Soul Meets World

Starlight

2009-12-05T12:39:00.000-08:00

“The lights of stars that were extinguished ages ago still reaches us. So it is with great men who died centuries ago, but still reach us with the radiations of their personalities.”

~Kahlil Gibran

Unlimited

2009-12-03T12:33:00.000-08:00

“The idea of perfect closes your mind to new standards. When you drive hard toward one ideal, you miss opportunities and paths, not to mention hurting your confidence. Believe in your potential and then go out and explore it; don’t limit it.”

~John Eliot, Ph.D.

Loudly Quiet

2009-12-01T08:50:00.000-08:00

Often we go through life with unresolved questions. We lament about the past, we wonder if we're doing the right thing, if we’re with the right person, if people love us, if we love them enough or if we're wasting our time?

Questions, questions, questions. The best meeting place for these questions and any questions you may have are in your soul.

It is your built-in psychiatrist, your best friend, your confidante, your conscious, a highly trained master in matter of the mind, body and soul. You are where you are because of the questions you've already answered.

If your questions are unresolved then perhaps you haven’t asked the right ones.

Instead of asking, “Why don’t they love me?,” the question(s) can be, “Why do I feel they don’t love me?, Why don’t I love myself?”

Revel in the quiet time. Turn up the volume to solitude. Tap into the infinity that is you. Solitude brings you closer to who you are, sharpens your mind, strengthens your soul and fine tunes your hearing.

Solitude is the power to heal yourself, hear yourself think, break your thinking and feel your life taking shape without thinking.

If you are questioning anything in your life, it is a sign to examine it closely.

If you are thinking, “What can I do to improve my life and make it the best life I possibly can?,” you can find your answers in solitude.

You have the power to change the world in between your ears.

“Live your questions now, and perhaps even without knowing it, you will live along some distant day into your answers.”

~Rainer Maria Rilke

Today Is The Day

2009-11-28T12:11:00.000-08:00

“There are fine things which you mean to do some day, under what you think will be more favorable circumstances. But the only time that is surely yours is the present, hence this is the time to speak the word of appreciation and sympathy, to do the generous deed, to forgive the fault of a thoughtless friend, to sacrifice self a little more for others.

Today is the day in which to express your noblest qualities of mind and heart, to do at least one worthy thing which you have long postponed, and to use your God-given abilities for the enrichment of someone less fortunate. Today you can make your life - significant and worthwhile. The present is yours to do with as you will."

~Grenville Kleiser

Thanking Thanksgiving

2009-11-26T00:06:00.000-08:00

Today we celebrate Thanksgiving in America, a day of thanks and gratitude for all that we have, but let’s not limit it to one day.

Let us feel the spirit rising in us that has risen in so many others to be grateful of our accomplishments and failures, for our loves and our losses, for everything that has brought us forward to this point in time.

The Pilgrims were impoverished and made seven more times graves than huts, but they didn’t let that stop them from giving thanks for each other and their experience.

We are survivors. Reflect on the goodness of the world, the kindness of strangers and the power of love. No matter where you are on the globe, I am grateful for you. Thank you for being here.

Happy Thanksgiving to all even if it is technically not your holiday, everyday is Thanksgiving.

Guilty Of Love

2009-11-23T12:06:00.000-08:00

A man and his friend are walking down the street. One holds a bouquet of roses. His friend asks, “What did you do?”

The first man chuckles and says, “Just wanted to get my wife roses.”

The second man looks at his friend and says, “Come on, you can tell me, what did you do?”

The first man says, “My wife loves roses.”

Clearly the second man was convinced that the first man felt guilty about something and wanted to assuage his guilt by buying his wife roses. Judging from the first man’s demeanor, he knew that his gesture would make his wife’s day.

It was an interesting volley between the men that got me thinking, ‘Are men and women really that different?’

Don’t we all want love and appreciation from our spouse/girlfriend/boyfriend? Don’t we want to be everything to the ones we love?

I have a theory that flowers cause us to remember love. The fact that the man bought his wife roses meant that he was spreading love. Love is a catalyst.

No one knows the power of love like a florist. They know the joy and symbolism of flowers.

When the man bought them from the florist, the love energy was formulating. He shared his enthusiasm with the florist who in return expanded that energy by sharing his excitement.

As the man walked down the street, everyone who saw him smiled and thought, “That’s sweet.” (How can you not smile when you see roses?)

