THE RIGHT HAND A newly appointed teacher was assigned the duty to handle a class in a school. The teacher who was handling that class had a very bad impression about the students. So she warned the new teacher about them and advised her to be stern, strict, rough and tough from the outset. Influenced by this advice, the new teacher entered the class with a grim face waving a cane to generate fear. The students were frightened seeing her expression. She asked them a question to test their previous knowledge and ordered that those who knew the answer should raise their right hands. Many students raised their right hands. Others who did not know the answer sat still, anticipating her violent reaction. While examining the students, she found that a boy in the last row had raised his left hand instead of his right hand. She assumed it to be an expression of gross misbehaviour and indiscipline, as she was prejudiced by the report of the previous teacher. She noted that he was probably the naughtiest student in the class. In a fit of anger, she rushed to the boy and thrashed him violently with the cane, shouting savagely, hoping that it would be an effective warning to all. The poor child fell down and cried aloud. Then she noted that his right hand was crippled and that was why he raised his left hand instead of his right hand, to show that he knew the answer. The teacher was shocked. She tried her best to pacify the crying child. Later she learned that the child had been a victim of poliomyelitis and used to write with his left hand as his right hand was totally deformed. This incident transformed the teacher. She became friendly with every student, asked them personal questions and learned the names, abilities, defects, special talents and family background of every student in her class. With this personal and affectionate approach she could easily win their appreciation and admiration. She became a very successful teacher and was loved and respected by all her students. Bias and prejudice may impair our judgment and damage human relations. Personal contact with intimate interaction with others is the best method of teaching, catechesis and evangelisation. Love is the language prescribed by Jesus for evangelisation. Jesus said, “Love your neighbour as you love yourself” {Matthew 22:39 }. St. James advises, “Remember this, my dear brothers! Everyone must be quick to listen, but slow to speak and slow to become angry” {James 1: 19 }. St. Paul advises, “If you become angry, do not let your anger lead you into sin….Do not use harmful words, but only helpful words, the kind that build up and provide what is needed, so that what you say will do good to those who hear you….Get rid of all bitterness, passion, and anger. No more shouting or insults, no more hateful feelings of any sort. Instead, be kind and tender-hearted to one another, and forgive one another, as God has forgiven you through Christ” {Ephesians 4: 26 -32}. By: Dr. Babu Philip, Professor, Cochin University of Science & Technology, Fine Arts Avenue, Kochi-682016, Kerala, India. This is Story No. 156 in this site. Please click ‘Older Posts’ at the bottom of a page to read previous stories and click ‘Newer Posts’ at the bottom of a page to read newer stories in this site. Please click on a word in the ‘Story Themes’ to read stories on that theme.

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THE RIGHT HAND A newly appointed teacher was assigned the duty to handle a class in a school. The teacher who was handling that class had a very bad impression about the students. So she warned the new teacher about them and advised her to be stern, strict, rough and tough from the outset. Influenced by this advice, the new teacher entered the class with a grim face waving a cane to generate fear. The students were frightened seeing her expression. She asked them a question to test their previous knowledge and ordered that those who knew the answer should raise their right hands. Many students raised their right hands. Others who did not know the answer sat still, anticipating her violent reaction. While examining the students, she found that a boy in the last row had raised his left hand instead of his right hand. She assumed it to be an expression of gross misbehaviour and indiscipline, as she was prejudiced by the report of the previous teacher. She noted that he was probably the naughtiest student in the class. In a fit of anger, she rushed to the boy and thrashed him violently with the cane, shouting savagely, hoping that it would be an effective warning to all. The poor child fell down and cried aloud. Then she noted that his right hand was crippled and that was why he raised his left hand instead of his right hand, to show that he knew the answer. The teacher was shocked. She tried her best to pacify the crying child. Later she learned that the child had been a victim of poliomyelitis and used to write with his left hand as his right hand was totally deformed. This incident transformed the teacher. She became friendly with every student, asked them personal questions and learned the names, abilities, defects, special talents and family background of every student in her class. With this personal and affectionate approach she could easily win their appreciation and admiration. She became a very successful teacher and was loved and respected by all her students. Bias and prejudice may impair our judgment and damage human relations. Personal contact with intimate interaction with others is the best method of teaching, catechesis and evangelisation. Love is the language prescribed by Jesus for evangelisation. Jesus said, “Love your neighbour as you love yourself” {Matthew 22:39 }. St. James advises, “Remember this, my dear brothers! Everyone must be quick to listen, but slow to speak and slow to become angry” {James 1: 19 }. St. Paul advises, “If you become angry, do not let your anger lead you into sin….Do not use harmful words, but only helpful words, the kind that build up and provide what is needed, so that what you say will do good to those who hear you….Get rid of all bitterness, passion, and anger. No more shouting or insults, no more hateful feelings of any sort. Instead, be kind and tender-hearted to one another, and forgive one another, as God has forgiven you through Christ” {Ephesians 4: 26 -32}. By: Dr. Babu Philip, Professor, Cochin University of Science & Technology, Fine Arts Avenue, Kochi-682016, Kerala, India. This is Story No. 156 in this site. Please click ‘Older Posts’ at the bottom of a page to read previous stories and click ‘Newer Posts’ at the bottom of a page to read newer stories in this site. Please click on a word in the ‘Story Themes’ to read stories on that theme.

