Unified Needs Lead to Unified Action

When I was in elementary school, there wasn’t a lot to be afraid of. We had duck and cover drills, to teach us what to do in case of a nuclear bomb incident, but none of us knew anyone who had been subjected to such a horror. Nowadays, our school children have the option of bullet-proof backpacks. The theory is that they can hide behind them in case of a shooter in their school room. This would probably do as much good as getting under a desk during a nuclear bomb drop, but I doubt that it gives them as much comfort as we received from the cartoon turtle explaining how he will duck inside his shell in case Russia drops the big one on us. The fears our school children face today are unbelievable in their reality. Regularly, daily, there is an event in a grocery store, a school, or another public place where we should be safe. Only in war-torn countries do people face the horror we are now facing in these United States. Is it possible for us to come together to save our children? Self-righteous, strong opinions have no place in compassionate compromise. I pray that we find ways to lay down our swords and face each other with open minds and hearts. Namaste …

“As you integrate you become one, and your needs become one accordingly. Unified needs lead to unified action, because this produces a lack of conflict.” 

A Course in Miracles - T-1.VI.2:4-5

"Knowing the Science of creation, in which all is Mind and its ideas, Jesus rebuked the material thought of his fellow-countrymen: 'Ye can discern the face of the sky; but can ye not discern the signs of the times?' How much more should we seek to apprehend the spiritual ideas of God, than to dwell on the objects of sense!" 

Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 509:28-3

Happy Together

artist ~ Claudia Tremblay

 “She was damn happy to be alive.

She didn’t have millions in the bank.

She wasn’t at the top of the

corporate ladder and still her deepest

dreams ... though she pursued them

hadn’t yet come true. But still 

she was damn happy to be alive.

She had people to love; a roof over her head;

she had all the essentials for living;

water, gas electricity, food;

she could appreciate the flowers blooming,

the sun beaming and the skies blessing.

She had good books to read. 

She spoke to the moon at night.

She often had a good sing in the shower.

And she lived her life with a touch of her own style.

The world’s mindless noise went quiet at the 

sight of her relentless joy.”

~ S.C. Lourie

“The Holy Spirit begins by perceiving you as perfect. Knowing this perfection is shared He recognizes it in others, thus strengthening it in both. Instead of anger this arouses love for both, because it establishes inclusion. Perceiving equality, the Holy Spirit perceives equal needs. This invites Atonement automatically, because Atonement is the one need in this world that is universal. To perceive yourself this way is the only way in which you can find happiness in the world. 

That is because it is the acknowledgment that you are not in this world, for the world is unhappy.” 

A Course in Miracles T-6.II.5:1-7

"Happiness is spiritual, born of Truth and Love. 

It is unselfish; therefore it cannot exist alone, but requires all mankind to share it."

Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 57:18-21

A New Leaf Every Hour

Akseli Gallen-Kallela - Spring Night, 1914.

“It is easy to mourn the lives we aren't living. Easy to wish we'd developed other talents, said yes to different offers. Easy to wish we'd worked harder, loved better, handled our finances more astutely, been more popular, stayed in the band, gone to Australia, said yes to the coffee or done more bloody yoga.

It takes no effort to miss the friends we didn't make and the work we didn't do, the people we didn't marry and the children we didn't have. It is not difficult to see yourself through the lens of other people, and to wish you were all the different kaleidoscopic versions of you they wanted you to be. It is easy to regret, and keep regretting, ad infinitum, until our time runs out.

But it is not lives we regret not living that are the real problem. It is the regret itself. It's the regret that makes us shrivel and wither and feel like our own and other people's worst enemy.

We can't tell if any of those other versions would of been better or worse. Those lives are happening, it is true, but you are happening as well, and that is the happening we have to focus on.”

Matt Haig - The Midnight Library, 2020

 “The chief beauty about time

is that you cannot waste it in advance.

The next year, the next day, the next hour are lying ready for you,

as perfect, as unspoiled,

as if you had never wasted or misapplied

a single moment in all your life.

You can turn over a new leaf every hour

if you choose.”

Arnold Bennett

“In every difficulty, all distress, and each perplexity 

Christ calls to you and gently says,

 “My brother, choose again.”

