does any doc have the right to assist a person to leave this world?
The star of the series, the character called Frank Black, comes down on the side of the establishment. Frank is a profiler for the fbi, and uses his psychic gifts to fill in the blank areas. The "criminal" in this case is a former doctor, a young African American blessed with a beautiful and wonderful vision of the eternity of life, and its continuity after death into other "planes." He is filled with both
compassion and faith, but these spiritual powers are being abused; he is interfering with the rights that others-- several old and suffering people-- have to make their own life-and-death decisions.
But as noble as his motives might be, Frank correctly points out that his actions, in helping people to find blessed release from this world, are legally (and morally) "murder." When a cop refers to this doc as "a saint," Frank replies, "Or worse."
Although of course, everyone must leave this planet, this must always be a personal decision; it must never be made by one person for another. This is, in fact, the one datum that transforms the otherwise beautiful and loving act into murder: Some of the older people whom the doc tries to "help," although in great pain, might not be ready or willing to leave, for whatever reasons. And they are given this right by the universe.
Like this doc, many of us share strong feelings about the "right to die with dignity." Still, we must never impose these feelings upon others; no one has that right. This activity is often called "playing God," and it is ironic, for it is actually God (Love) "playing human." But, still, the action of intervening and taking another sentient life violates all the rights which any living creature has. It bulldozes over their rights and ignores their value as separate and independent
individuals.
It is therefore immoral, no matter how fine the motivation might be. (In this story, the doc himself suffers from a terminal disease, and clearly wants to take advantage of the option for selfeuthanasia.) This too, is illegal, for our entire culture and society are terrorized by death-- to the point where many will not even discuss the "horrific" subject. This is obviously an unhealthy extreme, as is the other extreme of assuming that anyone has the right to make this intensely personal decision for another.
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TV Review: "The Twilight Zone"

*******

This series represents true "vintage tv," and was first produced way back in the late 1950's. It was rewritten and refilmed as a series in the mid-1980's. It still contains the very familiar musical refrain, although, in this later edition, it is much more "psychedelic" than the original.
One episode is particularly thoughtprovoking. It concerns a young man named Leonard who earns a fat paycheck by practicing "trance-channeling." In the episode, he has his very first appearance on national tv. Then, astonishingly, he comes into touch with the "real thing," a higher Power in the Unconscious mind that wants to speak through him.
This is completely new to him; it has never happened before. All during his fabulously wealthy career, he has claimed to "channel" a "ten thousand year old warrior," but he has been just pretending (acting). When the real Power does come through, he admits to the audience, which includes many "faithful" followers, that his work has all been fake and phony: He has never "channeled" anything or anyone in his long career. This, as his manager warns in the beginning, ruins them both economically, but Leonard feels more comfortable being authentic than when he was playing a "role." He chooses to live in honesty, and begins, for a radical change, actually to help people. He exposes the whole "channelling" phenomenon as one of sheer desperation; people need to pay to believe that they are being touched by the extraordinary, or even the miraculous. This is a very poor foundation for metaphysics or spirituality.
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TV Review: "Everybody Loves Raymond"