In essence they send their energy to the roses and by the time the roses get to the man’s wife, it has a trail of love attached to it and she feels all of that energy and attributes it to her husband.

I think a man giving flowers is sweet. I think a woman giving flowers to a man is sweet. Anything that accentuates our love for one another is nice.

In New Guinea, scholars noted a lot of elderly natives there had missing fingers. Research revealed that it was the custom years ago for a young fighting man to give his lucky girlfriend a finger cut from the hand of an opponent. And the girlfriend wore that finger on a string around her neck.

I still prefer flowers over fingers, but sometimes I can use an extra hand. (Insert laughter)

Researchers have shown that when a man buys flowers, he tends to pick red. A woman, though, is inclined to go for pink, or blue, or whatever off-hue is at hand. Personally I like red, orange, yellow. I don’t think I would ever pick pink or blue.

The real question is why would we be suspicious of a man bearing gifts? Something in their past? Our past? Not knowing how to accept love? Lack of trust?

The "Love Detector" service from Korean cell phone operator KTF uses technology that supposedly analyzes voice patterns to see if a lover is speaking honestly and with affection. Users later receive an analysis of the conversation delivered through text message that breaks down the amount of affection, surprise, concentration and honesty of the other speaker.

Wouldn’t this be great if it worked. Technology would do all of our work for us, but it wouldn’t be able to tell us if we love the person for who they are. It wouldn’t be able to measure those priceless memories spent with the ones we love.

So what would you think if your spouse/girlfriend/boyfriend bought you flowers unexpectedly? Would you be suspicious or appreciative?

Dirt To Diamonds

2009-11-22T02:35:00.000-08:00

“In South Africa, they dig for diamonds. Tons of earth are moved to find a little pebble not as large as a little fingernail. The miners are looking for the diamonds, not the dirt.

They are willing to lift all the dirt in order to find the jewels. In daily life, people forget this principle and become pessimists because there is more dirt than diamonds.

When trouble comes, don't be frightened by the negatives. Look for the positives and dig them out. They are so valuable it doesn't matter if you have to handle tons of dirt.”

~David Seabury

Clarify And Fulfill

2009-11-20T09:03:00.000-08:00

Six ways to make deposits to build an emotional bank account:

1. Empathize
2. Remember the little things
3. Keep commitments
4. Clarify and fulfill expectations
5. Be loyal
6. Sincerely apologize when you make a mistake

~Stephen R. Covey

No Guilt Required

2009-11-18T14:43:00.000-08:00

People go through great lengths to discredit you if they don't like you, feel that they have been hurt by you or feel that they want to teach you a lesson in something that’s only in their head.

They will make up stories and create reasoning that doesn't make sense to justify their behavior, but it is really because they don’t want to take responsibility for their actions.

In these instances, we have to step back and let them fall away. We can’t look back and break their fall, they must fall, they must get up and they must walk straight. We cannot be their crutch or they will continue to bring us down. They must walk alone and we must walk away.

Having love for our fellow beings is knowing when we can no longer assist them. Having love for them should never compromise the commitment we have to love ourselves. Even if it is hard to walk away, it is easier than the alternative of staying in negative energy that is not productive.

With each step, we will empower ourselves to fight the unnecessary slings and arrows of our naysayers.

Instructions For Life

2009-11-16T14:12:00.000-08:00

Though I didn’t write this, I thought it would make good reading. Simple truths are the best truths. They lay in our soul and squeeze us from the inside.

Which one speaks to you today?

Give people more than they expect and do it cheerfully.

Memorize your favorite poem.

Don't believe all you hear, or spend all you have, or loaf all you want.

When you say, "I love you," mean it.

When you say, "I'm sorry," mean it.

Believe in love at first sight.

Never laugh at anyone's dreams.

Love deeply and passionately.

Don't judge people by their relatives, or by the life they were born into.

Know that great love and great achievements involve great risk.

Call a relative. Let them know you care.

When you lose, don't lose the lesson.

Follow the three R's: Respect for self, Respect for others, and Responsibility for your actions.

Don't let a little dispute injure a great friendship.

When you realize you've made a mistake, take steps to correct it.

Smile when picking up the phone. The caller will hear it in your voice.

Marry a person you love to talk to.

Spend some time alone.

Open your arms to change, but don't let go of your values.

Remember that silence is sometimes the best answer.

Read more books. Television is no substitute.