A Course in Miracles T-31.VIII.3.2

A Cup of Cold Water

Today, I had occasion to speak to a repairman for quite some time. He was afraid about many things, and told me of a few. At one point, he lamented his cell phone, telling me how it “mysteriously” called numbers and such; saying they were too complicated to learn. I tried to be encouraging, telling him that if he wanted to know more about his cellular devices, he would. If he really didn’t want to, he wouldn’t. This caused him to be quiet for a few beats. I told him a story, which I’ve told many times before. It’s from the movie, Parenthood, with Steve Martin and Mary Steenburgen. At the end, things are taking many unexpected turns in their lives when the tiny, wise grandmother says: “Life is like a rollercoaster. Either you find it scary and stressful, or you see it as an exciting and joyous adventure. The repairman started smiling, grinning actually. He had never considered life from this perspective. Hallelujah! Now is the time for us to speak truth every time we have a chance. You might help someone. You could save your sanity …

“Millions of unprejudiced minds — simple seekers for Truth, weary wanderers, athirst in the desert — are waiting and watching for rest and drink. Give them a cup of cold water in Christ’s name, and never fear the consequences.”
Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 507:14-18

“Is it not evident that what the body’s eyes perceive fills you with fear? Perhaps you think you find a hope of satisfaction there. Perhaps you fancy to attain some peace and satisfaction in the world as you perceive it. Yet it must be evident the outcome does not change. Despite your hopes and fancies, always does despair result. And there is no exception, nor will there ever be. The only value that the past can hold is that you learn it gave you no rewards which you would want to keep. For only thus will you be willing to relinquish it, and have it gone forever.”
A Course in Miracles T-25.II.1:1-8

With a Nod to Jim

Photo courtesy of Richard Quick

I am so inspired by the monthly newsletter from my dear Friend, Jim Young, that I’m sending it out as my daily offering!

“NAMASTE and Happy New Life, Dear Friends,

For many, this time of year speaks to opening to a fuller awareness of spiritual purpose and reconnecting with a deeper sense of wholeness. For some, this is what resurrection means: a spiritual re-birthing, a renewal or re-creation of their lives in ways even more meaningful than any time in their past. The metaphor of the Easter story and the advent of Spring, celebrated last month and this.

Well it should be that we celebrate each re-creation of our lives. If we stand still, the world leaves us in the dust of ages past, and agendas completed or cast aside. Indeed, we shift our image and purpose scores of times daily, so why not celebrate each one, living true to our Self? Being truly authentic?

I want to take this opportunity to thank you who follow such offerings that I plant in this newsletter, along with simple daily commentaries I place on Facebook and Twitter. Also, I thank you for following the new weekly podcasts I recently initiated. Your continuous commitment means much to me.

On life goes, merrily, merrily, merrily on its way!

I mention these workings not to boast about my own progress, even now at age 89, but to hopefully inspire you to understand that there's virtually nothing you want to do in life, at any age, that you cannot--providing you focus inwardly like a laser to make peace with your own authentic Voice of Wisdom and follow only that on your daily journey.

You're never too old to begin anew. Don't let a contrary thought of any kind be an option.

The advent of spring is just the time to plant yourself in new commitments of your very own, a reinventing of yourself so to speak, so you--and your new dreams, like plants in springtime--can bloom fully in all their ecstasy and be an inspiration for you and all around you.

From conversations with many of you, it's obvious that inner stirrings and angst from the ongoing coronavirus and the current world condition are more common and even more profound than we may realize. It's just as obvious that such stirrings are causing confusion among the ranks about our feelings, our life purpose and even physical changes that are coming our way these days.

A good way of shifting from angst to inner peace and to gain spiritual focus is to enjoy planting some new seeds of Life, dear friends. Our daily renewal just keeps getting better and better, day after day after day. Don't delay. Honor your dreams now.

Plant your renewed life images wherever you stand. And BLOOM to the hilt!

