Here and Now...What's Happening?

[ulli]

Posted by 1inMany (here)
Here and Now...Creepy Crawlies...

My growing fear of these-here critters is making this house a prison. I have to deal with this. The question is how? It is the invasion of the no- 2- 4- 6- and 8-legged kind. I will not rule out critters of the 1- 3- 5- and 7- legged kind, though my “logic” tells me there are none.

I remember the evenings and nights when I first moved in. There was such indescribable beauty in the twilight, and it was my first glance at the millions of stars that led me into the yard to absorb the twinkles.

First came the possum. I was sitting outside enjoying the clean night air, breathing it in all the way to my toes. I saw the barn cat out of the corner of my eye, turned my head and started to greet him, and realized the eyes peering at me from a foot away were red. I think I jumped a couple of feet into the air from my perch.

Then there was the baby skunk. Not long after the possum, I had gotten the courage up to reclaim my perch, and lo and behold, 4 feet from me was a baby skunk, only visible because of the white stripe. Well, of course, I jumped a couple of feet into the air once again, but not really afraid of this one’s teeth.

At this point, the yard and the porch had become lookouts rather than relaxation spots. So, I was confined to my perch, with all the lights in the house on (as they would glow through the windows and illuminate all sides of the covered porch.

Then I saw the possum in the middle of the day, wobbling across the yard and directly to an opening in the support of the porch stairs, straight under the house.

Then came the water bugs. Anybody ever heard of water bugs? They aren’t water bugs, for crying out loud, they look like cockroaches on steroids, 4” long…and the suckers can fly! And the beautiful and fascinating 8-legged creatures? I’m on love wagon when they are not in my face, on my feet, or spinning webs so that anywhere I turn I walk through them…and for hours feel like something is crawling on me. They are all over the place outside, and now have invaded the inside. Fire ants? Eesh, yep everywhere.

So I started wearing my boots to sit outside, and while in my perch I hold a big stick and have another chair close by for easy reach. I feel like a lion tamer in a circus. But, at least I still can sit in my perch.

I do not want to hurt another living thing, yet “allowing” them their space has taken away every one of those moments I used to have and replaced them with being “on-guard” and at the ready at all times.

Last night while laying in bed, I felt a tickle on my face which I assumed to be a stray hair. Nope. I brushed it away with some force, and heard a “thud” on the floor.

Okay, that’s it. I am going to have to deal with this. I need my comfort back…

Much Love, and apologies ahead of time to all the creepy crawlies here, but look, I need some space! Please, please choose any of the ga-jillion trees around here…

Same here where I live. I try not to kill them, but when I have to I will. I'm entitled to some living space too.
I have an outdoor (under-roof) living room, and checking for snakes and scorpions is routine for us.

[ulli]

Came across this today...made me think about free will.
Also about ´Where focus goes...

We must be selective in choosing which books to read.
Were we able to read a dozen books every second,
we could not read more than an insignificant fragment of the existing storehouse of noble and valuable books.
Time wasted in reading an inferior book is lost forever
and can never be re-utilized to read a superior work.
Therefore, whenever we read a mediocre book we sacrifice a great masterpiece
which must remain unread because of the limitedness of our time.
Before reading a book we should never forget that the reading of one
involves the sacrifice of another which must remain forever unread;
that "Life is short, Art is eternal."
from this site...Essene Communications with the Infinite.
http://www.thenazareneway.com/essene...e_infinite.htm

[ViralSpiral]

Never linger too long with the ignorant,
throw stones at their talk.
Walk only with the lovers.
the mirror of the soul gets rusty when
dipped in muddy water.

***
Rumi

[PurpleLama]

Posted by ulli (here)

Posted by Black Panther (here)

Posted by PurpleLama (here)

So that will make me your left guide
My birth number is 7 (5+2)

If that is you then who is your left guide?

So, does that make me your right guide??

My name and birthday both add up to seven.

Last night's dreaming ended with me standing in a copse of trees, birch, and all manner of cats were moving around me and between the trees, closest were the kitty cats, then were wild cats, then bob cats, and cougars and panthers were furthest out.

[ulli]

Feeling really low, and also a bit sorry for myself.
Not going anywhere near the Houman thread today.
Dream paralysis last night.
Listened to Marie Kayali's interview and found not only do I have much of my 3D life in common with her
..like the areas of London she described, where I also used to live,
then my life plunging from very high profile succesful to the opposite...
but even the weirder stuff...
anyway, I'd love to meet her.

