We're all God's children in any language...

We're all God's children in any language, in any color, in any religion...

The United States is not a Caucasian country, or an English speaking country, or a Christian country. There happens to be lots of white people, but there are lots of non-white people, and there are lots of colors mixed together too. Lots of people speak English, lots of people speak something else, and many people speak English AND something else. There is the Christian god and believers, there are lots of other gods and believers AND there are lots of non-believers. These are simply the facts, so when someone says this is a Christian country they are consciously or unconsciously stating something that is false. When someone states this is an English speaking country, they might desire this to be the case, but it is not. As to race, it is hard to imagine you could actually live anywhere in the country and still think this is a white country, if your eyes are open.

Approximately 72,000 years ago there was a bottleneck in human diversity. The cause is widely accepted to be the Mt. Toba volcanic eruption. Today, most people think Mt. St. Helens when they think of volcanic eruptions (no the volcano at the Mirage Hotel in Las vegas doesn't count). Mt. St. Helens for all its spectacular footage was a blip in volvanic terms. It erupted 1.2 cubic kilometers of earth. Krakatoa, by comparison, in 1883, spewed 21 cubic kilometers. In 1816, we humans experienced the year with no summer and tens of thousands of people in Europe and North America starved to death. This was the result of the eruption of Mt. Tambora, which blew 160 cubic kilometers of earth into the atmosphere and caused a worldwide drop in temperature and a "nuclear" winter for 3-5 years. Mt Toba, by comparison, 72,000 years ago erupted 2,800 cubic kilometers of earth into the atmosphere!

It is said that the climate changes and starvation associated with this super eruption caused the human population to plummet to as low as 1000 people and I've heard estimates as low as 35 breeding pairs... So like it or not, we ALL come from the same group. ALL people on Earth today are gentically 99.5% alike. There is a lot of variety of genetic expression, i.e., skin color, eye color hair color/texture etc., but the person standing next to you is YOU...

Why is this so difficult for people to accept this? It is because their Ego wants to be special, to be better, to be superior. Your Ego identifies with what it decides are superior groups, so it can feel superior. Being white, speaking English and being Christian are the top "Teams" in America, and its "fans" want to keep winning!!! In reality they are extremely fearful that the world is moving on past them, choosing different ways. They are desperately afraid of being out-bred, out-voted and out-moded. The horrific reactions against accepting the first black president in this country's history is example one.

Demographics move along regardless of Egos and fear. Someday soon the United States may be a brown country, or a Muslim country, or a Spanish speaking country. Why should any of this matter? WE are ALL ONE. WE are ALL the same. WE are ALL children of the Universe. It is only our Egos that cause us to think we are separate...

Today, when you witness diversity, accept it, love it, bring it into your heart. When you embrace fully the differences in us you will more fully realize how similar we are. Take the hands of all of your brothers and sisters, for WE are ALL FAMILY, and LOVE each other unconditionally...

Duffy

Loving thoughts are sensed by others...

Loving thoughts are sensed by others....so walk around loving...

The world is currently suffering from a terrible plague. Not one like the Black Plague of the 6th and 14th centuries, but a plague of character. All of the wonderful technological advances have not connected us, but have weakened us through spin, lies, and divide and conquer strategies. We have more options available to us than ever in history, and it is said that a young boy with a smart phone, living in the desolation of drought and war-torn Africa, has more information at his fingertips than President Clinton did in the Oval office. Sadly, we have been conditioned, by fear-mongers. We are filled with fear...

There are really only two emotions, fear and LOVE. Fear is the opposite of LOVE. All of the negative states of Consciousness: Shame, Guilt, Apathy, Grief, Addiction, Anger, and Pride are all actually FEAR based. When you are constantly told: illegal immigrants are taking your jobs, that Muslims want to kill us because they hate our way of life, that Liberals want your guns, that your unemployment has run out, that Gay-ness is contagious, that well-fare cheats are EVERYWHERE, etc.,etc., etc., is it any surprise that you dwell in the negative states? The fact is, people living in FEAR, can be more easily manipulated ("Shock Doctrine" by Naomi Klein).