With Love's infinite blessings,

Jim Young”


“Be not afraid. We only start again an ancient journey long ago begun that but seems new. We have begun again upon a road we travelled on before and lost our way a little while. And now we try again. Our new beginning has the certainty the journey lacked till now. Look up and see His Word among the stars, where He has set your Name along with His. Look up and find your certain destiny the world would hide but God would have you see.”
A Course in Miracles C-ep.3:1-7

“I am Spirit. Man, whose senses are spiritual, is my likeness. He reflects the infinite understanding, for I am Infinity. The beauty of holiness, the perfection of being, imperishable glory, — all are Mine, for I am God. I give immortality to man, for I am Truth. I include and impart all bliss, for I am Love. I give life, without beginning and without end, for I am Life. I am supreme and give all, for I am Mind. I am the substance of all, because I am that I am.”
Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 252:32-8

Cosmic Time

We all have experienced the relativity of time passing. Time spent in the dentist’s chair passes much slower than time laughing and talking to friends! Years ago, it seemed that we had sped up time with all of the rushing about we do. Even youngsters think time passes quickly. Then the pandemic came along and time took on a whole new persona. It seems to be both slow and fast at the same time. In the 1970s, we were told that big cosmic changes were on the way. I don’t think anyone could have predicted the world we are now experiencing. Individually, we are feeling both torn and united. And somehow there seems to be greater clarity than ever. It’s an impossible thing for me to define, but I know we need to talk to each other when we become afraid. Love is stronger than fear, and we only need a reminder of that to bring us back to Truth.

“The miracle minimizes the need for time. In the longitudinal or horizontal plane the recognition of the equality of the members of the Sonship appears to involve almost endless time. However, the miracle entails a sudden shift from horizontal to vertical perception. This introduces an interval from which the giver and receiver both emerge farther along in time than they would otherwise have been. The miracle thus has the unique property of abolishing time to the extent that it renders the interval of time it spans unnecessary. There is no relationship between the time a miracle takes and the time it covers. The miracle substitutes for learning that might have taken thousands of years. It does so by the underlying recognition of perfect equality of giver and receiver on which the miracle rests. The miracle shortens time by collapsing it, thus eliminating certain intervals within it. It does this, however, within the larger temporal sequence.”
A Course in Miracles - T-1.II.6:1-10

“You may know when first Truth leads by the fewness and faithfulness of its followers. Thus it is that the march of time bears onward freedom’s banner. The powers of this world will fight, and will command their sentinels not to let truth pass the guard until it subscribes to their systems, but Science, heeding not the pointed bayonet, marches on. There is always some tumult, but there is a rallying to truth’s standard.”
Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 7

Building Connections

 

Good Friends

The best decompression activity I know of is laughing with s. Every month or so, three dear women and I have an afternoon of playing spades and enjoying each others' company. We always feel renewed and happy after these days, and look forward to finding time to do it again as soon as possible. Many people, for many reasons, have not been able to cultivate lasting friendships, and I want to assure them that it's never too late! Reach out to folks who you have a good feeling about, whether you know them or not. Companionship, stimulating conversation, card games, a common cause such as animal welfare  -- there are many foundations on which to enjoy communion with others. Don't be afraid to reach out!

"You rest within the peace of God today, and call upon your brothers from your rest to draw them to their rest, along with you. You will be faithful to your trust today, forgetting no one, bringing everyone into the boundless circle of your peace, the holy sanctuary where you rest. Open the temple doors and let them come from far across the world, and near as well; your distant brothers and your closest friends; bid them all enter here and rest with you. " 

A Course in Miracles  W-pI.109.8.

“If my friends are going to Europe, while I am en route for California, we are not journeying together. We have separate time-tables to consult, different routes to pursue. Our paths have diverged at the very outset, and we have little opportunity to help each other. On the contrary, if my friends pursue my course, we have the same railroad guides, and our mutual interests are identical; or, if I take up their line of travel, they help me on, and our companionship may continue.”

Mary Baker Eddy — Science &Health Page 21:15-24

A Little Bit of Good

“Secrets and Marvels of Nature” is a compilation of segments from CBS Sunday Morning, which features unique situations in nature. It is joyous and hopeful! I loved watching people help sea turtles survive, seeing a pigeon refuge and understanding how wonderfully smart they are, or witnessing people who allow land to become what it was before we sterilized it. We are living in a time when nature appears to be under attack, and so these vignettes showing empathy and the goodness of people are beautiful and inspiring. It’s hopeful to see how one person can make a difference! For instance, with the sea turtles which are being saved, everyone is volunteering their time — including pilots who help with transportation. After their rehabilitation, their release back into the ocean was a joyous celebration! It reminded me of the story about the little boy throwing stranded starfish from the beach back to the ocean. A man asks him what he thinks he’s doing because he can’t save them all. The little boy says, “I saved that one!” I like looking at life that way, saving what I can and bringing joy wherever possible! Namaste …

“Nature voices natural, spiritual law and divine Love, but human belief misinterprets nature. Arctic regions, sunny tropics, giant hills, winged winds, mighty billows, verdant vales, festive flowers, and glorious heavens, — all point to Mind, the spiritual intelligence they reflect. The floral apostles are hieroglyphs of Deity. Suns and planets teach grand lessons. The stars make night beautiful, and the leaflet turns naturally towards the light.”

Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 240:1-9

“The lion and the lamb lying down together symbolize that strength and innocence are not in conflict, but naturally live in peace. ‘Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God’ is another way of saying the same thing. A pure mind knows the truth and this is its strength. It does not confuse destruction with innocence because it associates innocence with strength, not with weakness.” 

A Course in Miracles T-3.I.5:3-6

One of the Doors Into the Temple

Spring in the Ozarks - Photo courtesy of Judy Kavan 

Today - a poem by Mary Oliver

Today I’m flying low and I’m

not saying a word

I’m letting all the voodoos of ambition sleep.

The world goes on as it must,

the bees in the garden rumbling a little,

the fish leaping, the gnats getting eaten.

And so forth.

But I’m taking the day off.

Quiet as a feather.

I hardly move though really I’m traveling

a terrific distance.

Stillness. One of the doors

into the temple.

~ Mary Oliver

“A higher and more practical Christianity, demonstrating justice and meeting the needs of mortals in sickness and in health, stands at the door of this age, knocking for admission. Will you open or close the door upon this angel visitant, who cometh in the quiet of meekness, as he came of old to the patriarch at noonday?”
Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 224:21-27

“The Voice of the Holy Spirit does not command, because It is incapable of arrogance. It does not demand, because It does not seek control. It does not overcome, because It does not attack. It merely reminds. It is compelling only because of what It reminds you of. It brings to your mind the other way, remaining quiet even in the midst of the turmoil you may make. The Voice for God is always quiet, because It speaks of peace. Peace is stronger than war because it heals. War is division, not increase. No one gains from strife. What profiteth it a man if he gain the whole world and lose his own soul? If you listen to the wrong voice you have lost sight of your soul. You cannot lose it, but you cannot know it. It is therefore ‘lost’ to you until you choose right.”
A Course in Miracles T-5.II.7:1-14

Small Things Like These

John Currin - Pistachio, 2016.

Small Things Like These is a book written by an Irish woman named Claire Keegan. It is a small book, but carries an important message. As one reviewer said: [this book] "assures us we are all capable of doing the right thing, and that goodness, like misery, can be handed on from man to man." I love that, don’t you? As our book club discussed this beautiful story, we realized how grateful we are for the “small things”. It’s what enables us to be joyful during times of trials. We revel in small things, such as the first flowers of spring; our friendships and family (particularly the grands); our pets and the wonder of nature. Everything. Every little thing. And our gratitude extends to the wonderful kinship our group has grown into over the three decades we’ve been reading together. We have read and discussed over 200 books. We love reading, and we love each other. These things may seem small, but they’re everything.

“Pause and be still a little while, and see how far you rise above the world, when you release your mind from chains and let it seek the level where it finds itself at home. It will be grateful to be free a while. It knows where it belongs. But free its wings, and it will fly in sureness and in joy to join its holy purpose. Let it rest in its Creator, there to be restored to sanity, to freedom and to love.”
A Course in Miracles W-128.6:1-5

“Beauty, wealth, or fame is incompetent to meet the demands of the affections, and should never weigh against the better claims of intellect, goodness, and virtue. Happiness is spiritual, born of Truth and Love. It is unselfish; therefore it cannot exist alone, but requires all mankind to share it.”
Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 57:15-21

A New Way of Seeing

Much of humanity is tired. In my opinion, this is because there seem to be so many problems without solutions. Mass shootings, weather extremes, propaganda coming at us from all directions, and many other conditions occupy our thoughts. One of my earliest experiences with A Course in Miracles was Wayne Dyer’s book, There’s A Spiritual Solution to Every Problem. People have always told me that this way of thinking is too difficult, and they can’t even try to change their beliefs. I often tell people that it is, indeed, simple, but it is not easy. It’s not easy because it is a constant, conscious monitoring and translating of learned behaviors. In the past few years, we have all been tested. When we are bombarded daily by ugliness from leaders and media reporting, it can be tempting to throw up our metaphysical hands and surrender to the sorrow. But let’s not do that, okay?

