Category Archives: collaborating

The Road to Diamond, Day 279: Heart Letter 1

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Posted by on in children, collaborating, Community, Family, Hiking and Nature, Inspiration, Matters of Faith, Personal goals, Personal Values, Service Activities, Social, Spiritual, Striving, Travel

September 3, 2025, Keams Canyon- The hill we used to climb,and lay on blankets under the stars, is still alluring. It seems diminished somehow, though, with the campground having been taken up for house lots and a fenced in playground . The park is a nice idea for the Keams community, though.

I could have bushwhacked a bit and gone up the hill, just to reminisce about those first fleeting days of our acquaintance, which became an enduring, if sometimes harrowing, love story. It wasn’t far from this spot that your trailer sat, and where I camped out in the snow, the first time I visited you. It was all to keep up a sense of propriety, for your Hopi and Mormon neighbours. It was worth the hassle, though, and I felt akin to the small Dineh children who were traditionally thrown out in the snow, to toughen them up.

Tonight, though, there is no snow or cold, just a light rain. I am not sleeping outside, but in the comfort of some new friends’ apartment. We had a lovely dinner of cod fillets, cauliflower over rice and steamed avocado/cucumber salad. I gave them a set of books about the Hopi and one about Dineh. They are resuming the work we did in the ’80s and ’90s, and will take it to the next level.

Hopi will always be special, even if my time here is fleeting, and only occasional. The people have shared their wisdom with the world, and deserve all our support and understanding. You knew that, back then, when you sought to calm my peripatetic self and got me to devote weekends to attending ceremonial dances, instead of going off into mountains and canyons.

That, ironically, is why I am here tonight, absorbing the gentle spiritual energy that lies within these mesa lands, just prior to my embarking on journeys of homage and transition. Soon, our first grandchild will be joining the world. I will not be surprised if she looks up and smiles at a space where no earthly being can be seen. I will know that she is looking at you.

The Road to Diamond, Day 278: Tying Loose Strands

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Posted by on in Assistance, collaborating, Community, Hiking and Nature, Historical, Inner Struggles, Personal Values, service, Social, Spiritual, Striving

September 2, 2025- Coming up to a ledge, on the trail between White Spar Mountain and Goldwater Lake, Hiking Buddy and I spotted nineteen American flags-the sign of a memorial to the 19 Wildland Firefighters, who died in 2013, at Yarnell Hill.

Other forms of death showed themselves nearby.

Beyond, though, are the many signs of life, for which these sacrifices have been made.

We made this short hike, as part of a run-up to my own seven-week absence from Home Base I, and from Arizona. I have had a good summer here, and now it is time to tie up loose ends. Connecting HB with an aficionado of her type of product was another result of today’s efforts. Finally getting through to a critic of local organic farming, earlier this morning, was another.

The rest of the week will see me on a worldwide prayer call, then up at Hopi for a brief visit with new arrivals in the Health Provider community and a Red Cross meeting here, on Thursday. Friday, I will continue my dry run of packing, as the weekend is full of special events, on which more, in a few days.

I have also carefully spoke my peace about other issues, and so far had little push back. Towards that end, I will not elaborate on my thoughts in this forum. We are all entitled to our own opinions, though not to our own facts.

No matter where I go, the sacrifices of those brave men commemorated above, and of others like them, will still figure large in my consciousness. They tied the loose strands of community, by giving their very lives.

The Road to Diamond, Day 277: The Labour of Love, at Quarter Century

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Posted by on in collaborating, Community, impediments, Inspiration, Personal Values, service, Social, Spiritual, Striving

September 1, 2025- A friend was clearly shocked, voice breaking, whilst reading the message from a mutual friend, which indicated that here were two people talking past one another, regarding an act of service in which they had spent most of yesterday-and were pondering how to complete the job today.

We “Boomers” are in situations, quite often,in which two or more people get involved in helping a destitute, or infirm, friend-and find selves reaching own physical limits. I am fairly robust, at just shy of 75, but many of my contemporaries are not. I stand up for them, when they have to back off from work they find too onerous, given their physical state. The friend I first mentioned above is one of those who has every right to set limits. So, too, is the second friend, who is, in fairness, selfless to a fault. At some point, very soon, I hope that is realized.