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In an episode of this half-hour sitcom, a main character, Deborah, complains that her husband Ray is deficient in Lovexpression. He wants to find out why, and asks his father Frank, usually an emotionally cool and distant person, a very study in emotional inexpression. Ray's brother Robert soon joins the conversation, and the family undergoes a very short-lasting (momentary) metamorphosis. Everyone becomes very selfconscious, and deeply embarrassed, but they begin to tell each other
that they love one another.
This is very soon perceived as an extreme embarrassment, and everyone is apologetic and ashamed. Deborah says that she is sorry that she ever brought up the subject, and Frank says that it should never be mentioned again.
This view towards Love, and Lovexpression, is the very root of much of what is wrong with our families, communities, and societies. Why on earth should a person feel embarrassed, ashamed, or selfconscious because she expresses Love towards her loved ones? She should not; instead, she should feel happy and fulfilled; she is doing what she was created to do.
The Baron family, in this episode, treats Love as if it were some obscene secret, to be mentioned only in private, and never acknowledged-- at least, not on a regular basis. This fearbased attitude towards Love is a corrosive that eats away at family unity, loyalty, joy, fun, and general open sharing.
So, as the people of Love, let us embrace the opposite perspective: Let us unashamedly express Love as often, and as openly, as possible. Let us express Love, of many kinds, in as many varieties as we know. Try to tell loved ones that you love them as often as possible. For our tiny planet is starving for Love, and for Lovexpressions.
Let us not be "shamed" into making It a big, dark secret. Love, like charity, to which It is related, begins at home; let us never be ashamed of It, or allow Its expression to make us selfconscious.
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Life, Death, and Love

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I do not feel that your son died in pain. If indeed he died from a diabetic coma, that is a very "easy death." It is very much like going to sleep. You should know that I have given this some deep thought at a Soul-level, for it is an "emergency exit" plan for this current body, which is diabetic.

Some would argue that there are no "pleasant" ways to leave the earth. But the fact is, we all must leave at some time. So, the Soul, often before birth, builds into the dna a method for exiting the body when the time is right. Your son's Soul "built into" his body the genetic pattern that allowed a peaceful death. For there are many nightmarish ways to die, and only a few serene ones.

As a spiritual person, I deeply empathize with your pain and suffering; yet I must also remind you, and myself, that death is a major transformation, a new beginning, and the chance for a new life. Death is not the "end" of everything, as some materialists and mechanists claim. (And they have no "proof" of this.)

The ancient mystical classic Bhagavad-Gita says that death is like changing clothes.

We have come to see it as an unmitigated terror and horror precisely because we have fallen very deeply into amnesia. In the Soul's amnesia, which is part of the will of Love, we forget that we are immaterial, nonphysical Souls, and come to regard ourselves as only mechanisms or developed animals. We are much, much more than both. And very much in modern thanatological (death-) studies implies that the mind does indeed, as mystics have always said, survive the body. We literally have tens
of thousands who have returned from death to tell us that Mind continues after death.

Death is not only a "survivable" experience, but an entry into ecstasy and immeasurable joy. And Love is greater than death; the Love-bonds continue between mother and son, as between other relatives and friends. You will see your son again, happy and alive. Meantime, he wants you to live out your fullest and most productive life; he also wants you to find the most joy that you can create in your life on earth.

Earth is a very difficult and challenging school. God says that it is okay, just fine, if we stop believing in Her, or even, for a time, lose all motive to live and to serve. She does not condemn us, and the spark of Love that She creates in our hearts never goes out. It simply waits, with unimaginable patience, to be fanned into a warm flame of expressed Love.

In the shorterm, it might be therapeutic to form special bonds with other people, or other creatures; this is what your son wants for you.

Lovenergy changes forms many times during a life, but It never dies. So, you can take the Love of your beautiful heart, and enrich many lives with it; our poor little planet is starving for Love.
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Messages to the "Universal Love Digest" (uld)

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When we first started the uld ("Universal Love Digest"), it was a completely open forum to which any nut, fanatic, or preacher could send absolutely any message in the world! We received, for example, a lot of stuff damning political parties, predicting the "end of the world," some trying to prove that Christian Science was the "world's only 'right' religion," some recommending the worship of extraterrestrials or "ghosts," and other nonspiritual, even antispiritual, stuff. Some passionately advocated exclusive cults-- excluding all outside their cults. Some of it was even harmful.

So, now it has been arranged that all submissions to the uld pass by this desk at Love Ministries first, as a protective preventative. And, as you know, the uld has a different email address than we (Adamaria and I).

