The Foundation for Personal and Spiritual Empowerment (PSE) ~ Transformation through Affirmation©
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Our web page and blog are an ongoing work in progress and are being developed to contain inspirational quotes and profiles of inspirational people, comprehensive information on many topics, including spirituality, comparative religion, advocacy, leadership, mentoring, the environment, personal health responsibility, cancer, MS, and other diseases and health- and health care-related issues and resources. The blog also includes comprehensive information and resources pertaining to several other important subjects and issues including social justice, human rights and the nonprofit sector. There is a wealth of information at your fingertips, and we hope that you find it informative, helpful and motivational.
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…It’s about, awakening in people, the understanding that each person is infinitely more than they believe.
There is divinity in every soul.
There is the ability of us to go deeper and to connect into that divinity.
We have the power to claim our life and our talents….
~ Antoinette Spurrier, Founder, Foundation for Personal & Spiritual Empowerment; ©2005
…I am of the opinion that my life belongs to the whole community and as I live it is my privilege -- my privilege to do for it whatever I can.
I want to be thoroughly used up when I die, for the harder I work the more I love.
I rejoice in life for its own sake.
Life is no brief candle to me; it is a sort of splendid torch which I've got a hold of for the moment and I want to make it burn as brightly as possible before handing it on to future generations.
~ George Bernard Shaw
Virtue (Kudoku)
SEVEN HEAVENLY VIRTUES
Faith (Shinnen)
Hope (Kibou)
Charity (Jizen)
Fortitude (Kennin)
Justice (Seigi)
Temperance (Sessei)
Prudence (Shinchou)
Transformation through Affirmation ~ Empowerment Sound Bytes from Our Founder, Antoinette Spurrier
...When people feel that their connection with other human beings, there’s separateness; out of separateness comes destructive behaviors, out of the perception of separateness.
We’re all brothers and sisters.
Any skin color, any nationality, any creed.
Bar none.
It isn’t that we aren’t; we’re all souls.
People are in different places in their spiritual awareness.
But the fact that there is a divine energy in them,
whether they’re oblivious to it or not oblivious to it,
it’s there.
So people are in different stages of awareness,
but one person isn’t born with having part of the energy of God in them
and the next person’s born without it.
It isn’t so....
...And in the end, it comes out to the same solution.
If we become determined to participate more in our spiritual center,
we will create more attunement.
As we create more attunement,
we will operate in a different way in spiritual law.
And the spiritual law really is about we are divine children of God
and we are connected in that divinity
to all of our fellow man,
and to God
and to our self.
It’s the truth.
~ Source for quotes above: Excerpts from conversations with Antoinette Spurrier, Founder, Foundation for Personal and Spiritual Empowerment; © 2005
…if you pray for another soul,
if you ask for God’s love,
God’s light,
God’s blessing
and Divine intercession according to God’s will,
you can never make a mistake in prayer.
It’s not possible.
Because...
‘Even in situations where there is no observable physical change by the prayer energy that is extended,
the consciousness will be in another place of spiritual receptivity as a result of the prayer petitions.’
So, what greater thing that we can do
than to make it a better journey for the soul as the soul moves forward.
…we need to call on God in our daily activities,
learning to believe that God is taking dormant talents within us….
and is resurrecting them;
resurrecting them in the light.
And, then, if we say, ‘This can’t be here, I don’t understand this’;
or we see it as a phenomena with our self;
we miss the fact that it was Spirit.
It was God resurrecting that which belongs to the soul.
And God is saying,
‘Let us go forth and go forward in our dance together’;
‘Let that talent and that which is within you,
merge evermore into that union with the Infinite
in a manner that the journey of others may be uplifted by the words that are uttered,
and with their soul and their heart, may raise up and rise up.’
And, it is your spiritual work and it’s your spiritual destiny.
And all roles are God roles if we infuse God in them.
And no talent or no creative ability, if we don’t bring God into it, has the ability to sustain in power. Because it will always be limited.
…You see, often, if you look at talented writers, and I work with many people…so, something quite lovely comes up.
When this fear happens to them, ‘I have no way to do it again’; ‘This was a fluke...’
…if they understood the truth,
that it was the winds of Spirit encouraging that aspect of their creativity to go forward,
they would understand that the winds of Spirit are unlimited,
because the Source is the Infinite.
And is the next one going to look exactly like the first one?
No.
But is God ever limited in what could be made manifest; or the themes or the ideas that can flow, in all the writings of the earth?
Look at how many different poems; look at how many different ideas.
Did God ever run out of ideas that could be expressed in writing?
Did God ever run out of ideas that could be expressed in art?
Did God ever run out of any of that?
No.
But what starts to happen to the person, because they don’t understand their spiritual relationship in a creative process; the ego starts to get paralyzed with fear.
And if they understood that yes, they did it; but they truly did what they did because there was another level of flow between them and Spirit.
If they could understand that; that doesn’t mean they won’t run in to those fears or those trepidations, but they can work through them....
…the fact that that exists within us; the fact that there are other flows of creativity alive and well within us, shouldn’t surprise us.
And, we should realize, all along, whatever we thought we were, we were the artist, we were the creator creating, and so why not affirm that?...
‘I give thanks, for I am the artist; I am the creator manifesting in form’;
‘I give thanks, for I am the writer, Divine words ever flowing, Divine words ever manifesting
and the artist and the creator that is within me is God in creation’;
and, why not be about honoring that?…
Why not cultivate that?
Why not understand…
it is God’s intention that it shall flow and be made whole in manifestation.
And what we do, is that we sometimes say,
‘Well, yes, that’s fine, but I also have to earn a living, I can’t sit around and write all of this stuff.’
And what we’re doing, is we’re telling God ‘You are limited in how you can produce, how you can create, how you can create economic flow.’
Why not be in the attitude of doing that which God intends in our movement, and also, we have to take care of practicalities and realities.
But often people look at the practical line of practicality and shut down the creative forces.
And we have to be careful, because God;
assume God has already created the plan, by which manifestation will be made.
...We will make the greatest power if we understand that God has room for us to grow and to learn.…
the development of the consistency of faith in certainty,
that God is omnipresent,
God is attending,
and the greatest good is being served to that.…
…how better to bring forth the clarity of truth, than when someone speaks it to another;
it has to resonate with the vibration for oneself.
And what a spiritual service.…
none of us are pretending to know all the answers.
None of us are pretending to be above the learning and the knowing.
None of us are pretending to have all the answers to humanity’s suffering
and to be in a place of God-realization, to where we are beyond the struggles of the earth.
We are still tied to the earth;
we are still tied to their disappointments,
we are still tied to their physicalness,
but we are moving in that journey with the heavens
and with the Spirit
and with the waters of possibility…
in all of my learnings, I look back on things that I gave years before,
and something will come up and I hear it totally differently, because I’m in another place of understanding.
But how can I move faster than I move?
I have to understand the layer that one thing is communicated, and then I have to be willing to go down with the layers with it.
And not to beat myself up because I couldn’t see all, know all, hear all, do all at the same time.
Nobody does that.
And that is the reason, even if you go over things like Autobiography of a Yogi, Man’s Eternal Quest, there are things that when I first went over those things, I heard in a certain way.
And I’m not saying that didn’t have validity.
But there comes another place, that it resonates in a different way, with a different vibration…
and I say, ‘Yes, this is true at this level’;
‘But now this is another level that I have come to that my understanding, the same sentence; rides it in a different way.’
And that doesn’t mean up here wasn’t okay, it just means I’m moving;
there’s a statement at this level that is true,
but there is a power and a meaning and layers within the layers,
and meanings within the words, that are deeper.
And so what all of my growth is,
is learning to keep going deeper into the onion.
And it goes deeper into the onion,
and how can we get to the center of the onion if we don’t peel the first layer?
It’s not possible.
So, it’s not about beating our self up for what we didn’t know,
but it’s about what can we do with that?
What are some of the real lessons to be extracted?
What are the truths?
And I think part of the truth is,
that we have to prioritize anchoring in God,
and prioritize the work that we do;
it must become infused with God,
and that the vision must continue to be infused with the vision of God in that vision....
…you never know what is in somebody’s life.
What is in their heart,
what is in their circumstances,
what level of pain,
what level of discouragement.
You never know when taking time with someone,
to just ask them, ‘How are you?’;
‘Hope you have a nice day’;
whatever;
you don’t know what void or emptiness that God may be filling up through you in that moment.…
~ Source for quotes above: Excerpts from conversations with Antoinette Spurrier, Founder, Foundation for Personal and Spiritual Empowerment; © 2006
"Free Hugs"
Hope Through Heartsongs
For Our World
We need to stop.
Just stop.
Stop for a moment.
Before anybody
Says or does anything
That may hurt anyone else.
We need to be silent.
Just silent.
Silent for a moment.
Before we forever lose
The blessing of songs
That grow in our hearts.
We need to notice.
Just notice.
Notice for a moment.
Before the future slips away
Into ashes and dust of humility.
Stop, be silent, and notice.
In so many ways, we are the same.
Our differences are unique treasures.
We have, we are, a mosaic of gifts
To nurture, to offer, to accept.
We need to be.
Just be.
Be for a moment.
Kind and gentle, innocent and trusting,
Like children and lambs,
Never judging or vengeful
Like the judging and vengeful.
And now, let us pray,
Differently, yet together,
Before there is no earth, no life,
No chance for peace.
~ Matthew Joseph Thaddeus Stepanek; 1990 – 2004; Poet & Peacemaker
Copyright Mattie J.T. Stepanek 2001; Author of Hope through Heartsongs; Copyright 2002; For more information about Mattie and his work, please visit: http://www.mattieonline.com/
Humanity Healing
About John Laurence
Source & Resource: JL* – The life of John Laurence, as told to Gordon W. French *Who the hell is JL?; 1993; Author: Gordon W. French; Published by Hallelujah Publications; 116 pages.
Text from Preface of the Book:
“…If each of us is indeed an evolving soul temporarily residing in this body, then it stands to reason that in treading the path of life we will run across those who are standing alongside the path of ever-increasing realization to help us with the spiraling ascent. John once brought me to the realization that teachers point the way, and gurus are the way. There are many types of teachers – some are there solely for the aggrandizement of their selves – taking the guise of ministry in order to obtain money or power. Then there are those teachers who selflessly give to those who can benefit from the bountiful love and wisdom that only comes through many hours, or perhaps lifetimes, of meditation and devotion. These are the teachers who use their undeniably profound psychic abilities entirely to help those on the path to navigate a more safe and productive journey to the top of the trail, where we are all headed, whether we know it or not.… After more than twenty-five years of being a student and friend of JL’s, and many hours spent taking notes, recording talks and organizing information to author this book, I increasingly realize the meaning of a true teacher. Thanks for being you, John! Print can never express my love, appreciation, and gratitude for your contribution to all of us."
~ Gordon W. French
Text from Chapter Three of the Book – Expressions of Gratitude:
“I first met John Laurence when he was giving aura readings at a small church in San Diego. I liked him immediately; gifted, modest and a wonderful sense of humor. I did not know that he was the John Laurence of operatic fame until later.
I had sufficient experience to know that ‘psychics’ are not necessarily spiritual, and spiritual people are not necessarily psychic. It took time for me to grasp that John Laurence’s psychic gifts were extensions of a life grounded in God awareness.
I eventually made an appointment for a private reading at a time when I was critically ill. I soon noted an increase in energy, and during this time of improvement operatic music would play in my head. This was an unusual phenomenon I could not account for. It was a couple of months later that John ‘confessed’ he had begun daily prayer work for me. He still prays for me daily. It is my belief that John Laurence intervened in my destiny with Death. I so longed to live and raise my only daughter. All I know is that my heart acknowledges a debt I cannot repay.
I had at least two experiences of John Laurence entering my dreams in a most unusual way. I was having ‘normal’ dreams. Then, like an actor who stops an ongoing picture show and walks out on the stage, John entered, delivered a message, exited and the picture show continued where it had left off.
Another experience was at the same church where I first met John. He was on stage meditating, waiting his turn to do aura readings. I was looking at him and saw his body start to dissolve in a sea of light. Fear hit me as I thought he was dissolving into the ether. Then he started to appear more tangible. He eventually proceeded with the aura reading. The following week, someone commented to me that John Laurence had started to become transparent while up on the stage. To the best of my knowledge only the two of us observed this phenomenon.
This being of light will eventually ‘dissolve’ away from all of us, but he will leave behind many rays of light to illumine the paths of those who seek and of those who find."
~ Antoinette Spurrier, September 1990
Seek to do brave and lovely things that are left undone by the majority of people.
Give gifts of love and peace to those whom others pass by.
~ Paramahansa Yogananda
The best and most beautiful things in this world cannot be seen or even heard,
but must be felt with the heart.
~ Helen Keller
Love is patient, love is kind.
It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.
It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.
Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.
It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
~ 1 Corinthians 13:4-7
The greatest science in the world; in heaven and on earth; is love.
~ Mother Teresa
Am I not destroying my enemies when I make friends of them?
~ Abraham Lincoln
Welcome to Our CommUNITY of Friends
Our Space ~ Think Globally, Act Locally
Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world.
Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.
~ Margaret Mead
Go over, go under, go around, or go through.
But never give up.
Source: www.successories.com
When a collection of brilliant minds, hearts, and talents come together
...expect a masterpiece.
Imagine Peace ~ Create Peace ~ Advocate Peace ~ Unite in Peace ~ Sustain Peace
Source: http://www.bluemountain.com; Susan Polis Schutz
Albert Einstein Quotes:*
Great spirits have always found violent opposition from mediocrities.
The latter cannot understand it when a man does not thoughtlessly submit to hereditary prejudices but honestly and courageously uses his intelligence.
I know not with what weapons World War III will be fought, but World War IV will be fought with sticks and stones.
If I had only known, I would have been a locksmith.
You cannot simultaneously prevent and prepare for war.