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DIGNIFIED DEATH Blessed Mother Teresa (1910-1997), while serving as a nun and teacher in the Loreto order, received God’s special call to serve Him among the poorest of the poor. Thus she founded the order of the ‘Missionaries of Charity’ in 1950 in the filthy slums of Kolkata in India. One day, she found a poor, dying woman in a heap of rubbish. Her body was bitten by maggots, ants and rats. The mother carried her to a safe place, cleaned her and gave all possible medical attention and loving care. Her life could not be saved, but she died with a sweet smile on her face. She died with dignity. The mother remained close to her till her death. This incident gave her the inspiration to start a home for the dying, where people could die with dignity, receiving tender care and affectionate attention till the last moment of life. In 1952, the Mother opened the ‘Nirmal Hriday’ meaning ‘pure heart’ as a home for the dying. Dying destitute people brought to the Nirmal Hiday received the religious rites of their own faith before their death. The Christians received the Last Rites of Holy Liturgy, the Hindus received the Holy water from the sacred river, Ganges (Ganga) and the Muslims could hear the recital of the Holy Quran while approaching death. Thus they could die in faith and dignity, with the feeling that they are wanted and loved. The home was meant to gift a beautiful death to people who lived like animals; with the grace of angels, with the feeling that they are loved and wanted. She came to be known as ‘the Saint of the Gutters’. She spent all the money received as gifts, donations and awards for the care of the poor, sick and destitute people. She accepted the Nobel Peace Prize in 1979 “in the name of the unwanted, unloved and uncared people.” The mission of the Missionaries of Charity, according to her, is to “care for the hungry, the naked, the homeless, the crippled, the blind, the lepers, all those people who feel unwanted, unloved, uncared for throughout society, people that have become a burden to the society and are shunned by everyone.” To persons who volunteered to join her acts of charity, she said, “What I can do, you cannot. What you can do, I cannot. But together we can do something beautiful for God. ” Her words reveal her vision about her mission , “We are all pencils in the hand of God. In this life we cannot do great things. We can only do small things with great love. She had a clear view about religion and conversion. She said, “There is only one God and He is God to all; therefore it is important that everyone is seen as equal before God. I have always said we should help a Hindu become a better Hindu , a Muslim become a better Muslim , a Catholic become a better Catholic .” In her view, “The most terrible poverty is loneliness and the feeling of being unloved.” She said, “ Kind words can be short and easy to speak, but their echoes are truly endless. I see God in every human being. When I wash the lepers’ wounds, I feel I am nursing the Lord Himself. Is it not a beautiful experience?” Mother Teresa was a true disciple of Jesus who taught us, “My commandment is this: love one another, just as I love you. The greatest love a person can have for his friends is to give his life for them” {John 15 : 12, 13}. By: Dr. Babu Philip, Professor, Cochin University of Science & Technology, Fine Arts Avenue, Kochi-682016, Kerala, India. This is Story No. 155 in this site. Please click ‘Older Posts’ at the bottom of a page to read previous stories and click ‘Newer Posts’ at the bottom of a page to read newer stories in this site. Please click on a word in the ‘Story Themes’ to read stories on that theme.