But all of us-- all the readers of the uld-- always appreciate your kind and supportive messages. Anything that is written to uplift, and that contains no "secrets" (private information) or dogmatism might be published, but only if it is made clear that the writer wants to publish it! It is, and never will be, our inclination or intention to publish anything personal., .

But if you do not want any note to end up in the uld, please do not send it to: elovefamily@yahoogroups.com.

Instead, please send all personal messages to:
rmfrancis@juno.com

(Adamaria has a different address, but we are going to consolidate the two services into one.)
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Being "Born Again"

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Thanks to Gary Kreme.
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When Jesus told Nicodemas, "You must be born again," most scholars believe that he was speaking allegorically. To be "born again" is to embrace a new identity.

During the final aspects of her Godly life, the Christian becomes a "mystic." This is a person who realizes that her little mind is actually a part of a much vaster, more immense Mind-- the Mind of God. She then realizes that God is not like the old primitive Jehovah-- that God does not live above the clouds or in a mountain such as Sinai, but lives as the "indwelling Holy Spirit of Love" within her heart.

Mystics, in their writings, call the earthly identity the "ego." This is the name on your birth-certificate and/or driver's license. But, deep within your mind, you are so much more. Jesus came to, among other reasons, show us the Love of a fully enlightened (realized) human being. For he said that he would go forward into death, and then return, demonstrating that death was not the "end," but a phase along the great Way.

He said, The Father and I are one." (Jn. 10:30) But we have no other verses where he said that these words applied to only him. Mystics from all over the world, from every culture and century, believe that, like Jesus, they are also a part of the One, the Mind, Good, which is "truth" or "reality."

God is the vast, immense Mind that dwells at the very Center of all minds, and so, She is aware of whatever passes through any and all minds.

The material universe is a projection, dream, or virtual reality projected by this Mind. Therefore, nothing in the "material" world is absolutely "real." This is indicated by how material things always change, or fall apart (returning to dust), or both.

Only Mind is real. This means that all sentient (selfaware) beings are also real, and sacred. Your sisters, brothers, mother, father, and other relatives, pets, animals, and friends are sacred (holy) because they also are part of the One. So, for that matter, are dogs, cats, horses, and a wide spectrum of other creatures. This is why a truly enlightened person always stands up for animal rights and against barbarity and cruelty.

A "person" who knows that she is part of the One, the Mind, is no longer the same "person." (This word comes from the Latin persona, and means "mask.") So, we must ask, "Who is wearing the mask?"

It is your Soul, that part of your mind that existed before this life, and will continue to exist when this life is over. That Soul arises from the beautiful Love-mind, Godmind, or God.

When you realize this very deeply, you know that you are no longer merely human. You are still human, but now, you are "human-plus." [This is why many mystics, including Jesus (who was born as "Immanuel," changed their names. Paul did this, and so did Peter.]

Jesus probably referred to this symbolic identity-change. But there is also the possibility that he simply meant exactly what he said. Jesus is often over-explained; and he might well have meant that Nicodemas had to undergo another birth in a future life, as he was not going to grasp the truth during that one. For mystics believe that God never permanently loses a Soul, that no Soul is ever damaged beyond God's ability to save or recover it, through education.
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Troubled Relationship

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It looks, sadly, as if your relationship is going downhill, losing passion and the intensity necessary to maintain a good, normal, functional sexual relationship. I think that you need to have a very serious talk with Martha [pseudonym] about the dissolution of the relationship. You do not want to stay trapped in an unproductive,
unsatisfying relationship until you are too old to explore other options. Both of you need to decide together whether this relationship is worth preserving and repairing, or whether you both want to go your own ways.

One thing is certain: You cannot "keep a relationship going" by yourself; it must be a cooperative and shared effort. If she is unwilling to share the work of maintenance of the relationship (hugging, touching, sex), or if she simply does not want to do so, you must move on in the construction of a life that you find personally satisfying. You owe that not only to yourself, but to your child.