Through the release of atomic energy, our generation has brought into the world the most revolutionary force since prehistoric man's discovery of fire. This basic force of the universe cannot be fitted into the outmoded concept of narrow nationalisms. For there is no secret and there is no defense; there is no possibility of control except through the aroused understanding and insistence of the peoples of the world. We scientists recognise our inescapable responsibility to carry to our fellow citizens an understanding of atomic energy and its implication for society. In this lies our only security and our only hope -- we believe that an informed citizenry will act for life and not for death.
* Source: http://www.humboldt1.com/~gralsto/einstein/quotes.html
Mahatma Gandhi Quotes:*
A cause has the best chance of success when it is examined and followed on its own merits. Measures must always, in a progressive society, be held superior to men, who are after all imperfect instruments, working for their fulfillment.
If we could erase the "I's" and "mine's" from religion, politics, economics, etc., we should soon be free and bring heaven upon earth.
*Source: Gandhi Speaks…Selections from his writings; Published by Self-Realization Fellowship
CommUNITY, Charity, Philanthropy ~
The Peace Prayer of Saint Francis Sung by Sarah McLachlan
Source: www.scarboromissions.ca
CommUNITY
community - Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0:*
261 Moby Thesaurus words for "community": Everyman, John Doe, Public, accord, accordance, affiliation, affinity, agape, agreement, alikeness, alliance, amity, analogy, aping, approach, approximation, ashram, assimilation, association, balance, bipartisanship, body, body politic, bonds of harmony, branch, brotherly love, caritas, caste, cement of friendship, charity, church, citizenry, clan, class, closeness, coaction, coadjuvancy, coadministration, coagency, cochairmanship, codirectorship, coequality, collaboration, collaborativeness, collective farm, collectivism, collectivity, collegiality, collusion, colony, commensalism, commerce, common effort, common enterprise, common man, common ownership, commonwealth, communal effort, communalism, commune, communication, communion, communism, communitarianism, community at large, community of interests, companionship, company, comparability, comparison, compatibility, complicity, concert, concord, concordance, concurrence, conformity, congeniality, congress, consociation, consortship, constituency, conversation, converse, cooperation, cooperative society, cooperativeness, copying, corelation, correlation, correlativism, correlativity, correspondence, cultural community, culture, democracy, denomination, division, duet, duumvirate, dwellers, economic class, ecumenicalism, ecumenicism, ecumenism, empathy, endogamous group, equilibrium, equipollence, equivalence, esprit, esprit de corps, estate, ethnic group, everybody, everyman, everyone, everywoman, extended family, faction, family, feeling of identity, fellow feeling, fellowship, folk, folks, frictionlessness, general public, gens, gentry, good vibes, good vibrations, group, habitancy, happy family, harmony, identity, imitation, inhabitants, intercommunication, intercommunion, intercourse, inverse proportion, inverse ratio, inverse relationship, joining of forces, joint effort, joint operation, kibbutz, kinship, kinship group, kolkhoz, like-mindedness, likeness, likening, linguistic community, love, mass action, men, metaphor, mimicking, moiety, morale, mutual assistance, mutualism, mutuality, nation, nationality, nearness, nuclear family, octet, offshoot, oneness, order, organization, parallelism, parity, partnership, party, peace, people, people at large, people in general, persons, persuasion, phratria, phratry, phyle, polity, pooling, pooling of resources, populace, population, profit sharing, proportionality, public, public ownership, pulling together, quartet, quintet, race, rapport, rapprochement, reciprocality, reciprocation, reciprocity, relativity, religious order, resemblance, sameness, schism, school, sect, sectarism, segment, semblance, septet, settlement, sextet, sharecropping, sharing, similarity, simile, similitude, simulation, social activity, social class, social intercourse, social relations, socialism, society, solidarity, speech community, state, state ownership, stock, strain, subcaste, symbiosis, symmetry, sympathy, symphony, synergism, synergy, team spirit, teamwork, totem, town meeting, trio, triumvirate, troika, understanding, union, unison, united action, unity, variety, version, whole people, world, you and me
Source: The Butterfly Tribe ~ Website: http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewpro file&friendid=16269185
UNITY
unity - Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0:*
165 Moby Thesaurus words for "unity": accord, accordance, affinity, agape, agreement, amity, bonds of harmony, brotherly love, calm, caritas, cement of friendship, charity, coequality, coherence, cohesion, coincidence, collectivity, combination, communion, community, community of interests, compatibility, completeness, complex, comprehensiveness, concord, concordance, concurrence, conformance, congeniality, congruence, congruity, congruousness, consensus, consistency, consonance, constancy, continuity, correspondence, elementarity, embodiment, empathy, entireness, entirety, equability, equality, equanimity, equilibrium, equivalence, esprit, esprit de corps, eternity, evenness, exhaustiveness, feeling of identity, fellow feeling, fellowship, frictionlessness, fullness, fundamentality, glory, good vibes, good vibrations, happy family, harmony, holiness, holism, homogeneity, homoousia, identity, immutability, impartibility, inclusiveness, indiscerptibility, indissolubility, indistinguishability, individuality, indivisibility, infinite goodness, infinite justice, infinite love, infinite mercy, infinite power, infinite wisdom, infinity, infrangibility, infusibility, inseparability, insolubility, intactness, integer, integrality, integration, integrity, kinship, light, like-mindedness, likeness, love, majesty, monism, monolithism, mutuality, no difference, omnipotence, omnipotency, omnipresence, omniscience, omnisciency, oneness, organic unity, peace, persistence, pervasiveness, plainness, purity, rapport, rapprochement, reciprocity, resemblance, sameness, self-identity, selfhood, selfness, selfsameness, severity, sharing, similarity, similitude, simpleness, simplicity, singleness, singularity, solidarity, solidity, sovereignty, stability, starkness, steadfastness, steadiness, sympathy, symphony, synonymity, synonymousness, synonymy, team spirit, thoroughness, total approach, totality, ubiquity, unadulteration, unanimity, understanding, unification, uniformity, union, uniqueness, unison, uniting, universality, unmixedness, unruffledness, unsophistication, whole, wholeness
And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three;
but the greatest of these is charity.
~ I Corinthians: 13:13
CHARITY
char•i•ty n. pl. char•i•ties 1. Provision of help or relief to the poor; almsgiving. 2. Something given to help the needy; alms. 3. An institution, organization, or fund established to help the needy. 4. Benevolence or generosity toward others or toward humanity. 5. Indulgence or forbearance in judging others. See Synonyms at mercy. 6. often Charity Christianity The theological virtue defined as love directed first toward God but also toward oneself and one's neighbors as objects of God's love.
[Middle English charite, from Old French, Christian love, from Latin caritas, affection, from carus, dear; see ka-in Indo-European roots.] The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition copyright ©2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2003. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Source: http://www.thefreedictionary.com/charity
PHILANTHROPY
philanthropy -Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:*
Philanthropy ..Phi*lan"thro*py.., n. [L. philanthropia, Gr. filanqrwpi..a: cf. F. philanthropie.]
Love to mankind; benevolence toward the whole human family; universal good will; desire and readiness to do good to all men; -- opposed to misanthropy. --Jer. Taylor. [1913 Webster]
2. An active effort to promote human welfare; humanitarian activity. In this sense, it is an action, not merely a state of mind.
[PJC] philanthropy -WordNet (r) 2.0 (August 2003): philanthropy
n : voluntary promotion of human welfare [syn: philanthropic gift]
*Source: http://onlinedictionary.datasegment.com/
If I can stop one heart from breaking,
I shall not live in vain;
If I can ease one life the aching,
or cool one pain
Or help one fainting robin Unto his nest again,
I shall not live in vain...
~ Emily Dickinson
Only your compassion and your loving kindness are invincible, and without limit.
~ Thich Nhat Hanh
People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.
~ Bonnie Jean Wasmund
Tenderness and kindness are not signs of weakness and despair, but manifestations of strength and resolution.
~ Kahlil Gibran
Since love grows within you, so beauty grows.
For love is the beauty of the soul.
~ Saint Augustine
Some people come into our lives and quickly go.
Some people move our souls to dance.
They awaken us to new understanding with the passing whisper of their wisdom.
Some people make the sky more beautiful to gaze upon.
They stay in our lives for awhile, leave footprints on our hearts, and we are never ever the same.
~ by Flavia Weedn
The thought manifests as the word.
The word manifests as the deed.
The deed develops into habit.
And the habit hardens into character.
So watch the thought and its ways with care.
And let it spring from love, born out of concern for all beings.
~ Buddha
Our real self, the soul, is immortal.
We may sleep for a little while in that change called death, but we can never be destroyed.
We exist, and that existence is eternal.
The wave comes to the shore, and then goes back to the sea; it is not lost.
It becomes one with the ocean, or returns again in the form of another wave.
This body has come, and it will vanish;
but the soul essence within it will never cease to exist.
Nothing can terminate that eternal consciousness.
~ Paramahansa Yogananda
In loving honor of all those impacted in the tragedy at Virginia Tech.
Source & Resource: Copyright © Self-Realization Fellowship. All rights reserved. Website: http://www.yogananda-srf.org/writings/death.html; WHERE THERE IS LIGHT: Insight & Inspiration for Meeting Life's Challenges; Author: Paramahansa Yogananda
Israel Kamakawiwo'ole ~ Somewhere Over The Rainbow
Live your beliefs and you can turn the world around.
~ Henry David Thoreau
Please Do Something ~
WE CAN ALL DO SOMETHING ~ GET INVOLVED NOW TO CHANGE OUR WORLD FOR THE BETTER
Bob Marley & The Wailers ~ One Love
TUMAINI ~ WORDS OF HOPE
We must accept finite disappointment, but never lose infinite hope.
~ Martin Luther King, Jr.
When you do nothing, you feel overwhelmed and powerless.
But when you get involved, you feel the sense of hope and accomplishment that comes from knowing you are working to make things better.
~ Pauline R. Kezer
Most of the important things in the world have been accomplished by people who have kept on trying when there seemed to be no hope at all.
~ Dale Carnegie
I have learned two lessons in my life: first, there are no sufficient literary, psychological, or historical answers to human tragedy, only moral ones.
Second, just as despair can come to one another only from other human beings, hope, too, can be given to one only by other human beings.
~ Elie Wiesel
Listen to the Exhortation of the Dawn!
Look to this Day!
For it is Life, the very Life of Life.
In its brief course lie all the
Verities and Realities of your Existence.
The Bliss of Growth,
The Glory of Action,
The Splendor of Beauty;
For Yesterday is but a Dream,
And Tomorrow is only a Vision;
But Today Well Lived Makes
Every Yesterday a Dream of Happiness,
And Every Tomorrow a Vision of Hope.
Look Well Therefore to this Day!
Such is the Salutation of the Dawn!
~ Kalidasa
Far away there in the sunshine are my highest aspirations.
I may not reach them but I can look up and see their beauty, believe in them, and try to follow them.
~ Louisa May Alcott
If you lose hope, somehow you lose the vitality that keeps life moving, you lose that courage to be, that quality that helps you go on in spite of it all.
And so today I still have a dream.
The Trumpet of Conscience
~ Martin Luther King, Jr.
The pessimist sees difficulty in every opportunity. The optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty.
~ Winston Churchill
Hope is the thing with feathers
That perches in the soul
And sings the tune without the words
And never stops at all.
~ Emily Dickinson
ACTION IS ELOQUENCE. ~ William Shakespeare
Hear the world with an open heart and an open mind.
Source: www.successories.com
ACTS OF KINDNESS ~ DON'T ALMOST GIVE ~ DON'T ALMOST ACT ~
PLEASE GIVE & ACT NOW
HERE ARE SOME MORE WAYS HOW:
http://www.textilesforpeace.co.uk/panels.htm
EQUALITY, JUSTICE, DIGNITY ~ World Conference Against Racism
www.un.org/WCAR/
CELEBRATE LIFE
THE MOMENT IS NOW
REACH FOR THE SKY
NO GOAL IS TOO HIGH
More Empowerment Sound Bytes from Our Founder, Antoinette Spurrier
…There is a wonderful monk, that right now isn’t speaking, but, he told this story, and I wish I had his flair for telling the story, but it’s a profound story, so I’ll tell it without his flair.
He says,
‘You know, all of the stories about the devil, and all the literature’;
he said, ‘It may be good reading, and we have, the devil comes; he has all these plots, and he tries to get man diverted from what he’s doing.’
He said, ‘In reality, the devil has a very easy job.
In fact, it’s sort of like being on coffee break all the time.
He doesn’t have to go fight demons, and wrestle with people for their souls, or develop complicated plots, in order to get them to give up their souls.'
He said,
‘He only needs one thought.
And that thought is this:
‘Who are you to think you can?’ All he has to do is whisper that in our ear.'
And that’s all he has to whisper in our ear, to make us stop moving towards claiming who we truly are.
‘Who are you to think you can?’
And I know the answer:
We are Divine children of God.
Every one of us.…
…I think most people live as prisoners of their subconscious and conscious habits.
They don’t live igniting the power of their potential based on their divinity.
They are living from habit; it’s the repetition of habit patterns in thinking.
But it’s habitual, circular stuff that never takes us higher, but it takes us in the same circle over and over again and we don’t change it overnight.
The first step to really changing it is to become aware,
to start to entertain there’s a possibility of more
and to start to pay attention to how our consciousness is working, in order to re-program the consciousness.…
…And you’re also talking about an aspect of the cause and effect relationship.
You’re talking about,
‘As I change the magnetism by which I perceive,
as I change my thoughts,
as I change the things that are interesting to me,
I will change that which is attracted to me
and the things that I am able to attract to myself
and that which I can contribute to others….
…When we change our consciousness we change our circumstances.
When our mind opens up to possibilities.
So going back to what we were talking about, so when you say
‘I’m to the place in my life I am not going to keep carrying the things that were limiting my consciousness and where I could go, and I’m going forward’;
that is exactly the attitude that you should have.…
…(Paramahansa) Yogananda said,
‘There is one truth -- you are the sum total of all of your journeys.