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FRESH FISH A fisherman set up a stall to sell fresh fish to tourists visiting a fishing harbour. In front of his new stall, he placed a large board displaying the words, ‘FRESH FISH SOLD HERE’ to attract prospective buyers. Several customers came to buy fish from his stall. One of his customers made a suggestion, “The board is large and readable. But it is too long. The word ‘HERE’ is unnecessary as the board is quite close to the stall. It may be deleted to make the board short and sweet.” The seller found that the suggestion was logical. So he erased the last word. Now the board read, ‘FRESH FISH SOLD’. Later another customer gave a novel suggestion: “The word, ‘SOLD’ is not needed on the board as fishes are displayed here for sale and not for exhibition.” The seller agreed and deleted the word, ‘sold.’ Now the board read ‘FRESH FISH.’ Some time later, a new customer examined the board and gave his opinion, “The word ‘FRESH’ need not be displayed publicly as you sell only fresh fish and not rotten fish. It is an insult to other sellers in this area.” The seller readily agreed and modified the board. It now had only one word, ‘FISH.’ Another person visited the stall after sunset. He said, “The smell of your fish can be felt all around this stall. I had no difficulty to locate it though your board was not clearly visible in the dim light. It is not essential to place the board, ‘FISH’ here.” The seller accepted the suggestion and removed the last letter from the board. The next day, his business was dull. New customers could not identify the stall easily as the board was blank. They went to other stalls in the area. The fisherman’s fate was the result of responding to every suggestion from others. People are lavish in showering advices and critical comments. We must apply our wisdom to identify the relevant, reasonable and acceptable advices. The Holy Bible is the Word of God. We can learn it by prayerful reading and by regular and systematic study. Authoritative books and qualified persons may be consulted to clear our doubts and gain more insight. False interpreters of the Bible are very common. They may visit us and misdirect our faith by misinterpreting the Word of God. They act as the messengers of Satan. We must have correct concepts and convictions about our Faith. Then nobody can mislead us. St. Paul cautions us against false prophets who misinterpret the Holy Scriptures and try to misdirect the faithful believers, “I say this because there are some people who are upsetting you and and trying to change the Gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel that is different from the one we preached to you, may he be condemned to hell! We have said it before, and now I say it again: if anyone preaches to you a gospel that is different from the one you accepted, may he be condemned to hell!” {Galatians 1 : 7-9}. St. Paul advises us, “Put on all the armour that God gives you, so that you will be able to stand up against the Devil’s evil tricks” {Ephesians 6 : 11}. St. Peter warns us, “Be alert, be on the watch! Your enemy, the Devil, roams round like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. Be firm in your faith and resist him, because you know that your fellow- believers in all the world are going through the same kind of sufferings” { 1 Peter 5 : 8, 9}. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ By: Dr. Babu Philip, Professor, Cochin University of Science & Technology, Fine Arts Avenue, Kochi-682016, Kerala, India. This is Story No. 153 in this site. Please click ‘Older Posts’ at the bottom of a page to read previous stories and click ‘Newer Posts’ at the bottom of a page to read newer stories in this site. Please click on a word in the ‘Story Themes’ to read stories on that theme.