I have to be very transparent, of late, about my own limits, which are more financial (preserving the means to reach my goals and to provide in the event of unforeseen emergencies) and temporal (not being able to spend time with certain folks around Home Base I, as I will be away for a good part of the rest of this year, and next),than physical-for the foreseeable future, anyway.

What my friends and I do is sincerely out of love. Favours, though, cannot be expected. In the past day or so, I have had to let two people, for whom I care deeply, know that they are not entitled to have me at their beck and call. This is as much out of regard for their own dignity and worth as it is for my own. I had to learn this the hard way, several years ago-and am grateful for the lesson, both as giver and as receiver.

We give of ourselves both in gratitude for those who gave to us, back in the day, and out of love for those who are at wit’s end. We offer a hand up, rather than a hand out, as much as our own means allow. Happy Labour Day, all!

The Road to Diamond, Day 276: “Peace One Day”

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

August 31, 2025- A young man set out to break the cycle of gratuitous and retributive violence, especially between nations. His idea was to establish an international day of ceasefire/commitment to peace, on September 21 of each year. The equinox, signifying harvest in the northern hemisphere and planting in the south, was seen as a fine date for getting nations to focus on the well-being of the masses.

It turned out to be a hard sell. One country, whose prior leaders had initiated a proclamation calling for A United Nations Day of Peace, decided to back away from the commitment. The young man continued his mission, visiting dislocated and suffering people in Somalia, Palestine and Burundi. He used his leverage as a British citizen to persuade the government of the United Kingdom to become primary sponsor of the International Day of Ceasefire and Peace. The other nation, which had backed away, agreed to join the U.K. as a co-sponsor of the resolution.

We see that the forces of discord and nationalism can act against this movement. Indeed, minutes before then-United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan was to ring a Peace Bell, at UN Headquarters, al-Qaeda terrorists flew airplanes into the World Trade Center’s Twin Towers, on September 11, 2001. Several documents, and testimony from terrorist sympathizers, indicate that the timing was not coincidental.

The arc of history, however, is aimed towards an eventual peace and unity. Even the most nationalistic of governments are beginning to see that the way of warfare is a dead end. The actual course of resolving conflict is a lingering source of disagreement. As with any matter that seems intractable, however, the secret to resolution lies in not ever giving up. This was the real message of “Peace One Day”.

The Road to Diamond, Day 275: Reading the Road

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Posted by on in collaborating, Community, distraction issues, impediments, Personal Values, Social, Spiritual, Striving, Travel

August 30, 2025- Waiting until the row of traffic, in the lane I was about to enter, had cleared, I then pulled onto the road. Lo and behold, I heard a horn blare, from a few cars back and to the left. It was from someone honking and yelling at the pick-up driver who had moved into the “empty” lane and who was now having to brake, because of yours truly. Nothing further happened, we all went on our merry ways, but it goes to show, one never can be too careful.

I have learned to “read the road” quite well, and often will wait until the light up the road turns red, before going onto AZ 69, which many drivers treat as their personal race track. It seems there are many such roads, across the country, and even across the continent. (Canada has its share of oblivious motorists and the lands south of the border are even more chaotic, in many places.) Across the Pacific, I don’t think I’d want to drive in the Philippines, mostly due to the many motorcyclists who dart in and out, everywhere. I have learned to read the road there, too, as in many spots, there are no crosswalks and one must inch forward to cross a road, when traffic slows just a bit.

My father thought I was a bit too cautious, when I first learned to drive. There was a reason: I was more of a menace, with a short attention span and tendency to daydream. It took a few months to learn to focus, and I did manage to go nearly 48 years without an accident. There have been a few rough patches, since 2014, for different reasons- Sabotage, an overzealous driver zipping over a blind hill and a driver on medication who fell asleep. The first two saw me get cited for “partial culpability”, which is more a statutory requirement than actual proof of wrongdoing.

Nonetheless, I am determined to get through the next week or so without any mishaps. For seven weeks thereafter, my mode of transport will be the airplane, the train, the bus and a friend’s vehicle. Reading the road will be more as a pedestrian, in the countries I will find myself. Tonight, though, was a caution-there is never a break from driving defensively.

