Re-Awakening Our Senses




Our disconnection from nature is the root cause of our collective dis-ease.

The Edwards ~ Of The People, By The People, and For The People



What could be better for America than to have a President and First lady who know first hand the human condition and who even with their financial comfort can also be....of the people, by the people, and for the people. Like Al Gore said at a Memphis prayer breakfast during the 2000 campaign: "America has a rendezvous with redemption, and the spiritual question is the principle one."

I personally believe that with John and Elizabeth Edwards in the White House, America would be "getting it right". John and Elizabeth are what "spiritual" maturity is all about,
and it is that kind of spirituality that our country and the world sorely needs for transformational planetary changes to take place. Some of our greatest tests ahead will be about how compassionate and unselfish we can be.

When John and Elizabeth share with us the honesty and truth about their own lives like they have, we have an opportunity to enter into a partnership with them because deep down, their sorrows are our sorrows and their joys are our joys....and visa versa. Already, they have started us on our journey to resurrect our humanity. We are all in this together, and "they" are exactly what we need. John and Elizabeth make us remember that part of being human is to have compassion for each other.

Now, the whole world must boldly go into the future with global warming looming over all of us like the cancer Elizabeth and John have to go boldly into the future with. None of us can give up hope because hope gives us the ability to persevere to do the right things for all life. We will not be perfect and we will not always succeed.....BUT.....we can always have joy in the trying rather than the "nothingness" of quitting.

John and Elizabeth Edwards are two extraordinary people, and I wish them the "Best of Everything" in continuing their great healing work for America.. ~ Patty Ann Smith

Native American Prayer to Let Go of Anger



Great Spirit, Force of the Universe,
within and without,
let all the anger in me
be washed away into the Deep
where it can diminish and disappear.
Release me from the bondage of self,
and give me in its place,
peace and forgiveness.
Help me forgive myself and others
and walk with You in the woods.

The Relationships of Human Communities and The Natural World





"Our social and ethical responsibilities require a fundamental understanding of our dynamic interdependence with one another and the rest of the living world. To meet these responsibilities, we require new modes of citizenship and public philosophy regarding ethical reflection, democratic deliberation and practical action that promotes the flourishing of people, animals, plants, and the living world as a whole. Such civic responsibility, which encompasses a full range of human and natural values, we term democratic, ecological citizenship. This expanded notion of citizenship is meant to guide personal, family, community, and government decisions and activities on regional and global scales." ~ The Center for Humans and Nature http://www.humansandnature.org

"A more adequate understanding of these interactions is the foundation of a viable, just, and sustainable world for all living beings."





Sign on an Irish gate: "The farmer allows walkers across the field for free, but the bull charges!"


Life Is Too Short Not To Be Irish!

HAPPY ST. PATRICK'S DAY!

The Dance

photo by Craig Smith


"Dancers are God's acrobats." ~ Shirley Maclaine
"Dance first. Think later. It's the natural order." ~ Samuel Beckett
"I should not believe in a God who does not dance." ~Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche
"Dancing in all its forms cannot be excluded from the curriculum of all noble education: dancing with the feet, with ideas, with words, and, need I add that one must also be able to dance with the pen?" ~ Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche
"When you get the choice to sit it out or dance ~ I hope you dance." ~ Mark D. Sanders and Tia Sellers
It cannot hurt to frequently ask ourselves:
Is what I'm thinking, speaking, doing, etc.
toxic to myself or others.