You have only one moment in time -- now.
You have to be vigorous in embracing the now.
You cannot live in the past;
you can’t correct one mistake that you made,
and you cannot cease making effort because of things you accomplished in the past.’
He said,
‘The past is done.
You need to attend to the now if you are going to become a spiritually awake and aware human being.’…
…There is a saying that Swami Sri Yukteswar has and it sounds like not such a substantial quote. It is powerful.
He said, I want to get it as clearly as he stated, using his words, as clearly as I can --
‘Human conduct is ever unreliable until man is anchored in the divine’;
that is his explanation of all sin.
Sin equals:
‘Human conduct is ever unreliable until man is anchored in the divine.’
So what is the solution?
To increase man’s participation in the divine and his anchoring in the divine is the solution to all of the dilemma of evil, sin, misconduct, confusion and conflict….
…The real demons that slay us,
are the demons of hopelessness,
the demons of discouragement,
the demons of feeling spiritually inadequate,
the demons of feeling not worthy to receive from God,
the demons of feeling that we are less than what we should be, and therefore, us being less ‘How could God use us?’
Those are the demons you’ve got to watch out for,
because they’re the ones that have the ability to slay us, and to take us down and to tie us up and throw our carcass into the sea,
and they’re the ones that can take us down.
Because, when we continue to participate in that we are participating in spiritual untruths.…
…We are divine children of God,
and the power of God is within us,
powerfully,
magnetically,
expansively,
and the Creator that created us,
part of that creative force is within us.
We are not sole containers of that creative force,
but part of that force is within us,
and it has the power to create;
and it has the power to generate,
and it has the power to change any circumstance or condition that we are in.
And I believe in that.…
~ Source for quotes above: Excerpts from conversations with Antoinette Spurrier; Copyright © 2005
Image source: myspace.com/kiteflix
The Foundation for Personal and Spiritual Empowerment ~
Transformation through Affirmation©
CONTACT US
E-mail us at: [email protected]
You've Got a Friend ~
The Time for Empowerment is Now...
Time after Time ~ Cindy Lauper & Sarah McLachlan
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God…All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.
~ John 1:1,3
Words that enlighten the soul are more precious than jewels.
~ Inayat Kahn
Source: www.quotablecards.com
Tim McGraw - Live Like You Were Dying
Music and rhythm find their way into the secret places of the soul.
~ Plato
Take a music bath once or twice a week for a few seasons. You will find it is to the soul what a water bath is to the body.
~ Oliver Wendell Holmes
SHANTI SHANTI
Shanti ~ Sanskrit for calmness, serenity, peace ~
Shanti Shanti is gaining worldwide recognition for their Sanskrit chanting as well as for their unique approach to New Age music. Sanskrit is the ancient language of India and is known for its tranquil and harmonious effects.
For more information and upcoming events, please visit http://shantishanti.com/
Prayer or worship is considered to be an integral part of the Hindu way of living. The chanting of mantras is the most popular form of worship in Hinduism. Yoga and meditation are also considered as a form of devotional service towards the Lord.
Before the process of ritual, before the invoking of different deities for the fulfillment of various needs, came the human aspiration to the highest truth, the foundational monism of Hinduism, pertaining ultimately to the one Brahman. Brahman, which summarily can be called the unknowable, true, infinite and blissful Divine Ground, is the source and being of all existence from which the cosmos springs. This is the essence of the Vedic system. The following prayer was part and parcel of all the Vedic ceremonies and continues to be invoked even today in Hindu temples all over India and other countries around the world, and exemplifies this essence:
Asato Ma Sad Gamaya Tamaso Ma Jyotir Gamaya Mrityor Ma Amritam Gamaya Om Shanti Shanti Shanti.
This means: "Lead Us From Untruth To Truth, Lead Us From Darkness To Light, Lead Us From Death To Immortality, Aum (the universal sound of God) Let There Be Peace Peace Peace."
Source & Resource: Excerpted from Wikipedia ~ The Free Encyclopedia; Website: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prayer_in_Hinduism
TO WRITE LOVE ON HER ARMS
“To Write Love on Her Arms is a work in progress. This began with one broken girl, one painful night; addiction, depression, cutting. This is a glimpse at the five days that followed, a decision to love and to begin telling her true story. To Write Love on Her Arms is becoming something bigger, something hopeful. It's the realization of what life can be when we commit to meeting a need. A friend of mine told me there's no such thing as suicide prevention. This is an attempt to prove him wrong, to say that love can change a life. We can hold back the darkness. Rescue is possible. More soon to come. Join us as we continue to write her story, and as we begin to offer hope to the many hopeless who walk these dark roads. A Jimmy Eat World lyric has been stuck in my head today, ‘Believe your voice can mean something’."
Source & Resource: http://www.myspace.com/towriteloveonherarms
Ottmar Liebert ~ "10,000 Butterflies"
We Are All Connected ~ Let’s Join Together & Let One Another’s True Colors Shine Through ~
Nature photos taken at Self-Realization Fellowship Retreat Center & Meditation Gardens; Encinitas, California http://www.yogananda-srf.org/temples/encinitas/index.html
Melissa Etheridge - I Need to Wake Up
Setbacks pave the way for comebacks.
~ Prism
Expect a miracle.
~ Author unknown
What is COURAGE?
Confronting the dragons.
Overcoming the obstacles.
Understanding the risks.
Really living.
Always believing.
Going the distance.
Expecting the BEST!
~ Author unknown
GANDHI ~ The Movie
Ahimsa (Non-violence), Understanding & Tolerance
Man and his deed are two distinct things. Whereas a good deed should call forth approbation and a wicked deed disapprobation, the doer of the deed, whether good or wicked, always deserves respect or pity as the case may be. 'Hate the sin and not the sinner' is a precept which, though easy enough to understand, is rarely practised, and that is why the poison of hatred spreads in the world.
This ahimsa is the basis of the search for truth. I am realizing every day that the search is vain unless it is founded on ahimsa as the basis. It is quite proper to resist and attack a system, but to resist and attack its author is tantamount to resisting and attacking oneself. For we are all tarred with the same brush, and are children of one and the same Creator, and as such the divine powers within us are infinite. To slight a single human being is to slight those divine powers, and thus to harm not only that being but with him the whole world.
~ Mahatma Gandhi
Source: Gandhi ~ An Autobiography ~ The Story of My Experiments with Truth
SYNOPSIS
"Gandhi is a riveting story about activism, politics, religious tolerance and freedom, depicting the life and times of Mahatma Gandhi, the Indian political leader who managed to free his country from the British rule using peaceful means and thus giving hope and inspiration for generations to come. In addition to four time Academy Award nominee Kingsley (Schindler's List, Sexy Beast), the brilliant cast includes Edward Fox (A Passage to India), Roshan Seth (A Passage to India), Academy Award nominee Candice Bergen (Best Supporting Actress, Starting Over, 1980; TV's "Murphy Brown," "Boston Legal"), Academy Award winner Sir John Gielgud (Best Supporting Actor, Arthur, 1981), Academy Award nominee Trevor Howard (Best Actor, Sons and Lovers, 1960) and Martin Sheen (The Departed, TV's "The West Wing")."
Source: http://www.ropeofsilicon.com/movies.php?id=910
AN INCONVENIENT TRUTH
Available Now on DVD
WHAT IS GLOBAL WARMING?
The Science:
"Carbon dioxide and other gases warm the surface of the planet naturally by trapping solar heat in the atmosphere. This is a good thing because it keeps our planet habitable. However, by burning fossil fuels such as coal, gas and oil and clearing forests we have dramatically increased the amount of carbon dioxide in the Earth’s atmosphere and temperatures are rising.
The vast majority of scientists agree that global warming is real, it’s already happening and that it is the result of our activities and not a natural occurrence. [1] The evidence is overwhelming and undeniable.
We’re already seeing changes. Glaciers are melting, plants and animals are being forced from their habitat, and the number of severe storms and droughts is increasing.
The number of Category 4 and 5 hurricanes has almost doubled in the last 30 years. [2]
Malaria has spread to higher altitudes in places like the Colombian Andes, 7,000 feet above sea level. [3]
The flow of ice from glaciers in Greenland has more than doubled over the past decade. [4]
At least 279 species of plants and animals are already responding to global warming, moving closer to the poles. [5]
If the warming continues, we can expect catastrophic consequences.
Deaths from global warming will double in just 25 years -- to 300,000 people a year. [6]
Global sea levels could rise by more than 20 feet with the loss of shelf ice in Greenland and Antarctica, devastating coastal areas worldwide. [7]
Heat waves will be more frequent and more intense.
Droughts and wildfires will occur more often.
The Arctic Ocean could be ice free in summer by 2050. [8]
More than a million species worldwide could be driven to extinction by 2050. [9]
There is no doubt we can solve this problem. In fact, we have a moral obligation to do so.
Small changes to your daily routine can add up to big differences in helping to stop global warming.
The time to come together to solve this problem is now – TAKE ACTION
1. According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), this era of global warming 'is unlikely to be entirely natural in origin' and 'the balance of evidence suggests a discernible human influence of the global climate.'
2. Emanuel, K. 2005. Increasing destructiveness of tropical cyclones over the past 30 years. Nature 436: 686-688.
3. World Health Organization
4. Krabill, W., E. Hanna, P. Huybrechts, W. Abdalati, J. Cappelen, B. Csatho, E. Frefick, S. Manizade, C. Martin, J, Sonntag, R. Swift, R. Thomas and J. Yungel. 2004. Greenland Ice Sheet: Increased coastal thinning. Geophysical Research Letters 31.
5. Nature.
6. World Health Organization
7. Washington Post, "Debate on Climate Shifts to Issue of Irreparable Change," Juliet Eilperin, January 29, 2006, Page A1.
8. Arctic Climate Impact Assessment. 2004. Impacts of a Warming Arctic. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. Also quoted in Time Magazine, Vicious Cycles, Missy Adams, March 26, 2006.
9. Time Magazine, Feeling the Heat, David Bjerklie, March 26, 2006."
Source & Resource: For more information and to get involved, please visit: http://climatecrisis.org/
Nature is full of genius, full of the divinity...
~ Henry David Thoreau, Journal, 5 January 1856
Virginia Lakes, Eastern Sierra Mountains, California; © KG Mullen
Every part of the earth is sacred to my people. Every shining pine needle, every sandy shore, every mist in the dark woods, every meadow, every humming insect. All are holy.
We know the sap that courses through the trees as we know the blood that runs through our veins. We are part of the earth and the earth is part of us. The perfumed flowers are our sisters. The bear, the deer, the great eagle; these are our brothers. The rocky crests, the berries in the meadow, the body heat of the pony and the people, all belong to the same family.
The shining water that moves in the streams and rivers is not just water but the blood of our ancestors. Each shimmering reflection in the clear water of the lakes tells of events and memories in the life of my people. The water's murmur is the voice of my father's father.
The rivers are our brothers. They quench our thirst. They carry our canoes and give drink to our children. So you must give the rivers the kindness you would give any brother or sister.
The air is precious to us. The air shares its spirit with all the life it supports. The wind that gave our grandfather his first breath also receives his last sigh. The wind also gives our children the spirit of life.
The earth is our mother. What befalls the earth befalls all the children of the earth. All things are connected like the blood that connects us all. We did not weave the web of life; we are merely strands in it. Whatever we do to the web, we do to ourselves.
This we know: that our god is also your god. The earth is precious to God and to harm the earth is to heap contempt upon its creator.
What will happen when the buffalo are all slaughtered? The wild horses tamed? What will happen when the secret corners of the forest are heavy with the scent of many people and the view of the ripe hills is blotted by talking wires? Where will the thicket be? Gone! Where will the eagle be? Gone! And what is it to say good-bye to the swift pony and the hunt? The end of living and the beginning of survival.
We love the earth as a newborn loves its mother's heartbeat. Preserve the land for all children and love it, as God loves us all. We Indians are part of this land. You too are part of this land. The earth is precious to us. It is also precious to you. None of us can be apart. We are all brothers and sisters, together woven in to this sacred earth.
~ Chief Seattle, "Every Part of the Earth is Sacred"
I'm not imagining it when I say that looking up at the sky, the clouds, the moon, and the stars makes me feel calm and hopeful.
It's better medicine than either valerian or bromide;
nature makes me feel humble and ready to take each blow with courage.
~ Anne Frank, The Diary of Anne Frank
The best remedy for those who are afraid, lonely or unhappy is to go outside,
somewhere where they can be quiet, alone with the heavens, nature...
Because only then does one feel that all is as it should be…
amidst the simple beauty of nature.
As long as this exists, and it certainly always will,
I know that then there will always be comfort for every sorrow,
whatever the circumstances may be.
And I firmly believe that nature brings solace in all troubles.
~ Anne Frank, The Diary of Anne Frank
Louis Armstrong
WHAT A WONDERFUL WORLD
(George Weiss / Bob Thiele)
I see trees of green, red roses too I see them bloom for me and you And I think to myself, what a wonderful world
I see skies of blue and clouds of white The bright blessed day, the dark sacred night And I think to myself, what a wonderful world
The colours of the rainbow, so pretty in the sky Are also on the faces of people going by I see friends shakin' hands, sayin' "How do you do?" They're really saying "I love you"
I hear babies cryin', I watch them grow They'll learn much more than I'll ever know And I think to myself, what a wonderful world Yes, I think to myself, what a wonderful world
Oh yeah
Source: http://www.mathematik.uni-ulm.de/paul/lyrics/louisa~1/whataw ~1.html
Self-Realization Fellowship Retreat Center & Meditation Gardens; Encinitas, California http://www.yogananda-srf.org/temples/encinitas/index.html
Be still, and know that I am God...
~ Psalms 46:10
HEALTH AWARENESS & ADVOCACY PORTAL
(Under Construction)
ADVISORY for Sunday, October 14
LEAD for Darfur Benefit for the Zam Zam Safe Motherhood
Clinic in Darfur: Let Everyone take Action for Darfur!