For the baby cannot possibly thrive in an emotionless or cold environment; that would be to do violence to her mind, or to her Soul, and she deserves better than that. If you wish to discuss the situation any further, you can call me, at (513-)737-LOVE (5683).
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Yellow Springs, Ohio: Some History

Thanks to Mick Gallagher.
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Yellow Springs, Ohio: You would love that ol' hippie hangout. Really laid back.... Rod Serling taught there, hung out at 'Ye Olde Tavern'--an old stagecoach stop between Columbus & Cinci. I was around ten then. Jonathan Winters,... his family owned a funeral home in Springfield, and he was an only child brat who also sulked around the olde Tavern [in]...say, the early 1960's. Neat place.... Dino's coffee shop [is] a lil dinky joint there.

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The Proposal

Thanks to Teresa Ramsey.

The Proposal
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When a company falls on difficult times, one of the things that happens is that it reduces its staff and workers. The remaining workers need to find ways to continue to do a good job or risk that their jobs would be eliminated as well. Wall street, and the media, normally congratulate the CEO for making this type of "tough decision"; and his board of directors gives him a big bonus.

Our government should not be immune from similar risks.

Therefore: Reduce the House of Representatives from the current 435 members to 218members; and [reduce also] Senate members from one hundred to fifty (one per state). Also reduce remaining staff by 25%.

Accomplish this over the next 8 years. [This would require] two steps/two elections) and, of course, this would require some redistricting.

Some Yearly Monetary Gains Include:

$44,108,400 for elimination of base pay for congress. (267 members X $165,200 pay/member/year.)

$97,175,000 for elimination of the above people's staff. (estimate $1.3 Million in staff per each member of the House, and $3 Million in staff per each member of the Senate every year)

$240,294 for the reduction in remaining staff by 25%.

$7,500,000,000 reduction in pork barrel ear-marks each year (those members whose jobs are gone; current estimates for total government pork earmarks are at $15 Billion/year)

The remaining representatives would need to work smarter and would need to improve efficiencies. It might even be in their best interests to work together for the good of our country?

We may also expect that smaller committees might lead to a more efficient resolution of issues as well. It might be even easier to keep track of what your representative is doing.

Congress has more tools available to do its jobs than it had back in 1911, when the current number of representatives was established. [This includes] telephone, computers, cellphones, to name a few.

Note: Congress did not hesitate to head home when it was a holiday, when the nation needed a real fix to the economic problems. Also, we have 3 senators that have not been doing their jobs for the past 18+ months (on the campaign trail) and still they all have been accepting full pay. These facts alone support a reduction in senators & congress.

Summary of opportunity:

$ 44,108,400 reduction of congress members.

$282,100, 000 for elimination of the reduced house member staff.

$150,000,000 for elimination of reduced senate member staff.

$59,675,000 for 25% reduction of staff for remaining house members.

$37,500,000 for 25% reduction of staff for remaining senate members.

$7,500,000,000 reduction in pork added to bills by the reduction of congress members.
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[These changes would result in a total of] $8,073,383,400 per year. This eight billion is just a start!

Big business does these types of cuts all the time.

If Congresspersons were required to serve 20, 25 or 30 years (like everyone else) in order to collect retirement benefits, there is no telling how much we would save. Now, they get full retirement after serving only ONE term.

If you are happy with how the Congress currently spends and wastes our taxes, then just delete this message. IF you are NOT at all happy, then I assume you know what to do!

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Lovexpression

As the people of Love, our hearts motivate us to, and we vow to, love everyone-- without exception, including friends, enemies, and strangers.

In fact, Love is the most healing and joyful activity in the world! It is utterly fulfilling, for It is the reason that we were first created by ("emanated" from) the One, the only Mind in existence. Love moves us towards primal Union, or reunion, with the Mind of Love, or Godmind. So, Love is the key to fulfillment, satisfaction, and utter contentment.

