ONE of the kindest things we can do....

 

Paying attention is one of the kindest things we can do—for ourselves, for others.

SHARON SALZBERG

Happy Thanksgiving Reflections and Memories

 Thankful for all the - support from my spiritual communities, Unity Charleston, Indigo Sangha, Wakan (Tomas Pinkson) and my Veteran friends.

- for my teachers, Rev. Ed, Heather and Dave Mann, Byron Katie, Tomas Pinkson, Rev. Dixon and Jackie McCollough

- for the diversity of our communities.

- for the beautiful nature that surrounds us.

- for the equanimity of our new National Leaders.

- for the support of Veterans for Peace.

- for my own group VAP, name soon changed to Veterans Affirming PresidentB

- to my moderators and co-administrator of VAP

- to my inspirational blog Bless Your Hearts.blogspot.com

- all my Sisters and Brothers, we are all teachers and students to each other.

- to my health.

- to the sunset of my life, which gets more beautiful each day.

- to the call I received from VA Residence in Napa Valley, who says 

   they want me out there early next year depending on the pandemic.

- to our local VA who saved my life three times in last 6 years.

- to all the courageous veterans I interviewed for the Library of Congress.

- to Dr. Jerry Jampolsky who gave me an internship, while in Grad. school

   which turned into the best job I ever had, working and playing with life-threatened 

    Young Adults. WHO WANTED TO LIVE while still alive!

- To International Field Studies, who allowed us to start a Marine Science under Sail

   program, out of their Marine Science Station in Andros Island, Bahamas

- To the stout Sail Boats, that always brought me home safely.

- Now, I am very thankful, for my purpose, of helping end the Civil War peacefully,

- to all my new Black Lives Matter friends! 

- For the childhood memories of my favorite holiday, THANKSGIVING.

Thank you for including me in this message.

I thank FB for our "meeting". I thank Vipassana 10 silent retreats, Goenkaji, for teaching me the magic, transformation of long periods of complete silence.

I thank the childlike Spirit within me that refused to Die.

Namaste,

Elly

All,

We still have so very much to be thankful for.  I remember this delicious Thanksgiving meal in Vietnam in 1968.  

 

Stay safe everyone.

 

Sincerely, Wayne Larry Dandridge (My Brother Barry's Helicopter Pilot friend.)

 

Larry

COMING OUT OF DISCONNECT

I only feel a need to connect. We are already connected, as the wholeness of  Universal Experience.

Creating Peace from the Inside Out

Welcome to our 21-Day Meditation Experience, Creating Peace from the Inside Out. We are honored you’re joining us as we seek our true nature and discover our path to health and happiness. You can learn more about our daily mantras here.

I make true connections when

 I make true connections when my heart touches another heart.

My true self

 My true self is the source of peace and love.

My Relationships begin within...

 My relationships begin within with love and caring for myself.

Trump Is Gone | The Comedy Quartet

"Shine On You Crazy Diamond (Parts I-V)" performed by Brit Floyd - the P...Take a break into the Cosmos~

CREATING PEACE 2020- Oprah and Deepok

DO NOT LET ANYONE OR ANYTHING STEAL YOUR JOY

 

Joy is not a luxury, it is not a privilege. It is a resilience-giving, life-giving birthright and we can’t call forth in the world something we don’t believe in and embody…and it is as powerful as anger.

KRISTA TIPPETT

"...we need the ego to brush our teeth and cross the street safely but it is not who we are so don’t give it the power to drive the car! "

 i agree with what you say, we need the ego to brush our teeth and cross the street safely but it is not who we are so don’t give it the power to drive the car!  Tom Pinkson

Your answer is similar to a Zen Koan. However, I think I get it. Don't give your power to your ego (immature energy)? Ron Alexander

Subject: Re: My question tonight was if one is driven by an "egoic mind", can there be a higher "egoic Soul"? I know I am on to my Soul's purpose, however the ego appears to still be there.

yup! Tom Pinkson

Fully Alert Now, so will write about my truth about the "ego".

 

When we are fully alert in spirit, mind, and body, we are more than we imagine and can accomplish more than we suppose.