BALTIMORE, Md., Oct. 1 (AScribe Newswire) -- Clayton Fine
Books and Cyber Cafe is pleased to announce a LEAD (Let
Everyone take Action for Darfur!) for Darfur Benefit for the
Zam Zam Safe Motherhood Clinic in Darfur. The event will be
held at Clayton Fine Books & Cyber Cafe, 317 N. Charles
Street, Baltimore, Md. 21201, on Oct. 14, 2007 from 2 to 4
p.m. All donations go to Relief International to directly
benefit the clinic.
The benefit will feature a live auction of donated art
works and jewelry, live entertainment (including a poetry
reading by local poet Reginald Harris), and a slide
presentation on the Zam Zam Clinic.
Free drinks, hors d'oeuvres, and desserts will be served.
The Zam-Zam clinic is operated by the NGO Relief
International in Darfur, serving some 35,000 refugees
displaced by the conflict in Sudan. It remains one of the
few facilities providing medical care to the refugee
community.
Your donations are urgently needed now more than ever to
keep the clinic running. In 2006, Patricia Crawford was able
to donate $10,000 to the Zam Zam Clinic due to a fundraiser
she organized in Washington, D.C. Recently, Patricia and her
efforts were featured on ABC-TV national news. Now she hopes
to do the same or better in her hometown of Baltimore.
We ask you to help us keep health care coming to
displaced refugees fleeing the conflict between government
and rebel forces in Darfur. Diseases continue to thrive in
unsanitary and dire conditions. The situation requires
continued intervention from relief organizations and
benefits like ours.
We look forward to meeting you at the LEAD for Darfur
Benefit!
Suggested donations at the door: $10 students (id
required) $15 all others. All donations are tax-deductible.
See www.lead4darfur.org for more information on the Zam Zam
Clinic and how you may become involved in our effort.
For more information on the Zam Zam Clinic, our efforts,
and how you can become involved, see www.lead4darfur.org.
- - - -
CONTACTS: Donna or Cameron Northouse,
Clayton Fine Books & Cafe,
317 N. Charles Street, Baltimore, MD 21201,
410-752-6800, [email protected]
Patricia Crawford, Chair, [email protected],
-30-
Media Contact: See above.
AScribe - The Public Interest Newswire /510-653-9400
http://www.ascribe.org
Welcome. Pease visit our blog for extensive information regarding a wide-range of disease-specific, health and health care related topics and issues, many of which are represented below. This is an ongoing work in progress and we welcome your comments and suggestions.
…Each patient carries his own doctor inside him.
They come to us not knowing this truth.
We are at our best when we give the doctor who resides within each patient a chance to go to work.
~ Albert Schweitzer
What Injury, Illness & Disease Cannot Do
Injury, Illness & Disease are so Limited ~
They cannot suppress love,
They cannot shatter hope,
They cannot corrode faith,
They cannot destroy peace,
They cannot kill friendship,
They cannot silence courage,
They cannot invade the soul,
They cannot steal eternal life,
They cannot conquer the Spirit.
~ Author unknown
THE GOAL IS PREVENTION ~ TWO KEYS TO PROTECTION ARE EARLY DETECTION & THE RIGHT INTERVENTION
Get Informed. Get Involved. Take Good Care of Yourself & Others.
Doing good to others is not a duty.
It is a joy, for it increases your own health and happiness.
~ Zoroaster
Getting through another day should not be a matter of luck.
You can make an important difference in the world right now.
Don't Almost Give.
Don't Wait.
Please Act Now.
The sum of the whole is this: walk and be happy; walk and be healthy.
The best way to lengthen out our days is to walk steadily and with a purpose.
~ Charles Dickens
Health, Wellness & Health Care Resources
…the patient must combat the disease along with the physician…
~ Hippocrates; The Hippocratic Corpus
The information provided herein should not be used during any medical emergency or for the diagnosis or treatment of any medical condition. The information presented on this web site is intended for informational purposes only and is not intended to render medical advice. This information should not be used for diagnosing or treating a health problem or a disease. It is not a substitute for professional care. A licensed medical professional should be consulted for diagnosis and treatment of any and all medical conditions. Call 911 for all medical emergencies. Links to other sites are provided for information only -- they do not constitute endorsements of those other sites.
Scleroderma Awareness ~ Together We Can Make A Difference
Resources:
MedicineNet, Inc.; Website: http://www.medicinenet.com/scleroderma/article.htm
U.S. National Institutes of Health Department of Health & Human Services National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases; Website: http://www.niams.nih.gov/hi/topics/scleroderma/scleroderma.h tm
International Scleroderma Network; Website: http://www.sclero.org/medical/about-sd/a-to-z.html
The Mayo Clinic; Website: http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/scleroderma/DS00362/DSECTIO N=2
Stroke Awareness
Additional Resource:
U.S. Department of Health & Human Services Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; Website: http://www.cdc.gov/stroke/
Heart Disease Awareness
Resources:
U.S. Department of Health & Human Services National Institutes of Health National Heart, Lung & Blood Institute; Website: http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/public/heart/index.htm
The Mayo Clinic; Website: http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/heart-disease/HB99999
General Cancer Information Resources
The National Cancer Institute (NCI) ~ Sources of National Cancer Institute Information
Cancer Information Service (CIS): Toll-free: 1–800–4–CANCER (1–800–422–6237) TTY (for deaf and hard of hearing callers): 1–800–332–8615
NCI Online ~ Internet:
Use http://www.cancer.gov to reach NCI's website.
LiveHelp Cancer Information Specialists offer online assistance through the LiveHelp link on the NCI's Web site at https://cissecure.nci.nih.gov/livehelp/welcome.asp
Source & Resource: National Cancer Institute; Website: http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/factsheet/Support/end-of- life-care
Get live, online assistance from the National Cancer Institute's LiveHelp service:
LiveHelp does not provide medical advice.
LiveHelp is confidential.
LiveHelp for general cancer questions or assistance in navigating NCI Web sites is available Monday - Friday 9:00 AM - 11:00 PM Eastern Time.
LiveHelp for smoking cessation assistance is available Monday - Friday 9:00 AM - 11:00 PM Eastern Time.
CareCounsel’s Healthcare Assistance Program; Website: http://www.carecounsel.com
Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC); Website: http://www.cdc.gov/cancer/linksalt.htm
Physician Data Query (PDQ); Website: http://cancernet.nci.nih.gov/pdq.htm
Association of Clinicians for the Underserved (ACU); Website: http://www.clinicians.org/
CareCounsel’s Healthcare Assistance Program; Website: http://www.carecounsel.com
Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC); Website: http://www.cdc.gov/cancer/linksalt.htm
Physician Data Query (PDQ); Website: http://cancernet.nci.nih.gov/pdq.htm
Association of Clinicians for the Underserved (ACU); Website: http://www.clinicians.org/
Commonweal Home Page; Website: http://www.commonweal.org/
National Institutes of Health (NIH), National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM); Websites: http://nccam.nih.gov/about/advisory/capcam/Physician Data Query (PDQ): http://cancernet.nci.nih.gov/pdq.htm
Division of Cancer Prevention and Control (DCPC); Website: http://www.cdc.gov/cancer/
FDA Cancer Liaison Program; Website: http://www.fda.gov/oashi/cancer/cancer.html
National Cancer Institute; Website: http://www.nih.gov/
National Cancer Institute: Information for People with Cancer; Website: http://rex.nci.nih.gov/ PATIENTS/INFO_PEOPL_DOC.html
Brain Cancer Awareness
Resource:
The U.S. National Institutes of Health National Cancer Institute; Website: http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/wyntk/brain/allpages
Breast Cancer Awareness
Resources:
http://blog.myspace.com/betsymullen
Breast Cancer Trials Home Page; Website: http://cancertrials.nci.nih.gov/clinicaltrials
The Breast Cancer Research Stamp ~ Fund the Fight. Find a Cure.,,
The Breast Cancer Research Stamp is sold at a surcharge above the price of an ordinary first class stamp. Currently, first class stamps sell for 41-cents. The Breast Cancer Research Stamp costs 55-cents.
The surplus above the price of the first class stamp is collected by the United States Postal Service and allocated to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the Department of Defense (DoD) to fund breast cancer research.
You Can Purchase The Breast Cancer Research Stamp Online at:
http://shop.usps.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDispla y?catalogId=10152&storeId=10001&productId=14101& langId=-1
Childhood Cancer Awareness
Resources:
The U.S. National Institutes of Health National Cancer Institute; Website: http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/types/childhoodcancers
Pediatric Oncology Resource Center; Websites: http://www.acor.org/ped-onc/diseases/causes.html & http://www.acor.org/ped-onc/index.html
Colon & Rectal Cancer Awareness
Resource:
The U.S. National Institutes of Health National Cancer Institute; Website: http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/types/colon-and-rectal
Leukemia Awareness
Resource:
The U.S. National Institutes of Health National Cancer Institute; Website: http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/types/leukemia
Lung Cancer Awareness
Resource:
The U.S. National Institutes of Health National Cancer Institute; Website: http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/wyntk/lung/allpages
Melanoma Awareness
Resource:
The U.S. National Institutes of Health National Cancer Institute; Website: http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/wyntk/melanoma/allpages
Ovarian Cancer Awareness
Resource:
The National Cancer Institute (NCI); Website: http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/wyntk/ovary/allpages
Prostate Cancer Awareness
Resources:
The U.S. National Institutes of Health National Cancer Institute; Website: http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/wyntk/prostate/allpages
University of Virginia Health System; Website: http://www.healthsystem.virginia.edu/UVAHealth/adult_urology /online.cfm
Testicular Cancer Awareness
Resources:
The U.S. National Institutes of Health National Cancer Institute; Website: http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/pdq/screening/testicular/ patient/allpages/print
Testicular Cancer Resource Center; Website: http://tcrc.acor.org/chemoquest.html
AIDS Awareness
Resources:
U.S. National Library of Medicine & the National Institutes of Health; Website: http://sis.nlm.nih.gov/hiv.html
Global Health Council; Website: http://globalhealth.org/view_top.php3?id=227
Lou Gehrig's Disease (ALS) Awareness
Resources:
U.S. National Library of Medicine & the National Institutes of Health; Website: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/amyotrophiclateralscleros is.html
The ALS Association; Website: http://www.alsa.org/
Alzheimer's Disease Awareness
Resources:
U.S. National Institutes of Health National Institute on Aging; Website: http://www.nia.nih.gov/alzheimers
U.S. National Institutes of Health National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke; Website: http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/alzheimersdisease/alzheim ersdisease.htm
Autism Awareness
Resources:
U.S. Department of Health & Human Services Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; Website: http://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/autism/
Cerebral Palsy Awareness
Resources:
U.S. National Institutes of Health National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke; Website: http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/cerebral_palsy/detail_cer ebral_palsy.htm
U.S. Department of Health & Human Services Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; Website: http://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/dd/ddcp.htm
Diabetes Awareness
Resources:
National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, National Institutes of Health National Diabetes Information Clearinghouse; Website: http://diabetes.niddk.nih.gov/
U.S. National Institutes of Health, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention National Diabetes Education Program; Website: http://ndep.nih.gov/
Eating Disorders Awareness
Resources:
U.S. National Library of Medicine & the National Institutes of Health Medline Plus; Website: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/eatingdisorders.html
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office on Women's Health National Women's Health Information Center; Website: http://www.4women.gov/bodyimage/eatingdisorders/
Lupus Awareness
Resources:
National Institutes of Health Department of Health & Human Services U.S. National Library of Medicine; Website: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/lupus.html
National Institutes of Health Department of Health & Human Services National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases; Website: http://www.niams.nih.gov/hi/topics/lupus/lupusguide/chp8.htm
Mental Health & Mental Illness Awareness
Resources:
Medline Plus, a service of the U.S. National Institutes of Health Department of Health & Human Services, U.S. National Library of Medicine; Website: http://familydoctor.org/online/famdocen/home/articles/589.ht ml
The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH); part of the National Institutes of Health, a component of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services; Website: http://www.nimh.nih.gov/healthinformation/index.cfm
The National Institutes of Health, National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH); Website: http://science.education.nih.gov/supplements/nih5/Mental/gui de/additional-web-res.htm
Multiple Sclerosis Awareness
Resources:
British Medical Journal (BMJ) Best Treatments; Website: http://www.besttreatments.co.uk/btuk/conditions/16742.html
MedicineNet, Inc.; Website: http://www.medicinenet.com/multiple_sclerosis/article.htm
Muscular Dystrophy Awareness
Resources:
The Mayo Clinic; Website: http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/muscular-dystrophy/DS00200/ DSECTION=1
U.S. National Institutes of Health National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke; Website: http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/md/md.htm
Parkinson's Disease Awareness
Resources:
Parkinson's Resource Organization (PRO); Website: http://www.parkinsonsresource.org/
MedicineNet, Inc.; Website: http://www.medicinenet.com/parkinsons_disease/article.htm
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) Awareness
Resources:
The National Institutes of Health, Department of Health & Human Services, U.S. National Library of Medicine ~ Medline Plus; Website: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/posttraumaticstressdisord er.html
The United States Department of Veteran Affairs The National Center for PTSD (NCPTSD; Website: http://www.ncptsd.va.gov/ncmain/index.jsp
Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy (RSD) Awareness
Resources:
National Institutes of Health Department of Health & Human Services US National Library of Medicine; Website: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/complexregionalpainsyndro me.html
National Institutes of Health Department of Health & Human Services National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke; Website: http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/reflex_sympathetic_dystro phy/detail_reflex_sympathetic_dystrophy.htm
Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STD) Awareness
Resources:
MedLine Plus, a service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health Department of Health & Human Services; Website: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/sexuallytransmitteddiseas es.html
National Prevention Information Network (NPIN), a service of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; Website: http://www.cdcnpin.org/scripts/index.asp
International Union against Sexually Transmitted Infections; Website: http://www.iusti.org/
Spinal Cord Injury Awareness
Resources:
National Academy of Sciences Institute of Medicine (IOM); Website: http://www.iom.edu/CMS/3775/14986/26196.aspx
The National Institutes of Health, Department of Health & Human Services, U.S. National Library of Medicine ~ Medline Plus; Website: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/spinalcordinjuries.html
Substance Abuse Awareness
Resources:
The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA; part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), a component of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services; Website: http://www.nida.nih.gov/
National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA);part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH),a component of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services; Website: http://www.niaaa.nih.gov/
Pregnancy & Substance Abuse ~ The National Institutes of Health (NIH),a component of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services; Website: http://health.nih.gov/result.asp/534
Traumatic Brain Injury Awareness
Resources:
National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke National Institutes of Health; Website: http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/tbi/tbi.htm
National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders, National Institutes of Health; Website: http://www.nidcd.nih.gov/health/voice/tbrain.htm
Domestic Violence Awareness
Resources:
The National Institutes of Health, Department of Health & Human Services, U.S. National Library of Medicine ~ Medline Plus; Website: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/domesticviolence.html
American Medical Association (AMA); Website: http://www.ama-assn.org/ama/pub/category/15507.html
Please check out our blog for tips and resources to quit smoking.
