Though I've recommended his work a number of times over the last decade, I've never actually seen Marshall Rosenberg, founder of the Center for Nonviolent Communication, speak. Here is one of a number of videos being made available on youtube.. check it out, and search out more.
Sunday, July 27, 2008
Sunday, July 20, 2008
News from the Hatchery
A flock of these delicate bearers of peace has been born and is being prepared to set free to take part in a presentation coming in August during Hiroshima/Nagasaki Memorial Week.
They will be delivered tomorrow to begin the process of being hung in display. Pictured here are about 80.. I hope to reach my goal of 100 by the morning..
Updates to follow.
Saturday, July 19, 2008
Avatar
I'm half-watching one of the only, or possibly only, shows of substance on Nickelodeon, called Avatar: The Last Airbender. I've been keeping up with it weekly with a couple of my kids (and at times, my husband)... it involves your basic good forces against evil, or rather, a balance of power gone drastically and horrifically unbalanced.
The show has a decidedly Eastern flavor.. the four nations that populate the world are distinguished by element: the Earth, Air, Water and Fire Nations, all cohabiting peacefully until the Fire Nation runs amok and makes war on the other nations.
Each nation gives rise to its own practitioners of element mastery.. 'benders' they are called, as in earth benders, air benders, etc. The maneuvering of the individual elements is based on a particular style of martial arts, which, even in animated form, is stunning to watch.
As the intro narration will inform you, the world's only hope against the formidable leader of the Fire Nation, is the Avatar... a reincarnation of hundreds of avatars before him or her, and master of all the elements.. kind of an amalgam of the Dalai Lama and Bruce Lee. In this particular show, the current reincarnation whose fate is inextricably tied in with that of the world's, is a young boy named Aang.. a child who has not yet mastered the art of fire bending and risks being no match for the Fire Lord when his time comes.
What I love about this show, and possibly to my eventual disappointment, is that Aang is caught up in the conflict between his monk-led training in the sacredness of all life, and the seeming inevitability that the only hope lies in his killing of the Fire Lord. (And all this on a popular, commercialized cable kids tv show!)
Even as Aang consults with his predecessors in the Spirit World, and is offered a variety of advice based on their personalities, the one voice that he holds the most respect for tells him that his own spiritual development must be sacrificed for his given duty of saving the world, whatever that may mean. (Which, of course, he takes to mean that he must take a life).
I have yet to see how this plays out.. and even so, I won't reveal the outcome, except to say that in one recent scene, Aang passed up on his one opportunity to take out the Fire Lord.
So, back to it.. I'm a little distracted. Tune in for more.
The show has a decidedly Eastern flavor.. the four nations that populate the world are distinguished by element: the Earth, Air, Water and Fire Nations, all cohabiting peacefully until the Fire Nation runs amok and makes war on the other nations.
Each nation gives rise to its own practitioners of element mastery.. 'benders' they are called, as in earth benders, air benders, etc. The maneuvering of the individual elements is based on a particular style of martial arts, which, even in animated form, is stunning to watch.
As the intro narration will inform you, the world's only hope against the formidable leader of the Fire Nation, is the Avatar... a reincarnation of hundreds of avatars before him or her, and master of all the elements.. kind of an amalgam of the Dalai Lama and Bruce Lee. In this particular show, the current reincarnation whose fate is inextricably tied in with that of the world's, is a young boy named Aang.. a child who has not yet mastered the art of fire bending and risks being no match for the Fire Lord when his time comes.
What I love about this show, and possibly to my eventual disappointment, is that Aang is caught up in the conflict between his monk-led training in the sacredness of all life, and the seeming inevitability that the only hope lies in his killing of the Fire Lord. (And all this on a popular, commercialized cable kids tv show!)
Even as Aang consults with his predecessors in the Spirit World, and is offered a variety of advice based on their personalities, the one voice that he holds the most respect for tells him that his own spiritual development must be sacrificed for his given duty of saving the world, whatever that may mean. (Which, of course, he takes to mean that he must take a life).
I have yet to see how this plays out.. and even so, I won't reveal the outcome, except to say that in one recent scene, Aang passed up on his one opportunity to take out the Fire Lord.
