LILIBLOG - The Blog of Lilipoh Magazine

MARY, THE WISDOM OF CREATIVE RECEPTIVITY REFLECTION III

LILIPOH Staff — Sat, 24 Jul 2010 15:13:46 GMT

Dear Friends,
Here is a third reflection in preparation for the Soul Retreats in Colorado and Vermont.

Mary was a great initiate, making spiritual-soul capacities possible for all of humanity. We are still growing into those capacities - they are in the process of coming to awareness for those who engage the interior of the heart. Without such engagement we experience destructive events in the world with a feeling that we are not able to act on them or change them in any way.

Mary encountered seemingly impossible circumstances all of her life. That was one dimension of her initiation, along with animating inwardly all that is experienced outwardly. In our retreats, we develop practices to meet destructive events from the other side of them - awakening to an initiation process into Wisdom. These practices unfold as:

�        Confronting circumstances that we are not able to act on or change in any way. How to confront such circumstances without obsessing -"How could this possibly happen", without being taken into fear, without reacting, without trying to find the way out. Creative receptivity begins with being able to take all into the spiritual-soul. How to do this.

�        Allowing stillness to take possession of the heart of our being. What are the practices of such stillness? How can we live daily in such a turbulent world with such inner stillness?

�        Being present inwardly to what is in process of coming to completion that outwardly seems to be only destruction. This presence corresponds with Mary's capacity of inner listening. How do we listen inwardly with creative receptivity, that is, approach wholeness-perception?

�        Establishing the right inner relation between ourselves and the seemingly impossible circumstances around us. What does such a relation look like, how is it achieved?

�        Carrying lightly, not as a burden, the circumstances of the world within us, where a new, inner power is discovered. We discover what this power is like and how it affects radical but unexpected world-change.

More to come. If you have not received notices of the two soul retreats, see our website: http://www.spiritualschool.org See the announcements on the opening page. Or, email: soulschool@embarqmail.com

Warmly,
Robert and Cheryl Sardello
The School of Spiritual Psychology

Encouragement of Hado Study

LILIPOH Staff — Tue, 13 Jul 2010 11:57:49 GMT

I would like to share some very important information with you. I feel two incidents which are coincidentally happening at almost the same time in the Western and Eastern part of the world (the oil spill in Gulf of Mexico and Foot and Mouth epidemic in Miyazaki, Japan) are something that the creator of nature is telling us to pay attention to. The Gulf of Mexico of course is an issue regarding energy and the case of Miyazaki is an issue of a virus out of control. �Modern science does not know how to cope with these issues and subsequently they are not yet solved. �There is a growing loss of many lives in the Gulf of Mexico and already 270,000 cows and pigs have been put to death in Miyazaki, Japan. We have no idea when this will come to an end. I am recognized as "Dr. Emoto, the Water Crystal researcher" in the world, but before that I was a researcher of Hado, which is subtle energy, literally the blue print of this material world. The world of Hado was not visible, nor measurable by modern scientific technology so it was hard to be accepted even though I described it in great detail. �Since I wrote the first HADO book, I have published more than 10 additional books about Hado theory from major publishers in Japan, including "The Prelude of Hado" in 1992. �In these books, I actually predicted different kinds of problems that the human race would face in the future. I also wrote how we can cope with these problems. �For this, we would need HADO technology. �It has been 15 years since then. �In the interim, my books, Hidden Messages in Water and Messages from Water became bestsellers and a lot of visionary citizens have accepted the Hado way of thinking and Hado technology. However, government does not support the idea at all because scientists who support the government deny my theory and ignore it. I am not asking them to understand the theory and implement the technology at a governmental level right now because I know it takes time. The problems that I described in my books are happening now, so we don't have a time to wait for government and corporations to understand. �So, I believe we citizens, each one of us, have to prepare ourselves because it is an urgent issue now. The preparation is not difficult or complicated it simply takes a basic understanding of what Hado is. However, you may think that it is not possible to understand the Hado principals with only images or causes, and you want to see concrete Hado effects clearly. � I am writing this now for people who think in this way. Recent discoveries confirm that energy can be extracted from water and water can be made into medicines via HADO. There are 2 major innovative ideas that have now come to light!! At the first day of the "Water and Peace" Global Forum which was held from March 20th to 22nd this year, Mr. Ryushin Omasa, the president of Japan Techno Co, gave a lecture about his technology which extracts alternative energy called Ohmasa gas from water. This alternative energy can be substituted for petroleum energy. �He applies specific low frequencies to water and agitated it to chemically dissolve the water. �The oxygen and the hydrogen generated a unified oxy-hydrogen in a safe format, and this oxy-hydrogen solution can create fire to weld with and energy to run a motor. They already succeeded in running a motorbike with this Ohmasa gas. See this video clip which explains the technology: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NUPE0Z9V82E&feature=player_embedded I have been waiting for this technology to become a reality for 20 years. I have known this technology was possible for many years because water is H2O, and oxygen and hydrogen are a good source of energy. And it is a good thing that such a wonderful energy source exists abundantly everywhere. I came up with the idea to take water crystal photos from water in 1994 and succeeded. I have done a number of various studies since then. The most beautiful water crystal photo that we have ever taken is a water crystal created when the words of love and gratitude were exposed to water. I published the photo in my book, Messages from Water in 1999. �Furthermore, I published my hypothesis that the H of H2O represents love and the O of H2O represents gratitude in my book, Hidden Messages in Water, published in 2002 and this book became a bestseller in many countries. Since then, a lot of people have resonated with those ideas and words, and love and gratitude are more frequently used in a daily life among spiritual people around the world. � Mr. Omasa who invented this innovative technology actually has been a regular reader of my books and he asked our institute to take water crystal photos from his water "Alpha Torino water" several years ago. �So I assume he naturally received my hypothesis about the mysteries of water and I believe his Hado way of thinking may have lead to his amazing discovery of which energy can be extracted from water. �Perhaps he is not the only one who was inspired by my work with water crystals. �There may be a lot of people like him in the world trying to create something new and good for the planet and the human race. �The water created from his technology is called "Alpha Torino water". It also gets rid of viruses and microorganisms and is now available. �It is also a kind of Hado medicine that I have proposed for long time. �Water seems to be very effective to prevent pandemic phenomenon, which might happen in the near future and of course a virus like the Foot and Mouth Epidemic, which is already happening. �However, this type of revolutionary technology could not be initiated by government or major companies in Japan because it would cause an inconvenience to certain people or companies who don't want this technology to succeed, because it would destroy their current greed based money-making businesses. �But I am certain that we need this type of technology for our planet and the people of the world, and we can spread it out, and make it known by ourselves. One way to get prepared is by studying Hado, and preparing ourselves for the year 2012 when an energetic shift will require our focused attention. �We will be having the 13th Hado Instructor School in Aso city of Kumamoto in Japan from August 22nd to 26th and we will be congratulating the Fiver Colored Grand Festival at Heitate Shrine. Mr. Omasa will be there to present his technology as well. It will be a life changing event that I hope you will attend. For the information about the school, please click the following link: 0http://www.masaru-emoto.net/english/hado_instructor_event.html With love and gratitude,�Masaru Emoto�Office Masaru Emoto, LLC If you would not like to recieve this newsletter in the future, please contact info@hado.net�

VISCUM SCHWENK: Rudolf Steiner's Cancer Remedy

LILIPOH Staff — Sat, 10 Jul 2010 12:29:51 GMT

We regularly read Dr. Cowan's e-news. He granted us permission to share this article with you. It is interesting to read about Theodore Schwenk's influence on mistletoe medicine. Biodynamic practitioners know of Schwenk for his work at the Institute for Flow Science, and as the author of the classic, Sensitive Chaos: Creation of Flowing Forms in Water and Air. It is wonderful to learn how Dr. Cowan's clinic is setting up an unique form of paying for the remedy, and assuring patients its accessibility. -Christy Korrow, Editor

VISCUM SCHWENK Rudolf Steiner's Cancer Remedy

By Thomas Cowan, MD

An Introduction
As many of you know, I have been associated for about 30 years with Anthroposophical medicine, which was founded in the early part of the 20th Century by Rudolf Steiner, the father of biodynamic agriculture, Waldorf schools, Eurythmy (a form of movement), and many other endeavors. Arguably his crowning achievement in the practical sense was the introduction of the plant misletloe (Latin: viscum album) for use as a cancer medicine. Six "brands" of mistletoe are now used as cancer medicine, and the most common and popular is iscador (called iscar in the United States).   Iscador is probably the most successful natural medicine in current use, as judged by the amount that is used and its widespread distribution. It is estimated that half a million patients worldwide use some form of mistletoe as part of their comprehensive cancer regimen. No other natural cancer medicine has been as well researched or had as many positive studies as the various mistletoe preparations.

Rudolf Steiner on Mistletoe
In the early 1920s, Steiner pointed out the remarkable similarities of the life habits of mistletoe and cancer: mistletoe is a primitive, undifferentiated (between roots, stem and leaves), ancient plant that invades its host (the various trees on which it grows), and grows without regard to seasons, temperature or seemingly any outer conditions. It is relentless, invasive, undifferentiated growth until it comes to an "agreement" with the tree and comes to establish a harmonious relationship with the tree that is beneficial to both.   Steiner pointed out that not only is mistletoe cancer growing in nature, but it also shows the patient the way to establish this harmonious relationship with the cancer, thus rendering it harmless.   Modern studies of the various mistletoe preparations show that they raise the temperature of cancer patients, help them to establish healthy rhythms, stimulate and modulate the immune response, and selectively kill cancer cells while leaving non-cancerous cells unharmed. Steiner predicted that in time and by following the detailed, complex instructions he laid out for the processing of the mistletoe into a medicine, the mistletoe preparation would make the surgeon's knife a thing of the past. Clearly, this has not yet come to pass.

Development of Viscum Schwenk
Sometime in the mid-20th Century, as Anthroposophical cancer doctors were realizing that iscador was a special cancer medicine but that it was not replacing the surgeon's knife, efforts began to improve the formulation to make it more exacting to Steiner's instructions.   One of the lead doctors, Alexander Leroi, began to work with a man named Theodor Schwenk, who was renowned for his work purifying and "enlivening" water.   By working with the flow and movement of water, he was able to greatly enhance a variety of living systems and ended up inventing what is known today as the flow form, widely used throughout the world for its esthetic and water-purification properties. With the help of a small group of doctors interested in mistletoe and flow-form questions, Leroi and Schwenk spent more than 20 years creating the techniques to process mistletoe into a medicine exactly as outlined by Steiner. The 20-year research phase was followed by another 20 years of work with patients to improve its effectiveness in actual patient care.

Modern Use
For the last decade, a small group of doctors in Europe has been using this new medicine, called Viscum Schwenk, as its primary cancer and auto-immune disease treatment. Protocols, guidelines and instructions have been slowly worked out, with the understanding that this medicine's use is complex enough to require of the doctor a real connection to the whole of Anthroposophical medicine. This is no mass-produced medicine, but arguably it is Rudolf Steiner's primary gift and inspiration to the field of medicine. Schwenk, who probably knew more about potentization research and the energy dynamics of physical substance than anyone else, claimed that in following Steiner's description, he actually cooperated in the creation of a type of substance that had never existed before. The details of this are complex, but the possibilities and insights are profound.

Many patients in Europe have been treated with Viscum Schwenk, and the doctors I have spoken to say it is the most helpful medicine they use; patients feel better, have less pain, sleep better, have a better quality and quantity of life and, in some cases, experience a lessening of their tumor burden. For these reasons, it seems the time is right for me to offer this medicine to my patients, occasionally as a stand-alone medicine, but more often in conjunction with their other treatments, such as conventional iscador, low-dose naltrexone, surgery, pancreatic enzymes, hormones or whatever else seems right for the patient.

Why This Medicine is By Donation
This letter serves to briefly introduce my readers and patients to the existence of this therapy, but also to speak about its unique economic requirement. Steiner talked often about the need to change many of our economic realities. He insisted that patients should be given their needed therapies regardless of their ability to pay. We are not selling health, we are giving gifts from the natural world to help the human being who is ailing and scared.   Steiner, in general, spoke about the need for what we might call today a gift economy and actually gave detailed instructions as to what this might look like.   Since the beginning, Viscum Schwenk, befitting its unique place in Anthroposophical medicine, was not to be "sold" to any patient. It has only been given without charge to those who ask for it and receive it. I would like to continue this practice.

Our Plan
Currently, Viscum Schwenk is made by one pharmacy in Germany, using the strict guidelines developed by Schwenk.   It is packaged in multi-dose ampules of various potencies and types to be given as subcutaneous injections (like regular iscador) every day with occasional pauses, depending on the situation.   The pharmacy makes this available to physicians to purchase, and currently the cost of a month's medicine for each patient is about $100 dollars. We would like to start a program in which I will purchase enough medicine for about 10 patients for one month each.   We will establish a separate "viscum fund" account to which anyone can contribute, whether patients who receive the medicine or anyone who simply wants to support this project. As the fund grows, more of the medicine will be purchased and more patients will be treated.   If no donations come into the fund, eventually we would stop its use. If a huge overflow of funds comes in, we would use the extra money to do the same with another medicine I use, probably either strodival or perhaps low-dose naltrexone.   The goal is to treat those in need, regardless of ability to pay.

Stimulated by this unique medicine and in conjunction with the spirit of our CSH plan, hopefully we can begin to loosen big money's grip on medicine so that it is freely given to those in need, creating a community of care in which all may prosper.