Friends Don't Let Friends Drive Drunk
Maintain a Balanced, Healthy Lifestyle ~ Work Out & Nurture Your Body, Mind & Spirit
Affirm Health & Vitality
I think most people live as prisoners of their subconscious and conscious habits.
They don't live igniting the power of their potential based on their divinity.
They are living from habit;
it's the repetition of habit patterns in thinking.
But it's habitual, circular stuff that never takes us higher,
but it takes us in the same circle over and over again.
The first step to really changing it is to become aware,
to start to entertain there's a possibility of more
and to start to pay attention to how our consciousness is working,
in order to re-program the consciousness.
And we don't change it overnight.
Antoinette's Affirmation© for the Week ~ Affirming Health & Vitality
I am radiant, endless, vibrant, electric energy and youth in every cell and atom of my being now.
I am radiant,
endless,
vibrant,
electric energy
and youth
in every cell and
atom
of my being
now.
That affirmation is from John Laurence and that's a gift I'm giving to you today.
John Laurence used to say to me:
'You must affirm that which you are desiring to materialize.
Don't wait until you feel worthy to affirm it;
you have to affirm it as if there is no obstacle in the way.
You have to repeat, bombard, consciousness.
Repeat, bombard, consciousness'.
And, when we affirm our divinity…
When you start affirming that, whether or not you feel the vibration of it; if you keep bombarding it...
you start allowing an alignment and an attunement with Spirit that begins to open up things in a different way.
~ Antoinette Spurrier, Founder, Foundation for Personal and Spiritual Empowerment; © 2005
May You Be Blessed
http://www.mayyoubeblessedmovie.com/onemillionblessings.html
Wishing you Health, Vitality, Love, Light & Grace ~
The Foundation for Personal & Spiritual Empowerment
Source: www.bikramyogachelsea.com/images/postures.jpg
Resources:
Nurturing Body, Mind, and Spirit Health Planner
University of Minnesota, Life Science Foundation, Center for Spirituality and Healing; Website: http://takingcharge.csh.umn.edu/healthy_lifestyle
NUTRITION
U.S. Department of Health & Human Services Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC); Website: http://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/dnpa/nutrition/index.htm
The CDC nutrition efforts cover a wide spectrum of related topics. Good nutrition is vital to good health, disease prevention, and essential for healthy growth and development of children and adolescents.
Nutrition for Everyone
While you know it is important to eat a healthy diet, it isn’t always easy to sort through all of the information available about nutrition and food choices. The CDC has compiled a variety of resources with healthy eating tips and information.
Healthy Weight
To maintain a healthy weight, you need to balance the calories you use with those you take in. Learn more about how healthy eating and physical activity work together in healthy weight maintenance. information.
FruitsandVeggiesMatter.gov
Check out the new Fruit & Veggies Matter Web site for tips, recipes, and more! You can find easy ways to add more fruits and vegetables into your daily eating patterns.
Breastfeeding
Both babies and mothers gain many benefits from breastfeeding. CDC's Breastfeeding site has frequently asked questions, recommendations, national breastfeeding statistics as well as information on a variety of other topics. You can also find links to other breastfeeding resources.
Resources for Health Professionals
Nutrition Resources for the Professional is a comprehensive collection of resources designed to assist health professionals working in areas of nutrition, health promotion, and disease prevention. You will find information about CDC-supported programs and research, key reports and recommendations, and surveillance data.
IMMPaCt: International Micronutrient Malnutrition Prevention and Control Program
CDC's IMMPaCt program aids countries in building national capacity to eliminate micronutrient deficiencies.
Folic Acid
Folic acid is a B vitamin. It is used in our bodies to make new cells. If a woman has enough folic acid in her body before she is pregnant, it can help prevent major birth defects of her baby’s brain and spine.
Healthy Youth Nutrition Topics
This section provides information about school nutrition programs and policies, and statistics related to adolescent nutrition and health.
Food Safety
Preventing food borne illness and death remains a major public health challenge.
• CDC Food Safety
• FDA Safe Handling of Fruits and Vegetables
• FDA News and Alerts
* Links to non-Federal organizations found at this site are provided solely as a service to our users. These links do not constitute an endorsement of these organizations or their programs by CDC or the Federal Government, and none should be inferred. CDC is not responsible for the content of the individual organization Web pages found at these links.
HEALTHY EATING & NUTRITION EDUCATION
Information about improving nutrition and establishing healthy eating habits in school, child care, adult, and after school settings.
California Department of Education
Website: http://www.cde.ca.gov/ls/nu/he/
California's Farm to School Program
An education model that connect schools with local farms.
Website: http://www.cde.ca.gov/ls/nu/he/farmtoschool.asp
Classroom Cooking
Support academic standards through cooking in the classroom.
Website: http://www.cde.ca.gov/ls/nu/he/classcook.asp
Feed More Kids: Improve Program Participation
A series of four brochures and other information featuring field-tested strategies for increasing school lunch and breakfast participation and improving meal program quality and operations.
Website: http://www.cde.ca.gov/ls/nu/he/feedmorekids.asp
Food Safety
Information and links about food safety during food preparations and transfer, and California Uniform Retail Food Facility Law (CURFFL) requirements.
Website: http://www.cde.ca.gov/ls/nu/ed/foodsafety.asp
A Garden in Every School
In collaboration with organizations and individuals throughout California, the Garden in Every School Program promotes linkages among the school classroom, school cafeteria, local agriculture, waste management, and others.
Website: http://www.cde.ca.gov/ls/nu/he/garden.asp
Local School Wellness Policy
Information and resources on the Local School Wellness Policy, Section 204 of the Child Nutrition and WIC Reauthorization Act of 2004.
Website: http://www.cde.ca.gov/ls/nu/he/wellness.asp
Nutrition Education in the Classroom
Resources to assist with teaching nutrition education in the classroom and throughout the school community.
Website: http://www.cde.ca.gov/ls/nu/he/nec.asp
Nutrition Education Sites
Links to nutrition education information and activities for kids and teens.
Website: http://www.cde.ca.gov/ls/nu/he/nutredsites.asp
School Menu Planning
Information and resources on the School Meals Initiative menu planning options, nutrient analysis, competitive foods, and meal patterns for the national school lunch and breakfast programs.
Website: http://www.cde.ca.gov/ls/nu/he/smi.asp
SHAPE California
Shaping Health as Partners in Education (SHAPE) - Information about the network of schools and child care centers that are developing collaborative, positive nutrition policies.
Website: http://www.cde.ca.gov/ls/nu/he/shape.asp
Team Nutrition
Information about USDA's program that provides nutrition education materials for children and families and training for food service professionals.
Website: http://www.cde.ca.gov/ls/nu/he/tn.asp
Questions: Education and Nutrition Policy Unit; 800-952-5609
Vegetarian Diets ~ United States Department of Agriculture, MyPyramid.gov: Steps to a Healthier You
Website: http://www.mypyramid.gov/tips_resources/vegetarian_diets_pri nt.html
Self-Realization Fellowship Lessons
"Self-Realization Fellowship Lessons, Copyright 1956, Copyright renewed 1984; Author: Paramahansa Yogananda; Publisher: Self-Realization Fellowship; For free introductory booklet 'Undreamed of Possibilities' and lessons application information, order online at http://www.yogananda-srf.org/lessons/index.html"
Description from Self-Realization Fellowship's Web Site (http://www.paramahansayogananda.org/):
"During Paramahansa Yogananda's lecture tours, he often remained in one city for several weeks to conduct classes for those interested in a more in-depth study. The personal instruction he gave was later compiled, at his direction, into a special series of lessons for home-study."
"The Self-Realization Fellowship Lessons are unique among Yogananda's published writings in that they give his step-by-step instructions in the yoga techniques of meditation, concentration, and energization that he taught. These simple yet highly effective techniques enable one to recharge the body with energy, to awaken the mind's unlimited power, and to experience a deepening awareness of the Divine in one's life.
In addition, the Lessons cover a broad range of other subjects -- offering inspiration and practical guidance for living every day in greater harmony with oneself and others, and for coping with the multitude of problems and pressures we face in today's world.
Topics covered include:
How to Bring a Spiritual Perspective to Daily Life
Yoga Methods of Healing, Relaxation, and Rejuvenation
Strengthening Will Power
Finding Your True Vocation
Developing Creativity and Memory
How to Select a Life Companion
Creating Harmony in Marriage and Family Life
The Art of Getting Along with Others
The Power of the Human Mind
Understanding Karma and Reincarnation
Living Without Stress and Fear
Yoga Principles of Diet
How to Apply
The Lessons are offered on a subscription basis for a nominal fee to help cover printing and mailing costs.
If you would like to apply for the Self-Realization Fellowship Lessons in English, please read Undreamed-of Possibilities and print out the application that follows.
After filling it out, either mail or fax completed application to:
Mailing address:
Self-Realization Fellowship 3880 San Rafael Avenue Los Angeles, California 90065-3298 Fax number (for credit card enrollments only): U.S./Canada: (800) 801-1952 Other countries: (818) 549-5100
If you prefer, we would be happy to mail you a copy of Undreamed-of Possibilities and the application in print form. Please contact us if you wish us to send you these materials, or for information about the SRF Lessons series in other languages."
Public Health Resources
The World Health Organization (WHO)
The WHO Agenda
WHO operates in an increasingly complex and rapidly changing landscape. The boundaries of public health action have become blurred, extending into other sectors that influence health opportunities and outcomes. WHO responds to these challenges using a six-point agenda. The six points address two health objectives, two strategic needs, and two operational approaches. The overall performance of WHO will be measured by the impact of its work on women's health and health in Africa.
1. Promoting Development
During the past decade, health has achieved unprecedented prominence as a key driver of socioeconomic progress, and more resources than ever are being invested in health. Yet poverty continues to contribute to poor health, and poor health anchors large populations in poverty. Health development is directed by the ethical principle of equity: Access to life-saving or health-promoting interventions should not be denied for unfair reasons, including those with economic or social roots. Commitment to this principle ensures that WHO activities aimed at health development give priority to health outcomes in poor, disadvantaged or vulnerable groups. Attainment of the health-related Millennium Development Goals, preventing and treating chronic diseases and addressing the neglected tropical diseases are the cornerstones of the health and development agenda.
2. Fostering Health Security
Shared vulnerability to health security threats demands collective action. One of the greatest threats to international health security arises from outbreaks of emerging and epidemic-prone diseases. Such outbreaks are occurring in increasing numbers, fuelled by such factors as rapid urbanization, environmental mismanagement, the way food is produced and traded, and the way antibiotics are used and misused. The world's ability to defend itself collectively against outbreaks will be strengthened in June 2007, when the revised International Health Regulations come into force.
3. Strengthening Health Systems
For health improvement to operate as a poverty-reduction strategy, health services must reach poor and underserved populations. Health systems in many parts of the world are unable to do so, making the strengthening of health systems a high priority for WHO. Areas being addressed include the provision of adequate numbers of appropriately trained staff, sufficient financing, suitable systems for collecting vital statistics, and access to appropriate technology including essential drugs.
4. Harnessing Research, Information and Evidence
Evidence provides the foundation for setting priorities, defining strategies, and measuring results. WHO generates authoritative health information, in consultation with leading experts, to set norms and standards, articulate evidence-based policy options and monitor the evolving global heath situation.
5. Enhancing Partnerships WHO carries out its work with the support and collaboration of many partners, including UN agencies and other international organizations, donors, civil society and the private sector. WHO uses the strategic power of evidence to encourage partners implementing programmes within countries to align their activities with best technical guidelines and practices, as well as with the priorities established by countries.
6. Improving Performance WHO participates in ongoing reforms aimed at improving its efficiency and effectiveness, both at the international level and within countries. WHO aims to ensure that its strongest asset - its staff - works in an environment that is motivating and rewarding. WHO plans its budget and activities through results-based management, with clear expected results to measure performance at country, regional and international levels.
Source: WHO Website: http://www.who.int/about/agenda/en/index.html
Remember Darfur
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion Office of Public Health and Science
The Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion; Website: http://odphp.osophs.dhhs.gov/
The Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Office of Public Health and Science, Office of the Secretary, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), works to strengthen the disease prevention and health promotion priorities of the Department within the collaborative framework of the HHS agencies.
Selected Projects
Steps to a HealthierUS (Steps)
Steps is the Department's initiative to advance the President's HealthierUS goal of helping Americans live longer, better, and healthier lives. It will identify and promote programs that foster healthy behaviors and prevention. Priority areas for the Steps initiative are diabetes, obesity, asthma, heart disease, stroke, and cancer; also included are poor nutrition, physical inactivity, tobacco use, and youth risk taking.
