Dharma Sunset

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Posted by on in Assistance, children, collaborating, Community, Education, Family, Inspiration, Matters of Faith, Personal Values, Service Activities, Social, Spiritual, Striving

April 27, 2024, Paulden, AZ- “You’re spirit IS you!”, the 5-year-old boy opined, as we were talking about whether we lived forever. I had just noted that my body would be gone some day, but my spirit would live on. His reply showed that he already knew that we would continue to live on.

He has named himself Sunset, and his parents are going with it. Their overarching concern is that each of their five children, and possibly a sixth, will grow to their maximum potential and on each child’s own terms. So far, what I have seen is an amazing group of strong humans, loving and nurturing with one another-and learning from their mistakes, without accumulating baggage.

It had been three years since I last visited the little bit of heaven that its residents call Dharma Farm. Most of my absence had more to do with scheduling-mine and the family’s. Tonight, though, we were in sync, the older girls preparing a simple meal and the younger siblings, including Sunset, enjoying the two exercise balls which I have given the family, rather than have the balls just sit in my bedroom and be used infrequently. I walked around the farm with the father, noting changes he and his wife have made on the property, since my last visit. Several more trees have been planted and are thriving. A couple of buildings, including a greenhouse, have been added. So, too, has a lonely young girl come to be a regular part of the family and two other, wonderful women and their children settled in.

The place continues to be a haven-and another woman, earlier today, at a different location, musing about how delightful it was to see happy children, would have been thrilled to have been here. The secret to all this is that the couple is committed to both raising their children holistically and teaching thriving skills (on a permaculture model) at the local community school, as well as in a home schooling co-operative.

Sunset will continue to burn brightly, and so will the rest of his family. Below, are two scenes of his inspiration.

I won’t be absent from here for quite so long, going forward.

The Road to (Mayer’s) Grapevine

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Posted by on in animal and plant life, collaborating, Hiking and Nature, Inspiration, Personal goals, Personal Values, Social, Striving

April 26, 2024- Tooling along the gravel-coated roads in Grapevine Canyon, about 45 minutes southeast of Prescott, Hiking Buddy and I found several large, fairly new houses and an old mining camp or two.

The actual goal of our quest-Grapevine Trail, was a bit east of the residential areas, so we backtracked and drove along a short, graded dirt road, just to the left of the graveled jobs. The walk today was, essentially, a scouting mission-first a .7-mile hike from the parking area to a green livestock gate, then about .5 of the .7 further mile to the actual trailhead that leads into the inner canyon. There will be time in June, maybe, or late October (as things stand now), for a further foray into the Grapevine of Mayer.

Here are some scenes that my i-Phone afforded me, after I headed out the door without my trusty Samsung digital.

The v-shaped ridges form a splendid backdrop to the jagged shale outcropping, that seem to have been dropped, willy-nilly, by the glaciers of the Mesolithic Period (26,000 years ago).

Once past the cattle gate, the rim of the inner canyon itself came into clearer focus.

Grapevine Creek will fill this bed, once the monsoons arrive, in July-September.

The sometimes jagged road would not be kind to Sportage, parked a mile or so back. It does make an agreeable hiking trail, in and of itself.

As we walked back to the car, this small group of outcroppings appealed to me, as a possible spur hike in a future visit.

The morning put yet another area of Unlimited Arizona on my radar screen. After nearly 44 years here, off and on, the Southwest never ceases to amaze.

Diligencia

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Posted by on in Assistance, children, collaborating, Community, Education, impediments, Inner Struggles, Inspiration, Personal Values, Service Activities, Social, Striving

April 25, 2024- The rain came down in buckets, ending three weeks of dryness and keeping the fire danger down for another month or so. I had a room full of Kindergarten English-language learners, who noted that it was raining-again (“Otra vez”) and they hadn’t been out all day. They continued to work on their foldable stories, we read them, they highlighted their sight words, the first letter of each sentence and the punctuation mark at the end of each sentence-and then we played. They built little “forts”, by moving chairs and cushion pillows, while a timer counted down. When the time ran out, the screen said “Poof”, and the hamburger on the screen disappeared. Then the kids did-actually, just going back to their classrooms, after putting everything back.