DONATION OPTIONS

One-time donations: Can be pledged through PayPal (yellow donate button), mail a check to the address below, or call us with a debit or credit card. You can also email us if you have a card on file already. (Contact the office for the PayPal info)

Monthly donations: Call or email our office to set up a monthly amount you would like to donate. With just a small amount per month from everyone, we most likely will be able to sustain this program and add more to it!

Patients receiving viscum, please also share this donation request with people in your circle who would be willing to help keep your medicine in stock!

Thomas Cowan, MD
Viscum Schwenk Fund
661 Chenery St.
San Francisco, CA
94131

415-334-1010

Alliance Warning: Core Standards May Lead to a Plague of Kindergarten Tests

LILIPOH Staff — Mon, 14 Jun 2010 12:04:35 GMT

College Park, MD, June 8, 2010-The Alliance for Childhood today warned that states considering adopting the new academic core standards released on June 2 could set in motion a spate of inappropriate and harmful testing of young children.
�
The�Alliance, a nonprofit partnership of researchers, educators, health professionals, and parents concerned with healthy child development, argues that the kindergarten standards in the Common Core State Standards Initiative fly in the face of well established knowledge about how young children learn and are based on "guesswork," not science.
�
"The new 'common core standards' for kindergarten perpetuate a serious error that has dominated early education in recent years," said Joan Almon, the�Alliance's director. "Most kindergartens now devote the bulk of their time to teaching reading, writing, and arithmetic. And standardized testing and test prep have become daily activities in many kindergartens. But there's no evidence that this approach has produced long-term success."
�
The proposed kindergarten standards, on the whole, are not research-based, says the�Alliance. "There is simply no definitive research showing that certain skills or bits of knowledge (such as counting to 100 or being able to read a certain number of words) if mastered in kindergarten will lead to later success in school," according to a recent Alliance statement. "At best, these standards represent educated guesswork, not educational, cognitive, or developmental science."
�
The new standards, which individual states may adopt if they choose, will worsen the pushing down into kindergarten of inappropriate learning goals that are better suited to older children, said Almon. Experience shows that such ill-conceived standards lead to teaching methods that thwart young children's natural curiosity, interests, and energy.
"In far too many kindergartens, the drilling and testing of literacy and math skills have banished active hands-on learning and the play-based teaching techniques that are time-tested and most effective," said Edward Miller, senior researcher and co-author with Almon of the Alliance's 2009 report,�Crisis in the Kindergarten: Why Children Need to Play in School.
�
"The new kindergarten standards will worsen this problem," said Miller. "They focus on discrete content knowledge and ignore the well documented need for an integrated approach to young children's cognitive, physical, social, and emotional development. The sheer number of standards being proposed-more than 90 for kindergartners-will require long hours of instruction if children are to achieve them."
�
Recent research shows that tests have proliferated in kindergarten despite expert views that testing before age eight is highly unreliable and leads to unjustified and harmful labeling of children as failures. Play or "choice time" has been reduced to 20 to 30 minutes a day. In many kindergartens, there is no time for play at all.
�
There is one bright note in the standards document, however, said Almon.
�
�"The writers of these new standards did get one thing right in relation to young children," she said. "They brought themselves to actually use the word 'play'-something that most other standards writers have scrupulously avoided."
�
Almon noted that in the section called "What is not covered by the Standards," it says, "[T]he use of play with young children is not specified by the Standards, but it is welcome as a valuable activity in its own right and as a way to help students meet the expectations in this document."[1]
�
The�Alliance�recommends that teachers and school administrators in states that choose to adopt the standards put this statement about play front and center as they develop ways to implement them. "When play and play-based learning are at the heart of education, young children master content much more deeply than when schools rely on didactic instruction," said Almon.
�
"Hundreds of studies have shown the value of play in fostering physical, social, emotional, and cognitive development of children," said Miller. "Yet there has been a serious erosion of play-based learning in early education in recent years, and these new standards are likely to drive it even further out of classrooms."
�
Instead there needs to be a public outcry in favor of play and play-based learning in kindergartens, said Almon. "Parents, in particular, need to express loudly the concerns that many are feeling."
��
Alliance�for Childhood
www.allianceforchildhood.org
�
Contacts:� Ed Miller, Senior Researcher, 917-363-1982,�ed@allianceforchildhood.org;
Joan Almon, Executive Director, 301-699-9058, 301-801-5293,�joan.almon@verizon.net

View LILIPOH Winter Issue #58 On-line

LILIPOH Staff — Tue, 18 May 2010 12:28:53 GMT

The Winter Issue #58 of LILIPOH is available for viewing online, by following this link: issuu.com/lilipoh/docs/lilipoh58_web. This is an example of how e-subscribers can have access to LILIPOH on the web, a definite plus for readers not in North America, to save on international postage. Cost is $15.

To e-subscribe to LILIPOH, click here. E-subscribers have a choice to either download the whole issue in PDF format (a drawback is that the file is very large), or view it online with the ability to make it 'full screen' for easier reading.

This screenshot below shows what LILIPOH looks like, uploaded to the web.

Biography and Social Art: What is this work?

LILIPOH Staff — Tue, 11 May 2010 12:01:18 GMT

Written by Kathleen Bowen

On my 50th birthday I looked for a training in life that would make me stretch. I had a sense there was a new challenge coming for me to take up. Having sent my children to Waldorf school for their early years, I decided to gift myself that schooling. In reading about the Biography and Social Art course given at Sunbridge College in New York, I saw the combination of learning that included art, movement, human development, and spiritual learning. The application was my first trial. Write a brief autobiography. Did I have the right words? What were they looking for? What was the right answer? Ah, yes, I have come from public schooling. Well, I must have written the "right" words because I was accepted into this program. Happy Birthday to me! (I have such a different understanding of "right" now.)

As strangers, we entered into a circle and were brought together in such a gentle and meaningful way. By revealing the origin of our name, our pathway to this work, and beholding the beauty of the physical space we were sitting in, our journey of trust and safety began. Some of the topics we explored were Biography and Destiny, The Phases of Human Life, The Human Senses and the Uses of Enchantment, and the Evolution of Consciousness Through Art.

We explored those topics through reading, sharing from our teachers, stories, fairy tales, clay modeling, pastel drawing, painting, spatial dynamics, eurythmy, mask-making, festivals, poetry writing, nature observation and drama. After this three-year experience, I gained confidence in my ability to express ideas through these different media and can see how these artistic practices reveal another level of knowing. My observation skills have grown and I now carry a new sense of a connection to the universe, to a blade of grass, to a stranger on the street, to our ancestors and the spiritual world.

Each time we entered a week-long block, I was struck with the awareness of what my children received when they were in Waldorf school-such a balanced way of learning where experience was the teacher and each subject was explored fully. I am so grateful and in awe of this gift my children received. The difference between awakening the knowing within and filling one with facts was apparent.