Visit www.healthierus.gov/steps/.
Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2005
Published jointly with the U.S. Department of Agriculture every 5 years since 1980, this publication is the statutorily mandated basis for Federal nutrition education activities.
Visit http://www.healthierus.gov/dietaryguidelines/.
healthfinder.gov
healthfinder.gov is a gateway Web site linking consumers and professionals to over 6,000 health information resources from the Federal Government and its many partners since 1997. Visit http://www.healthfinder.gov/.
Healthy People 2010
Healthy People 2010 presents a comprehensive set of disease prevention and health promotion objectives developed to improve the health of all people in the United States during the first decade of the 21st century. Visit http://www.healthypeople.gov/.
Healthy People 2010 Health Communication Focus Area
The six objectives in the focus area represent a range of key issues in health communication. They address the diffusion of the Internet to households, the quality of health Web sites, health literacy, provider-patient communication, research and evaluation of communication programs, and Centers of Excellence in health communication.
Visit http://www.healthypeople.gov/document/HTML/Volume1/11HealthC om.htm.
Luther L. Terry Senior Fellow serves as the Senior Clinical Advisor in the Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion (ODPHP), which is located within the Office of Public Health and Science (OPHS) in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Visit http://odphp.osophs.dhhs.gov/projects/LutherTerry.htm for more information.
National Health Information Center (NHIC)
This Internet-accessible clearinghouse with a toll-free number provides a central health information referral service for consumers and professionals using a database of more than 1,700 national associations, Government agencies, and other organizations. Visit http://www.health.gov/nhic or call 1-800-336-4797.
Prevention Communication Research Database (PCRD)
PCRD is an online, searchable collection of audience communication research conducted or sponsored by HHS agencies .. prevention topics. The PCRD highlight communication-related research findings that may not be widely known or published in peer-reviewed journals. Visit http://www.health.gov/communication/. Also view the PCRD e-Letter online.
UC Berkeley, Sheldon Margen Public Health Library
Public Health Resources on the Internet
Website: http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/PUBL/internet.html
Our Stolen Future
Website: http://www.ourstolenfuture.org/Sources/scimed.htm
Scientific and Medical Sources on Endocrine Disruption
Protecting Your Child From Toxic Threats to Brain Development
Website: http://psr.igc.org/
Personal Guidelines for Children, Parents, and Future Parents. Recommendations from Greater Boston Physicians for Social Responsibility.
The Tulane/Xavier Center for Bioenvironmental Research
Website: http://www.cbr.tulane.edu/
A multidisciplinary research center with programs in Environmental Astrobiology, Ecosystem Research, Biomonitoring/Bioremediation, MiRIR, Women's Health and Environmental Endocrinology.
Environmental Estrogens and Other Hormones (a project of the Center for Bioenvironmental Research)
Website: http://www.som.tulane.edu/ECME/eehome/
An excellent resource for learning about the basic concepts in endocrine disruption, and for updates on research and conferences.
Distruttori Endocrini
Website: http://www.iss.it/inte/Scripts/Iniziale.asp
Information in Italian and English about endocrine disruption. Istituto Superiore di Sanità Viale Regina Elena, 299 Roma(Italia).
The Why Files
Website: http://whyfiles.news.wisc.edu/045env_hormone/index.html
A project created by National Institute for Science Education and the National Science Foundation, and funded by the Graduate School, University of Wisconsin-Madison. Its website provides basic information on endocrine disruption and updates on the EPA's screening process.
MEDLINE
Website: http://medlineplus.gov/
The National Library of Medicine's premier bibliographic database covering the fields of medicine, nursing, dentistry, veterinary medicine, and the preclinical sciences.
Environmental Health Perspectives
Website: http://www.ehponline.org/
A scientific journal of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS).
Environmental Toxins and Reproductive Health - About.com
Website: http://womenshealth.about.com/cs/azhealthtopics/a/environmen turhe.htm
Information and many internet links related to women's environmental health.
For more information, please reference "Our Stolen Future" in the section on books below.
The Bible ~ King James Version
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The Second Coming of Christ -- The Resurrection of the Christ Within You: A revelatory commentary on the original teachings of Jesus
By Paramahansa Yogananda
Description from Self-Realization Fellowship's Web Site (http://www.paramahansayogananda.org/):
"'In titling this work The Second Coming of Christ, I am not referring to a literal return of Jesus to earth....A thousand Christs sent to earth would not redeem its people unless they themselves become Christlike by purifying and expanding their individual consciousness to receive therein the second coming of the Christ Consciousness, as was manifested in Jesus....Contact with this Consciousness, experienced in the ever new joy of meditation, will be the real second coming of Christ -- and it will take place right in the devotee's own consciousness.'
~ Paramahansa Yogananda"
"One of the most eagerly awaited books in the history of Self-Realization Fellowship is Paramahansa Yogananda's revelatory interpretation of the teachings of Jesus Christ. In this unprecedented masterwork of inspiration, Paramahansa Yogananda takes the reader on a profoundly enriching journey through the four Gospels, verse by verse, and illumines the universal path to oneness with God taught by Jesus to his immediate disciples but obscured through centuries of misinterpretation: 'how to become like Christ, how to resurrect the Eternal Christ within one's Self.'
Never before available in its entirety, this landmark work by one of the most revered spiritual teachers of our time transcends divisive sectarianism to reveal a unifying harmony underlying all true religions. A groundbreaking synthesis of East and West, it imparts the life-transforming realization that each of us can experience for ourselves the promised Second Coming -- awakening of the all-fulfilling Divine Consciousness latent within our souls. The text is accompanied by more than 30 full-color and sepia reproductions of paintings and rare drawings of the life of Jesus, as well as a comprehensive glossary, index, and subject annotations."
To order online:
https://www.srfbooks.com/Item.asp?id=3238
God Talks with Arjuna: The Bhagavad Gita – Royal Science of God-Realization: The immortal dialogue between soul and Spirit; A new translation and commentary
By Paramahansa Yogananda
Description from Self-Realization Fellowship's Web Site (http://www.paramahansayogananda.org/):
"A Translation and Commentary by Paramahansa Yogananda
'As God talked with Arjuna, so will He talk with you. As He lifted up the spirit and consciousness of Arjuna, so will He uplift you. As he granted Arjuna supreme spiritual vision, so will He confer enlightenment on you.'
~ Paramahansa Yogananda"
"A MONUMENTAL WORK OF SPIRITUAL LITERATURE...
Among the world's sacred writings, there is perhaps none more universal in its appeal than the Bhagavad Gita. Through the centuries, its sublime and ennobling counsel has endeared it to truth-seekers of East and West alike. Yet its deeper meaning, cloaked in allegory, has remained obscure. In God Talks With Arjuna, Paramahansa Yogananda offers a new translation and commentary of unparalleled scope and vision. Exploring the Gita's psychological, spiritual, and metaphysical depths, he reveals the innermost essence of this majestic scripture and presents an enlightening and deeply encouraging guide to who we are, why we were created, and our place and purpose in the vast cosmic scheme of things."
To order online: https://www.srfbooks.com/Item.asp?id=1284; Paperback $28.00; 1,173 pages; ISBN No. 0-87612-031-1; Hardcover edition with slipcase also available, $52.00; 1,224 pages, 20 color illustrations ; ISBN No. 0-87612-030-3; To order online: https://www.srfbooks.com/Item.asp?id=2009
AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A YOGI
By Paramahansa Yogananda
Autobiography of a Yogi; Copyright 1998; Author: Paramahansa Yogananda; Publisher: Self-Realization Fellowship; To order online: https://www.srfbooks.com/Item.asp?id=1228
Description from Self-Realization Fellowship’s WebSite (http://www.paramahansayogananda.org/):
“When Autobiography of a Yogi first appeared in 1946, it was acclaimed as a landmark work in its field. The New York Times hailed it as ‘a rare account.' Newsweek pronounced it ‘fascinating'. The San Francisco Chronicle declared, ‘Yogananda presents a convincing case for yoga, and those who ‘came to scoff’ may remain ‘to pray.' Today it is still one of the most widely read and respected books ever published on the wisdom of the East.
With engaging candor, eloquence, and wit, Paramahansa Yogananda narrates the inspiring chronicle of his life -- the experiences of his remarkable childhood, encounters with many saints and sages during his youthful search throughout India for an illumined teacher, ten years of training in the hermitage of a revered yoga master, and the thirty years that he lived and taught in America. He records as well his meetings with Mahatma Gandhi, Rabindranath Tagore, Luther Burbank, the Catholic stigmatist Therese Neumann, and other celebrated spiritual personalities of East and West. Also included is extensive material that he added after the first edition came out in 1946, with a final chapter on the closing years of his life.
Autobiography of a Yogi is at once a delightful account of an exceptional life and a profound introduction to the ancient science of Yoga and its tradition of meditation. Clearly explaining the subtle but definite laws behind the natural events of everyday life as well as the extraordinary events considered miraculous, the author reveals the scientific foundation underlying the great religious paths of both East and West. His absorbing life story thus becomes the background for a penetrating and unforgettable look at the ultimate mysteries of human existence.
Considered a modern spiritual classic, this book has been translated into eighteen languages and is used as a text and reference work in numerous colleges and universities. A perennial best-seller since it was first published more than fifty years ago, Autobiography of a Yogi has found its way into the hearts of millions of readers around the world.
Selected one of the 100 best spiritual books of the 20th century.
520 pages, 80 photos. Hardcover edition also available. Audio edition also available.â€
GANDHI: AN AUTOBIOGRAPHY ~ THE STORY OF MY EXPERIMENTS WITH TRUTH
By Mohandas K. Gandhi
"Gandhi's nonviolent struggles in South Africa and India had already brought him to such a level of notoriety, adulation, and controversy that when asked to write an autobiography midway through his career, he took it as an opportunity to explain himself. Although accepting of his status as a great innovator in the struggle against racism, violence, and, just then, colonialism, Gandhi feared that enthusiasm for his ideas tended to exceed a deeper understanding. He says that he was after truth rooted in devotion to God and attributed the turning points, successes, and challenges in his life to the will of God. His attempts to get closer to this divine power led him to seek purity through simple living, dietary practices (he called himself a fruitarian), celibacy, and ahimsa, a life without violence. It is in this sense that he calls his book The Story of My Experiments with Truth, offering it also as a reference for those who would follow in his footsteps. A reader expecting a complete accounting of his actions, however, will be sorely disappointed.
Mohandas K. Gandhi is one of the most inspiring figures of our time. In his classic autobiography he recounts the story of his life and how he developed his concept of active nonviolent resistance, which propelled the Indian struggle for independence and countless other nonviolent struggles of the twentieth century. In a new foreword, noted peace expert and teacher Sissela Bok urges us to adopt Gandhi's 'attitude of experimenting, of teasing what will and will not bear close scrutiny, what can and cannot be adapted to new circumstances,' in order to bring about change in our own lives and communities. All royalties earned on this book are paid to the Navajivan Trust, founded by Gandhi, for use in carrying on his work." Author: Mahatma Gandhi; Publisher: BeaconPress/Boston; ISBN # 0-8070-5909-9.
This edition of Gandhi's autobiography is published by arrangement with the Navajivan trust and is the only authorized American edition. The Navajivan Trust was founded by Gandhi, and all royalties earned on this book are paid to it by the publisher for use in carrying out Gandhi's work.
'…Thus service of the Indians in South Africa ever revealed to me new implications of truth at every stage.
Truth is like a vast tree, which yields more and more fruit, the more you nurture it.
The deeper the search in the mine of truth the richer the discovery of the gems buried there, in the shape of openings for an ever greater variety of service.'
~ Mohandas K. Gandhi
Source & Resource: Amazon.com
A free on-line Download of Gandhi An Autobiography: The Story of My Experiments with Truth and other writings by Gandhi are available at the following website: http://www.forget-me.net/en/Gandhi/
THE POWER OF INTENTION ~ LEARNING TO CO-CREATE YOUR WORLD YOUR WAY
By Dr Wayne W. Dyer
"Intention is generally viewed as a pit-bull kind of determination propelling one to succeed at all costs by never giving up on an inner picture. In this view, an attitude that combines hard work with an indefatigable drive toward excellence is the way to succeed. However, intention is viewed very differently in this book. Dr. Wayne W. Dyer has researched intention as a force in the universe that allows the act of creation to take place. This book explores intention -- not as something you do -- but as an energy you’re a part of. This is the first book to look at intention as a field of energy that you can access to begin co-creating your life with the power of intention."
Source & Resource: http://www.hayhouse.com/index.php
WHISPERS FROM ETERNITY
By Paramahansa Yogananda
"Paramahansa Yogananda’s universal prayers and vivid descriptions of his experiences in elevated states of meditation beckon readers of all faiths to cultivate their own intimate relationship with the Divine. Features invocations to the great prophets and leaders of the principal world religions, and a special section of children’s prayers. Illustrated throughout with evocative nature photos and masterpieces of art, many in full color. Also available is a photographic reproduction of the well-loved first version of Paramahansa Yogananda’s inspirational poems and prayers before he revised the book later in life."
From Whispers From Eternity:
“O Lord of Compassion, teach me to shed tears of love for all beings. May I behold them as my very own -- different expressions of my Self."
~ Paramahansa Yogananda
Source & Resource: Self-Realization Fellowship; https://www.srfbooks.com/Item.asp?id=1231
There is a Power that will light
your way to health, happiness,
peace, and success, if you will but
turn toward that light.
~ Paramahansa Yogananda, Answered Prayers
Natasha Bedingfield ~ Unwritten
...Live your life with arms wide open...Today is where your book begins...The rest is still unwritten...
Our Stolen Future
By Dr. Theo Colborn, Dianne Dumanoski & Dr. John Peterson Myers
"The central point of the Our Stolen Future is that some man-made chemicals interfere with the body's own hormones. These compounds find their way into our bodies through a variety of pathways. They build up over time, often over years.