The others, first and second graders, were equally diligent. Even those, especially those, who had minimal competency in English, applied themselves to their tasks with a drive that people in high school would do well to emulate. They let no time elapse, when finished with one task, before asking what was next, and diving right into it.

That made me think. What happens in the lives of children to turn a hard worker into a dodger, a slacker? Some who go through a slacking phase, and then get their bearings and turn into productive adults, can say it was due to the adults in their lives being alternately overbearing and overindulgent. Others gave in to peer pressure, and others were just testing the limits. In the end, though, those who’ve turned themselves around have looked back at the real “good old days”, when their classmates and they were getting satisfaction from learning, going home to parents who were genuinely proud of their achievements.

The fog of insolence can sink in as early as 7-years of age (I saw one, a scowl on his face, as he waited for his teacher to open the classroom door, while my students and I were walking towards the ELL room). It will likely take a lot of diligence, on the part of educators and social service professionals, to turn his life around. Such a shame. The high achievers will walk on past him, but the smartest among them will stop, turn around and hold out a caring and insistent hand.

Viva diligencia!

Nonstop Talking

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Posted by on in Assistance, children, collaborating, impediments, Personal goals, Personal Values, Social, Striving

April 24, 2024- I asked myself, how long would I last, as a nonstop talker, before someone broke out the duct tape-or everyone just up and left, even if-especially if- I was in the middle of my 286th sentence.

Then I began to think about how I am, myself, towards nonstop talkers. If they are children in a class, I appeal to the their recognition “that there is an agenda, set by the regular teacher, who has to honour the hierarchy from the State Legislature to the State Superintendent to the County Superintendent to the District Governing Board to the District Superintendent-to…” until a bright shining face offers….”Now who’s the nonstop talker?”

If the nonstop talker is a shut-in, chances are the monologues will be looped, and I will be able to repeat them, verbatim, after about a month of visits. I will still visit, though, and still listen, because this could be me one day. Besides, when every day sounds the same, it’s partly because every day is the same.

If the motormouth has encyclopedic knowledge of ten different subjects, I will want to be seen and not heard, because there are significant gaps in anyone’s knowledge, and we need to check-in with each other, and the nonstop thinker who can put thoughts into words deserves a full platform.

These thoughts came to mind, this evening, as I witnessed nonstop talkers, talking over one another. Thankfully, they each came to a happy medium and let each other have the dais, for a few minutes at a time. I would not do well, as a nonstop talker.

Degrees of Separation

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Posted by on in collaborating, Community, distraction issues, impediments, Inner Struggles, Personal Values, Service Activities, Social, Spiritual, Striving

April 23, 2024- The individual, always congenial and engaging in the past, did a complete 180 today, glaring at all but a few chosen co-workers, and tersely responding to well-wishes. Fortunately, this turnabout did not get directed towards children, but was rather puzzling to the rest of us. It was hopefully just the result of a random bad day.

Things like this put me on guard, though, as there were many mercurial and unpredictable people in my childhood, mostly teenagers, but several adults as well. I learned to be very guarded, a tactic my mother also stressed was essential for my safety and well-being. That mantra has played in my background ever since. It was playing today, though fortunately the children with whom I worked were co-operative and appreciative.

This brings me to the matter of the separation, the barriers people put up, even against those who clearly mean no harm. Groups do this also, and with a vengeance. In the worst cases, there are laws, ad hoc groups and social customs that enforce separation. More commonly, language speaks to the barriers: Prefixes, like “anti”, “un” and “non”, meant to enforce “Us vs. Them”; Nouns and adjectives, like “alien”, “illegal”, “filthy”, “degenerate”, even “homeless” are employed to suggest that someone’s presence is an impediment to the well-being of the dominant society.