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Shoboshobo I noticed this piece (pasted below) on the cause of anxiety in the opinion page of the NY Times this morning. In it, Gilbert shows that people are happier with certainty and that uncertainty is the cause unhappiness. To make his point, Gilbert cites studies showing that faced with the certainty verses the uncertainty of an unfortunate circumstance, such as a chronic disease condition, those with certainty of the unfortunate event were less nervous than those for whom the predictability of the event is uncertain. In other words, it is the the ‘not knowing’ that causes mental unrest, not the actual event. Gilbert relates this information to the uncertain economic times we live in. People have a lot of fear about their economic future, their job security and so forth, which is causing an upswing in the incidence of depression, anxiety and insomnia. According to Gilbert, it is the uncertainty about the future that is causing the mental angst, not the actual outcome. If people were certain about the outcome, even a negative one, such as job loss, they would have more mental stability. Certainty gives one a course to chart, rather than aimless drifting which is difficult for the mind to deal with. This is where one’s spiritual convictions come to play. Knowing that one is in this (physical) world, but not of it (of the spiritual realm) helps one to avoid the pitfall of getting tossed around by the drama of the day. Knowing that we are mere players on this stage, but that our real place is in another dimension allows us to step out of the set, and gain perspective on the scene being played out. I will cop to a panic weekend last November, when the markets had crashed and the economy had plummeted. I credit my meditation practice with getting me through the emotional crisis. In meditation one connects to our true nature (spirit, soul . . .) and gets out of the ego-driven mind. Our true nature is our connection to the divine (tao, universal consciousness . . .). Operating from this place we are able to navigate the trouble waters, whatever they may be. Maintaining this soul-connection we have the knowledge and strength to weather the storms of life. The real challenge is in maintaining this connection to our core being. If we are able to do that the rest falls away, allowing the underlying peace and stillness of our true nature to emerge. For this reason, I advocate developing and maintaining a daily meditation practice to calm the mind, to foster this connection, and to stay plugged in. One of the keys to getting through this recession intact is to take care of oneself. Due to the increased stress of economic uncertainty, now more than ever it is of vital importance to maintain one’s physical and mental health. In doing so, you send a firm message to yourself that you are taking care of yourself. Knowing that you are able to take care and provide for your needs, and are doing so, works to develop peace of mind and eliminate the uncertainty of the future. It is certain that you will take are of your needs because you are doing just that. Taking care of yourself means developing and maintaining a regular exercise program, eating regular nutritious, satisfying meals in a relaxed space, incorporating stress reduction activities, such as meditation, yoga, tai chi, qi gong, walking in nature . . . , and treating any health conditions as they arise. By taking care of yourself you reinforce that regardless of the external circumstances you are providing for your well being. In doing so you gain peace of mind in knowing that you are providing for your physical, mental and spiritual needs and maintaining inner harmony. KB May 20, 2009, 9:30 pm What You Don’t Know Makes You Nervous By Daniel Gilbert CAMBRIDGE, Mass. — Seventy-six years ago, Franklin Delano Roosevelt took to the inaugural dais and reminded a nation that its recent troubles “concern, thank God, only material things.” In the midst of the Depression, he urged Americans to remember that “happiness lies not in the mere possession of money” and to recognize “the falsity of material wealth as the standard of success.” “The only thing we have to fear,” he claimed, “is fear itself.” As it turned out, Americans had a great deal more to fear than that, and their innocent belief that money buys happiness was entirely correct. Psychologists and economists now know that although the very rich are no happier than the merely rich, for the other 99 percent of us, happiness is greatly enhanced by a few quaint assets, like shelter, sustenance and security. Those who think the material is immaterial have probably never stood in a breadline. Money matters and today most of us have less of it, so no one will be surprised by new survey results from the Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index showing that Americans are smiling less and worrying more than they were a year ago, that happiness is down and sadness is up, that we are getting less sleep and smoking more cigarettes, that depression is on the rise. An uncertain future leaves us stranded in an unhappy present with nothing to do but wait. But light wallets are not the cause of our heavy hearts. After all, most of us still have more inflation-adjusted dollars than our grandparents had, and they didn’t live in an unremitting funk. Middle-class Americans still enjoy more luxury than upper-class Americans enjoyed a century earlier, and the fin de siècle was not an especially gloomy time. Clearly, people can be perfectly happy with less than we had last year and less than we have now. So if a dearth of dollars isn’t making us miserable, then what is? No one knows. I don’t mean that no one knows the answer to this question. I mean that the answer to this question is that no one knows — and not knowing is making us sick. Consider an experiment by researchers at Maastricht University in the Netherlands who gave subjects a series of 20 electric shocks. Some subjects knew they would receive an intense shock on every trial. Others knew they would receive 17 mild shocks and 3 intense shocks, but they didn’t know on which of the 20 trials the intense shocks would come. The results showed that subjects who thought there was a small chance of receiving an intense shock were more afraid — they sweated more profusely, their hearts beat faster — than subjects who knew for sure that they’d receive an intense shock. That’s because people feel worse when something bad might occur than when something bad will occur. Most of us aren’t losing sleep and sucking down Marlboros because the Dow is going to fall another thousand points, but because we don’t know whether it will fall or not — and human beings find uncertainty more painful than the things they’re uncertain about. But why? A colostomy reroutes the colon so that waste products leave the body through a hole in the abdomen, and it isn’t anyone’s idea of a picnic. A University of Michigan-led research team studied patients whose colostomies were permanent and patients who had a chance of someday having their colostomies reversed. Six months after their operations, patients who knew they would be permanently disabled were happier than those who thought they might someday be returned to normal. Similarly, researchers at the University of British Columbia studied people who had undergone genetic testing to determine their risk for developing the neurodegenerative disorder known as Huntington’s disease. Those who learned that they had a very high likelihood of developing the condition were happier a year after testing than those who did not learn what their risk was. Why would we prefer to know the worst than to suspect it? Because when we get bad news we weep for a while, and then get busy making the best of it. We change our behavior, we change our attitudes. We raise our consciousness and lower our standards. We find our bootstraps and tug. But we can’t come to terms with circumstances whose terms we don’t yet know. An uncertain future leaves us stranded in an unhappy present with nothing to do but wait. Our national gloom is real enough, but it isn’t a matter of insufficient funds. It’s a matter of insufficient certainty. Americans have been perfectly happy with far less wealth than most of us have now, and we could quickly become those Americans again — if only we knew we had to. Daniel Gilbert is professor of psychology at Harvard University and author of “Stumbling on Happiness.” More of his writing and videos of his appearances can be found at his Web site .