Live a good, honorable life. Then when you get older and think back, you'll be able to enjoy it a second time.

In disagreements with loved ones deal only with the current situation, don't bring up the past.

Listen to what someone is saying and listen to why they are saying it.

Pray or meditate. There's immeasurable power in it.

Never interrupt when you are being flattered.

Mind your own business.

Once a year, go someplace you've never been before.

If you make a lot of money, put it to use helping others while you are living. It is wealth's greatest satisfaction.

Remember that not getting what you want is sometimes a wonderful stroke of luck.

Remember that the best relationship is one in which your love for each other exceeds your need for each other.

Live with the knowledge that your character is your destiny.

Green Grass

2009-11-15T00:03:00.000-08:00

“The grass is not, in fact, always greener on the other side of the fence. Fences have nothing to do with it. The grass is greenest where it is watered. When crossing over fences, carry water with you and tend the grass wherever you may be.”

~Robert Fulghum

Drop A Pebble

2009-11-13T00:15:00.000-08:00

Drop a pebble in the water,
just a splash and it is gone.
But there's half a hundred ripples
circling on and on and on.
They are spreading, spreading, spreading,
and the ripples rise and fall.
While the music of their swelling
brings a thought for one and all.
As you watch the waves of water
as they widen round and round.
Think how simple were their starting,
just a pebble from the ground.
Drop an unkind word in carelessness,
in a second it is gone.
But there's half a hundred ripples
circling on and on and on.
They are spreading,
ever spreading from the center as they go.
And there's not a way to stop them
once you've started them to flow.
And perhaps in some sad heart,
a mighty wave of tears you've stirred.
And disturbed a life once happy
when you dropped that unkind word.
Drop a word of cheer and kindness,
in a moment it is gone.
But there's half a hundred ripples
circling on and on and on.
Bearing sons of hope and gladness
on each buoyant joyous wave
'till you'd not believe the volume
from the little thought you gave.
And you've rolled a wave of comfort,
whose sweet music may be heard.
Circling miles and miles around you,
just by dropping that kind word!

~James William Foley

About Veterans Day

2009-11-11T11:53:00.000-08:00

Today marks Veterans Day. A day that honors the 24.9 million military veterans in the United States. World War I ended on 1918, in the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month, when a stop to hostilities was declared. An armistice to cease the fighting on the Western Front was signed by the Allied powers and Germany.

Initially president Woodrow Wilson proclaimed the day "Armistice Day," commencing on November 11th, but over the years as veterans returned from World War II and the Korean War, Armistice Day became Veterans Day — a day reserved to honor veterans returning from all wars. The date of 11/11 represented the end of the Great War and the date stuck.

In 1921, unidentified dead from the war were buried in Arlington National Cemetery in Washington, D.C., Westminster Abbey in London, and the Arc de Triomphe in Paris. The tradition to honor those killed in the war but never identified continues every year in the U.S. The ceremony is held at 11 a.m. at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery.

Red poppies, a symbol of World War I (from their appearance in the poem "In Flanders Fields" by John McCrae) are sold in Canada and the United Kingdom on Remembrance Day to raise money for veterans or worn in the lapel as a tribute.

The Tomb Of The Unknown Soldiers

The guards at the tomb of the unknown soldiers are on duty 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days of the year honoring all of those who have fallen and have never been found or identified.

It is extremely difficult for families who never know what happened to their loved ones and they are unable to begin the healing process. Since the dead soldiers can't be identified, the guards honor their service, and their families by keeping a vigil at the tomb. A soldier was removed from the tomb a few years ago after DNA identified him.
The Duty

The guards are the very best of the Army’s best. They take 21 steps during the walk across the tomb of the unknowns. It alludes to the twenty-one gun salute, which is the highest honor given any military or foreign dignitary.

He stops on the 21st step, then turns and faces the Tomb for 21 seconds. He turns to face back down the mat, changes his weapon to the outside shoulder, counts 21, then steps off for another 21 step walk down the mat. He faces the Tomb at each end of the 21 step walk for 21 seconds. He repeats this over and over until he is relieved at the Guard Change.

Whether under a blazing sun, unsheltered from driving rains, or in freezing snow, they perform their duty with great precision and military bearing.

Each soldier among them is physically fit for the demanding responsibility and between 5'10" and 6'4" tall with a proportionate weight and build.