Love is indescribably beautiful. It is what all human beings most deeply want to express, and to share, with other human beings, and with other creatures-- even with the Goddess (God) and the "angels. The world is starving for Love! (Someday, we will be challenged to share this same Love with extraterrestrials as well.)

So, Love is the most fun a human being can possibly have! It is as satisfying biologically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually as finding a glass of cold water when we are thirsty. Love alone fills the needs of the human Soul; nothing in the universe can replace It.

Although we know that all this is true, nevertheless, we must exercise caution in everyday Lovexpression. We can feel the infinite Love of God shining and glowing in our hearts. But we cannot always safely express It.

Why not? Why cannot the lover of all humanity express Love freely, hugging everyone, and telling her, "I love you"?

It is because of the dull and primitive, backwards and arrested, programming of society. For society, from poprock music to commercials, popularly programs people to believe that the word "Love" is, or should be, limited to sexual and/or romantic Love.

We who study agapology-- the art and science of Love-- know that Love can mean a wide spectrum of a million more things. But people are so mercilessly and incessantly, relentlessly programmed to see "Love" as romance or sex, you are very likely to be misunderstood if you express "Love" to a stranger. This is tragic, unfortunate, and very, very sad.

What it implies is that we all must exercise caution.

If we are not to end up being labeled, or taken to a mental hospital or police station, we must temper all our Lovexpressions with strangers. (Joyfully, we need not do this among the people of Love, who understand the many types and powerlevels of Love.)

In Greek, there are several words for "Love." One of them, the Greek eros, originally referred to Love as a cosmic force that held the cosmos together. It was eros that held hydrogen and oxygen together in water-molecules. But, in time, this word came to mean or to imply sexual or romantic Love.

And "erotophobia"-- the fear of sexual or romantic Love or involvement-- is quite common. So, in all Lovexpression, we show Love by respecting the boundaries and limitations of people. We are never controlled by their fears, but, out of kindness, must respect their sensitivities. This means that, although we withold no Love, we must, at times, withold Lovexpression: It is not always good or appropriate fully to express Love to a stranger; we must take a few steps back, and approach the matter with caution, so as never to be intrusive or invasive of the other's privacy.
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The Poorest People in the World

Dearest Friends of the Heart,

As most of you know, Love Ministries has recently started the Love Ministries Federation. This is a Lovebased, cooperative communion of small, independent ministries which care for orphans in the poorest countries on earth.

Many of these orphans have had homes, brothers, sisters, and parents torn away from them through military violence. Some have had their homes, all possessions, pets, and even family-members burned before their little innocent eyes. This is in turn supported by greed, commercialism, and religious bigotry.

These do represent the poorest people on our little planet. The Way of Love is often marked by how we deal with strangers.

What is the very greatest, the most fundamental, gift that you can give to another?

It is the gift of continued life. We now have a great and wonderful opportunity to give to God's children this very special gift. For only the amount that you would pay for one cd, or one hamburger, you can make the ultimate difference between life and death, survival and perishing. We are accepting donations as small as three dollars.

So, we sincerely invite you to share the generosity that the universe has so kindly shared with you. Please join our friends this month (March 2009). So far, here is what we have received:

New Anonymous Donor: $50
Anonymous: $20
Anonymous: $20
Anonymous: $20
Anonymous: $20
Anonymous: $20
Anonymous: $20
Anonymous: $20
Anonymous: $20
Anonymous: $20
Anonymous: $20
Friend from New Hampshire: $5
lmiusa: $100
Barb and Dale Siler: $100
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Total 022709: $455.
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Since we have six ministries in the Federation, i.e., Love Ministries of India, Love Ministries of Kenya, Love Ministries of Pakistan, Love Ministries of Rwanda, Love Ministries of Sierra Leone, and Love Ministries of Uganda, our goal for this month is $600. This will allow us to send only $100 to each. So, we still need $145, to give to each of our orphanages. So, please consult your heart and your checkbook, and give whatever you can. NOTE: Unlike the case with larger charities, in which 80% of funds might go to maintenance (offices, payment of workers and solicitors, phone-bills, electric bills, etc.), one hundred percent of all donations to Love Ministries Federation are guaranteed to go straight to the children in need. Thank you in advance for your Love and kindness.