"In the Apocalypse it is written: 'And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea.' In St. John's vision, heaven and earth stand for spiritual ideas, and the sea, as a symbol of tempest-tossed human concepts advancing and receding, is represented as having passed away. The divine understanding reigns, is all, and there is no other consciousness."
Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 536:1-9

“From new perception of the world there comes a future very different from the past. The future now is recognized as but extension of the present. Past mistakes can cast no shadows on it, so that fear has lost its idols and its images, and being formless, it has no effects. Death will not claim the future now, for life is now its goal, and all the needed means are happily provided. Who can grieve or suffer when the present has been freed, extending its security and peace into a quiet future filled with joy?”
A Course in Miracles - W-314.1:1

Live Out Loud!

Am I alone in this, or is everyone feeling a sense of urgency? The sounds reaching my ears, motorcycles zooming around our small tourist town, feel alive to me. The sunset colors were particularly intense in their brilliance, Every interaction with other people, with my pets, with the flowers — they all feel incredibly important. I’ve always tried to live by the axiom that everything is important; nothing is important. But right here and now, every breath feels wonderfully full of Life. Part of my spiritual study is geared toward understanding the synonyms for God: Mind, Spirit, Soul, Principle, Life, Truth, Love. Perhaps their relationship is finally opening up something in consciousness. I’m tempted to say “my consciousness”, but I’m not sure there is such a thing. Consciousness. Period. I’m wondering if this is how the tiny creatures in our world feel all the time! I’ve always been fond of a dear friend’s tee-shirt which proclaims “Love Out Loud!” Perhaps the time has come to Live Out Loud! 

“Salvation is nothing more than ‘right-mindedness,’ which is not the One-mindedness of the Holy Spirit, but which must be achieved before One-mindedness is restored. Right-mindedness leads to the next step automatically, because right perception is uniformly without attack, and therefore wrong-mindedness is obliterated.” 

A Course in Miracles - T-4.II.10:1-2

“Beyond the frail premises of human beliefs, above the loosening grasp of creeds, the demonstration of Christian Mind healing stands a revealed and practical Science. It is imperious throughout all ages as Christ’s revelation of Truth, of Life, and of Love, which remains inviolate for every man to understand and to practice.” 

Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 98:15

Looking at America Through the Lens of Values

For the last nine years, Lucy Harper has been trying to get Americans to think about their country differently. She has been teaching classes and workshops to instill the idea that America is not a political prize to be fought over, but an idea to be fought FOR. What started her on this journey was becoming part of the Idea of America Network. This organization’s goal is to create a network of Americans who can help their communities look at the country through the lens of values. Ms. Harper says, “When you talk about values and America, everyone knows life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, but the values that really drive the United States are all about balance: freedom and equality, law and ethics, common wealth and private wealth, unity and diversity. How citizens find the balance between these essential but conflicting values determines the nation’s character and direction.” She has now written a play which has many historical characters debating these points. To quote her: “It’s about seeing this as a country of good people. There’s plenty of evidence to the contrary, but we jolly well better see [the good in] people, ... giving people the room to grow – including ourselves.”

“Values are relative, but they are powerful because they are mental judgments.”
A Course in Miracles - T-7.VII.4:3

“Your influence for good depends upon the weight you throw into the right scale. The good you do and embody gives you the only power obtainable … Whatever holds human thought in line with unselfish love, receives directly the divine power.”
Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 192

Life After Hate

There has been a large increase in so-called hate groups in the world. A man named Tony McAleer describes himself as being beaten and bullied as a child; bitter and isolated as a teenager. He became involved in one of these groups while seeking a connection with others. To quote him: "When you're starving and somebody keeps feeding you what you think are your favorite foods, even though it's junk food, there's going to be a while where you're not going to get up from the table." He continued to practice violence and anger until after the birth of his daughter. He said that was the first time in his life he had felt connected to another human being, and he started to want to change. He has now organized a group called "Life After Hate" and is helping others to build relationships with people. He says if we are to counter these groups, we must get to a place where empathy outweighs fear. That is what we are realizing through these studies, too. Light and joy and peace abide in me -- and in everyone!