Arguably, none of us can be sweetly all-accepting of all behaviours. Yet, I can’t get past the notion that, in the Divine Creation, there is no other-unless the construct that Jesus the Christ called “Satan” or “the devil” is somehow to be maintained as a competitor to the Creator. The lower nature of the human mind, which is what was really meant by that construct, is also behind the us vs. them mindset. Without fear, hate and envy, there is no “other”; there is only us, only we.

When the out-of-sorts individual gets past whatever caused the anger shown today, perhaps there will be one less person towards which my guard will need to be maintained. That is the joy of not seeing anyone as “the other”.

Commonalities

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Posted by on in animal and plant life, collaborating, Community, Hiking and Nature, Inspiration, Personal Values, Social, Striving

April 22,2024- We are all part of an astonishing web of consciousness.

Bees are known to play with small wooden balls, pushing them around, until one of the bees falls. Octopuses recall certain kinds of fish, visually, rather than by the sound of their swish. Baby spiders scamper to catch up to their mother, as she walks along the floor, toward the bathroom cupboard. Corvids, from ravens to jays, recognize the faces of friends and foes alike, from day to shining day. A sea turtle recognizes its human handler’s voice, nibbling either lettuce or spinach, when given a choice. Androcles removed a thorn from the paw of the lion and the great cat purred, as his eyes were shining. A mother baboon tended the wounded baby meerkat grooming and feeding the little one, until its health was intact.

We all feel, all remember, and most can recognize themselves in a mirror, if even after some repetitions in front of the reflector. Instinct is common to us all, and so is industry; so is the use of tools, no matter how simple. None of us enjoys living in chaos, or in filth. Indeed no one is more fastidious about cleaning a place up than a scavenger. Hornets, if undisturbed, or not enticed by scent, will leave humans alone. Poisonous snakes, if not cornered or threatened, will not pursue a human, with the intent of injecting venom.

May Earth long enjoy the presence of its diverse creatures.

Headwaters

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Posted by on in Assistance, collaborating, Community, Hiking and Nature, Personal goals, Service Activities, Social, Spiritual, Striving

April 21, 2024, Paulden, AZ- I drove about 5.3 miles past the Upper Verde Nature Preserve, rose quartz heart securely in a caddy, in the middle of the front seats. About 1/2 mile from Verde Ranch, I pulled over, as the sign said “GATE, No turnaround” Out here, “No” means “Don’t push the matter”. I wouldn’t have done that, anyway. I was raised to respect private property. Walking down to the spot where the barbed wire fence began, I backtracked to a spot where I could walk down an embankment, to an overlook. There, I scoped out the wash below, and seeing that it was dry, I thought ahead to the monsoons.

Where to bury the rose quartz heart? Its purpose is to bring a blessing from the Divine, upon a given area. The headwaters of the Upper Verde River are an area crucial for the populace of the Prescott area. We need guidance, as to proper conservation and sensible development. There are threats to both, most notably a proposed mine expansion, south of town.

Rose quartz hearts are among the symbols of positive energy, along with quartz crystals and precious gems. They may be buried or placed in a spot where they can reflect the sun’s rays. Either way, they are a source of healing energy, for the area in which they are placed. The Headwaters of the Upper Verde were the first area I chose, for placement of the small crystal.

View southwest, from Headwaters of Upper Verde area, looking towards St. Matthew’s Mountain.
A dry wash, in the Upper Verde watershed. I chose a space in front of the chaparral to the right, as the rose quartz heart’s resting place.
A rose quartz heart, now placed near the Headwaters of the Upper Verde River.

The two sandstone bricks mark the spot where the rose quartz heart is laid. (Hat and sunglasses stayed with me.)

With that, I said a short prayer and offered positive thoughts for the health of the watershed. The upcoming cross-continental journey will provide five other opportunities to lay a rose quartz heart, at various places in both this country and Canada. Quartz, to me is a good way to reflect positive energy.

The Ancient of Days

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Posted by on in Assistance, collaborating, Community, Historical, Matters of Faith, Personal Values, Social, Spiritual, Striving

April 20, 2024- Today marked the First Day of the Festival of Ridvan, celebrating a period of time, in 1863, when Baha’u’llah revealed His Station and His Mission, to His closest family and followers, in Najibiyyih Garden, Rusafa, Baghdad. This serene garden is also called the Garden of Ridvan, or Paradise. The entourage mostly arrived, led by Baha’u’llah, on this day, remaining for twelve days, and then heading for Istanbul, which was then the capital of the Ottoman Empire.