Through my years in this program, I discovered the thread that runs through my life, and what I bring to this lifetime. I learned I could present before a class and create an exercise to enliven a learning experience. I learned to see myself in others and love both. I gained skills I needed to go out into the world with this love of humanity. I learned to experience what Rudolf Steiner spoke of in having a spiritual experience by simply looking into the eye of the ticket taker on the train. I gained a deep friendship with my classmates and teachers. We opened our hearts and shared our life sorrows and joys with each other. We were held and challenged by our teachers. They held out hope and potential for each of us as we looked within and without, above and below, as we awoke to our true selves.

As a professional development training, students brought this work into their own world. For example, my classmates and former graduates are using the skills learned in their work with hospice, a woman's prison and a homeless shelter. Others now have individual coaching practices and use biography work in their counseling and art therapy.

I will take this work out into my community in the form of workshops and will take up an internship during the next Biography and Social Art course.

Kathleen has spent 25 years exploring color and texture in her knitting business. Fiber will always be part of her life as she opens the next chapter and explores life stories through art and fiber with others. www.imustknit.com.

Volunteer Intern Needed

LILIPOH Staff — Tue, 06 Apr 2010 14:36:16 GMT

LILIPOH-WeStrive.org Job Description

contact: Leslie Loy�leslie@westrive.org

TITLE� Content Intern

START DATE� April 1, 2010

POSITION� Content Editing�

TERMS OF COMMITMENT� 6 months

SALARY� N/A�

REPORTS TO� Content Editor�

REVIEW CYCLE� Every six months with Executive Director�

About LILIPOH and WeStrive

LILIPOH and WeStrive are respective organizations dedicated to providing stimulating ideas and information that lead the world toward deeper community and more effective social action. Collaboratively, LILIPOH and WeStrive are interested in educating individuals about socially contributive initiatives and seek to cross-pollinate sources and connections.�

SUMMARY OF POSITION

The Content Intern will assist with the gathering of information, particularly from print publications, including LILIPOH. The Intern will initially document all articles in over twenty-four issues, creating a thorough index of the LILIPOH issues. The Intern will then proceed to gather content information from other publications and seek permission to reprint articles that align with themes relevant to both LILIPOH and WeStrive's publications for the 2010 and 2011 years. �

FUNCTIONS OF POSITION

Scanning and documenting archive issues of publications

Creating documentation of archival information

Gathering information about international publications that align with LILIPOH and WeStrive's missions�

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

Creating an index of all articles with the names and titles of all articles

Scanning in or typing the Table of Contents from back issues of LILIPOH

Creating list of tags (key words)

Culling articles for possible reprint in LILIPOH or WeStrive's Chronicle

EDUCATIONAL AND JOB EXPERIENCE REQUIREMENTS

English proficient; other languages might include German, French and Dutch

Computer proficient�

Strong proofreading skills�

Disclaimer

The above statements are intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed by people assigned to this classification. They are not to be constructed as an exhaustive list of all responsibilities, duties, and skills required of personnel so classified. All personnel may be required to perform duties outside of their normal responsibilities from time to time, as needed.�

Free Columbia Art Course

LILIPOH Staff — Mon, 22 Mar 2010 16:27:43 GMT

Written by Laura Summer:

The date was September 14^th, 2009. Thirty-five people sat in a circle in Bright Wing Studio in Hillsdale, New York. Names traveled around the circle, the history of painting in that studio was described, memories and hopes for the future were voiced, the feeling of "dropping in" from a nine-foot skateboard ramp was mentioned. And the Free Columbia Art Course began.

The Free Columbia Art Course is a full-time, year-long course based on the fundamentals of the art of painting as they appear and come to life through anthroposophy. This article is an update on how we are doing.

From September to November we explored color, its moods, its laws, its relationships and our relationship to it. We created two color wheels and began an introduction to the colors of the sketches that Rudolf Steiner gave as a training path for painters. On Saturdays we worked with a Michaelmas theme, exploring the mood of the season. In October Henrike Holdrege of the Nature Institute led us in four Saturday sessions of experiments from Goethe's color theory. We observed after-images, atmospheric colors, and most amazing of all, colored shadows.�

We also have a rich life of study. We are working through the book Theosophy as well as various lectures by Rudolf Steiner on art. Once a month a lively and varied group of people gather in a study called "Art. What?" Right now we are working with conversations of Joseph Beuys. In October we began The Study of Art and the Evolution of Human Consciousness with Patrick Stolfo. We began by modeling a small human figure with our eyes closed and progressed through observations of cave paintings and the art of ancient Egypt and Greece.�

Our main weekday classes will turn in December to Color and Space, an introduction to oil painting and color perspective led by Nathaniel Williams.� After reviewing how space has been worked with in painting in the past we will create sketches of figures from observation using various shading techniques.� We will move from a sketch and spatial experience based on line and dark light relationships to creating a painting in which the spatial qualities inherent in color become central.� Fulltime students will be introduced to traditional preparation of canvases and working with oil paints though this project as well.�

�

Last year we established a lending library of visual artwork. The participant makes a donation, ($100/1 year membership), to Free Columbia and chooses up to 3 pieces of art to take home for up to one year. At intervals we will have Library Events where artwork is both returned and checked out by other borrowers.�

Currently we have four full time students and twenty-eight part time students. Out of a commitment to Social Threefolding and in an effort to experience a new way of working with money, Free Columbia works on the following economic model: Part time students pay a flat monthly rate of $80 which covers all classes and materials. Full time students are provided with a full scholarship and therefore do not pay tuition or material costs. In this way they are freed to devote themselves for the year to working in the free spiritual realm. Free Columbia is devoted to the development of creativity as a deed for the world. It is our hope that if what we are doing is valuable we will attract support from the realm of commodity production as well as from individuals. All donations are tax deductible and very greatly appreciated.

If you would like to find out more about us you can visit our website at��www.freecolumbia.org or visit us in person at Bright Wing Studio. If you would like to follow our progress you may do so at�freecolumbia.blogspot.com. If you would like to apply as a full time student for the 2010-11 year you can contact us at freecolumbiaart@gmail.com.

Eulogy for Granny D

LILIPOH Staff — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 17:18:01 GMT

Thank you to Nancy Poer for sending us a copy of this eulogy.

Dennis's Eulogy for Granny D, Dublin, New Hampshire, March 14, 2010

By Dennis Burke

Thousands of news services, from Peterborough to Bangkok, from personal diaries to the New York Times, have reported these last few days on the life and death of Doris Haddock. In her life, she did not cure a disease or end a war. She did not write ten symphonies or do whatever normally occasions such notice. So what did she do? It is worth thinking about in this moment.

If people no longer spoke aloud, or if they no longer looked at things with their own eyes or through their own thoughts, if they let others do those things for them, then they would take it as unusual if one among them suddenly spoke up and dared see the world independently, describing without filter or permission the vivid colors and true conditions of the world.

It is difficult to understand why a lady from New Hampshire who did little more than take morning walks--though�she sometimes did so without coming back for several years--should be so lionized in death, unless we also consider what has become of the world around her that made her exceptional by comparison. She is seen as exceptional perhaps because the rest of us have become a little too reticent, a little too slow-moving, in response to these times of high challenge.