“Light is a symbol of Mind, of Life, Truth, and Love, and not a vitalizing property of matter. Science reveals only one Mind, and this one shining by its own light and governing the universe, including man, in perfect harmony.." 

Mary Baker Eddy- Science & Health Page 510:27-1

“Why would you not be overjoyed to be assured that all the evil that you think you did was never done, that all your sins are nothing, that you are as pure and holy as you were created, and that light and joy and peace abide in you? Your image of yourself cannot withstand the Will of God. You think that this is death, but it is life. You think you are destroyed, but you are saved.”

A Course in Miracles W-93.4:1-4

Peace Is The Path

Old Friends

Art by Vicky Mount

Few of us have no regrets when we look back on our lives. Sometimes it's tempting to replay instances in our minds and think of ways we could have done things differently. Thich Nhat Hanh was a Vietnamese man who lost his family during the war in the 60s. He spent his life practicing peace and showing others how to do the same. He helped American Vietnam veterans forgive themselves. He told them that no matter how badly they felt, it would never bring back the lives that were lost, but that there are many ways in which to help people today, right here and now. He showed us how to be the Love which we are. Peace Is the Path, he told us. I want to follow that Path, without looking back.

“Look inward now, and you will not behold a reason for regret, but cause indeed for glad rejoicing and for hope of peace. It has been hopeless to attempt to find the hope of peace upon a battleground.”
A Course in Miracles T-29.II.2:8–3:1

"Love inspires, illumines, designates, and leads the way. Right motives give pinions to thought, and strength and freedom to speech and action. Love is priestess at the altar of Truth. Wait patiently for divine Love to move upon the waters of mortal mind, and form the perfect concept. Patience must 'have her perfect work.'"
Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 454:18-24

Time of the Season

Art by Judy Clement Wall

Do you ever feel guilty about feeling good? I don’t usually, but recently I had a moment of regret for being happy and contented. A number of us had enjoyed an hour of musical meditation and then went out to lunch at a wonderful restaurant. On the way back to my cozy, safe home, probably to take a nap, I suddenly thought about the people of Ukraine and their frightening plight. A number of possible horrid images flooded into my thoughts. Quickly I corrected these useless images, realizing that it makes no difference how bad I feel, it’s not going to help anyone. But I have used that moment as a reminder to help my neighbor, and to do everything I can to extend Love to the world. My guilt will not improve any situation, but my joy will. This realization helps me extend Love and healing to everyone, knowing that my happiness and contentment allows me to do this. I pray that we may love so passionately that it spreads exponentially all over the world!

“He will withhold no blessing from it, nor limit it in any way. He will join to it all the power that God has given Him, to make each little gift of love a source of healing for everyone. Each little gift you offer to your brother lights up the world. Be not concerned with darkness; look away from it and toward your brother. And let the darkness be dispelled by Him Who knows the light, and lays it gently in each quiet smile of faith and confidence with which you bless your brother.” 

A Course in Miracles - T-22.VI.9:7-11 

“Spiritual living and blessedness are the only evidences, by which we can recognize true existence and feel the unspeakable peace which comes from an all-absorbing spiritual love.”

Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 264:14-17

Art, In All Its Forms, Is Necessary

Tsagaglalal​ - creation of Sandy Wythawai Starbird​

Ask anyone why art is essential and you may hear that it's not. But ask someone else and you might hear that it's necessary for the survival of our species. I've come to feel that art is the answer to our current problems, concerning beliefs and the inability to assimilate facts. Any society which wants to suppress its people tries to eliminate art in its various forms. In the United States, we have been taught to believe that art is a luxury which is not necessary in our children’s education. This has caused many people to think that anyone who appreciates art is highfalutin in some way; perhaps even defined as elitist for their love of beauty and critical thinking. I ask that we stop and remember the Coal Miner's Daughter, Loretta Lynn. She was as down-home as a person could be, and her songs praise the evolution of thought and the revolution for women. She understood the pointlessness of sending our loved ones to war. Her stories rival those which have come through great authors, and her melodies are as pure as our finest composers bring forth. Art in the United States is fabulously diverse, and is representative of our country far more than corporations and politicians. We could list pages of writers and musicians and artists in all their glory, and they have all opened us to something more than we were before we heard or saw their creations. Yes, I think the answer to every question is art!