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Maintaining Inner Peace to Provide Certainty During Uncertain Times

The wandering sage has finally returned from his travels. It is always good to visit distant places. It gives you a whole new perspective on things. People are basically the same wherever you go. They all have hopes and dreams as well as worries and fears. The problems arise when the worries and fears outweigh the hopes and dreams. It really feels like all of this financial pandemic crisis stuff causes a lot more stress and tension in people than is necessary. I don’t really get the sense that the mainstream media is helping at all. They seem to revel in sensationalizing all of it which only makes things worse. And while we may supposedly be in a recovery now all of the problems with population, limited resources, peak oil, climate change and economic meltdown are still escalating. Fortunately, with the arrival of spring (at least in the Northern Hemisphere) there is the feeling of rebirth and a new wellspring of energy that is bubbling up. We need to tap into this energy and make use f it. Too often it can feel like our problems are taking over our life. When we can feel a real connection to the Earth and the energy of the natural world those problems shrink down to a more manageable size. So, as with many of these posts, I’ll leave you with these simple words… Remember to Breathe

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return of the sage

Article by Zen Habits contributor Jonathan Mead ; follow him on twitter . Caring is supposed to be a good thing, yet, it can become unhealthy and have an adverse effect on our lives. When we care too much, we become obsessive and it often leads to dysfunction. There are definitely times where passion fuels our desire to act. Working towards change, being involved in a social movement, and contributing in a meaningful way to others are all examples of this. But it’s the not caring about things that don’t matter that allows you to focus your attention on these big, important things. It’s the lack of out-of-control caring that brings more levity into your life . Here are a few classic examples of caring gone too far: Caring too much about things that don’t matter. Caring too much about things being perfect and reach a point of diminishing returns. It can take four hours of studying to get a 95% on a test, but it may take fifteen hours of studying to get a 100%. Are those additional eleven hours really worth it? Caring too much about always being updated. We want to know what’s happening on facebook, twitter, email, and we lose our ability to focus. Adversely caring about what others think and don’t give enough credit to what we think. Caring too much about the future. We’re always thinking about what will happen next. I could go on and on about all the possibilities of toxic caring. It’s already plain to see that caring — something usually seen as a positive action — can be highly undesirable. I’ve seen so many people waste so much time caring about things that don’t really matter. They have dreams and they have big ideas , but they can’t get them off the ground because their attention and concern is in the wrong place. If your mind is too focused on what’s happening in the next five minutes, you’ll never make progress on the things that will impact your life five years from now. If you’re too focused on tidying up your desk, reorganizing your paper clips and making sure everything is filed immaculately, you’re just spinning your wheels. Things like this have a place, and organization is important. But when it’s taking up more time than your most important tasks, you might want to rethink things. The same thing applies not just with organization, but with caring too much about getting everything done. If you have a lot of little loose ends and small tasks that you need to close, you could easily get overwhelmed. And you might think that finishing those things is a bigger priority than working on your something amazing . But trust me, it’s not. There will be more little things to obsess over. There will be other things that you can find to do that will creep into your consciousness. These things are your enemies. I repeat: These minutiae must be not be allowed residence in your mind. They cannot take up the precious and sacred focus of your attention. This is where you need to learn the art of putting things off. Yeah, I know that might sound controversial, given how many of us have issues with procrastination. But, this is actually good news for you procrastinators! Now you can use this valuable skill to your advantage. Put off or procrastinate all the stuff that doesn’t matter. Do this for the survival of your dreams. If you don’t learn how to skillfully put off the trivial details of your to-do list, your dreams will suffer for it. If you don’t learn how to stop caring about all the stuff that won’t matter in ten minutes or ten years, your dreams will be left as nothing more than a phantom of your imagination. I will admit, this is something I’ve struggled with for a long time. While I haven’t fully learned the skilled art of putting off the inconsequential, I am making serious progress. I used to obsess about the little things, partly because I’m a recovering perfectionist. But it’s also largely due to the fact that I was afraid of facing my dreams. I was putting off the wrong stuff. I was putting off facing the reality of what I really wanted and coming to terms with whether or not it was truly possible. I was afraid of failure; but most of all, I was afraid of the unknown. Now I see that when I’m putting off the wrong stuff (my true desires), I need to take a closer at myself. I see it as a clue that I might be avoiding what I really want for some reason. Maybe it’s fear, maybe it’s something else. But I know that getting too wrapped up in the details means that I need to step back and take a look at the bigger picture. Take a step back, and breathe… When you realize that you’re spending time on a lot of insignificant things, take a look at what the deeper message might be. Maybe you’re afraid of taking the first step toward your dreams. See what happens when you put off or stop caring about… Checking your email every ten minutes. Having everything finished on your to do list. Having an immaculately clean house. Trying to please everyone. Seeking praise and popularity. [Your malady here.] See this article for a full list of things worth giving up . When you’re left with your real, authentic self, you will probably be a little uncomfortable, as I was. But it’s better to be face-to-face with this discomfort than letting this lawless caring get in the way of you living your dreams. So put things off, be flaky. Stop caring about the stuff that doesn’t matter … your dreams depend on it. — If you liked this article, please share it on del.icio.us, StumbleUpon or Digg . I’d appreciate it.