BARBARA HOLMES My truth about the Ego: Freud invented the term, and he called it the conscious  connection between the  id (Serpentine brain) and the superego (higher self). When I stayed in Ashrams with Gurus who supposedly had no ego, I would hear them shouting for their servants (which they would need in lieu of ego) and occasionally get angry with them. In unity church, i met a member, who said she worked really hard to get rid of her ego, and found herself being taken advantage of all the time. her minister advised her to pray and ask for help in getting her ego back. Meher BAba, in his discourses, say we need an ego as we grow in spirit, until we do not need it anymore. Byron katy says it is like an inner child continuously looking for identity Heather mann says it can by overriden by being mindful (awareness) My truth that the "ego" should be loved like a young child, which means constANT AWARENESS OF THE YOUTH, KEEPING IT SAFE,  AND WITH  tough love as in discipline. a BALANCED, MATURE "EGO" CAN BE HELPFUL NOT A HINDRANCE.

Soul's Purpose NOW

 

Subject: Re: Marlena Davis 10h · Battery Charleston SC 11/15/20. Because I'm Black 24/7. Sometimes you just gotta stand alone. Thanks Zac Vappa (aka Ron Alexander)

Wow. Thank you, Ron, for modeling courage and decency for all of us. I honor your soul’s message and am doing my part, granted, a small part, to promote racial justice. It all counts. Thank you for your service to this country and to its citizens.

Kathy Maher

Subject: Re: Marlena Davis 10h · Battery Charleston SC 11/15/20. Because I'm Black 24/7. Sometimes you just gotta stand alone. Thanks Zac Vappa (aka Ron Alexander)

Wow. Thank you, Ron, for modeling courage and decency for all of us. I honor your soul’s message and am doing my part, granted, a small part, to promote racial justice. It all counts. Thank you for your service to this country and to its citizens.

Kathy Maher

"soul's message" brought tears to my eyes, and it feels accurate, thank you very much Kathy!
, and it feels accurate, thank you very much Kathy!

The Birth of Wisdom

 

A quiet mind married to integrity of heart is the birth of wisdom.

ADYASHANTI

 

Life appears to me too short to be spent in nursing animosity or registering wrongs.

CHARLOTTE BRONTË Veterans against putintrumpism will be changed to veterans affirming presidentBiden                                                                                               Pathetic, however so much better than the violent ones. I feel a lot of compassion for him, he looks like a sincere true, though misled, believer.

Heart Break can lead to an Opening of the Heart

 

When you feel yourself breaking down, may you break open instead. May every experience in life be a door that opens your heart, expands your understanding, and leads you to freedom.

ELIZABETH LESSER

5 Reasons Why You NEVER Trespass the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier!

"Perhaps when we're grounded in the present moment and not adding to harm with our words we actually are more safe?

 Thanks dear Heather, for such a thoughtful profound answer. I consider "Perhaps when we're grounded in the present moment and not adding to harm with our words we actually are more safe?" the answer to my inquiry. When I am in "Noble Silence", I am not defending my position with words, which I have been prone to do in the past, I am more safe in this situation. If I told the Confederates what I was thinking, they would not of allowed me to stay on their side of the street, so they too, felt more safe with me." That is what I mean by "defenselessness". It is from ACIM (A Course In MIracles) "In defenselessness my safety lies."

Michelle had to go across the street, however,  

Michelle Melton:

:I had every intention to walk in silence and peace. And no intentions of them taking away Your path. Sometimes our plans are sidelined for a greater good! I got to tell the CPD just what I thought along with the racist confederates on the monument."  (So Michelle was ordered to go across the street to join BLM. as I was able to stay on the middle way, as Confederates did not feel threatened by me.)

Ahhhh. Thanks for re-asking your question. 

Noble Silence is a mindfulness practice that supports deep looking and understanding. In silence we can be confident that we are doing no harm with our words. Also, in silence, it's easier to notice and name our habit energies as they arise, see how our habitual responses move to the tip of our tongue. It's easier to feel our inner urgency to express our "point of view" and easier too to stop ourselves with the humility of understanding that ours is only one possible point of view out of many. Walking in Noble Silence, we feel our footsteps on the earth, connect our mind with our body, and stay grounded in the present moment and this helps us keep our attention to the here and now even as our thoughts try to carry us away. 