"Creation is ever appearing, and must ever continue to appear from the nature of its inexhaustible source."
Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 507:28

“You are being blessed by every beneficent thought of any of your brothers anywhere. You should want to bless them in return, out of gratitude. You need not know them individually, or they you. The light is so strong that it radiates throughout the Sonship and returns thanks to the Father for radiating His joy upon it. Only God’s holy children are worthy channels of His beautiful joy, because only they are beautiful enough to hold it by sharing it. It is impossible for a child of God to love his neighbor except as himself. That is why the healer’s prayer is: Let me know this brother as I know myself.”
A Course in Miracles T-5.in.3:1-8

Distorted Vision?

Photo Credit: Aaron Springston

I can't imagine making the huge decisions world leaders are called upon to make every single moment of every single day. There are too many pros and cons to think about assimilating by yourself. And that's why they need trusted advisors; people who accumulate facts and are able to fairly report them for group discussions, which then result in informed decisions. No one is an island. That saying comes to mind often when I see someone who thinks they know everything and no one's opinion other than theirs is of value. We, individually, are a microcosm of the world. We each have decisions to make every day, whether it's something as small as what type of tea to have with breakfast or one of the milestones of life. We watch our city officials struggle with budgets and opinionated city council members, knowing some will side with one and some with another. It's difficult to understand, because if we all want what's best for humanity, there simply should not be so much dissention. Maybe our perceptions are colored by the manipulations of the few who are out to pad their pockets with cash, under the guise of helping everyone else. Maybe we're lulled by apathy, thinking somebody will take care of things so we needn’t pay attention. Whatever the case, we can all hold a higher thought when confronted by injustice. I feel we're at the tipping point of a new world. Don't give up!

"Unconstitutional and unjust coercive legislation and laws, infringing individual rights, must be 'of few days and full of trouble.' The vox populi, through the providence of God, promotes and impels all true reform; and, at the best time, will redress wrongs and rectify injustice. Tyranny can thrive but feebly under our government. God reigns, and will 'turn and overturn' until right is found supreme." 

Mary Baker Eddy - Miscellaneous Writings - Page 80

“Fantasy is a distorted form of vision. Fantasies of any kind are distortions, because they always involve twisting perception into unreality. Actions that stem from distortions are literally the reactions of those who know not what they do. Fantasy is an attempt to control reality according to false needs. Twist reality in any way and you are perceiving destructively. Fantasies are a means of making false associations and attempting to obtain pleasure from them. But although you can perceive false associations, you can never make them real except to yourself. You believe in what you make. If you offer miracles, you will be equally strong in your belief in them. The strength of your conviction will then sustain the belief of the miracle receiver. Fantasies become totally unnecessary as the wholly satisfying nature of reality becomes apparent to both giver and receiver. Reality is ‘lost’ through usurpation, which produces tyranny. As long as a single ‘slave’ remains to walk the earth, your release is not complete. Complete restoration of the Sonship is the only goal of the miracle-minded.”
A Course in Miracles T-1.VII.3:1-14

The Joy of Learning New Things

“Beginners, The Joy and Transformative Power of Lifelong Learning”. Tom Vanderbilt has written a delightful book relating the joy he has experienced through learning new things. He took singing lessons and sang with a choir; he learned to surf, taking his whole family to Costa Rica for this endeavor; he learned to juggle, draw, and create jewelry. Tom isn't looking for something to crow about on social media, but rather he wants skills he can relax into and slowly develop over his lifetime. He says, "It's about small acts of reinvention, at any age, that can make life seem magical." He's also interested in finding out more about the process of learning. He believes the key to learning new things is shifting the focus off yourself. He uses juggling as an example: you don't look at the balls, but rather the apex of where they are thrown. He has learned that time slows down when you stop thinking. He has found that doing these things brings him "an immense and almost forgotten kind of pleasure." I love the idea of learning new things, simply for the pleasure of learning them, don't you?

