Monday, April 29, 2013

DREAM TIME

Dear Friends: Today I want to talk about dreams. I do a lot of this in the summer, when the weather is warm and sunny. It makes me drowsy, and I like to sleep as much as I can. We know that through prayer and meditation, we can enter sleep with openess, and even intent. We know that as we sleep, our physical and etheric bodies are refreshed and nourished. Just as important, we may receive a dream or a vision. We may also receive answers to questions, or clarity. It is possible to move out of our subjective, earthly experience, and obtain some objectivity, or larger picture that helps put things into perspective. Sometimes we may even get a quick glimpse of something that may happen in the future. Day dreaming or envisioning, is something that we do with even more intent. We might do it as children, dreaming of what we want to be when we grow up. We might do it as adults, usually wishing for something good, either for ourselves or others that we love. Exploration and migration happened because poor people wanted a better life for their children, a life of opportunity and real possibilities. That is partly why lotteries are so popular. "If I only had a million dollars, I could do this or that." These are not always selfish wishes. Sometimes people wish they had the money to do some good in the world. To raise people out of poverty. To end world hunger. To provide free education and medicine. All these good wishes will never happen through a government. Unfortunately, all governments are corrupt, even in what we call "free" and "democratic" societies. It doesn't matter which party is in power. Politicians, no matter how good their intentions, eventually will succumb to the realities of politics. You simply cannot be a person of integrity, and a politician, at the same time. Nevertheless, we can still dream of a better world for our children. We can still envision and work towards a future where there is no hunger, poverty, war, illness. Our Living Gold conference last year on Vancouver Island was a great gift. For me, it was like a dream, a chance to suspend reality, a chance to receive spiritual nourishment. Ultimately, it was a planting of seeds for the future. It's a very interesting thing that 9 months later, my daughter is about to give birth to her first child, and my first grandchild. Next blog: MANIFESTING

Sunday, April 14, 2013

Little Miracles

Dear Friends: My last blog was about miracles. In springtime this is especially evident. Everywhere you look, nature is bursting forth, not just with the plants but also with the animals. It seems everywhere you look also, babies are waiting to be born, who were conceived in the auspicious year of 2012. While everywhere around the world, there can be found stories of great concern politically, economically and environmentally, still there is the promise of new life. If you are privileged to hold a new baby in your arms, there is no question in your mind what is most important, or what has the most value. You are the richest person in the world at that moment. Nevertheless, this kind of wealth, or new life, is achieved only through sacrifice. My own daughter, who is due very soon, has already had more than her fair share of worry and pain. So far, she has had to have 2 blood transfusions. There is still the labour and delivery, and perhaps after that, a bone marrow transplant. The baby's future is yet unknown. Today, however, I heard of a little baby, about 5 months old, who is struggling just to live. This baby's family lives in Kamloops, about a 4 hour drive from Vancouver. His name is Karter. The family made the journey down to Vancouver for his birth, and he had to have a pacemaker shortly afterwards. Now it seems that the mother had stomach lupus, which passed on antibodies into his blood, now affecting his heart even more. He is currently undergoing surgery here in Vancouver to add another lead to the pacemaker, and he will be put on the list for a heart transplant, which will give him a better chance for the future. We are thankful that we live in a time and place where such surgery is available. This is not the case yet in many countries. Heart surgery, especially for children, was in its infancy when I had my own congenital heart defect repaired, so I have a good idea of what a family goes through. I hope you will spare a moment to think of little Karter and his family. Perhaps you also know of a special child facing serious challenges. In a time when we are facing so much uncertainty, it is important to remember what should take priority.