Summer Heat Wave

This past week-and-a-half (if I recall correctly) was a pretty darn hot week with relatively humid days, on and off.

Some people seem to love the heat and soak up the sun like, well, like citrus fruit (growing) on trees. Me: I find it way too intense. I swear I melt, literally, like ice cream on a hot day, dripping over the edges. Where is my headband?!

Is the sun getting hotter, more intense? Is humidity worsening: are there more days that are humid? After all, I don't recall Vancouver, British Columbia being humid when I first moved here over 20 years ago. Or did I simply forget or overlook that? Am I just imagining that it is or seems to be intensifying?

Could it be that, perhaps, if you believe the philosophy of what you focus on expands or intensifies, that we collectively, that is, as a collective conscious, created that heat wave? I realize this might push your buttons and make you feel uncomfortable as I am going outside the box with these questions; however, do know that there are universal laws or principles that exist and refer to this very belief. There have been a number of books published on this very subject over the last two or three centuries at least.

Some of these books written by "new thought movement" writers include - check them out if you wish to explore this subject further - As a Man Thinketh by James Allen (originally published in 1902), The Science of Getting Rich by Wallace D. Wattles (in 1910), and Napoleon Hill's Think and Grow Rich (1937). I'm familiar with those books as I read them years ago, except for Wallace's book.

The Secret, a film that was borne out of these books on 'the law of attraction' came out in 2006, with a book of the same name in the following year.

Ponder these questions: Is global warming a reality or just a theory? Did Al Gore, former USA presidential candidate start a movement, unbeknownst to him, analagous to y2k, the software problem in the impending year of 2000, in which society believedin the impending doom of computer failures?

Could we individually and/or better yet collectively, change events such as this from happening in the first place? This is a tall-order question I realize, though I do believe we can. I have witnessed first-hand, albeit so far by ear, accounts where miracles occur of healing the environment. If we can do it for the human body, why can't we do it for our planet body, Mother Earth? Hmmm?

What do you think/make of all this? Is this the first time you are hearing something of this nature? How does it make you feel? What else do you need to know or what would you like to know in order to make an informed decision?

Parodies in Music

I love videos such as the one above created by Raamayan Ananda, a man I know from the spiritual community in Vancouver. It addresses GMO's (genetically modified organisms), rather, it is an anti-GMO music video that was created to support Prop 522 for GMO labelling.

This first video entitled "Don't Eat It", a parody to Michael Jackson's (MJ's) "Beat It" with partial imagery of MJ's "Thriller" dance routine, has the following storyline: "GMO executives Have Taken Over the Food Chain, a group of dedicated citizens march to face them off in an epic battle, but something nefarious and unexpected happens..."

The lyrics are as follows:

They Told Them Don't You Ever Grow Around Here
Don't Wanna Eat your food, You Better Disappear
The Fire's In Our Eyes And Our Words Are Really Clear
Don't EAT It

You Better Run, You Better Do What You Can
Don't Want no GMO's, You better ditch your plan
We'll fight you to the end, We're making a stand

Don't EAT, If you wanna stay allivee

(CHORUS)
Don't Eatt it (eat it), don't eat it (eat it)
g-mos will to be defeated!

Show em, its funky, show'em its not right
It DOES matter, who's wrong or right

Don't EAt it..(eat it... eat it... eat it....)
------
(Monsanto Execs Speaking)

We've got the politicians dealing our hand
You've got no right to know what's in your fruit and bread
Be like a good sheep, and just do what 'sam' says
JUST EAT IT

(GMO Activist Speaking)

Were Out To Get You, Better Leave While You Can
Our kids won't be no lab rats in your business plan
You wanna stay alive, Get GMO's Banned

Don't Eat It.... Better Do What You Can!

(Chorus)-

The short video below, "Plastic State of Mind" is a parody of JAY Z and Alicia Keys' "Empire State of Mind." It is about the ramifications of plastic waste in the form of bags. (Both videos are brilliant in my opinion and I hope you enjoy them as much as I do! Please feel free to share and circulate them as they are important messages.)



These two videos are an example of only one idea (of many) that I have for my non-traditional, co-creative children's/youth choir. Co-creative in that we get to play with ideas - theirs and mine - in creating our own music, rhythms and yes, even rap.