Love, from the Heart,

shi and the staff of the Love Ministries Federation

Goddess, Illumination, and "Feng Shui"

Once in a while, the Goddess of Love gives us great gifts. One example is the return of the Goddess of flowers in springtime. But a better example is a moment of "illumination."

Enlightenment usually occurs gradually, by the accumulation of moments of illumination. [In Zen, these are called ken-sho, while final enlightenment is called satori. (This is an equivalent of the state of samadhi mentioned in Hindu mystical literature.)]

An example of the Power of illumination is what occurred with you. From deep within, the Spirit directly taught you important lessons about not controlling-- a nucleus of Taoism; it also taught you about faith, trust, and the interior world-dreamer (Goddess) who, in the final analysis, controls everything, making it necessary for us to control nothing personally.

In Jesus' famous words, "live as little children," in the original language, the word did not mean "little children"; it meant "nursing infants."

So, enlightened people do not live like five-year-olds; instead, they live with the full trust and faith of an infant clinging to its mother. The infant relaxes, knowing that the mother knows where she is going, and trusting that she will carry the infant to a good place, not a harmful or dangerous one. This is very similar to the attitude towards the caring universe developed in enlightenment: It is a friendly and supportive universe, ruled by Love.

That is why, in the most "Taoist" of his many sermons, the famous Sermon on the Mount, Jesus tells his followers to live as the flowers or the birds-- without fear, worry or control. God (Goddess) will take care of everything, and we need to trust, not to wrest control from God and try, like most people, to control the whole universe! (We are not up to the task, and are incapable of it.)

When we learn this important fact, that we do not and cannot control anything or anyone, for it is our responsibility to control only our responses, then a huge burden is lifted from our backs. Life becomes easy and pleasant, as we are no longer carrying this heavy weight.

We find that we can live with, and even enjoy, stillness. We do not always have to be "superbusy," which is a way of running from life. This arises from fear, and makes fear our master. Since fear is of the lower nature, alien to the higher, we become servants of the lower nature, eclipsing and hiding the higher nature of pure Love. Before long, negative habits take root, and we become spiritually unproductive, paralyzed and petrified. Our growth and development stop, "on hold," and no progress is made.

It is great that your own heartmind is actively growing, proved by your illumination.:)

When we see these truths, and feel them in the heart, we then revise our personal desire-structure. For, although desire promises heaven, it leads straight to various hellstates of dissatisfaction and unfulfillment. Tranquility disappears in the rush of hyperbusiness and leaves us clueless.

Spirituality takes time, energy, and attention. It happens only when and if we permit or allow it. But, like fine flowers, it requires active cultivation, and active attention. Also, like the flowers, it is natural and will grow if we give it a little time.

One way of improvement is that we begin to improve our environments, as mentioned in your correspondence. In an art called feng shui, pronounced "fung shway," we rid our lives of all clutter and excess.

For every item in your home either gives you energy or takes it away (draining you). So, it is necessary, and fun, always to surround ourselves with only items that we like or love. If we do this, every item will be energy-giving and energy-supporting, and will help us to combat fatigue, boredom, illness, and other unproductive or depressive states. So, try to decorate with sculptures, statues, paintings, fountains, chimes, music, and other items that you truly love, that speak
to your deeper Mind, that bring joy and satisfaction, tranquility and fun! This path, now respected worldwide, begins with the elimination of clutter. It means getting rid of anything that contributes to our sadness, and keeping only items that contribute to happiness. What could be more fun?:):)

Again, congratulations on your being open to interior revelations given by the Goddess of Love, for She always has much to say, but we have forgotten how to listen. Blessed is she who remembers how to listen.