There is nothing to fear. Everything is going eactly as it should be. Millions of people are walking around in a constant state of fear for nothing. It is said that God sends us nothing but angels, and this is true. Each person and event you observe gives you a clear opportunity to decide once again who YOU are in relation to them. They help you fine tune who you are. Instead of joining the, "Everybody's doing it," crowd, stand for LOVE, give LOVE, open your heart to LOVE...

Thoughts are electrical impulses in your brain. ALL electrical impulses have a magnetic field surrounding them. When electrical impulses are going in the same direction they magnify the strength of this magnetic field. This why when you wind a wire around a nail it becomes a powerful electro-magnet once it is energized. Thoughts are like that. They effect the magnetic fields of others' thoughts, attracting and repelling just as magnets do. A famous man once said, "Whenever two or more of you are gathered in my name..." This is what he was referring to. It is well documented that Mass-hysteria can cause individuals to act in ways that would be completely foreign to their normal selves. Once again the power of thought.

One time waiting in an airport terminal, I saw a guy that was obviously all worked up. You, I'm sure, have seen the type, all testosteroned-out, figeting,  grimacing, looking for an opportunity to strike out to ease their rage and frustration. I decided to send him loving thoughts. I sat right next to him, and focused my thoughts on loving him, supporting him, acknowledging his humanity, in a completely non-judgmental way. Within five minutes he turned to me and started telling me all of his troubles, how FEARful he was that he wasn't going to be able to live up to his commitments to his wife and take care of their family, etc. Such is the power of LOVE! When you are walking around with loving thoughts, people around you can sense it. Their level of Consciousness will raise just by BEing in your presence...

Today, LOVE everyone you come in contact with, whether it is the grocery store checker (or bagger), the immigrant struggling to speak your language (they are making a better effort to communicate than you are), the homeless person or the drunk. BE especially LOVING to those who are weaker than you. Do this not because you may gain something, do it because it will help create a better, more Conscious, LOVING world. Indeed isn't that the kind of world you'd like to inhabit?

Duffy

You get world peace through each person having inner peace...

You get world peace through each person having inner peace. Work on YOU and help us..

As long as YOU believe there are enemies there won't be peace. As long as there are people who YOU believe are beneath you there won't be peace. As long as YOU believe that others are doing things wrong and so are less deserving there will not be PEACE...

Acceptance of all things as normal and fine will put you on the road to peace. What is required for this state of BEing? You must realize the that there is no good and evil, that this kind of thinking is simply a duality. Good and evil are not separate things, they are the same thing, on the same continuum. YOU put in the divider between them. YOU also move this divider continually throughout your life to the location where your present understanding of good and evil currently resides. You may be surrounded by like-minded people, who mostly agree where the divider should be put, but ultimately YOU decide.

Nobody does anything outside of their personal frame of reference, outside of their worldview of right and wrong, so nobody is inherently evil. Hitler did nothing outside of his worldview, and in fact was supported by millions of like-minded individuals. His culturallization, his indoctrination, his experiences created his worldview, just like yours creates YOURS. Until you begin to see others as all normal and fine, as people just like yourself, ALL children of God and doing their best within their own worldview there will no peace. Indeed, until everyone sees this there will be no peace. Everyone says they want peace, peace, WORLD PEACE! But, they don't want to give up their ideas about who and whom are good and evil, right and wrong. The truth is nobody is evil, nobody is wrong, these are simply your opinions according to YOUR worldview.

If you have abdicated your opinion to some country, church, career, political party, ideology, region or family, you will adopt the positions of these entities to some degree. Some do to a great degree, and some to a lesser. The degree of adoption is personal. Two people raised in the same family, that go to the same church, that vote for the same people, that live in the same country, can have dramatically different views. In fact, they may agree on something one day and later disagree, not only because one of them changed their worldview (where the divider is placed), but often, because both of them have changed!