[ulli]

Ok, I feel ok again.
I'm getting better at returning to equilibrium.
I would love to have every Villager share their own little secret of what they do to get back to balance when they feel upset... in a ten minute video,
with each one talking for 30 seconds about how they do it.
Those who wish to remain anonymous
could just write their message on the screen.
Like a round table, without the discussion. Only expression.

[another bob]

Posted by Sierra (here)

Posted by another bob (here)

Bob ... what is that?

Blueberries ripening on the bush.

My cousin Shannon has one of these in her yard. I made her take me to the Iris Farm, so I could get one, but they were all out this year ...

It's one of our favorite peonies, and really big -- about 10 in. across when fully opened, with a lovely and exotic fragrance too!

So many Towees in Paradise! It is WONDERFUL!

Yep, a clan of about 3 dozen live in the laurel hedges in our front yard.

[another bob]

Posted by ulli (here)
I would love to have every Villager share their own little secret of what they do to get back to balance when they feel upset...

Hiya Ulli and All!

We just got back from the orthopedic surgeon who gave us some hard news about Mazie's knee. There is only bone grinding against bone, all the cartiledge has been destroyed, and so a complete knee replacement is called for. However, Mazie's immune system is totally compromised at this point, after a half century of living with severe RA, and so the risk of infection makes the surgery a roll of the dice -- the cure could kill her, and yet the pain she undergoes is unbearable. For example, just his manipulation of her leg today in the office has put her into a withering agony, and there is really no remedy for it (we've tried everything). As one might imagine, this is very upsetting for me too, and so I have to find a way to balance my own disturbance. Here is what I've come to understand:

1. Serve. There is no better way to transcend one's own disturbance than to serve others. We are never alone, but always surrounded by innumerable beings. Serve them all.

2. Bring down the light, circulate it, and use it to release the contraction. (This is also how the cancer was subdued.)

3. When the light is stabilized, use it for service -- it's what it's for. We are both receivers and transmitters.

In the reception and transmission of the light, self is forgotten, surrendered into the light. This is love.

Love is the only medicine for the emotional contraction. Love always.

[ulli]

Posted by another bob (here)

Posted by ulli (here)
I would love to have every Villager share their own little secret of what they do to get back to balance when they feel upset...

Hiya Ulli and All!

We just got back from the orthopedic surgeon who gave us some hard news about Mazie's knee. There is only bone grinding against bone, all the cartiledge has been destroyed, and so a complete knee replacement is called for. However, Mazie's immune system is totally compromised at this point, after a half century of living with severe RA, and so the risk of infection makes the surgery a roll of the dice -- the cure could kill her, and yet the pain she undergoes is unbearable. For example, just his manipulation of her leg today in the office has put her into a withering agony, and there is really no remedy for it (we've tried everything). As one might imagine, this is very upsetting for me too, and so I have to find a way to balance my own disturbance. Here is what I've come to understand:

1. Serve. There is no better way to transcend one's own disturbance than to serve others. We are never alone, but always surrounded by innumerable beings. Serve them all.

2. Bring down the light, circulate it, and use it to release the contraction. (This is also how the cancer was subdued.)

3. When the light is stabilized, use it for service -- it's what it's for. We are both receivers and transmitters.

In the reception and transmission of the light, self is forgotten, surrendered into the light. This is love.

Love is the only medicine for the emotional contraction. Love always.

hello Bob...about Mazie's knree....
Husband says there is a longterm treatment that supposedly can rebuild the cartalage in the knee, called Glucosamine. It takes between three months and a year. It can even be found over the counter.
Also pawpaw helps with that, he says, one needs to eat lots of it.

[onawah]

Hi Bob,
I haven't tuned into the Village for awhile, but when I saw notification of your post on the "bulletin board", I felt moved to read it for some reason (and immediately saw why I was moved to read it).

I have a crushed left acetabulem (where the socket and the bone meet in the leg joint) from a hit-and-run car accident (a NDE) I barely survived in 1972.
(Also continuing symptoms of whiplash and 3 disintegrated discs in my neck, plus a bad knee.)
I refused the hip replacement surgery that was offered to me, since I didn't feel up to the additional trauma.
So I have had bone grinding on bone in my left hip joint since then.

The one surgery I did submit to was so painful and traumatic, I vowed never to go under the knife again, even if it means living in a wheelchair instead... and I don't regret that decision.
I've been classified as a "poor candidate" for surgery, which is fine with me.
I'm just too sensitive for that kind of invasive assault on my being.