Baha’u’llah and His family had been banished to Iraq, in 1853, for their association with al-Bab, His Herald, Who had proclaimed His own dispensation, thus challenging the authority of the Shiite Muslim clergy. Al-Bab had been executed by firing squad, in July, 1850, which led to the mass execution of His followers and the imprisonment of Baha’u’llah for four months. Upon His release from the fetid Siyah-Chal and an attempt by a deluded follower of al-Bab on the life of Nasiruddin Shah, Baha’u’llah was subject to exile, by order of the Shah, and crossed the Zagros Mountains on foot and on horseback, in the dead of winter, 1852-3.

Baghdad proved a relatively benign locus for the entourage, at first. Soon, though, a few aggressive members of the group, led by Baha’u’llah’s half-brother, Yahya, also known as Sub-i-Azal, began to foment dissension. Baha’u’llah left the encampment and spent two years in the mountains of Kurdistan, basically giving Azal the burden of proving his leadership capabilities. When Azal proved incompetent as a leader, an emissary from the group found Baha’u’llah in the mountains and persuaded Him to return to Baghdad. He rekindled the spirits and cohesiveness of the community. Once it began to thrive again, however, Nasiruddin Shah pressured the Ottoman Emperor, Abul-Aziz, to remove Baha’u’llah and His followers from Baghdad to Istanbul (then still called Constantinople, its name since Roman times).

This chain of events led to the time He spent in the Garden of Ridvan. One of the names given to virtually all of the Adamic Prophets is Ancient of Days. This title essentially links the Messengers, from Adam to Jesus the Christ to Baha’u’llah, to the Creator. The image of God the Father has been raised, yet there is as much a feminine energy as there is its masculine counterpart, in the Creative process. Each of the Messengers has alluded to the equality of men and women, in the sight of the Divine, yet only al-Bab and Baha’u’llah have codified this equality, in Their respective Books of Laws.

Ancient of Days is used by adherents of many Faiths, basically noting that Creation is a process that goes back further than any human can comprehend and will extend in the future farther than any human-inspired model can prognosticate. Thus we have the Teaching: “This is the Changeless Faith of God: Eternal in the past, eternal in the future.”-Baha’u’llah, Gleanings from the Writings of Bah’u’llah, Section LXX, Paragraph 2.

Thus do we Baha’is honour the beginning of Our Lord’s Dispensation, celebrating from April 20-May 1, this year.

Power Language

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Posted by on in children, collaborating, Community, distraction issues, impediments, Inner Struggles, Inspiration, Personal Values, Service Activities, Social, Spiritual, Striving

April 19, 2024- When I was a child, the concept that every blow delivered would be followed by an equal and opposite retaliatory strike was alien to me. I thought, naively, that a simple exchange of blows was enough for each boy to express his annoyance at the situation. My opponents uniformly believed that there had to be a winner and a loser.

There has been much discussion, over the past five years, about Love Language-the way in which an individual gives and receives love. My love language, for example, is acts of service. Words of affirmation, quality time and physical touch are secondary love languages-expressed only to a certain few.

Power is also a concept that is expressed in “languages” of sorts. (These are only my thoughts on the matter.) The power languages I have ascertained are persuasion, coercion, diminution, guilt-mongering and inclusion. The first and last are positive means to power. The second, third and fourth are negative, if not neurotic, power languages.


Both persuasion and inclusion involve patience, flexibility and a regard for others that is equal to one’s self-regard. Persuasion entails a commitment to a lengthy engagement with those whose agreement and co-operation are desired. Inclusion entails an inherent regard for the other person’s, or group’s, sense of self-worth. Inclusion is a longer game, in which the perception of power, coming from within the self, is large enough a reservoir that the individual sees others as being of the same worth as self. The two power languages do not entail a lesser view of either oneself or any other human being. They may even extend to non-human animals, plants, funga and spirits.