A thousand people have told me that, when they reach her age, they want to be like Granny D. I have always agreed with them, but we have had it a little wrong. We must not wait until we are 90 or 100; we have to be, even today, a little more like Granny D. Our challenges will not wait for us to age.

Walking down long highways, I remember that sometimes she would want to look at the small things killed beside the road that others could not bear to look at. She was a great artist in fibers and colors, even in how she dressed. No one had a better sense of hat. She would see rich beauty in places where some would never dare look. She seems to have turned off her hearing aids for the lecture when the rest of us were told we must not look here or there, and told how some things must be presumed beautiful or ugly, true or false. She simply and always wanted to see for herself.

Too often we are told what to think, even about ourselves. We are encouraged to trivialize our lives; to participate in our own�reduction to mere consumers of products, passive witnesses to history. She wanted to see for herself what she might become, what she might be capable of doing that was helpful to the people she loved, whom were honestly everyone. She could see no defects in others without measuring them against her own shortcomings. Her anger was real and righteous, but it was about things and actions--it never lodged in her heart for long against people, even those whose actions she most opposed.

Because she could see our present democracy clearly, and because she could remember in properly punctuated detail the conditions of this self-governing country in her youth, this young lady of Lake Winnipesauke, this product of New England,s town halls, this elder resident of the lanes where Thornton Wilder wrote "Our Town,? this friend of ours who will be more durable to history than any Old Man of the Mountain, was the truer granite measure of where we have been going as a people and where we must go, one step at a time, into the American future.

The important thing Doris Haddock would have you remember was that she was no more special than you, and that you have the identical power and the responsibility to make a difference in the community and the world.

She received tens of thousands of messages from people who told her they had decided that, if a woman her age of bent back, of emphysema and arthritis, could step forth to be a player on life's stage, to make a contribution, then so could they, and so would they. And so they did. Those people live all over the world. We can never know what good that legion of people has done and will continue to do.� Have they cured diseases, ended wars, written symphonies?� Remarkably yes, they do important work now all over the world, and they live their lives, by their own accounts, with more satisfaction and meaning because of what they learned by watching our Granny D. And politically, if you care to trace the origins of the present progressive movement, you will find at its root a bare handful of people, including Granny D.

Her youthful energy lives on through those she touched, just as the youthful energy of the people who raised her and taught her many years ago continued on through her. You could hear the voice of Jesse Eldridge Southwick of Emerson College of Oratory in Doris's every word, and see in Doris's constant energy the creative joy of her Laconia High School teacher, Grammy Swain. If Doris was partial to the poetry of Robert Frost, it was because she knew him. He was her husband's freshman English teacher at Amherst. If you ever heard her recite "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening,? as I did on a desert road, you may as well have been in Frost's presence. All of those people lived on past their own lifetimes through her.

She was an extension also of those much younger than her, who are with us today. She was an expression of Jim and Libby Haddock's supportive love and many sacrifices, enabling her to become what she became. Her grandchildren and great grandchildren were her inspiration to keep working for a better world for them. She was an extension of the love and learning of her study group, led by Bonnie Riley and a remarkable circle of friends. Beyond their warm living rooms, Doris traveled on a river of their love and energy. If there were ever a list in marble of the names of the people in her personal world who supported and propelled her, who, in turn, were inspired and loved by her, it would extend three thousand and two hundred miles across America, and then across the seas.

Doris was always a little confounded by her late-life fame. She deeply believed that she was merely fortunate enough to find herself in a good play with a good cast. The old drama student never wanted to be more than a very supportive player, so that the leaders of our democracy might better move us toward the honest, just and kindly democracy ever just ahead, a vision that she kept as close to her thoughts as that old feather in her hat.

She would have us remember that our country is Our Town, that we each have the power and the responsibility to make a difference while we are alive, knowing that what we set in motion today will make a difference long after we are gone.� Far more important than the old bodies we find ourselves patching up and hitching along, we are each also an idea and a vision of the world. We give the rising gift or dark weight of that vision to each person we deeply know. And that idea, that vision, is like the manuscript that grows from an old typewriter that will soon rust away to earth, leaving but the living manuscript. The Idea of us is the real us. The Idea is the living thing that survives because it lives on in our friends, survives in their hearts to help them better interpret and shape the world.�

So, at the next turn of history and of opportunity, will we not wonder what Granny D would have said, would have thought?� It is a part of us now, a measuring tool, something new in us that thinks like her. That is Doris alive and still walking with us. �

Finally, she would want us to remember to keep working at things and to take walks every day if possible. To send Thank You notes. To keep asking for and expecting honorable change. To stay strong. After the recent Supreme Court decision that did damage to the bill she walked for, she asked me if I thought she might walk across the country again. I told her that she might only be able to do five miles or less a day. She had last month been in Arizona working on a book and doing three miles a morning.� She calculated how long it would take her to get to Washington at 3 to 5 miles per, and decided she needed a quicker way to fix the Supreme Court decision. Well, now it is up to us, of course, and we won,t let her or our country down.

Thank you Doris. You didn,t fear death very much--you told me so. You needn,t have feared it at all.

Granny D

LILIPOH Staff — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 16:44:10 GMT

In memory of Granny D, who passed away Tuesday March 9th, 2010, we post our interview with her that we published in the Spring 2007 issue of LILIPOH.�

Granny D

At 89 years of age, Doris Haddock walked across America for campaign finance reform. Now, at the age of 96 she is a still a passionate activist for clean elections. More commonly known as Granny D, we spoke with her via telephone from her New Hampshire home. Her� memoir is entitled, Granny D: You're Never Too Old to� Raise a Little Hell (Random House). �

LILIPOH:� Can we make a difference?

Granny D: There are a great many people who are concerned-politicians, professors, and scientists-but�when you come to ordinary housewives like me, if I can make a difference, then a great many people can make a difference.��

�LILIPOH: Do you have a sense of hope for the future?

Granny D: Oh yes, I can see movement.��

LILIPOH: Are you sensing that the young people care enough, are they active enough?

Granny D: You never can have a revolution-and this is a revolution-you can't have one without the students.� Students today spend much more time with their studies than we did when I was young.� We had time to think about things like this.� But many people today don't feel they have time, and there is an attitude of "but what can I do?"�

LILIPOH: What is it that happens inwardly to a person, that makes them all of a sudden say, I can make a difference?

Granny D: When you get involved in something like trying to affect government, it's bigger than yourself.� Bigger than all your pains and your aches.� You are working on something that is bigger than you are.

LILIPOH: Do you feel like there is a spiritual aspect to that?