In Noble Silence we may feel safe or we may feel unsafe--depending on the reality of what's happening the moment. Either way, silence helps us identify our feelings. Our silence doesn't shape our feelings, our perceptions, or the reality of our safety, it simply helps us notice these things so we can keep showing up to the reality of now.  (But perhaps when we're not carried away by our feelings and perceptions we have more capacity to see that we indeed are still safe in this moment? Perhaps when we're grounded in the present moment and not adding to harm with our words we actually are more safe? Ultimately, the safety or non-safety of the present moment is dependent upon the deep currents of causes and conditions at work in the moment. With Noble Silence plus mindfulness, when our mind and body is uncluttered by feelings and miss-perceptions, we are metabolizing sensations of overwhelm moment-to-moment. This helps us more accurately understand what's happening so we know better what to do moment-to-moment.)

Defenseless-ness is not a Buddhist term that I'm familiar with. But I think it has resonance with a brave commitment to deep listening (to what's said and unsaid) and allowing ourselves to be emotionally and intellectually open to those who hold a different point of view. 

I will close with this: we mustn't be stupid in our degree of openness or vulnerability. If we find ourselves in the company of a snake, then we must be excellent snake handlers so we don't get bit. 

Does all this make sense? 

Thank you for the beauty of your practice.

Love,

Heather

Heather Lyn Mann

Chân Liên An

She/Her (why this is important

 hola hermano - good talking with you and thank you for your sharing about the powerful medicine of "Noble Silence”. much appreciated. it holds true wisdom.  i invite you to share some of your experiences with LiveLoveNow relatives via our facebook page.  your work is so powerful and inspirational.  keep on keeping on. love, t. 

A way I celebrated Biden's victory

 

ONE WAY I CELEBRATED BIDEN/HARRIS VICTORY
😍Great way to celebrate Biden/Harris victory. On my mindful walk around the Confederate Monument. I received cheers from BLM counter protestors across the street. The BLM gal who took this video courageously walked with me around a couple of times with big BLM flag which really upset the rebels. They had the police stop us to try to convince us to move to other side of street, although they admitted that they has seen me walking for months/ . MIchelle finally agreed graciously, after loudly telling off the cops, (uh oh!), to move over, if I got to stay. The police Officer went over to ask complaining Con. if that would be agreeable. This is same rebel who gave me a hard time several times. However, he told the cop that it would be alright, as "he has never caused us any trouble." HURRAH FOR NOBLE SILENCE. As there is a lot of times I wanted to give him a piece of my mind, I just gave him a peace sign, or a sign to keep his mask on, as the police had warned him before to not yell at me with mask off. ALL IS IS WELL THAT ENDS WEL

Flag and signs I took to Monument

 

I admire your courage; wearing a Biden sign, however, would not be my choice. As the saying goes, “A good loser says little;

 a good winner says nothing at all”.
It is time to bring down the Confederate statues and flags, but not to rub it in; we must be good winners. I know that when I would see a Trump bumper sticker or such after he won, I would become enraged. This only serves to widen the divide. We must try to speak to our opponents and try to bring on reconciliation and find common ground, while stressing that we are all Americans and that we all want the same thing, we just disagree on how to attain our goals. Be safe out there. You may get a vaccine in a few months. God bless you

Good point, however I carried the sign primarily for BLM friends who were all in celebration mode as myself, as if not for People of Color Biden would not have won...fair?  Ron 

When the cops stopped us, I volunteered to put sign back in the car, however they said that was not bothering the Confederates, but the big BLM flag carried by my friend.

Being forced off the public sidewalk to other side of street is like being forced to going to back of bus. I am glad they did not force me, because the Confederates said "I was not causing any trouble."

Michelle Melton

I had every intention to walk in silence and peace. And no intentions of them taking away Your path. Sometimes our plans are sidelined for a greater good! I got to tell the CPD just what I thought along with the racist confederates on the monument. 

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• Zac Vappa

  Michelle Melton

   thanks Michelle, for your honorable intention. "Noble Silence" is a Buddhist concept, as well as defenselessness, which I find ironically keeps me safe.

  

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• Zac Vappa

  That Bible verse from Mark that you sent me, when I told you I was disinherited for my views, meant a lot to me. Could you repeat it here?

  

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• Michelle Melton

  Zac Vappa

  For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?

  

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• Zac Vappa

  Michelle Melton

   Yes! I plan to share this everywhere

  

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• Zac Vappa

  Michelle Melton

   It describes the whole GOP!

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• Michelle Melton

  Zac Vappa

   sadly it truly does

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