The Road to Diamond, Day 274: Redemptions and Deferments

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Posted by on in children, collaborating, Family, impediments, Inner Struggles, Personal goals, Personal Values, Service Activities, Social, Spiritual, Striving, Travel

August 29, 2025- The two-year-old boy spotted me from his place on his grandmother’s chaise lounge and told Nana to look up. His smile could light up Grand Central Station and his enthusiasm could carry a rocket to the Moon and back. His younger and quieter sister gave a slight smile and a nod, but she is more Nana’s girl. I was at the house to tend to a small business matter, which will help two parties, while I am away.

The day was largely spent in bringing some unfinished business to fruition. Sportage has a new oil pan, so no more drips. The trade-off is that there is a countdown to the next regular oil and lube. The Beast will be spending 7 weeks in carport, though, under the watchful eyes of my neighbours, so there is no great rush to get that done.

Then, there was the above-mentioned visit, concerned with relieving another family’s food insecurity. “Nana” is a local small farmer, so she can help with that. Lastly, there is a friend elsewhere who needs assistance in getting through a medical procedure, so that needs periodic contribution. Mostly, though, I am tending to my own needs, so as not to become “a destitute hero”, who would be no hero at all.

The upcoming journey involves reaching destinations and fulfilling promises that are anywhere from seven to fifteen years old. In meditation, the answer came back to focus on these, and there would be time down the road to fulfill more recent pledges. In the interim, I have commitments to my little family and to someone else I love most dearly. Those will take precedence over anything else.

Clear as mud? Things will be explained, as they happen. For now, it is a matter of redeeming old promises and deferring those of more recent vintage.

The Road to Diamond, Day 273: Jump Starts

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Posted by on in Assistance, collaborating, Community, impediments, Inspiration, Matters of Faith, Personal Values, Service Activities, Social, Spiritual, Striving, Travel

August 28,2025- A call came at mid-morning: Sportage will get her new oil pan tomorrow, bright and early. Energized to move on other fronts, I went to a cloth wholesaler and picked out new material to cover my badly worn sofa. This is more of an investment in keeping the furniture out of the landfill, when it comes time for me to divest my furnishings, come late December. Of course, when a friend does the re-upholstering, at the end of October, I will be able to enjoy it in the interim. A section of the sofa is my prayer corner.

I have added a few more items to the Fall itinerary, which is looking more like the series of homages to which I am drawn, in between and after visits with friends. There is much to which I feel drawn in humility-more so than out of curiosity. Out of prudence, though, my whereabouts will be posted as they occur.

I am now three months away from #75. I celebrated the 74.9 marker with a case of alkaline water. Finally, the market has caught on here, and I’m finding this may well be a big deterrent to the dehydration that has been setting in this summer. Besides, I could use more alkalinity in my life.

Life is ever a series of jump starts and pauses. It seems, though, that a delay or block in one area opens the way for another thing to happen. I was unable to attend the funeral of a co-worker, in another city, due to the situation with the auto part. That paved the way for assistance to be given to another ailing friend here in town. This has been more the rule than the exception, over the past twenty five years. I have been exactly where I was supposed to be, at the given time-yet not necessarily by my own design.

The Road to Diamond, Day 269: Nomenclature

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Posted by on in Assistance, collaborating, distraction issues, Inspiration, Personal Values, Social, Spiritual, Striving

August 24, 2025- Someone has alternately pronounced me “mentor” and a short time later, announced that they were MY “mentor’. The situation is that we have bounced ideas back and forth, period. I do not consider anyone currently alive as a mentor. My father, father-in-law and a long ago athletic coach filled that role for me, in earlier times. My mother taught me a lot, also. I still hold all the lessons those fine people sometimes pulled their hair out, trying to impart to me. The rest of us just support one another the best we can, back and forth.

Other words tend to get overgeneralized, and over used. “Vacation” is one such. There are people here in Home Base I, who insist that any time spent not working and/or away from Prescott is vacation. They want to know why I am going to be out of the country, for an extended period of time, when I could be working here. I can say this: There will not be a whole lot of resting, relaxing and idling. I can do all those things right here. The tasks ahead of me are labours of love, in which I also engage here-but there are friends in the countries to which I will be heading. I have the opportunities to connect with them in real time.