Granny D: Yes I do.� You feel that you've been chosen.� You know what you are supposed to do.�

�LILIPOH: As far as your work goes now, at age 96, you are working on behalf of the generations to come.��

Granny D: Yes. I have 16 great-grandchildren, so I ask-what kind of a life are we leaving for them? It's a little planet, it's not a big planet. We are not being kind to it, our little planet.� Not at all.� Look at the crazy weather we've been having this year.� Here we are up in snow country, and we had two dustings of snow.� But cold?� Oh, never been this cold as it is today.��

�LILIPOH: I think you are a role model for the young people, but you're really also a role model for the older generation.�

Granny D: It's not something that I ever dreamed of or thought of, but now I get letters every day, saying, "You're my inspiration." � I say:� "Don't give up."� I do not believe in this generational business of saying, "Now that you're 65, it's time for you to go home now and sit and watch TV."� Now is the time for you to do something for the rest of the world!� The children are all grown up, you have grandchildren that you can enjoy,� but now you have time to do something for somebody else.� Every day is an adventure, when you get involved in something that is bigger than yourself.� And, this democracy is not something that we have, it's something that we do.� And if we don't do it, we lose it.��

LILIPOH: So we need to separate our economic life from our political life.�

Granny D: Right.

�LILIPOH: Each individual has to accept responsibility for the way things are and do something about it.�

Granny D: You cannot say to yourself, "I can't do anything about this," because you can.� You have power.� You have power that you don't even know you have.� It's there, you could be using it.� If you can become a member of a group that's working for clean elections in your state, I honor you.� I bless you.� Because my vision is that if enough states pass clean election bills, that a critical mass will form.� It will go federal.��

LILIPOH: What are your thoughts on staying healthy and having plenty of energy?��

Granny D: I gave up smoking, and if I had given it up earlier, I'd be in much better shape.� Your body is not made to last 97 years.� Maybe it is, but you have to take good care of it.� You have to get sleep.��

LILIPOH: And a positive outlook, is that part of it?

Granny D: You have to be an optimist.� You have to take life as it comes, know what it is that you have, and be happy with it.� You need a good sense of humor, you need to see the fun part of life, you need to see that life is an adventure, that you're not going to be here very long, so enjoy it.� Enjoy life.� Do things for other people.� Little things can be more important than the big things.��

A farmer contemplates socially responsible economics

LILIPOH Staff — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 15:06:57 GMT

As part of her CSA newsletter, biodynamic farmer and author Anne Morgan (MidHeaven Farm, MN) found inspiration from a new book by John Bloom titled The Genius of Money: Essays and Interviews Reimagining the Financial World (SteinerBooks 2009). Mr. Bloom is Director of Organizational Culture at RSF Social Finance. -CK

Food for Winter's Thinking
CSA news February 1, 2010�
Anne Morgan
�
The Genius of Money Part 3: "What an invention money is-one of the evolving mysteries and wonders of the modern world."
�
John Bloom writes, "Money is linked to our material needs and our participation in economic life, and yet what it represents is entirely abstract, nonmaterial and, to a degree, faith based. ...it is a medium of expression, as a social technology, and one that also makes the invisible
�visible by bringing together value with material goods.
�
Shortly after America won its independence, Thomas Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton wrangled over our country's economic foundation. Jefferson argued for a land-based (agricultural) economy. "Hamilton's vision of economic trade required a monetary system as a tool for accounting to accommodate intra- and inter-national exchange of goods and currencies. He presumed that all things physical could be monetized -labor and natural resources as well as commodities.
�
"Hamilton, along with international counterparts, set the groundwork for financial innovation that has transformed money from a physical substance minted and held in treasuries (Fort Knox) to an almost purely electronic record (most money these days is actually generated by the banks as debt).
�
"The United States officially left the gold standard in 1971 under President Nixon. Today's money is simply made legal by governmental decree, meaning that it is actually a fiction declared as fact. [Recent] Wall Street transactions, such as sub-prime loans and other "exotic" financial instruments, [try to keep] the invisible invisible."
�
The inner, spiritual aspect of our nature becomes engaged when we acquire and spend money. It is revealed through our individual processes of weighing the merits of a potential purchase, and again when we buy, sell, invest, and gift.

Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote in 1860 "that wealth or money had become the new 'natural resource.' [Could he have envisioned that the creating of wealth] could be separated from direct work, investment, or natural resources? But that has happened. Much wealth, but certainly not all, has become self-generating through public stock trading, hedge funds, and other well-orchestrated financial instruments."
�
Eva Hoffman, the Polish immigrant who wrote Lost in Translation: Life in a New Language in 1989, believes contemporary media and marketing have a profound effect on the identity formation of young people. She writes," How can a young person today know the source of desire or wants? Are they, for example, part of some image of myself subtly created by someone else's commercial agenda to get me to buy a product that I may not really need?
�
"Purchase takes on the mantle of ritual. Desire is connected to the worldly and material. Value resides in gratification, not celebration. Money's sheer impermanence, presence, and absence create fluctuations in one's emotional life that are a far cry from the consistency of faith that one might have in a higher being."
�
John notes, "As money is reduced to nano units, .there will be less time to exercise choices that are now the privilege of the conscious consumer. The moment of purchase [may become] almost simultaneous with the thought of the purchase."
�
This reminded me of infomercials. Call in the next 60 seconds and we'll double your order! It also reminds me of the Battleship game my granddaughter received for Christmas. The pegs you use to mark the lobs and hits are shorter than in my 1980s edition. If the board gets jostled, game pegs on the raised grid fall out. It was bigstore cheap, but it is inferior. (Hannah prefers now to play with the older version.)
�
What are the ramifications of instant money transactions? How can we hold onto the right to assess quality? To kick the tires, test the knife's blade, or examine the fabric's quality? Do stores factor in 10% or 20% to the selling price to cover returns and exchanges? People may buy fast, but they often return fast.
�
My youngest daughter was vulnerable to peer pressure when she entered high school. Her shoes HAD TO BE Doc Martins (big, clunky, and expensive). I, of course, relented; wardrobe stress was not an excusable absence. Over time, her self-image grew more independent, and in college, she discovered second hand stores, both for herself, and for wardrobing actors and decorating sets.
�
We will phase out of this economic crisis. Booms always follow busts. We must learn from the past and craft a more sustainable economic future.
�
John writes, "Social finance holds that the purpose of money and finance is to support human initiative and to foster the evolution of new communities. Social finance recognizes that in the context of a global economy, we are fully interdependent. It is no longer possible to stand outside this reality, regardless of political boundaries, accumulated wealth, or dire poverty."
�
Socially responsible economics strives to recognize, anticipate and balance human and environmental needs.

Life, Liberty & Pursuit of Happiness

LILIPOH Staff — Sun, 24 Jan 2010 18:46:40 GMT

Kaye Williams, Associate Editor, LILIPOH

I often tell people how much I love the sound of the words, Cumberland County, Kentucky. My experience of being here these past 25 years is a feeling of freedom of soul.