So, back to it.. I'm a little distracted. Tune in for more.
Millennium Message
Cleaning out my email box, I came upon this message I had saved (from 1999!!) and thought it would be appropriate to share here... though I was skeptical at first, as I am with anything attributed to Native American elders, a few searches did seem to concur that this was a speech delivered (to whom?) by 'The Elders', Oraibi, Arizona Hopi Nation in December of 1999. At any rate, I believe the message to be quite profound. Breathe it in.
A Hopi Elder Speaks
"You have been telling the people that this is the Eleventh Hour, now you must go back and tell the people that this is the hour. And there are things to be considered...
Where are you living?
What are you doing?
What are your relationships?
Are you in right relation?
Where is your water?
Know your garden.
It is time to speak your Truth.
Create your community.
Be good to each other.
And do not look outside yourself for the leader."
And then he clasped his hands together, smiled, and said, "This could be a good time! There is a river flowing now very fast. It is so great and swift that there are those that will be afraid. They will try to hold on to the shore. They will feel they are torn apart and will suffer greatly. Know the river has its destination. The elders say we must let go of the shore, push off into the middle of the river, keep our eyes open and our heads above water.
And I say, see who is in there with you and celebrate. At this time in history we are to take nothing personally. Least of all ourselves. For the moment that we do our spiritual growth and journey comes to a halt. The time for the lone wolf is over. Gather yourselves! Banish the word 'struggle' from your attitude and your vocabulary. All that we do now must be done in a sacred manner and in celebration. We are the ones we've been waiting for."
Indeed.
A Hopi Elder Speaks
"You have been telling the people that this is the Eleventh Hour, now you must go back and tell the people that this is the hour. And there are things to be considered...
Where are you living?
What are you doing?
What are your relationships?
Are you in right relation?
Where is your water?
Know your garden.
It is time to speak your Truth.
Create your community.
Be good to each other.
And do not look outside yourself for the leader."
And then he clasped his hands together, smiled, and said, "This could be a good time! There is a river flowing now very fast. It is so great and swift that there are those that will be afraid. They will try to hold on to the shore. They will feel they are torn apart and will suffer greatly. Know the river has its destination. The elders say we must let go of the shore, push off into the middle of the river, keep our eyes open and our heads above water.
And I say, see who is in there with you and celebrate. At this time in history we are to take nothing personally. Least of all ourselves. For the moment that we do our spiritual growth and journey comes to a halt. The time for the lone wolf is over. Gather yourselves! Banish the word 'struggle' from your attitude and your vocabulary. All that we do now must be done in a sacred manner and in celebration. We are the ones we've been waiting for."
Indeed.
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
More on That Forgiveness Topic
I know it's kinda lame to use other people's blog posts as one's own content, but I'm in a hurry and yet wanted to pass this along. It's good stuff, and I'm certainly open to comments:
"Forgiveness is a Team Sport"
Enjoy!
"Forgiveness is a Team Sport"
Enjoy!
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
Call to Action
(Thanks to a friend for passing this along to me... I know what I'll be doing in the next couple weeks..care to join me?)
Join us to make and hang
1000 (origami) Cranes
(inspired by the novel Sadako and the Thousand Cranes)for
Hiroshima/Nagasaki Memorial Week August 3-10, 2008
Hanging in Central Baptist Church Martin Luther King Commons
106 W. Lancaster Ave.
Wayne, PA 19087
Origami expert available for workshops in your location
Origami paper donations welcome!
Contact: Jane Dugdale 610 527 4170 or tjdugdale@comcast.net
--a community effort for peace --
Join us to make and hang
1000 (origami) Cranes
(inspired by the novel Sadako and the Thousand Cranes)for
Hiroshima/Nagasaki Memorial Week August 3-10, 2008
Hanging in Central Baptist Church Martin Luther King Commons
106 W. Lancaster Ave.
Wayne, PA 19087
Origami expert available for workshops in your location
Origami paper donations welcome!
Contact: Jane Dugdale 610 527 4170 or tjdugdale@comcast.net
--a community effort for peace --
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