Religious people typically have extreme views on right and wrong, good and evil. I was once told by my landlord that I was going to hell because I didn't agree with his choice of a political candidate. He blatantly stated that my position was against God's law. I asked, "Which God, yours?" He said "God, there is only one."

Trust me, there are more than one. But, your denomination CAN'T allow you to believe that! How would they maintain control of where you place the divider between good and evil? How would they maintain political control of you? Financial control of you?

The way out of this is to BEgin to see that God is indeed everywhere, that God is ALL THINGS...including you. Every person on the Earth is equally one of God's children, given free will to choose what he/she believes. They all live within the framework of their own worldview, no matter have much that worldview differs from your own. Peace will only come from dissolving the good/evil duality. YOU must dissolve this yourself.

Today, when you see/hear someone railing about some evil, put yourself in the shoes of the evildoer. As hard as it may be to overcome your conditioning, attempt to see where that person is coming from, and allow and accept that they are living from their own worldview, and not doing anything wrong. Work on YOU and help US...

Duffy

People experience contextually...

People experience contextually. If you are living in a negative state of concsciousness, that's what you will see in events and others...

The state of your life reflects the state of your mind. If you live in a state of frustration, that's what you will experience in others. If you think those in power are inherently evil, then that is how you will see events, how things will appear through your lens. You're actually experiencing fear and anger when you say, "They're all a bunch of crooks, the whole lot of them!" Anger and fear are negative states of Consciousness. Were you residing at Courage, the beginning of positive Conscious levels, you would see the world differently, not as a victim. You'd say instead, "We can make a difference, I can make a difference!"

All around you, you hear, "Life sucks and then you die," or "Nothin' ever gets better does it," or "The bread always lands butter side down." There is a whole set of similar sayings under the umbrella Murphy's Law. Why is it that we feel more comfortable repeating negative sayings than positive ones? How is it we have developed a system of casual interaction where we are feel a negative comment is more likely to be well received than a positive one? When we are asked, "How you doin'?" why do we feel, "Well I'm sure I can find something to complain about," is appropriate, but an upbeat, simple response "Great! Life is awesome, isn't it!" is somehow acting like you're better than everybody and rubbing it in?

This is a serious state of affairs we have allowed to develop. It says volumes about our culture, that we are more comfortable, and that we fully expect a better reception from a negative comment than a positive one. Commiseration has become the norm. This presents a problem in that it reinforces negative levels of Consciousness. Simply agreeing with it, going along in an attempt to get along, brings YOU down to that level...

You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with. Read that again please, YOU are the average of the five people you spend the most time with. So, if you want to live a positive existence, surround yourself with positive people. You can't see other people and events positively if you are living in a negative state of Consciousness, so you must raise your level of Consciousness if you are to experience things from that place. Surrounding yourself with people who are at those positive levels will raise yours because their positive reactions will effect your outlook. And as your level of Consciousness rises, you will BEgin to positively effect those coming from a negative place.

When I ask my son, "How's it going?" he always responds with, "I'm living the dream!" This never fails to elicit a smile from me. I've BEgun to adopt it for myself. When given the choice to play it safe and be well-received through acknowledging a negative attitude, and so reinforcing the negative, or to possibly lift the spirit of someone through responding from the Consciousness level of Courage, I choose to follow my son's example.

Today, when you get into an elevator, or approach a gathering around the water cooler, prepare yourself in advance. Get ready for the inevitable questions, and tell them you're LIVING THE DREAM!

Duffy

Nurture gratitude...

Nurture gratitude. You will grow a garden of incredible inner peace...