Each of them is a volunteer from the 3rd Infantry, eligible to apply for duty as a sentinel ONLY after they have already been ceremonially qualified in The Old Guard.

Acceptance in The Old Guard's Company E does not assure a volunteer that he will become one of the fewer than 550 soldiers in the last 45 years to earn the distinctive Tomb Guard Badge.

Before any soldier is allowed "a walk", he must memorize seven pages of history on Arlington National Cemetery and then recite it verbatim. If a soldier finishes this phase and is granted "a walk", he enters a new phase of training known as "new-soldier training". In addition to extensive training in the manual of arms, the guard change ceremony, and the intricacies of military ritual, the new-soldier is required to memorize additional information on Arlington, including the grave locations of nearly 300 veterans.

It may take months for a soldier to earn the right to TEST to wear the coveted silver Tomb Guard Identification badge. Only after the sentinel has served at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier for nine months does the award become permanent. One of the Army's rarest emblems, it features the inverted laurel and a replica of the East face of the tomb where Greek images represent the virtues of Victory, Valor, and Peace. Less than 550 have been awarded since its creation in the late 1950's. The Badge is a full size award, worn on the right pocket of the uniform jacket, not a lapel pin.

Their gloves are moistened to prevent his losing his grip on the rifle.

The shoes are standard issue military dress shoes. They are built up so the sole and heel are equal in height. This allows the Sentinel to stand so that his back is straight and perpendicular to the ground. A side effect of this is that the Sentinel can "roll" on the outside of the build up as he walks down the mat. This allows him to move in a fluid fashion. It gives him a formal and smooth look to his walk, rather than a "marching" appearance.

The soles have a steel tip on the toe and a "horseshoe" steel plate on the heel. This prevents wear on the sole and allows the Sentinel to move smoothly during his movements when he turns to face the Tomb and then back down the mat.

Then there is the "clicker". It is a shank of steel attached to the inside of the face of the heel build-up on each shoe. It allows the Sentinel to click his heels during certain movements. If a guard change is really hot, it is called a "smoker" because all the heel clicks fall together and sound like one click. In fact, the guard change is occasionally done in the "silent" mode (as a sign of devotion to the Unknowns"). No voice commands - every thing is done in relation to the heel clicks and on specific counts.

He carries the rifle on the shoulder away from the tomb.

The Guard is changed every thirty minutes during the summer (April 1st to September 30th) and every hour during the winter (October 1st to March 31st).

During the hours the cemetery is closed, the guard is changed every 2 hours.

There has been a Sentinel on duty in front of the Tomb every minute of every day since 1937. And the Sentinel does not change the way he guards the Tomb, even at night when there is no one around.

May we have a moment of silence for all of the soldiers.

No Strength In Numbness

2009-11-09T12:23:00.000-08:00

There is no strength in numbness. Nothing in it except bleak emptiness. Yet so many people prolifically pop painkillers, or ingest other drugs, drown their sorrows in alcohol, attach themselves to devious vices so they won’t feel what’s going on.

We are human beings with feelings that need to be felt, that’s why them call them feelings. So why do we insist on not feeling? It’s not so much the numbness as it is the desire to be numb. What are we afraid of?

Feelings are messages. Our body is attempting to get our attention by kicking us from the inside and when we ignore it, the kick doesn’t go away, it gets bigger. We don’t want to hear it, so we continue to anesthetize, thinking that if we can’t hear it, we can’t feel it and we don’t have to correct it.

We are all fitted with emotions, hankerings and dreams, interspersed with bouts of highs and lows. There is so much laid out for us in the feast of life and if we are numb, we will never drink from the golden chalice or devour the delicacies of our feelings.

Throughout our lives, we will have darkness and light; we will lose ourselves, find ourselves, reinvent ourselves, go through many transformations before we find ourselves again. Our lives will be complicated, our lives will be easy.

We will do stupid things, hurtful things; we will fight when we don’t have to and give up when we should have fought. Our ego will complain that we don’t spend enough time with it. We will placate it until it pushes us further away from everyone before we send it packing. We will be revered, we will be reviled. We will have marvelous proud moments and wretched regrettable moments.

We are slaves of lust; dreams of passion, works in progress, products of our environment, results of our consciousness. We are gluttons for corporeality, vanity, hedonism, and egotism; the more we have, the more we want. The more we get, the less we have.