I once had an IUD inserted for birth control, but had to have it removed very soon after.
The discomfort never went away, and I knew an artificial hip would have been far, far worse.
The body is not a machine! For sensitive individuals, artificial parts can be worse than having no parts at all.
Not everyone is like that, but for those who are, it's important to know they are not the only ones.
I don't know if Maize is like me in that regard, but if she is, she should know that not all people are good candidates for surgery, even if their immune systems are up to it.
There are lots of people who regret opting for surgery, though you don't hear about that very much.

I've worked a lot on my immune system since the accident, knowing that the stress of disabilities of this nature really weaken the whole body, and nutrients are used up very quickly by constant stress, so a good diet and supplementation are really important.
For the most part, I have avoided any pharmaceuticals, though I will resort to taking a Tramadol when I can't sleep because the pain is so bad.

I use a TENS unit just about every night to ease the tension in my neck, lower back, and hips.
(TENS units can really help people to stay off of pain meds, and if Maize doesn't have one, I would recommend getting one. )
If I didn't have that, I think I would have already used my Tramadol prescription some time ago to just end the pain for good, if you know what I mean.
I don't see any reason to live in unendurable pain, but then, I don't have any immediate family who would be very affected by my final exit, at this point.

Anyway, I can certainly appreciate what you must be going through, and I do send my love and compassion to you and Mazie.
We do seem to be living in an energetic pressure cooker these days, and no mistake about that.

My best remedy for dealing with stress is to go to the woods and sit with my back against a tree, and lie on my yoga mat on the earth at the foot of the tree.
Connection with the Earth is so nurturing, and trees help with staying grounded and remembering to relax and allow the energy to come up from Mother Earth,and down from Father Sky and circulate through our being.

Best wishes to you and Maize

[another bob]

Posted by ulli (here)
hello Bob...about Mazie's knree....
Husband says there is a longterm treatment that supposedly can rebuild the cartalage in the knee, called Glucosamine. It takes between three months and a year. It can even be found over the counter.
Also pawpaw helps with that, he says, one needs to eat lots of it.

Thanks for your kind intent, Sister!

LIke I said, we've tried everything. She took GLucosamine, combined with Condroitin Sulfate and MSM for quite a long time, to no effect. We did have some minor success at inflamation reduction with Tumeric Extract combined with BioPerine, but it was fleeting. We're going to have a brace fashioned, so as to get through this period when she also needs another gastrointestinal surgery. However, knee replacement is inevitable. She's had both hips replaced many times -- that is, they were replaced, but developed infections (including Stevens-Johnsons Syndrome, which your husband will tell you is nearly always fatal). She cannot tolerate most antibiotics. She's spent months on end confined to bed without hips, recovering from those infections. The amazing part is, during those times of confinement, she underwent the most stunning spiritual transformations. From what she has shared with me regarding those times before we met, I'm utterly humbled.

[another bob]

Posted by onawah (here)
Hi Bob,
I haven't tuned into the Village for awhile, but when I saw notification of your post on the "bulletin board", I felt moved to read it for some reason (and immediately saw why I was moved to read it)....Best wishes to you and Maize

Thank you, Dear, for your generous account and offering! Your sensitive empathy is most appreciated, and we will hold you too in our hearts as we all make our way through the tests of this challenging incarnation.

[onawah]

I can highly recommend fresh aloe vera gel for inflammation, also for anti-viral, anti-fungal and antibiotic properties.
You can buy the fresh leaves in most Mexican markets, or order direct from aloe vera labs in Harlingen, Texas.
That's been another life saver for me.
I use a whole leaf, at least a pound of the gel, in my morning smoothies.

[ulli]

Life is such a mystery.
Not everything has a solution but nearly everything has an answer when seen retrospectively.
May Mazie's suffering indeed provide healing for others, if that is her wish.

[another bob]

Posted by onawah (here)
I can highly recommend fresh aloe vera gel for inflammation, also for anti-viral, anti-fungal and antibiotic properties.
You can buy the fresh leaves in most Mexican markets, or order direct from aloe vera labs in Harlingen, Texas.
That's been another life saver for me.
I use a whole leaf, at least a pound of the gel, in my morning smoothies.

Thank you, yes, we use lots of it -- helped me over an ulcer once in fact.

¤=[Post Update]=¤

Posted by ulli (here)
Life is such a mystery.
Not everything has a solution but nearly everything has an answer when seen retrospectively.
May Mazie's suffering indeed provide healing for others, if that is her wish.

I've asked her to review her contract. :-)

[Eram]

Posted by ulli (here)
Ok, I feel ok again.
I'm getting better at returning to equilibrium.
I would love to have every Villager share their own little secret of what they do to get back to balance when they feel upset... in a ten minute video,
with each one talking for 30 seconds about how they do it.
Those who wish to remain anonymous
could just write their message on the screen.
Like a round table, without the discussion. Only expression.