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Put Things Off and Stop Caring to Realize Your Dreams

Article by Zen Habits contributor Jonathan Mead ; follow him on twitter . Caring is supposed to be a good thing, yet, it can become unhealthy and have an adverse effect on our lives. When we care too much, we become obsessive and it often leads to dysfunction. There are definitely times where passion fuels our desire to act. Working towards change, being involved in a social movement, and contributing in a meaningful way to others are all examples of this. But it’s the not caring about things that don’t matter that allows you to focus your attention on these big, important things. It’s the lack of out-of-control caring that brings more levity into your life . Here are a few classic examples of caring gone too far: Caring too much about things that don’t matter. Caring too much about things being perfect and reach a point of diminishing returns. It can take four hours of studying to get a 95% on a test, but it may take fifteen hours of studying to get a 100%. Are those additional eleven hours really worth it? Caring too much about always being updated. We want to know what’s happening on facebook, twitter, email, and we lose our ability to focus. Adversely caring about what others think and don’t give enough credit to what we think. Caring too much about the future. We’re always thinking about what will happen next. I could go on and on about all the possibilities of toxic caring. It’s already plain to see that caring — something usually seen as a positive action — can be highly undesirable. I’ve seen so many people waste so much time caring about things that don’t really matter. They have dreams and they have big ideas , but they can’t get them off the ground because their attention and concern is in the wrong place. If your mind is too focused on what’s happening in the next five minutes, you’ll never make progress on the things that will impact your life five years from now. If you’re too focused on tidying up your desk, reorganizing your paper clips and making sure everything is filed immaculately, you’re just spinning your wheels. Things like this have a place, and organization is important. But when it’s taking up more time than your most important tasks, you might want to rethink things. The same thing applies not just with organization, but with caring too much about getting everything done. If you have a lot of little loose ends and small tasks that you need to close, you could easily get overwhelmed. And you might think that finishing those things is a bigger priority than working on your something amazing . But trust me, it’s not. There will be more little things to obsess over. There will be other things that you can find to do that will creep into your consciousness. These things are your enemies. I repeat: These minutiae must be not be allowed residence in your mind. They cannot take up the precious and sacred focus of your attention. This is where you need to learn the art of putting things off. Yeah, I know that might sound controversial, given how many of us have issues with procrastination. But, this is actually good news for you procrastinators! Now you can use this valuable skill to your advantage. Put off or procrastinate all the stuff that doesn’t matter. Do this for the survival of your dreams. If you don’t learn how to skillfully put off the trivial details of your to-do list, your dreams will suffer for it. If you don’t learn how to stop caring about all the stuff that won’t matter in ten minutes or ten years, your dreams will be left as nothing more than a phantom of your imagination. I will admit, this is something I’ve struggled with for a long time. While I haven’t fully learned the skilled art of putting off the inconsequential, I am making serious progress. I used to obsess about the little things, partly because I’m a recovering perfectionist. But it’s also largely due to the fact that I was afraid of facing my dreams. I was putting off the wrong stuff. I was putting off facing the reality of what I really wanted and coming to terms with whether or not it was truly possible. I was afraid of failure; but most of all, I was afraid of the unknown. Now I see that when I’m putting off the wrong stuff (my true desires), I need to take a closer at myself. I see it as a clue that I might be avoiding what I really want for some reason. Maybe it’s fear, maybe it’s something else. But I know that getting too wrapped up in the details means that I need to step back and take a look at the bigger picture. Take a step back, and breathe… When you realize that you’re spending time on a lot of insignificant things, take a look at what the deeper message might be. Maybe you’re afraid of taking the first step toward your dreams. See what happens when you put off or stop caring about… Checking your email every ten minutes. Having everything finished on your to do list. Having an immaculately clean house. Trying to please everyone. Seeking praise and popularity. [Your malady here.] See this article for a full list of things worth giving up . When you’re left with your real, authentic self, you will probably be a little uncomfortable, as I was. But it’s better to be face-to-face with this discomfort than letting this lawless caring get in the way of you living your dreams. So put things off, be flaky. Stop caring about the stuff that doesn’t matter … your dreams depend on it. — If you liked this article, please share it on del.icio.us, StumbleUpon or Digg . I’d appreciate it.