When a woman becomes pregnant, some fraction of her contaminant burden is transferred to the fetus. When this happens they interfere with the hormonal signals directing development and thus disrupt fetal growth. Sometimes the effects are conspicuous, sometimes they are not.
Some of these chemicals alter sexual development. Some undermine intelligence and behavior. Others make our bodies less resistant to disease. Sometimes the effects don't appear until a child reaches puberty or afterward, even though the exposure took place in the womb.
These chemicals pose the greatest hazard in the earliest phases of life because hormones orchestrate development and because fetal development is exquisitely sensitive to tiny variations in hormone signals. For a fetus to grow up according to its genetic blueprint, the right hormone message has to arrive at the right place in the right amount at the right time.
The emerging science we present in Our Stolen Future is about what happens when something interferes with the delivery of that message. A signal doesn't arrive because it is blocked. One that was small becomes large. One that shouldn't have been there at all shows up nonetheless.
The first nine chapters of the book examine a chain of evidence that extends from wildlife populations to laboratory experiments to the epidemiology of exposed groups of people. There's not a lot in these sections that is controversial.
We are working from a data base of over 4,000 scientific publications. Over 100 scientists have participated directly in deliberations that have produced a series of consensus statements about the nature of the problem. Many scientists reviewed their sections of the book word-by-word to ensure that we did not misrepresent their findings. This is not fringe science.
After we examine in Our Stolen Future the basic science from wildlife, lab animals and relevant human studies we then ask a larger set of questions.
Given these findings,
* given the the uncontested observations that endocrine contaminants are ubiquitous
* and given that at least in some places in the world those background levels of contamination are within the ranges in which effects are seen in the laboratory and in people.
* given all that, what signals should we look for in human populations?
We could have stopped before this. We knew that going on would be controversial. But as we thought about the implications of these basic findings and their potential ramifications, we concluded that the only responsible course was to go on and find out what science was able, and not able to say, given the current evidence.
If you have read this section, you will find it replete with all sorts of cautionary statements, with many comments to the effect that data on one issue or another are as yet inadequate to reach a judgement. In sum, however, the weight of the evidence says we have a problem. Human impacts beyond isolated cases are already demonstrable. They involve impairments to reproduction, alterations in behavior, diminishment of intellectual capacity, and erosion in the ability to resist disease. The simple truth is that the way we allow chemicals to be used in society today means we are performing a vast experiment, not in the lab, but in the real world, not just on wildlife but on people."
"Nine Key Points from the Book:
1. There are demonstrable effects outside of the laboratory in wild animal populations and in groups of people exposed by accident or through medicine.
2. Work at low exposure levels, very low exposures, show that the classic high dose experiments can completely miss important low dose effects. Moreover, these results are reproducible in the lab. This science does not rest on extrapolating high dose curves down to the low end of exposure.
3. It's not just estrogens. While the first two decades of this work focused largely on man-made chemicals capable of mimicking estrogen, within the last five years we've seen that expand to include estrogen blockers, androgen blockers, progesterone blockers and compounds that interfere with thyroid. This last one is especially important because thyroid hormone is key to proper brain development.
4. It's not just the disruption of the endocrine system. Natural chemical signals are important at all levels of organization of life--within cells, among cells, between organs, even between organisms, including from one species to another. Any of these chemical signals, in principle, are vulnerable to disruption. Scientists, for example, have just begun to look at the chemical signals that mediate communication between symbiotic organisms, such as nitrogen-fixing bacteria and the roots of the plants in which they live, and are examining how synthetic chemicals might interfere with these signals. Disrupting these 'signals of life' could have important ecosystem impacts.
5. The developing fetus is exquisitely sensitive to both the natural hormone signals used to guide its development, and the unexpected chemical signals that reach it from the environment. Both the natural signals and the chemicals that disrupt them act as "morphogens." They guide the fetus through forks in its developmental path and also help set its sensitivity to subsequent hormonal signals. This involvement of setting sensitivity can have life-long consequences. New science, for example, on the developing prostate, shows that natural and synthetic estrogens experienced in the womb can lead to enlarged and hypersensitive prostate in adulthood.
6. Work with the best known of the endocrine disrupters, particularly diethylstilbestrol, or DES, led to great scientific confidence about the predictive value of lab animal studies for anticipating human endocrine impacts.
7. The contamination is very widespread and it comes from many sources, some quite conspicuous and others completely unexpected.
8. Some of the synthetic chemical compounds are notorious because they accumulate in our fatty tissue. These chemicals can then bioaccumulate up the food chain, and can be passed on in the womb and through breast milk. Because, they are not flushed through our bodies chemical accumulation in the fat tissue and breast milk can reach very high concentrations over time, concentrations millions of times higher or more than plant estrogens.
9. Plant estrogens are widespread in our diets and when eaten in large volume they can cause serious problems. In fact they have been used as antifertility agents by many cultures for a long time. But normal diets usually don't create risks because our gut chemistry quickly flushes them through and because there are special proteins in our blood that are effective at ensuring many (but not all) of these natural compounds don't reach the fetus at levels sufficient to have an effect. For example, while the most common plant estrogen in soy has a half life in our body of about 6-8 hours, DDT's half life is 10-12 years."
Source: Our Stolen Future; Website: http://www.ourstolenfuture.org/Basics/keypoints.htm
"Recommendations
What we recommend:
1. A significant commitment of federal research dollars to resolve scientific questions and determine which of these potential risks are real and which ones are not. Industry should be encouraged to support research on these issues, but the funds should be placed in a trust fund overseen by a governing body including appropriate representation of all major stakeholders to insulate researchers from the pressures of special interests.
2. Improvement of existing protections. Regulations should protect the most vulnerable members of our community, especially children, the unborn and the elderly. They should explicitly recognize that compounds interact unpredictably in the real world and they come from many sources. Enough information is already available to warrant dramatic strengthening of the constraints on use and distribution of a number of persistent organic pollutants, known as POPs, by implementing international protocols. Far more stringent testing should be required before allowing new compounds to enter into widespread commercial use. New products should be designed with the goal of reducing exposure. And there should be an accelerated research program to test compounds now in use that have escaped scrutiny.
3. Fulfill the public's right to know. People want to make informed decisions for themselves about these issues and right now a variety of laws and practices prevent access to crucial information.
4. Build the capacity in the United States to monitor contamination levels, health impacts, and the links between them. The National Center for Environmental Health at the US Centers for Disease Control is an extraordinary national resource and needs public support to ensure it can do its job.
5. Support implementation of the precautionary principle. Current regulatory practices give chemical manufacturers the benefit of the doubt. Substances can be removed from the market only if their health impacts can be demonstrated with scientific certainty. This burden of proof needs to be shifted. If plausible doubt can be justified about the safety of chemical compounds, their use should be allowed only if the manufacturer can prove they represent no inappropriate threat to human or ecosystem health.This is especially important for endocrine disrupting chemicals because increasingly it appears that aspects of their modes of action make it very difficult for epidemiological science to demonstrate causality with certainty. On the contrary, epidemiological studies of endocrine disruption in humans are biased toward finding false negatives."
Source: Our Stolen Future; Website: http://www.ourstolenfuture.org/Basics/corerecs.htm
For more information, please reference "Scientific and Medical Sources on Endocrine Disruption" in the HEALTH AWARENESS & ADVOCACY PORTAL section above.
Profiles in Grace, Service to Others and Empowerment ~ Everyday Heroes Who Make a Difference
The Foundation for Personal and Spiritual Empowerment seeks to encourage and elevate the consciousness and understanding of individuals seeking personal growth and empowerment through techniques designed to increase their awareness of man as a spiritual being, focusing on forgiveness, love, self-knowing, pursing spiritual practices that involve a vision of a higher power and the force of creation being love.
Central is the emphasis on the need for individuals to come to know and experience themselves at a deeper level and express more of their potential in creativity, spiritual service and practical mentoring.
The Foundation for Personal and Spiritual Empowerment seeks to create a design for metaphysical living founded on the belief in a higher spiritual power that is non-denominational and willing to support work that recognizes the pathway for greater personal attunement and alignment with God open to all denominations…
We would like to take this opportunity to highlight the work and spirit of some of our inspiring friends, and invite and welcome you to submit to us profiles of people you know who inspire and empower you and others.
SUMER NICOLE ALVAREZ
"Live like Sumer",, is a phrase that family and friends have started using to measure their lives and actions.
Sumer never wanted to be 'just like everyone else’, she had the courage to embrace change, test her abilities, and explore new things. During high school she excelled academically in honor level classes, participated in JV volleyball and Varsity soccer, surfing, and track and field. Prior to the beginning of her senior year she decided to redirect her efforts – she petitioned, developed the by-laws, and initiated the start of an art appreciation program and a chess club on campus. She became a math tutor, and increased her level of volunteerism with campus ministry and at her church.
Sumer started Georgetown University during the fall of 2003. Although as a freshman she was a little overwhelmed with new campus life and a vigorous class schedule, this did not deter her from sharing her indomitable spirit. She spent any free time immersed in the arts and humanitarian interests through painting, photography, and volunteering. She was actively involved in tutoring adults through Catholic Charities and Prison Outreach, and she gave guitar lessons at the YMCA. However, her passion was the children’s theatre program at Georgetown, where she designed sets and starred in productions given to inner city children.
During the summer of 2005 she decided to volunteer her time in India tutoring impoverished children. She lived with a host family in the small village of Samode, where she described the conditions as very rustic and the people as beautiful and kind. Tragically during the early morning hours of July 31, 2005, while attending a birthday party at one of the finest hotels in Jaipur, India, Sumer was electrocuted after falling into an air-conditioning unit. She was only 20-years old, but she managed to accomplish many things in a mere twenty years that others would not be able to complete in a lifetime. She was a role model for others and a truly remarkable young woman.
Sumer’s family and friends hope to continue her legacy through scholarships to individuals that perpetuate her dedication to the arts, social justice, and humanitarian efforts especially those focusing on children.
The Sumer Nicole Alvarez Foundation is being established to carry on Sumer’s legacy:
Sumer dreamed of making a difference in the world. Her time on earth was brief, but she had a powerful impact on all who knew her. Her family and friends feel blessed to have shared in her life and know that her dream of making a difference in the world came to pass and will continue through the work of the Sumer Nicole Alvarez Foundation.
'Live Like Sumer'
Embrace your strengths, dare to be unique, seek knowledge, be creative, show compassion, see beauty in yourself, your surroundings, and others, trust in yourself, give back, act do not wait, find fun in what you do, be open to new ideas and experiences, acknowledge your intelligence, indulge your curiosity, seek adventure, be brave.
What it Means to Live Like Sumer:,,
Be Unique
Show Compassion
Seek Knowledge
Embrace Your Creativity
Act Don’t Wait
See Beauty In Your Surroundings and Others
Be True To Yourself
Give Back
Have Fun
Seek Adventure
Be Open To New Ideas and Experiences
Show Your Intelligence
Indulge Your Curiosity
Be Brave
For additional information, please visit the following web sites:
http://www.livelikesumer.blogspot.com
http://the-tidings.com/2005/1118/sumer.htm
http://taborripress.com/html/spirit5.htm
http://www.thehoya.com/news/080605/news1.cfm
http:/obit.lafuneral.comwrapper_gb.php?id=242850&clienti d=lafuneral&listing=Found
Sumer Nicole Alvarez -- 5/30/85 – 7/30/05
THE LIGHT BLUE OF THE EARTH
Periwinkle are the oceans of the earth from an up-top view
Or close to the shore on a crystal morning.
Periwinkle makes me feel like
I’m sailing over clouds on eagle’s wings on a brisk afternoon.
Periwinkle is the taste of clean water or fresh air from a forest.
Periwinkle is the smell of dew on a freshly mowed grass
Or flowers on a clear spring day.
Periwinkle makes me feel calm and with peace with myself.
Periwinkle sounds like the desolate silence of winter.
Periwinkle is the softness of the Earth.
~ Sumer Alvarez, Age 10
Live Like Sumer,,
Celebrate Life ~
Sing Like Nobody's Listening
And Dance Like Nobody's Watching
SUMER ALVAREZ
He exhaled; she, divinely inspired
Created from the breath of God
Gift to the world, messenger, saint
Grace, love, light, compassion
A portion of these
Perfect reflection of His omniscient beauty
Life that will reverberate ages on
Universe, Galaxies, Milky Way, All
God-given body infused with Spirit
Life force of all beings
Blessed in birth, exalted in death
Do not let the loss of this earthly body crush your hearts
Bitterness in loss holds no truth
Chalice of her Soul spilled forth
Overflowing, bathing those around her
Baptizing all in God’s Light and Grace
Some did not know her, I need not
I know of her deeds, of her life
They are well written and recorded
Will your next twenty years touch the many
The way Sumer did?
Do not feel bad, I ask, that will never make
Anyone feel good or feel God
Reach out to the family expressing love
Revel, Celebrate, Sing her name
We are better because she lived
Wiser from the example she set
Thank her, Thank God, Thank her parents
For the everlasting gifts bestowed on all
“Greater deeds than I, you will do,†Christ said;
Sumer was on that path
She has found eternity living in immortality
Be aware, she shall be in your presence
Listen for her, look for her, call on her
Suspend your disbelief, purchase wonderment
Angel checking on us, watching us
Her short but very deep footsteps
Forever planted in the
Sacred soil of God’s garden
She, giving hope and life to those around her
Connecting to all people, those cast away trod asunder
Devoid of love, peace, comfort and hope
Take the lesson of this life and learn
She is ever present
Are you walking without
Fear, anger, resentment, hate?
Do you see your enemy in front of you?
Sumer in clothing you do not recognize
Testing us, asking are you worthy of eternity?
What path are you walking?