Nice to see you back in balance again Ulli.

I'm not sure that I would feel comfortable to make a video with myself in it , but I would happily like to do it in writing.
Could be very interesting to learn and see what so many different people do to balance themselves when being upset.

Just recently I rediscovered (inspired by many people here on the forum who have had, or are seeking spiritual awakening) the books and teachings of Eckhart Tolle. I can presume that most people here have read the books, but I shall describe in short what I took from them to work with.
I use three instruments really.
* I observe as much as possible of what's going on in me. Thoughts, emotions, feelings, attachments etc., and I recognize that I am neither of those. I let go of the identification with it.
* Let al that is be. This means that situations or emotional states will not be tried to change into another state or direction. Ego doesn't understand that everything that it seeks for is already present in the true self and tries to pull and find solutions.
* Staying in the moment.


So actually, when I'm upset.. I see this as an opportunity to dive into it and see what's coming to surface. Then I apply these two techniques to it and wonderful things start happening. That is: when it's working. I'm rather new to this and I find myself steering into a maze half of the times haha, especially since I have a long history of dissociating and the applying of these techniques lead to quite the opposite.
Anyway, It's pretty amazing what happens when I do these things. It's one thing to read these books and learn the intellectual part of it and use that to your advantage, it's a whole other story when you really apply these instruments on a daily basis. I find it that awareness can be easily raised with it.
I haven't been able to cry for over 20 years I guess, but lately, when just looking at myself in this way, tears are coming whenever I feel stuck emotions come to surface and I see that they are not me.
Weird isn't it? As long as I see these emotions as a part of me, I am not able to experience them, but when I let the identification with it go, tears are coming.

In itself it is not aimed to get myself back into balance when I'm upset or in another way out of balance, but it can lead to that quite fast.

An example: I can get out of bed with a bad mood sometimes. First of all I remember to let it be as it is and not try to steer away from it. Don't judge the mood.
Then I try and see what's it all about. What feelings, emotions, thoughts are there and which ones are hidden behind them. This can be all sorts of things, like judgements about my "life" in general, fears of what I have to face during that particular day (like doing the administration of my business) etc. I let all these things arise as good as possible and just look at them in the understanding that I am neither of these. Especially when I find a blind spot and see what hiding there, this is powerful and gives big boosts of energy.

So... when I'm upset. a part of me says: jippie... opportunity time!
For these states are the best ones to find fixations in all sorts.

-------------------------------------------------------------------


ps: Astrid, so nice to read about your experiences in the retreat. I'd love to hear more about it.
Maybe when you're back and have more time, you can share with me what bringing animal helpers into his (my son) life is all about.

pps: another bob, Nice to see you're posting again. I love the pictures of your paradise and the stories you tell here. All the best wishes with the Mazies situation.

x post update x

I just now read what is the current state of your situation bob.... What a challenging times for you all. I send you love and healing!

[onawah]

I don't know if you are using the fresh gel, or a bottled product, and so please excuse if you are using the fresh, but many people don't realize that gel from the fresh leaves are many times more efficacious than any bottled, heat treated gel might be.
It's also a lot cheaper to buy the fresh leaves, especially considering the bottled stuff is usually watered down and contains preservatives, not to mention that it is heat-treated, which destroys much of the nutrients and probably all of the oxygen.
The fresh gel was given to patients daily during in a study at a Texas University who had full blown cases of AIDS, and their symptoms actually disappeared.
It is that good for the immune system!
But since it can't be patented for profits to Big Pharma, few people are aware of this.

Posted by another bob (here)

Posted by onawah (here)
I can highly recommend fresh aloe vera gel for inflammation, also for anti-viral, anti-fungal and antibiotic properties.
You can buy the fresh leaves in most Mexican markets, or order direct from aloe vera labs in Harlingen, Texas.
That's been another life saver for me.
I use a whole leaf, at least a pound of the gel, in my morning smoothies.

Thank you, yes, we use lots of it -- helped me over an ulcer once in fact.

¤=[Post Update]=¤

Posted by ulli (here)
Life is such a mystery.
Not everything has a solution but nearly everything has an answer when seen retrospectively.
May Mazie's suffering indeed provide healing for others, if that is her wish.

I've asked her to review her contract. :-)

[PurpleLama]

Me and Playdo, comin' atcha!

[ulli]

My area is getting hit by a sun flare right now...
So far it's working wonders...
Feeling truly energized....yay...hair standing on end, too....

[meeradas]

T o d a y...

[the seagull went home after it had played around with a falcon]