I am grateful for my low-income life that is simple to live, how I don't need to shop at big-box stores. Because of the food co-op and all of my friends, gathering food (what others call shopping for groceries) is a low-stress, comforting experience that centers around human relationship. My animal-foods (meat, dairy, eggs) are all provided by farmers, in person. I visit the farm and get what we need. It feels good to give money to these local providers. With each payment I am telling them: I value what you do. I am grateful for trustworthy providers who meet my high standards of healthy natural animal food.

My husband Greg also gardens and he brings to the table so many more vegetables, too. Our garden produce is now in the freezer, and home-canned in jars. I dried strawberries in our home food dehydrator. We also receive even more, different vegetables each Monday, delivered by CSA farmers in the county; as well as a new bouquet of dazzling flowers to sit on our kitchen table.

I am living in a food paradise. Are you too? It is all around you, but maybe you haven't connected with it! You may never have thought about such things. Sometimes I think; this way of gathering food is something so good, I wish it were also true for everybody in this land. Think of how so many more farmers could be supported, if most of the money that flows through the grocery stores went directly to our neighborhood producers instead.

************************************************

There is so much calamity in the news, big problems that need to solved. The financial world is still shaky at best: this is either an unexpected disaster or . . . the natural outcome of wrong ideas taken to the extreme. It can be, the opportunity to reconsider our financial assumptions. This much I know: standard of living, measured by dollars earned or spent, (GNP) is not the same as quality of life.

Sometimes I hear people say "let's go do something" and really they mean "let's go buy something" burn up gas, at least. Going shopping for another new something isn't how I entertain myself. Consuming is not as fulfilling as creating, or connecting.

The most enjoyable times of being alive, for me, are quality time with my family members, good conversations and laughter with friends, solitude for rest and connecting with the Divine guide within, and the creative expression I experience when reading or writing. Once I had the great good pleasure of seeing a play I wrote being enacted. None of those things cost any money to do. But if I were running in place to keep up with payments on debt or other high expenses, that could interfere with being able to enjoy those things.

Being rich really means owning my whole self, provided that my basic needs are met. Being free is pretty much the same thing. Liberty = owning my own body, and owning my own time. Doesn't matter how much money flows through my month - if I don't own my own body or my own time because of an alienating or forced work life - life is poor.

I like to think about what it means to be a citizen of the United States. What do you think? Opinions may vary, but some facts do remain. The Declaration of Independence is a founding document, and therefore a defining document of what it was originally intended to be.

"We hold these Truths to be self-evident, that all Men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."

The pursuit of Happiness as a phrase is a doorway into a wide opening of interpretations and meanings. If I'm chasing happiness and never quite catching it, that would be pursuit, wouldn't it? That could be a problematic definition, because it could turn into running in place, never quite reaching it.

I prefer to think about another definition of pursuit. A pursuit is not just a chase. Here is what a free dictionary online says it is:
pur.suit (p r-s t ) n.

1. The act or an instance of chasing or pursuing.
2. The act of striving: the pursuit of higher education.
3. An activity, such as a vocation or hobby, engaged in regularly.

Definition 2 is interesting - but I like definition 3. Put that idea into the declaration and it says we are endowed by our Creator with the unalienable right to Life, Liberty, and whatever regular activity of hobby or vocation that makes us feel happy.

Lucky for me, I have two part-time jobs reading and writing, my favorite things to do; and with a flexible schedule, so I own my time. Being a citizen of the USA is working for me. I want it to work for you too.

I have an idea about a group participation project, which we could call "The Pursuit of Happiness Project." If you think of a better name, let me know. The goal of the project is to liberate all of us into whatever regular activity, as hobby or vocation, gives each one of us happiness.

The economic system that requires the surrender of soul; when it takes your body and makes it do things that hurt, makes you slave to the clock and not to the beating of your own heart; that economic system is in the way of too many people. It's un-American!

I'm thinking we can do something different: an economic system that, instead, is actually founded on soul - vocations and hobbies of happiness - and that this is what is promised by the Declaration of America. This is what it is to be an American. Let's do it!

So many people have been captured by duty into the workplace for so long - they have lost their ability to really know what they would even want to do, if free. It might take a bit of time to unravel all the programming and get down to the personal truth - and that is the reason for sabbatical. Everybody can follow their own unique path of interest and curiosity.

I have this theory that we all have different interests for a reason. I just believe that if we each and all reach inside and find our own unique purpose, and then express that, our world, our economy, and everything else will play out so much better.

What I propose is this. I propose we each take some kind of respite from the drudgery world - so that we can listen close to our own heart's desire inside. I think of this as a voice of the Divine - the organizer, let's say. That might take only a moment, if you've already been thinking about this, and who hasn't?

Then we say to each other (without fear of being clobbered or made fun of) what those heart's desires are, write them down, pass them around so everybody reads of each other, and everybody looks at the similarities and differences between all of these. Then, as we see commonalities emerge, we get together in small groups to talk and listen with people who have matching desires, and we put on our thinking caps together and make good things happen.

What I just described in the 2 paragraphs above is classic First Amendment activity. Here is the first Amendment in our Bill of Rights, Article VII of the US Constitution (another founding document.)

"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances."

The syntax of this is kind of backwards, because it talks about making sure that the US government itself won't interfere with the free exercise of religion, or free speech or free use of the press, or peaceable assembly and then the grievance thing.

If we state this more positively, we can describe what it would look like if those protected things really were happening; not being interfered with by the government nor by anything else. . . we would say something like this:

Everybody relies on the Divine for their own guide; everybody speaks freely, and writes for others to read, and reads what others have written; everybody gets together peacefully and acts together to make things better all around.

That is a simple description of what First Amendment activity is. Our founding documents not only name the goals of (life, liberty, pursuit of happiness), they spell out exactly how we are supposed to do it. So this project I'm dreaming about, this experiment to prove God, actually, this is exactly what the US of A was made for. This is just citizenship!

There is something magical that happens when we put something into words. It's a creative act in itself. In the beginning was the Word, and we share this faculty, this ability to speak. Now I invite you, look within, come and tell your answers, and lets play with this.

**************************************************

Questions to prompt this soul connection and free speech:
What is your heart's desire?

What is your wildest dream?

What have you always wanted to do?

What would you do if you were completely free?

What would you do if you won the lottery? (just to loosen up your thinking)

What would you do different, if you could start over as a 21 year old person, with all that you now know?

If you had five wishes, what would they be?

What would you most like to give?

********************************************************

Conference: Nurturing Resilience: The Power of Storytelling to Build Healthier Bodies and Communities

LILIPOH Staff — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 19:37:35 GMT

Margaret Thom writes: I'm writing to tell you about a conference I've been planning for the first weekend in March in Milwaukee. I hope you can attend and/or tell others who might be interested. Here's my story.

In summer 2008 I met Nancy Mellon and bought her new book, Body Eloquence: The Power of Myth and Story to Awaken the Body's Energies. In the next months I became more and more impressed with her and her work, partly from reading her book and partly from speaking with her on the phone. Nancy has great kindness, insight and depth.