We are covered in a mountain of matter that doesn’t matter; buried in emotional debt and ethical bankruptcy. We are technological polyglots speaking in staccato with our heads bowed to read the text ticker tape of the future ‘technologentsia,’ bound to our hand-held devices trying to repair the disconnect but still coming up numb. And yet we still don’t know how to speak.

We need to start feeling, start thinking, then stop, look and listen to our lives. Numbness is a waking death. It is no way to live. We can survive by our ability to love and cherish the life we have. Even though it may not be something we particularly like, it was chosen for us and we have to do the best that we can. We have to do our best and never lose our ability to love.

Just say no to numbness. Wake up to yourself. Wake up to life. Wake up to your feelings. Wake up to love.

What can we do to stop numbness?

Acts Of Kindness

2009-11-08T00:16:00.000-08:00

An old man was walking along the beach with his grandson. His grandson picked up each starfish they passed and threw it back into the sea. "If I leave them up here," the boy said, "they would dry up and die. I'm saving their lives."

The old man explained, "The beach goes on for miles, and there are millions of starfish. What you are doing won't make any difference."

The boy looked at the starfish in his hand, gently threw it into the ocean, and answered, "It makes a difference to this one."

Smoke Signals

2009-11-06T00:40:00.000-08:00

“Gossip is a sort of smoke that comes from the dirty tobacco-pipes of those who diffuse it: it proves nothing but the bad taste of the smoker.”

~George Eliot

Catching Lies

2009-11-04T09:21:00.000-08:00

In the past I have worked in many jobs, including property management.

Frequently tenants come up with stories to avoid paying rent, such as,

“It was our anniversary and we went to Mexico to celebrate;”

“I called you to pick it up and you never came, so I spent it;”

“The dog ate my rent check;”

“I couldn’t find your address;”

“Could you forgo rent this month until I get more money;”

“I didn’t want it to be late so I didn’t send it.”

Contractors too have a series of lies they tell such as,

“I was on another job so I couldn’t make it;”

“I AM giving you my best price;”

“I’m not making any money on this job;”

“I can finish in three days;”

“I start on time and work the whole day;”

“I guarantee my work.”

We were constantly on the look out for new contractors because they would all do something wrong and we wouldn’t use them again.

I recall one such incident with a contractor. He was contracted to paint an outside deck, stairs and railings. He started late and painted everything, but it just didn’t look right. The paint was rippling in some areas which caused me to question his ability and the type of paint he used.

There is a specific paint used for decks and he swore that he used the right paint. He even showed me the paint can, but I still wasn’t convinced. Short of having a forensic expert test the paint, there was nothing I could do.

Two weeks passed and as nature would test him, it rained heavily for five hours. The rain washed away the paint from the deck and the old color looked like it had never been repainted. Apparently he didn’t use the right paint, though he swore that he used the appropriate one.

The moral of the story; when you think someone is lying and you can’t prove it, leave it to nature. The truth will reveal itself. It all comes out in the wash.

I guess the question is should we have more compassion for liars or confront them and hope they stop their trail of lies? Confronting them doesn't necessarily mean that we have less compassion, but it may let them know that we are not going to accept their version of truth.

When you catch someone in a lie, what do you do?

A Thing Of Beauty

2009-11-02T00:36:00.000-08:00

Poetry is a nice way to open the heart, soften the eyes and sharpen the ears. It can adjust our senses to the world with words. It can also guide us to the place where we can listen to the sound between our ears and simply listen.

May the following prose take you to that place where you can just listen.

A thing of beauty is a joy for ever:
Its loveliness increases; it will never
Pass into nothingness; but still will keep
A bower quiet for us, and a sleep
Full of sweet dreams, and health,
and quiet breathing.
Therefore, on every morrow,
are we wreathing
A flowery band to bind us to the earth,
Spite of despondence,
of the inhuman dearth
Of noble natures,
of the gloomy days,
Of all the unhealthy and o'er-darkn'd ways
Made for our searching:
yes, in spite of all,
Some shape of beauty moves away the pall
From our dark spirits.
Such the sun, the moon,
Trees old and young, sprouting a shady boon
For simple sheep;
and such are daffodils
With the green world they live in;
and clear rills
That for themselves a cooling covert make
'Gainst the hot season;
the mid-forest brake,
Rich with a sprinkling of
fair musk-rose blooms:
And such too is the
grandeur of the dooms
We have imagined for the mighty dead;
An endless fountain of immortal drink,
Pouring unto us from the heaven's brink.