The Cosmos of Light

It is hoped that, in time, she will come to love her own body enough to stop smoking; otherwise, she sabotages any real healing process.:( And that is never a good idea.

Still, we are happy, every day, to join our prayers/energysending with yours, for, as the ancient Christian mystic wrote, "The prayer of a good person has much Power."

Now, we are looking forward to Sunday, and the sharing of our celebration of having come to this itsy-bitsy, teeny-weeny, tiny whiney little nanospeck called "earth.":)

Again, thanks, as always, for bringing such a sweet heart to our sad little world. Every light, including that of your own heart, makes this world, and this universe, brighter, with the promise that, someday, the entire cosmos will be all Light and no darkness.:) (See 1 Jn. 1:5)
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Project K: Update

Believe it or not, we do have something like a date for the surgery of Project K. Not really a date, but rather a large time-period, actually. The surgery will occur sometime (we have no idea when) after March 2, Monday. [That is when the donor, Sandi, has her surgery to remove ovarian cysts... But, as operations go, we understand that this is not a major, critical, or extremely serious (lifethreatening) one.:)

Brother Donkey, the body, is showing some peripheral tiredness and lack of energy. We continue regular bloodtests, and regular conferencing with the nephrologist (kidney-specialist) whom we have known now for nearly twenty years.

The last transplant, the donor was a taurus. This time, she is also a taurus, and the doc is also a taurus. Although I am a pisces, I do have a taurusmoon. So, maybe there is a cosmic pattern behind all that is happening; we like to think so, at any rate.:):)

Thank you for your continued interest in this important lifevent, and thanks for asking, dear friend. Thanks also for any silver energy that you can send. (We are requesting this from all our friends.:)

May you have a most beautiful and temperate day as we together prepare for the return of the Goddess of flowers with springtime.:)

Forgiveness

To be unforgiving hurts only the one who does not forgive; it is she who must experience the sleepless nights, the upset stomach and other digestive problems, and all the "bad vibes" that accompany unforgiveness.

So, when we refuse to forgive, we harm only ourselves, supporting a selfcreated hellstate in our own heartminds; we do nothing to "punish" the unforgiven-- very often, the motive behind unforgiveness. Unforgiveness is a failed lifestrategy; it simply never works to our (or anyone else's) advantage.

Perhaps, the way that we are "built," we must begin the forgiveness-process with a selfinvolved motive rather than a loving or othercentered one. This will clearly work better, at any rate, for many, many people.:( That is just the way that this world, and human psychology, are structured.

Let us all pray and work, every day, that we might all be selfblessed by discovering the profound tranquility and humility that arise from forgiveness. Let us try to "get ourselves out of the way," so that the Light of wisdom can shine through, into our dark world.:) We all must move along this path, one microstep at a time.:) We can always support each other in the effort, and our own interior transformation and
selfless forgiveness can serve as a model for others.:)

Prayers Continue, and Funds on the Way

This is a note to our friend in Kenya:

022509wed

Dear Tom,

Life on this earth brings us some major challenges. If possible, the lower nature of fear would destroy our faith; but we must never give up our belief in our Lord of Love. We continue to pray for you and for the dear and precious orphans in your tender care. You can be sure that Love will richly bless you, no matter what happens, and no matter how great your need might appear.

We are very sorry to hear that tragedy has struck your country (Kenya), and your ministries to the poor. We truly do want to send another donation to Love Ministries of Kenya, to aid the extremely poor orphans, and also to support your fine house-church. But our readers and friends have not yet responded to our latest call for funds, and we are still awaiting the response of Love in their hearts. We have started another fund-collection campaign, and hope that it is successful during the month of March, as it was not in February. So, as soon as we can gather the funds, we will send along a money-order, as soon as possible. I truly wish that we had more funds, but they will come as Love (God) provides.
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