People grow gardens of incredible variety. The Earth has a multitude of climates, each presenting opportunities and caveats. The caveats are just like the parameters of your life, your age, your finances, your physical health, but mostly your attitude. The opportunities are blessings, just like the ones in your life. Some people can take the smallest little plot of land, a space most wouldn't even notice, and make it into a graceful creation of exquisite beauty. They balance color, compostiton and design, waterfalls, ponds, big flowers, with delicate mosses... How are they able to accomplish this? Because they are GRATEFUL to have the space and make the most of it.

Your life is like a plot of land in much the same way. Some people have very large plots, with rich soil, a healthy climate, and unlimited resources. Most people have something less. Drive down any street and you can see one yard is well manicured with the sidewalk swept, next to one with dead cars and old living room furniture fighting with the weeds for supremacy. Whatever we have, some make the most of it, and turn it into a stunning thing of beauty, and some let it go to seed... Most of us fall somewhere in the middle, doing just enough to satisfy those around us, or starting and stopping in fits and gasps.

We would all love to enjoy a lush, fertile existence, but we either don't know how or we're too busy to maintain our own garden. There are some poor souls that are so downtrodden and filled with apathy that they don't even notice.

What can we do? Begin by cultivating an attitude of THANKFULNESS. Everyone, in my opinion, has things to be thankful for. Your job may be unfulfilling, or low paying, but at least you have a job. You may only have Top Ramen for dinner but at least you're eating. You may feel "Old and In the Way," but you're still able to contemplate, congregate, and consumate. And for those who think they have nothing to be grateful for, BE grateful that you may learn from your challenges. Every challenge BEcomes an opportunity in this way.

Today, take 2-3 minutes, close your eyes and give thanks for the things in your life you are grateful for. Say "Thank you" when someone does something nice, no matter how small, and mean it too. Reach out to a friend or loved one, and tell them how thankful you are to have them in your life. BE thankful for challenges, they help build strength and character. BE grateful for your mistakes, they provide valuable life lessons, and are steps on the staircase of wisdom. BE grateful when you are tired and weary, for your effort has made a difference. Nuture your garden...

Duffy

Nobility is not about being better than anyone else...

Nobility is not about being better than anyone else. It's about striving to be better than you used to be...

Why do people stop trying to be better? Or good even, and when? Does it happen the first time we tell a lie and get away with it, or the first time we steal? Maybe it is after we first get caught and get off, that we realize we have the ability to lie and steal with impunity. It could simply be that one day when we're young, and have still been making the daily effort to live an honorable life, we decide after witnessing countless lies and endless theft around us, to give up the honorable life. After all, why should we be the only "saps" that aren't getting ahead? Yup, one day we simply decide give up on honor...

We know this isn't right on some level, but we decide in our greed that we deserve more than honor is providing. We say, "Everyone else is doing it," and we call those still maintaining their honor "squares," or "losers." We do feel badly about our "fall from grace," we do think of ourselves as sinners, but we rationalize that "greasing palms" is what makes the world go around. We didn't invent this. We need to, "Go along to get along."

This simply isn't true...

In the movie "Rob Roy," Liam Neeson's character, Robert Macgregor, is asked by one of his young sons what honor is. He answers, "It is a gift a man gives to himself, and one that no man can take away." This one line sums it up. In a world filled with treachery, and so filled with deceit that it sometimes feel like the Earth itself is moving underfoot, nothing can keep you from acting honorably, except you, except yourself.

Within the concept of Normative Ethics, which establishes a baseline for what is considered a normal moral character, lies Virtue Ethics, defined as: "The individual should choose for his/her own personal inward behavior (character) rather than the individual relying solely on the external laws and customs of the person's culture" (Gowdy). However, from our external laws and customs we learn OUR sense of the word Virtue. In today's world, that sense almost entirely means a duty towards others, to our country, to our familes, to our cultural demands. But, to the Ancient Greeks, Virtue was something else, it was an ideal, not to be followed, as in a set of fixed cultural norms, but as a duty to oneself. "Good" was not rigid, not set in stone, but something to strive for, an ideal that couldn't be reached, but an immortal truth that made you greater simply through the striving...