Does it follow, the one represented by her life?…
Forgiveness to all people, injustice or not
Know love, have compassion, find forgiveness
These will bring you to the truth
Sumer’s body has gone, called home
Her Spirit lives, Embrace her life, her legacy
Do not let her path, so clearly illuminated
Go dim and disappear
Blown out by the winds of time
Forever erasing these footsteps of charity
As our lives go on; more this, more that, more than you
If that’s your life, change course now
Reach out, grasp it, take hold of her life
Brilliant polestar guiding us all
Find a way to continue her legacy
Bring the music of her life to the children of the world
She will be watching us…
Author: © K. G. Mullen 03.09.06
Thoughts of Hope for Our Children and Grandchildren
…what I want for Conner;
I want him to find that which creates joy in himself;
that he has enough of an understanding that he has to supply the basic needs to navigate in the material world,
but I want him to have permission to dream his own dreams,
and to know that God supports him in the dreaming,
and that his life ~
I don’t have to have him be a doctor, a lawyer or an Indian chief.
I don’t have an agenda that he has to do for his life.
I want him to be able to experience the fullness of himself.
And to determine that which is joy-producing, and which is meaningful to his nature,
and if he has that,
I believe by the law of magnetism and the grace of God,
he will be able to attract enough resources to himself,
to be in a place of sufficient prosperity
to participate fully in his journey.
I believe for him to go against his nature,
to try to live out the dreams of somebody else,
can only result in the destructive forces coming in on his own psyche,
his own greater disconnection from God,
and his own greater discouragement at life.
I believe that.
I don’t have the paradigm;
I want to give him exposure to things,
and encourage his discovery process,
but I want him to have permission to be who his soul is.
~ Antoinette Spurrier, Founder, Foundation for Personal and Spiritual Empowerment; © 2006
FRIENDS OF SUMER IN ACTION ~ HELPING ORPHANS IN NEED
Running the Mt. Kilimanjaro Marathon with AIDS Orphans at Tumaini Children's Center in Nyeri, Kenya
For more information, please visit www.HopeRuns.org, www.TumainiKids.Blogspot.com and TrippingOnWords.com ~
Pictures and Video Available
Contact: [email protected]
Claire A. Williams
For my first marathon, I trained in cotton socks. I didn't know better, and four months of blood blisters punished me for this oversight. My shoes were old, and I never measured the miles I ran. Instead, I relied solely on my own all too optimistic minutes-per-mile calculations on the city streets where I trained. I had no cause, raised no money, and was lucky to have my one and only spectator on race day. Naturally, she forgot to take any pictures. The result of all this preparation was a slow, existent finish to the Madrid Marathon 2006.
The second time around, though, I'm doing things differently. For four months, I will be training for the June 24 Mt. Kilimanjaro marathon at an orphanage in Kenya, where I'll try to keep up with some of the orphanage's 150 AIDS orphans in a makeshift, after school running program. Along the way, I'm hoping to raise funds for the their home: the Tumaini Children's Center. There are many places to help do good things and learn new ideas in this big world of ours, and this is but one. However, it is a good one, and one worth considering.
I work as a writer and anthropologist studying international volunteer organizations, and firmly believe in the power of such efforts to transform the lives of the individuals who take part in such endeavors – on both sides. Over and over again, it seems that doing something worthwhile in this world is not just about the money you give out, but the connections and experiences you have trying to do so.
A volunteer's experience in another place in the globe can certainly be worth the cost of a plane ticket to get there, and in the long run such an expense really can do as much as or more than sending money abroad – since it helps transform the nature of our global citizens' response to growth, aid, and healing change. When I'm lucky, this is the reason I get to go to the places I go. On this trip, though, I'm also asking for donations for the kids. In return, we'll give you – and everyone, really – a daily video blog of their experiences on the move.
I happened upon the Tumaini Children's Center with my traveling companion and sole Madrid Marathon spectator, Lara, during the last leg of our eight month trip around the world. On our way to climb Mt. Kenya, we got stuck at an organization that runs itself far better than many of the fancy (correctly tax bracketed ones) ones I have worked for.
In sum, the Tumaini Children's Center was started in response to the significant number of AIDS orphans that began appearing at the local primary school. As more and more children came seeking food, the members of the local parish stepped up to provide them with at least one good meal a day. As the numbers grew, and as the grandparents in the community were unable to keep up with the demands of the many children growing up without parents, the project expanded.
At Tumaini (Kikuyu for "hope"), every building is named something symbolic, and the philosophy of their projects melds together Florence's Duomo (use all your resources to build it, and you'll find more) and Shoeless Joe Jackson's Field of Dreams (if you build it they will come). With their sporadic donations, the Presbyterian parish overseeing Tumaini Children's Center has built up a very well run orphanage (now with 150 waiting empty beds for more kids), a smaller orphanage for disabled children, a brand new community health clinic, and an up and coming old folks' home.
My traveling-cum-running partner and I are absorbing all the expenses and consulting with more knowledgeable marathoners and physical therapists to make sure that we train the kids safely. However, along with the orphanage we would love to give the kids the support they need to make a real commitment to running. Thus, we're seeking donations. For more information, to read about the project and donate shoes, running apparel, or funds, please visit TrippingOnWords.com.
Everything you give goes straight to the kids, and we'll thank you every step of the way.
HOPE RUNS ~ The Tumaini Children's Center
Training for the Annual Mt. Kilimanjaro Marathon with AIDS Orphans from the Tumaini Children’s Center in Nyeri, Kenya
Purpose: The HOPE RUNS program has three main goals:
1. To start a committed running program at the Tumaini Children’s Center in Nyeri, Kenya. This will serve as a means of introducing the healthy benefits of running into the lives of children, and of providing a structured after school activity for these orphans.
2. To raise awareness about and funding for Kenya’s Tumaini Children’s Center through the public documentation of these orphans’ efforts to train to complete some portion of the annual Mt. Kilimanjaro marathon on June 24.
3. To collect books to create a working library in the local secondary school, as well as improve the small libraries of the Tumaini Children's center and the Primary School.
Background
In Nyeri, Kenya, an orphanage exists where local children can get the food, schooling, and care they need. The Tumaini Children’s Center was started in response to the significant number of AIDS orphans that began appearing at the local primary school. As more and more children came seeking food, the members of the community parish stepped up to provide them with at least one good meal a day. As the numbers grew, and as the grandparents in the community became less able to serve as parents to so many children, the project expanded.
At Tumaini (Kikuyu for "hope"), every building is named something symbolic, and the philosophy of their projects melds together Florence's Duomo (use all your resources to build it, and you'll find more) and Shoeless Joe Jackson's Field of Dreams (if you build it they will come). They build a foundation, and then wait for more funding to come in to keep adding stories. With their sporadic donations, the Presbyterian parish overseeing Tumaini Children’s Center has built up a very well run orphanage for kids ages 3-18 (now with 150 empty beds for kids once more funding arrives), a smaller orphanage for disabled children, a brand new community health clinic, and an up and coming old folks’ home.
Why Running?
We first planned to use this community solely as a welcoming and comfortable base for climbing Mt. Kenya, but we had never seen a place so committed to community building and welfare. Read Claire's letter that lovingly coerced people to come to the orphanage with us here. As we recount here , we extended our stay, but still knew we had to come back with more resources. With experience in numerous types and examples of non-profit organizations between the two of us, we knew the real thing when we saw it. Starting from only hope and faith a few years ago, this parish has built something amazing. The kids are healthy, they eat three substantial meals a day, they are close to the elders of the community, and they play and scold each other like a family. We decided to go back, and we wanted to find a way to contribute something that further strengthened this feeling of community, and that helped the commitment to health and well-being that this organization had prioritized.
We had both just become serious runners—Claire training for a second marathon and Lara her first—and it had brought us considerable freedom and joy over the last few months. When the primary contributor to Tumaini from the U.S. suggested a running program as a way to inspire pride and focus in the kids, we knew it was the right idea.
The Kilimanjaro Marathon on June 24th is only a few hours and a few months away. Most conveniently, it is a race around the base of the mountain that circles the same track four times. Knowing we are training a group of varied age, ability, and commitment, we felt this was the best way to offer options for different lengths and time. We only expect a few of the teens to actually want to train for the whole thing, and we plan to host a smaller race for the much younger kids around the area of the orphanage to celebrate the running club. The point is that everyone is welcome to participate, and everyone will learn about safe and healthy ways to make physical fitness a part of their lives.
Logistics of the HOPE RUNS program:
From the first week of March through the race at the end of June, we will run with the kids five days a week on the dirt roads around the orphanage. In addition to actually just running with them, we will be focusing on stretching techniques and on teaching them about the health benefits of such a habit. There will be varied lengths of runs and different running activities to make sure that every child or every age that wants to remains involved and interested. For those interested in running the full or partial marathon, we take a conservative approach to training that focuses on completion rather than racing. This means that the mileage goes up slowly, keeping the emphasis on the habit of running rather than the speed or duration of the runs.
As a subsidiary to this program, we will be maintaining a daily website of our experiences with the kids that we hope to help involve them with. We hope to attract sponsorship and donors to help subsidize our work with the kids, but also the Tumaini project as a whole. While there, we will also be working with the orphans on reading skills, a newsletter and an art therapy program as a means to deepen our connection to this community and to improve these children’s practical skills.
We are absorbing all the expenses and consulting with more knowledgeable marathoners, physical therapists and nutritionists to make sure that we train the kids safely. However, along with the orphanage we would love to give the kids the support they need to make a real commitment to running through equipment, particularly sneakers.
WHAT WE NEED:
1. Shoes: The orphanage struggles to find shoes normally, and in the face of high activity, we wanted to make sure to minimize injuries and maximize enthusiasm by providing literal support.
2. Books: If you've got a box of books - send them to us in Kenya! At 1 dollar per pound via Media Mail to get there, your old children's, teen, and adult books and a small shipping cost can go a long way.
3. Publicity: We want to spread the word about this amazing place as far as we can, both for inspiration and for the hope that support and donations will arise.
4. Financial Donations: We need to find a way to support shipping equipment, marathon fees, transportation and other costs. Anything beyond what we can use for the running program will go directly to the orphanage in its efforts to bring more orphans into the 150 currently empty beds.
How You Can Follow the Project:
Over the last year, we have kept a daily account of our travels, including our trip to Tumaini, at TrippingOnWords.com. We have developed a loyal readership, and we will use this web-based format as a way of keeping the world in touch with our program’s progress through videos, writing, and audio updates!
Project Directors:
Claire A. Williams and Lara Vogel.
Where Do The Children Play? ~ Song & Images
ACTION IS ELOQUENCE. ~ William Shakespeare
PRESS RELEASE ~ Hope Runs: Running Program for Children at Tumaini Children's Center; Two Stanford Graduates Lead Marathon and Fitness Training for Two Hundred Orphans in Nyeri, Kenya
HOPE RUNS
NYERI, Kenya, March 19 (AScribe Newswire) -- Following in a long tradition of running in Kenya, two Stanford graduates are starting an after-school running program for the orphans of the Tumaini Children's Center in Nyeri, Kenya. Only a short drive outside of Nairobi, the Nyeri community was devastated by the AIDS epidemic. As the local parish began providing meals for local children suffering from malnutrition, more and more came seeking food. While the number of orphans grew, the grandparents in the community became less able to serve as primary caregivers, and the project expanded. In the past few years, the Presbyterian parish has built an orphanage for children aged 7-20 and a new community health clinic. They also support a local orphanage for disabled children, and have just laid the foundation for an elderly home.
Christened the Tumaini Children's Center - with Tumaini meaning "hope" in the native Kikuyu - this project represents the result of this community's faith in its ability to build a caring and healthy community for itself. In the spirit of Florence's Duomo, which used all its resources to build a structure it did not know how to finish, the Tumaini Children's Center devoted all of its time, energy, and money to building a foundation and now relies upon outside generosity to continue adding levels and utilities. In fact, the Center currently houses 150 extra beds which must remain unused because the parish does not have the funding to care for that many more orphans.
Stanford graduates Claire and Lara stumbled upon the Tumaini Children's Center during their last week of an eight month trip around the world. They felt an instant connection with the children at the orphanage and the adults caring for them. As Lara said at the time, "This is a place we have to come back to; we could really spend our time getting the word out about this effort." It was only a matter of time before they were brainstorming ways to help and rallying others to this cause.
Claire and Lara, both avid runners and firm believers in the power of setting goals that seem too good to be true, have set out to create an after-school running program with the aim of initiating a local community race in June. Additionally, the two women are signed up to participate in the Kilimanjaro Marathon on June 24th, 2007, and plan to bring any orphans who want to train along with them. Conveniently, the marathon's route circles the same track four times, offering the club's youngsters options for races of different lengths. All children, independent of age and ability, are welcome to participate, as the primary goal is to teach participants about the safe and healthy ways to make physical fitness and long-term goals a part of their lives. As Claire adds, "We firmly believe in the power of such efforts to transform the lives of the individuals who take part in such endeavors - on both sides.
About Claire and Lara
Claire A. Williams
With a B.A. and an M.A. from Stanford University, Claire works as an anthropology consultant with several different international volunteer organizations to encourage programming that targets volunteer experiences in the field. She firmly believes that doing something worthwhile in this world is not just about the money you give out, but the connections and experiences you have trying to do so. A volunteer's experience in another place in the globe can certainly be worth the cost of a plane ticket to get there, and in the long run such an expense really can do as much as or more than sending money abroad - since it helps transform the nature of our global citizens' response to growth, aid, and healing change.
Lara Vogel
After graduating from Stanford University with a B.A. in Human Biology and International Public Health, Lara decided to take time off before medical school to pursue a writing career. In the past year alone, she has traveled to over twenty countries as a travel writer, and is excited to be contributing her efforts to Hope Runs in the coming months. Having worked in health clinics around the world, she is confident in the positive effects that health education programs, particularly for children, can have on the health of a nation.
A hundred years from now it will not matter what my bank account was, the sort of house I lived in, or the kind of car I drove...but the world may be different because I was important in the life of a child.
~ Author unknown