~John Keats

What are some ways that you listen to the sound?

No Reservations

2009-11-01T00:02:00.000-07:00

“Don't reserve your best behavior for special occasions. You can't have two sets of manners, two social codes - one for those you admire and want to impress, another for those whom you consider unimportant. You must be the same to all people.”

~Lillian Eichler Watson

Halloween Spirit

2009-10-30T12:50:00.000-07:00

An escaped mental patient was behind the counter cashiering groceries. Chunks of hair were missing from her head and she had electrodes attached to her temples from shock treatment.

A store manager dressed as a priest had a confessional sign at the manager’s station while ghouls and ghosts wandered throughout the aisles. As I left the store, a nun gave me her blessings and told me to be good.

People love Halloween. Every year I see skeletons and demons driving cars, in offices, stores and on the street digging into the “spirit” of halloween. Flaming, jack-o'-lanterns, bats, spider webs and goblins line lawns like a horror movie set.

So what is it that makes people so elated? Many folks are excited that they can let it all hang out, taking one mask off and putting another one on. For them it’s a day of celebration, fun and anything goes. Their spirits literally run free, but why does it take Halloween to let spirits run free?

Just today someone wished me a “Safe Halloween.” It took me back to those days when I went trick or treating and got lots of goodies. It was a fun period. But Halloween also brings out the dark side of people who want to harm others. It’s a period when we have to be aware of intentions and not fall prey to them.

We are forever faced with darkness and light. How do you find the balance?

The Miracle Under The Train

2009-10-28T11:54:00.000-07:00

About two weeks ago, an Australian mother had the scare of a lifetime when her six-month-old baby rolled onto the path of an incoming train when she momentarily let go of the stroller.

The stroller turned over and protected the baby underneath. Miraculously, the baby escaped harm, with just a cut on his forehead, after being dragged 30 meters (33 yards) further up the track before the train stopped.

A man in Russia stepped out to cross the street when a bus came barreling out of nowhere barely grazing his shoulder.

A woman driving alone through the forest fell asleep and ran her car into a tree. She was stuck in the car, losing a lot of blood and the circulation in her legs. Three strangers happened upon her, one was a doctor. They helped her out of the car, tended her wounds and disappeared. No one knows who they were. The woman survived.

Stories like this happened quote often and every time I hear them, I shake my head in agreement. There are things that we can’t explain and then there are miracles. Miracle are here. Miracles are now. You are a miracle.

Have you witnessed any miracles in your life?

University Of Soul

2009-10-26T13:51:00.000-07:00

Education is a distinction, a mark of excellence, an award. It guides us to areas of discussion, choice of jobs and companies, friends, colleagues, spouses, where we live and how we live. Often times it leaves us clinging to ideals that may lead us to wrong conclusions. But what is education? Is it the memorization of books, the quotes of professors or a shiny university brand stamped on our foreheads as if we are prime grade?

It is all of those, yet none of those. Inveterate institutions such as Harvard, Yale, Oxford, Cambridge all have a pedigree in higher education. They have arguably produced some of the finest minds in the world in all fields of endeavor, but does an ivy league education have anything to do with education?

An education - a real education is not found in the hallowed halls of a building, it’s what we do outside of those walls that count. People spend countless hours and years educating themselves in what they think is truth, but education doesn't do anything except stop our real education. Do we even bother to question the curriculum of formal education? Don’t we question which strings are being pulled to get text books into schools? What percentage of truth is actually represented in books?

Education is marketed especially in America as “the be all and end all”, when actually it is more like “the end all.” Universities are businesses that exist to make profit. They don’t really care about our education unless it can generate more profits. To further this, they have created a permanent campaign of alumni to continually pour coinage into their coffers. Alumni parties, sporting events, T-shirts, sweatshirts and those little license plate frames that read the name of the school, all generate moolah. And in all of the effort to remember our schools, we forget our spirit.

Our spirits are being knocked down and stomped into the ground. They have been deep fried into not thinking about the big picture, but only a tiny piece of paper in comparison. What about out soul? What about putting as much time into the pursuit of happiness, being loving and sharing our future of love with someone we love?

Our soul is screaming at us, trying to get our attention, but we can't hear. It shakes us, but we can't feel. It stares at us, but we can't see. It tries to wake us, but we are asleep. We have lost our spark and can't get our spiritual engines to turn over. Our tires are stuck in the mud. We have put as much time into our soul as we do education. Education is a lifelong synthesis. It encompasses everything we are.