As you may know, I've worked in natural health for several years. I'm interested in holistic perspectives. It makes sense to me that:
health is not only about our bodies but also our souls and spirits,
that things happen to us that we might not know how to process so they get "stored" in our bodies,
that we can become healthier by listening to our bodies and by listening to what we tell our bodies.
I also know that being able to speak honestly from the heart is healing and that accessing our creativity is empowering..

I had not thought much about storytelling as a healing art before, but Nancy has been a pioneer of this work during her career as a therapist, educator and author. Through conversations with Lori Barian of Great Lakes Teacher Training in Milwaukee, we decided to hold a conference on this topic and invite Nancy Mellon to be the keynote speaker. She teaches on the East and West Coasts, in UK and Brazil. This is the first time in several years that she'll present in the Midwest.

Conference: Nurturing Resilience: The Power of Storytelling to Build Healthier Bodies and Communities
Details: March 5-7, 2010, Mount Mary College, Milwaukee, WI
For more information/registration, visit www.waldorftraining.com, contact me, or call Lori at 262-642-9672.
For more information about Nancy Mellon, go to www.healingstory.com or www.bodyeloquence.com.

I hope you will be able to attend. I also ask that you tell others who might be interested, especially parents, teachers, and health practitioners. Nancy works experientially so everyone should take home rich content. She also encourages people to attend to help raise the consciousness of their community.

In addition to the three keynotes on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, there will be three workshop sessions on Saturday with 18 diverse, exciting workshops to choose from. Our workshop presenters are talented and experienced. On Saturday night bring family and friends to our family-friendly Festival of Healing Stories that's open to the public, also at Mount Mary.

Early registration: Save $70 by registering by January 15; save $40 by registering by February 15. If you need a partial scholarship, please let us know. Some work-study is available for those who will help before or during the conference.

Please let me know if you have any questions. I appreciate your help and support with our endeavor toward better health.

Sincerely,
Margaret

How to Swiftly Replace an Unhealthy Meal

LILIPOH Staff — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 18:31:04 GMT

Here is a post from Heidi and Justin of Raw Food Right Now a blog with news and tips featuring fresh, healthy eating. Heidi contributed an article on Green Drinks to our Winter 2007 issue!

One of the most difficult things to do when you first start a new healthy eating habit is to integrate it into your daily lifestyle. As human beings we get so easily stuck in our daily routines that unless we are acutely conscious of them, it takes a tremendous amount of effort to change them.

Our readers often say to us "I can do good for a few days, but I just don't feel satisfied unless I have my usual meal! What should I do?"

The first and easiest step is to simply start adding the healthy things in. Whatever new dietary path or food you want to begin making a part of your diet, just start eating it whenever you can. You could have it as a side dish to a meal, as part of one of your foods or meals, or just as a snack. This allows your body and mind to get used to the idea of eating this food. Your body will then be able to "tune in" to that food and tell you when it may want or need it.

The hardest part for a lot of us is replacing an entire meal. If you've been eating cereal and toast for breakfast for years, it's going to take some significant effort to completely replace this meal with, say, a breakfast smoothie or morning Elixir.

Here are some great tips for making meal replacement easier:
Plan Ahead - If you can plan (or even better, make) your meal the night before, this will make it much easier for you to follow through with your intention. Once the meal is already there, it won't take much more effort to eat it and you more than likely won't want to take the time to make something else.

Bring a healthy snack - Often when we are doing a meal replacement, we are switching to something lighter. Your body may rebel at first and tell you that you are still hungry after eating your new meal. Instead of being unprepared and eating two meals, bring a healthy snack and eat until you are satisfied.

Do it for at least a week - If you can, do your meal replacement every day for at least a week. This is usually enough time for you to get used to eating a new type of meal and will make it more difficult to return to your old habits.

Make enough to eat - If you are just starting out replacing a meal, you may want to make more than usual. This way you can eat until you are full and you will be less likely to cheat later.

Eat slowly. This is a classic tip, but it really works. Eat your meal slowly and with consciousness. Your mind will help you tune into your body and you will feel more full and satisfied than if you eat while on the go or while reading or watching TV.
With just a few simple steps, you can go from a morning bagel and coffee to a much healthier, complete meal that will energize you and keep you feeling good all day. It doesn't take much effort to replace an entire meal if done right, and if you take the above tips to heart, you will have an entire new healthy eating habit in a week or less!

Good luck and let us know how it goes for you

~ Heidi & JS

Under a Protecting Quilt of Snow: Encouraging a healthy environment with good forage and honeybees

LILIPOH Staff — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 11:27:33 GMT

Grai St. Clair Rice
Co-Founder, HoneybeeLives

Under a protecting quilt of snow, we can envision the roots of our land, our communities and our souls quietly growing with expectation of springs to come. In the cluster of their colonies, honeybees vibrate their muscles to create warmth using energy gained from stored honey, protectively revolving around their queen waiting for the spring brood cycle to begin.

In the realm of environmental health, honeybees and other important pollinators, can no longer be taken for granted. Their contributions, and our dependence on them, have been established by evolution, and yet our modern environment and practices have swayed this balance into crisis. Each of us can take some responsibility for the health of pollinators with a little education and direction.

Take this quiet time of winter to envision a landscape inviting to pollinators, with a range of healthy forage through the seasons. Honeybees have a shorter proboscis than many other pollinators and tend to be single source foragers. Think about your area as a whole, including trees and bushes, which can easily provide a volume of forage preferred by honeybees, and design for large masses of plantings. Think pollen, as well as nectar.

Here are two good sources for info to guide you: The Pollinator Partnership has impressive regional guides which can be downloaded using environmental area or zip code; HoneybeeLives teaches organic beekeeping in New York State, and general appreciation of honeybees. There is a selected Honeybee Plant List available on the website. I encourage you to plant and watch and wonder at our amazing planet.

Becoming an organic beekeeper is also a way to engage our vibrant earth, nurturing honeybees by respecting their instincts and their spirits. You can share in the amazing beauty and fecundity of evolution, and learn from honeybees' gentle, industrious colonies. It changes the way we participate in nature, and nurture, and the way we think about community.

HoneybeeLives teaches winter weekend workshops in Rosendale, Chestnut Ridge and Granville, NY. It is best as a two-day workshop, however you can take either day individually, depending on your experience and interest level. The weekend is $175 per person, individual classes are $95.

Saturday classes are Intro to Organic Beekeeping: Planning a New Hive for Spring. Learn about the basic requirements and responsibilities for first-time beekeepers. Understand the mechanics of a hive, the tools involved, elements of site selection, and an understanding of a naturalist approach to their needs. This is a hands-on workshop, which includes assembling a wooden hive.

Sunday classes are Understanding and Caring For Your Honeybees. Topics will include: hive congruency and design to benefit the colony; Honeybee health and disease management the natural way; seasonal concerns and methods; as well as imparting the value of respecting the lives and needs of your bees.

Thank you for your interest and support of honeybees.