Greetings from the Land of Enchantment: March 2010
Greetings from the Land of Enchantment
Friday, March 19, 2010
OMG--Jon Stewart Is a Genius
If you haven't seen Jon Stewart's take on Glenn Beck from last night show, you ABSOLUTELY must! www.thedailyshow.com
The rhetoric on the right is so extreme that it would be laughable if it weren't so incredibly dishonest, misleading, and inflammatory. The neo-cons have so lost the plot that they're inciting foreign countries to make things worse for us--the United States! Now if that's not unpatriotic, I don't know what is.
The bottom line is that the Republicans are sore losers; they always have been and they always will be. They claim fiscal responsibility while the record shows that every single Republican presidency in the past 30 years have driven the deficit up, not down. They claim social conservatism while they try to invade the private decisions between a woman and her doctor, or the dying and their doctor; and finally, between consenting adult sexual partners. Their fear and prejudice drive every talking point. They no longer even carry the pretense of wanting to govern. Why are they still considered a viable political party in this country?
I recently returned to Seattle for my 10-year sobriety anniversary. Hard to imagine that 10 years have gone by--also hard to imagine that at 10 years sober, I'm still struggling with some of the things that have been part of my life style and habit patterns since I was a kid. But 10 years is also a great time to mark that new beginning--a new level of sobriety--a deeper layer of the onion.
I never really related to the physiological dimensions or characteristics of alcoholism. I stayed sober despite that--but it just didn't connect. But the more I struggled with sugar and what it did to my moods and my behaviors, the more I began to seek some new understanding. When I read the description of and behavior patterns of sugar-sensitive people, I thought, wow--this is me. This is who I am--and for the first time I began to relate to the physiological nature of my dis-ease. I recognized the impact it was making on my life, my identity and my consciousness.
So with 10 years under my belt, I relate to my body and its manifestations of compulsion and mood swings in a whole new way--and I'm experiencing a level of freedom I have longed for--for years!
In much the same way my teacher 10 years ago said to me about becoming vegetarian, "it's just a decision"; so too, my new mentor said to me, "do you want to live this way or not?" And with that challenge, I made the decision to no longer participate in the cycles that sugar takes me through--the depression, the misery, the agitation. I want to participate in my own life again--and today, I might just have a chance.
It will take time to establish this new pattern; but I've talked about it long enough. Yogi Bhajan often used to say, "just drop it and move on". I think I've reached that point.
May we all have the courage to live and to live fully may we leave behind those things that harm -- and may we welcome with open arms those things that truly bring us comfort
May we love ourselves that we may love others
May we be at peace in our bodies in our hearts in our minds and in our spirit