Coercion, often involving physical force, but also including bribery, co-opting, blackmail and obfuscation, is the most common historical power language. Even in modern times, the cynic’s Golden Rule, “He who has the gold makes the rules”, has silenced those whose financial or time-management skills are sufficiently wanting, that a keen observer who is hungry for power can leverage the person’s weakness and buy or intimidate them into giving up their agency.

Diminution, the convincing of social groups of their own unworthiness and of the superiority of others, is a second very common historical power language. It is the modus operandi of the plantation, of the colonial system and of patriarchy. Diminution depends on a top-down decision-making apparatus. It goes beyond the sensible system of parenthood, infantilizes women, disempowers adolescents, and instills a sense of superiority in members of a dominant culture. This is most obvious in the notions of White Supremacy and Male Superiority, but is also true of any culture where a dominant group trivializes the contributions of marginalized communities.

Guilt-mongering is the “when all else fails” power language of dominance. It features self-as-victim, gaslighting, false equivalence and an “after all I’ve done for you” pitch, each of which is like a rock in a shoe, designed to nettle and disrupt the other’s concentration and sense of well-being. It manifests itself in endless legal appeals and slow-walking of valid processes, just enough to create doubt and suspicion. It is a favoured tool of those among the well-connected who lack a moral compass. It is also a favoured tool of those in the media whose primary concern is generating revenue, at the expense of morality.

We are seeing a slow, but inexorable, move towards persuasion and inclusion as preferred power languages. The futility of coercion, diminution and guilt-mongering is being seen by more and more people around the world, as their perceived value is recognized, more and more, as impermanent, ephemeral and of scant overall value. The language of power will, in time, become linked to the language of love.

Gordian Knots

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Posted by on in Assistance, children, collaborating, Community, Education, impediments, Inspiration, Personal goals, Personal Values, Service Activities, Social, Spiritual, Striving, Travel

April 18,2024- A bit ago, a boy in an intermediate school was placed in detention, for hitting a girl classmate. He told the principal that he felt demeaned by the girl and her friends, so he did the only thing he knew-he lashed out.

Anxiety fuels fear, which fuels aggression, which fuels more anxiety and aggression-all tied up in a Gordian knot. The legend of Alexander the Great has the king using the expedient solution of cutting a complex knot with a sword, rather than trying to loosen and unravel it. Modern times find certain rulers using brute force, in an attempt to bring an end to “intractable” problems. Thus, a series of events that would be amusingly schoolboyish, were they not so chilling, are unfolding between two countries-in the guise of preservation of faith.

Thomas Sowell’s admonition that there are no solutions, only trade-offs, has never rung more true than in the matter of the conflict in western Asia. The resolution of this matter involves, essentially, two basic processes: 1. All people living within the borders of a nation-state need to have a full voice in the affairs of that nation-state, provided they are willing to abide by the laws of that nation-state; 2. Countries that neighbour one another need to fully honour the legitimate rights of all people in their neighbouring states, to say nothing of honouring the legitimate rights of their own citizens. The trade-offs will need to be worked out, but they cannot allow dominance of any one country, or national ideology, or authoritarian ruler, over its neighbours.

I’m keeping an eye on the situation in western Asia, at least for the effect it will have on my plans for Autumn, which presently involve transit stops in two airports in that region. Those places need to show a modicum of safety, in order for anyone to make even the briefest of stops. There is also the impact the conflict will have (is at least temporarily having) on global finance. The possibility exists that I may be working for wages in October, instead of visiting Baha’is in east Africa, after my September visit to the Philippines.

Fear triggers anxiety, which brings on aggression, triggering more fear and anxiety. I face all this, knowing that in either Plan A or Plan B, I will be okay on a personal level. Many communities and countries will get through the matter, just fine. There will, however, be vast areas, and millions of people, who won’t be at all fine-with the situations in Gaza, Darfur and Ukraine just the beginning, unless the Gordian Knots are untied, rather than cut.