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Put Things Off and Stop Caring to Realize Your Dreams

I found the recipe a while back on the WHO website & have recently run across it in my files. The recipe is for an electrolyte replacement beverage that could be used instead of Gatorade. This one is not neon & thus is safer. Electrolyte replacement is necessary after extreme fluid loss, such as after a bout of diarrhea or vomiting. Athletes drink Gatorade due to the electrolyte loss through perspiration. 3/4 t sea salt 1/2 t backing soda 4 t cream of tarter (or eat 2 bananas for potassium) 1T sugar 1 liter of water optional: 1T orange juice or 2t lemon juice

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Natural Gatorade (Electrolyte Replacement Drink)

I’ve recently been researching Castor oil packs. Many holistic practitioners recommend them, and they have some intriguing uses. Castor oil comes from the Castor bean. It’s use was popularized by early new-ager, psychic and medical intuitive, Edgar Cayce. You might find wikipedia’s entry on him of interest: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edgar_Cayce . From the point of view of Chinese Medicine, Castor oil seems to have the ability to move Qi, Blood and Phelgm (congealed fluids). This is seen by the claims to dissolve tumors and nodules and to improve Liver function, including treating cirrhosis. Uses include bursitis/arthritis/joint pain, improving digestion/constipation, treating the liver/gallbladder, including cirrhosis and hepatitis, reducing menstrual cramping and dissolving tumours and nodules. I’ve seen claims of improving sleep/insomnia and relaxing facial wrinkles. You can find Castor oil in the health and body section of a natural food store. You might try a drug store, some may carry it. Do not ingest Castor oil as it is toxic. Do not use over open sores/wounds. Do not use with heavy bleeding (including menstrual). For insomnia, put a drop on each eyelid before retiring, and then do my insomnia meditation described in an earlier post, 4/09. For the face, put a few drops of Castor oil on the face at night to soften skin, relax wrinkles and reduce swelling and blemishes. Pay particular attention to problematic areas. The following link gives a long list of personal testimonials of people’s experiences with using Castor oil packs. There’s a wide variety of intriguing uses presented here: http://www.earthclinic.com/Remedies/castor_oil.html Usually Castor oil is administered as a Castor oil pack. I’ve include the instructions for making a Castor oil pack below (taken from earthclinic.com). For most conditions, do Castor oil packs 4x/week for one hour duration. Materials * Three layers of undyed wool or cotton flannel large enough to cover the affected area * Castor oil * Plastic wrap cut 1-2″ larger than the flannel (can be cut from a plastic bag) * Hot water bottle * Container with lid * Old clothes and sheets. Castor oil will stain clothing and bedding. Place the flannel in the container. Soak it in Castor oil so that it is saturated, but not dripping. Place the pack over the affected body part. Cover with plastic. Place the hot water bottle over the pack. Leave it on for 45-60 minutes. Rest while the pack is in place. After removing the pack, cleanse the area with a dilute solution of water and baking soda. Store the pack in the covered container in the refrigerator. Each pack may be reused up to 25-30 times. I am interested in learning about your experience with Castor oil, positive or negative. Please send me your feedback about this. KB

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Castor Oil Packs