“A knowledge of the Science of being develops the latent abilities and possibilities of man. It extends the atmosphere of thought, giving mortals access to broader and higher realms. It raises the thinker into his native air of insight and perspicacity.”
Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 128:14-19

“Each day should be devoted to miracles. The purpose of time is to enable you to learn how to use time constructively. It is thus a teaching device and a means to an end. Time will cease when it is no longer useful in facilitating learning.”
A Course in Miracles T-1.I.15:1-4

Cooking With Love

Have you noticed that when you feel like cooking, the food seems to turn out tastier? When my boys were young, they joked that I should write a cookbook called “Just Barely Edible”. And they were correct! I was usually rushed, having other things I would rather be doing, and the meals were perfunctory at best. I heard one of my “gurus” talking about people’s emotions going into food, and one of the reasons so many people are angry is that their food is being prepared by fearful, angry people. There is only one place in town where I truly enjoy eating out, and when I pause to think about it, the owner/chef is a very calm and joyous person. Our food supply chain is questionable, too, and it seems the vegetables from happy farmers taste better than mass-produced factory farm output. Our thoughts are important and where we spend our dollars reflects those thoughts. Have a beautiful day, dear Friends …

“Did the careless doctor, the nurse, the cook, and the brusque business visitor sympathetically know the thorns they plant in the pillow of the sick and the heavenly homesick looking away from earth, — Oh, did they know! — this knowledge would do much more towards healing the sick and preparing their helpers for the ‘midnight call,’ than all cries of ‘Lord, Lord!’”
Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 364:32-6

“Put out your hand, and see how easily the door swings open with your one intent to go beyond it. Angels light the way, so that all darkness vanishes, and you are standing in a light so bright and clear that you can understand all things you see. A tiny moment of surprise, perhaps, will make you pause before you realize the world you see before you in the light reflects the truth you knew, and did not quite forget in wandering away in dreams.”
A Course in Miracles W-131.13:1-3

Obedience to Authority?

Van Gogh’s Chair - 1888

Obedience to Authority, a book written by a man named Stanley Milgram, contains ideas worth examination. This man performed a number of experiments during the 1970s. He was prompted by the horrors perpetrated during Hitler’s reign, wanting to know why people would hurt or kill others for no reason other than being told to do so. He made subjects believe they were administering shocks to someone when questions were answered incorrectly. Sometimes they even believed that someone had passed out from the pain, yet they continued to hit the shock button when the subject didn’t answer right away. They didn’t know it was a set up; they thought they were hurting someone else badly, but continued to do so. These obedience experiments are cited in university classes and are referred to time and again when atrocities occur around the world. I think now is an excellent time to think about the reasons for this blind obedience. Perhaps it’s time to revisit Thoreau’s Civil Disobedience?

“The time for thinkers has come. Truth, independent of doctrines and time-honored systems, knocks at the portal of humanity. Contentment with the past and the cold conventionality of materialism are crumbling away. Ignorance of God is no longer the stepping-stone to faith. The only guarantee of obedience is a right apprehension of Him whom to know aright is Life eternal.”
Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page Vii:14-20

“The ego’s laws are strict, and breaches are severely punished. Therefore give no obedience to its laws, for they are laws of punishment. And those who follow them believe that they are guilty, and so they must condemn. Between the future and the past the laws of God must intervene, if you would free yourself. Atonement stands between them, like a lamp shining so brightly that the chain of darkness in which you bound yourself will disappear.”
A Course in Miracles T-13.IX.1:4-8

Providing Knowledge and Understanding

Christa Case Bryant recently became editor of the Christian Science Monitor. Her first editorial reminded me of the original purpose of the daily newspaper, which was founded in 1908. The newspaper became a weekly news magazine a few years back, and maintains its daily presence by way of the internet. At the turn of the last century, our country was being gutted by robber barons, and yellow journalism was rampant. No one knew what to believe and propaganda ruled the day. Now, as then, there’s a great hunger for journalism to speak the truth. As the new editor states: “Our goal is not to tell you what to think, but to give you the essential knowledge and understanding you need to come to your own well-reasoned views.” It will carry on its mission, as Mary Baker Eddy stated in the first issue: “The object of the Monitor is to injure no man, but to bless all mankind.” For more information, please visit their website.

“Smart journalism is allowable, nay, it is commendable; but the public cannot swallow reports of American affairs from a surly censor ventilating his lofty scorn of the sects, or societies, of a nation that perhaps he has never visited.”
Mary Baker Eddy - Miscellaneous Writings 297:10-14

“As we give thanks, the world unites with us and happily accepts our holy thoughts, which Heaven has corrected and made pure. Now has our ministry begun at last, to carry round the world the joyous news that truth has no illusions, and the peace of God, through us, belongs to everyone.”
A Course in Miracles W-151.17:2-3