Rap can be especially effective on matters that are close to one's heart and/or the heartbeat of Mother Earth. The results need not be as sophisticated as these videos and that's totally ok. It's the intent and the words and the message that is important.

What are causes close to your heart? Do you take action on them? If so, how often? Do you or can you do so in a creative or artistic manner?

Tribute to Mother Earth - Earth Day 2013

"With my feet, may I walk upon the earth and feel compassion” is the opening verse of Jerry DesVoignes, Vancouver's chant master's song, Shine Like the Sun.

Believe it or not, I just learned how to walk – again – this time properly, in alignment (with my body) and lightly on the ground. It’s a (psychosomatic) practice (that feels somewhat akin to meditation or can be) and a skill! (See www.corepotentials.com.)

Another practice and skill is that of recycling. Thanks to a roommate in my 20’s who introduced me to the concept of 'clean garbage,' - yes you read that right - i.e., rinsing/washing/wiping items so as not to stink up the garbage can and/or room/environment, and also to the concepts of compacting (garbage) and recycling, I began my journey to ‘being green’ environmentally speaking of course!

I’m not perfect though I do my bit, for the most part. For example, I use and carry a stainless steel mug as often as possible instead of contributing to the massive coffee cup crisis as I call it.

Imagine, only Americans (from North and South America) who drink coffee/tea from disposable containers. Add onto that the paper or other material that the sleeve to carry the hot beverage is made up of. Think of all that ending up in landfills due to people’s ignorance and/or lack of care or responsibility for the (health of the) environment.

Yearly, there may well be more than four (4) billion of such Starbucks cups that fill landfills around the world. Witness this powerful slideshow that shows an example of this: http://www.care2.com/greenliving/disposable-coffee-cups-i-think-not.html And that’s only one coffee chain, not to mention food containers, plastic cutlery, and the like.

Furthermore, I reuse plastic bags, cloth bags, and my knapsack for carrying groceries and other things as well as reuse plastic bags from home or work for garbage, etc.

Perhaps in part as I love trees in particular and prefer nature to concrete jungles (of commercial and apartment buildings), I take my non-recycling goods (i.e., stuff, see below) to be recycled even further so it doesn’t end up in a landfill taking up precious space and land.

Likewise, our Green Team Committee (GTC) at work (that I initiated) does our part by recycling almost everything, including blue box items (papers, newspapers, and flyers as well as metal, glass, and plastic with numbers) in addition to non-blue box items such as soft plastics, hard plastics without numbers, wax or aluminum foil-lined items, and the like. We also have a compost bin; check out www.growingcity.com for details.

And furthermore, the GTC plans activities for Earth Day at work www.earthdayvancouver.org/ and Earth Week earthday2012.com/tag/earth-week-2013/ such as clothing exchange (donating leftover items to a local women’s shelter), a 100-Mile/'green’ potluck lunch in April, as well as week-long, environmental activities during Bike Month in June in Vancouver www.biketoworkmetrovan.ca including www.carfreevancouver.org.

We take this a step further by contributing our agency’s research findings and suggestions to improve our organization's gashouse emissions via a Climate Smart team.

There’s a powerful and beautiful Native teaching about respecting and honouring Mother Earth for seven generations to leave behind for not only our generation and the next. This reminds me that in my grandmother’s and even in my mother’s time, there was no garbage or recycling pickup. Every item was reused.

Have you seen the movie REvolution by Rob Stewart? It’s about the deadening, i.e., extinction of live coral reefs and marine life as well as animals, wildlife, and even the possible extinction of mankind if we continue treating this planet as we do, with no forethought of environmental consequences (www.therevolutionmovie.com/). It’s a must-see film if you wish to understand the impact of the ecosystem and how everything is interconnected.

How can you contribute to the empowerment of Mother Earth in being green(er longer)? How will you walk upon the earth with compassion, treading lightly and peacefully?

I am going to start carrying around a plastic plate in a plastic bag in my knapsack (that I've been thinking about doing lately...and keep forgetting to do). Maybe even carry plastic or compostable cutlery (that I already have)!

Ignore Kermit the Frog when he declares: "It's not easy bein' green." It is easy to ‘be green!’