Nobility is about striving to be better than you used to be... Dogs are truly noble. It's why we love them. They never fail in their nobility. WE don't have to either. BEing noble does not mean being perfect. It means never faltering in our personal ideals. It means holding ourselves to a higher standard, always trying to improve. Nobility is reaching for an unreachable goal, knowing that our effort alone makes us better...

Today, don't follow the crowd. Look into the eyes of each spirit you come across and strive to give them the best of yourself. BE the person you would love to meet. BE the person you would love to have next to you in life...

Duffy

Concepts condition you, and color your reality...

Concepts condition you, and color your reality...

Concepts are mental versions of labels. They act, however, in the same way. They freeze a thing. They create a snapshot of a person, place or event in a way that is unchanging, unevolving and unadapting. Most of us have seen an overhead projector used, where one transparency was overlaid on top of another. Concepts are like a transparency, a layer put over something which alters its meaning. The info of the original layer is blocked, filtered, and colored in such a way as to change its meaning. In such a way, our conditioning blocks, filters and colors reality and prevents us from experiencing it clearly, unaltered, sans our transparency.

I happen to be in St Louis visiting family. St. Louis, where the wide Mississippi River flows. To a child seeing the river for the first time it is an awe-inspiring sight, something otherworldly, something wild, running free. The child asks what it is. "A river," we say. From that moment on the child can never experience it in the previous way. It is now something that can be taken with the child, kept in his/her box of definitions, to be taken out and examined on a whim. The child now owns the word, as well as the concept associated with it.

But what is this river? Is it the water? The water keeps changing, so it can't be the water we are referring to. Is it the location? An earthquake could alter its location for miles. Is it the shape? The shape is constantly changing along with the depth, the color and clarity of the water. In fact, none of what the child saw when the concept was initiated remains ...except the concept...

We do this with everything. We carry concepts around with us, and use them whenever they are convenient. They are easier to use and take less effort than FRESH experience. Unfortunately, they keep us FROM fresh experience. By applying concepts to things we are free to focus on what our Ego decides is important, to focus on cravings, desires, or to add energy to our apathy, shame, guilt, hatred, pride or anger. Real experience requires wonder, causes awe, brings Joy, Peace and LOVE... and we're much too busy to take the time for any of that. What is sad, is concepts keep us from reality, from living.

Where this manifests itself very clearly is one's concept of God. Take a child as early as possible, as soon as it begins to understand language and begin brain-washing him/her as to "God in Heaven" who will PUNISH you for your sins. God will sit in JUDGEMENT, and if you don't measure up you will burn in the fires of Hell FOREVER!!! And, you MUST believe that ours is the ONLY true God, and everyone else is going to Hell that believes in a different one. And you were born in SIN! And if you don't accept the belief that a man born 2600 years ago, or 2000 years ago, or 600 years ago, is God, you can't go to heaven. You will not be SAVED from Hell... Burn Baby...! Do ya' think this might create a concept? It creates a concept of God that keeps you from eperiencing God, except through this transparency, this indoctrination that has filled you with such fear that for most people, even considering an alternative causes them to cringe in fear.

But that is exactly what you must do to experience God. Most of the great mystics have said as much. Even the great Saint Thomas Aquinas said we must lose God to find him. And he is a canonized SAINT!

All of these "concepts" condition your reality with programming. You see yourself through the eyes of others, through the lens of your career, your identities with church, political party, nationality, etc., etc., etc. ALL of these can change as easily as the water in the river. And when they do, has the real YOU changed? No. So why do you filter your experience with concepts and conditioning, with filters and transparencies?

Today, BE present. Look at things as a child would. Feel the awe, experience the wonder. Don't analyze, don't label, don't judge. When your concepts arise, allow them to dissolve, as a wave dissolves words scratched in the sand. BEcome aware. Reality can only BE experienced through awareness, awareness, awareness...

Duffy