“Girlfriend” (and its male counterpart) is tossed around well beyond adolescence. The woman I care for deeply is my dearest friend, and that is where it stands. She stopped being a girl, many years ago-probably maturing well before I did, though she is a decade younger than I. Maybe the oblique reference to childhood is a wish by those who use such terms, for their own continuous adolescence. As for me, I rather like being an older adult, albeit one who is in good health.

Finally, “omnipotent” is being tossed around these days, by those on various ends of the spectrum who see their personal heroes emerging and gathering power. Be careful: “Pride goes before destruction and a haughty spirit before a fall.”-Proverbs 16:18 I am willing to bet that each of the adulated ones is well aware of the above verse, and has many moments when wishing that admirers would calm down.

The Road to Diamond, Day 268: Empathy

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Posted by on in Assistance, collaborating, Community, distraction issues, Family, impediments, Inspiration, Personal Values, Social, Spiritual, Striving

August 23, 2025- I spent several minutes today, reading messages from someone who has an alternate view of the world. There are some points that were made with which I can agree, but the conclusions offered are rather far from what I have drawn. I will defend the right to come to those conclusions, but I also reserve my right to see the world through my own lens.
Some conservatives have recently called for a review of how empathy is processed. They say, correctly in my view, that empathy should not be a blanket endorsement of wrongful or injurious behaviour. I see this caveat as necessary, if our mission in the world is to elevate human behaviour and the level of choices made by those around us. Indeed, ‘Abdu’l-Baha cautions to “not show kindness to a liar, a thief or a selfish person”, lest those ill qualities be encouraged and strengthened. I have had to cut off contact with three people as well as advising a friend to do the same, for that reason.

There are plenty of opportunities to show empathy to those who are truly victimized, or are vulnerable and in need of support. I have been, and will continue to be, engaged in the betterment of life for all around me. Like our nation’s Vice President, I see my empathy as going first to my family (who are not, at present, in high need, but will be at the end of this year and into next), then to my community, and to the wider world. My sense of that progression is not, though, compartmentalized, as the needs of Home Base I right now are not so high as to take my attention away from, say, Dineh people who need help transporting water, or a friend in another state who is facing a serious medical procedure-or the World Central Kitchen’s efforts to feed people in traumatized regions across the globe-including right here in the United States.

There is room enough, in our consciousness and in our time frames, to care for both those closest to us and those a world away.

The Road to Diamond, Day 267: Needful Things

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Posted by on in children, collaborating, Community, Education, impediments, Inner Struggles, Inspiration, Personal goals, Personal Values, service, Social, Spiritual, Striving, Travel

August 22, 2025- The girls were forthright in asking for help on their writing assignment, asking me to help, instead of one of the regular staff. They were crestfallen, when I told them I had to take care of other business on Monday-but that they would not be left alone. I trust that a caring soul will be on hand, and tend to their needs. I was able to meet those needs today, so it was a good day.

A friend shared memories of childhood; of witnessing lynchings-the sort described by Billie Holliday, in her song, “Strange Fruit”. This is something that no child should ever have to witness. Another friend shared the news that a young man had taken his own life, shattering her immediate community. This is something that no youth should ever need to contemplate. In my own work, keeping children safe from both external and internal trauma was a major focus of time and energy. It had to be done with regularity, and without judgment as to what the urgency level may have been.

I was not able to prevent all suicide. No one can know for certain what the turmoil is. inside another soul. The first friend has never spoken of what was seen, until now. The young man did not share his pain, even with his closest friends.

I am fortunate, in life here in Prescott and in the various places I have been honoured to visit, over the past fifteen years. Rarely has there been a closed door, and then only because of my own shortcomings or faux pas. With that good fortune has come a fair amount of responsibility. So, I don’t think of time spent anywhere as “vacation”, even though to those whose life commitment is to stay put and focus on one community or one neighbourhood, any time spent not working-or not spent “blooming where planted” is a lark.

So be it. I will wake each day, no matter where I find myself and make the same commitment to the well-being of those around me, as I did in schools and communities, across Arizona and in South Korea, for 46 years. Some of that will be in schools; other will be on the road or in communities where I might be expected to relax. It will be what appears to be needed.