If educational institutions care so much about the value of education, then why do they give honorary degrees to those who donate cash? Don't such degrees dilute the brand value of the university and thus the integrity of education?

The awarding of the honorary doctorates creates publicity and an opportunity to impress the famous, who will then create more skywriting when they give commencement speeches. If the recipient is sufficiently prestigious, this involves no reputational cost for the granting institution and it creates reputational benefits.

An honorary degree or a degree honoris causa (Latin: 'for the sake of the honour') is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived the usual requirements (such as matriculation, residence, study and the passing of examinations). The degree itself is typically a doctorate or, less commonly, a master's degree, and may be awarded to someone who has no prior connection with the institution. The practice dates back to the middle ages.

In the latter part of the sixteenth century, the granting of honorary degrees became quite common, especially on the occasion of royal visits to Oxford or Cambridge. On the visit of James I to Oxford in 1605, forty-three members of his retinue (fifteen of whom were earls or barons) received the degree of Master of Arts.

In 1985 Oxford broke precedent and refused to award Margaret Thatcher an honorary degree, as the school had done with previous Prime Ministers because they didn’t like that she cut funding for British universities. Cambridge University has given honorary degrees to Albert Einstein, Nelson Mandela, and Bill Gates. In 2001, George W. Bush received an honorary degree from Yale University where he had earned his bachelor's degree in history in 1968. They also gave one to Paul McCartney in 2008.

The University of California system gave 700 honorary degrees to former Japanese-American students, namely the ones who were placed in concentration camps during WWII. They thought this was the right thing to do to garnered them points with local Asian communities.

Is the acceptance of an honorary degree, no more than a less honorable lie? Why does anyone accept them if they know they haven’t worked for them? It is a false reward for ulterior motives. The universities cleverly use them as dangling carrots to manipulate and create artificial intelligence or unofficial intelligence.

What happened to the idea, that hard work is its own reward? Abraham Lincoln once said, “Give me six hours to chop down a tree and I will spend the first four sharpening the ax.” Where are the ax sharpeners today? Are they hiding behind the lumberjacks ready to take credit?

We are not given honorary degrees by our higher authority without working. We are what we create, not what someone else creates for us. We can’t delete our karma because we don’t want it and inherit someone else's. We have to dig the holes and we have to fill them. We don’t get a gold medal for running a marathon without stepping foot on the field? We have to run, sweat, have sore feet, be out of breath and when we see the finish line, get our second wind and cross it with pride and accomplishment.

We learn through action - not intent. When a film director yells, “Action,” it means that he wants the scene to start filming. That means the actors move, the chase ensues, the helicopters fly, etc. If he just yelled, “Intent,” nothing would happen. The actors would just stand there and wait. That’s why it is called a motion picture because everything moves.

Education in soul is motion. Moving our brain cells beyond the page and cultivating new ideas, different spins, and not being afraid to have an opinion even if it is not popular.

Put time into your real education, the one that reaps the best rewards - knowing that you have done your best job and perhaps getting an honorary degrees just for being honorable.

The Greatest Achievement

2009-10-25T00:02:00.000-07:00

“The greatest achievement was at first and for a time a dream. The oak sleeps in the acorn, the bird waits in the egg, and in the highest vision of the soul, a waking angel stirs. Dreams are the seedlings of realities. Dream lofty dreams, and as you dream, so you shall become. Your vision is the promise of what you shall one day be; your ideal is the prophecy of what you shall at last unveil.”

~James Allen

It's Your Attitude

2009-10-23T10:00:00.000-07:00

“The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on life. Attitude to me, is more important than facts. It is more important than past, than education, than money, than circumstances, than failures, than successes, than what other people think or say or do. It is more important than appearance, gifted ability, or skill. It will make or break a company, a church, a home.

The remarkable thing is we have a choice everyday regarding the attitude we will embrace from that day. We cannot change our past, we cannot change the fact that people will act in certain way. We cannot change the inevitable. The only thing that we can do is play on the one string that we have and this string is, Attitude. I am convinced that life is ten percent what happens to me and ninety percent how I react to it. And so it is with you....We are in charge of our Attitudes.”

~Charles Swindoll

A Mini Update

2009-10-20T11:58:00.000-07:00

My, how time flies when you’re doing paperwork. What was once a seemingly insurmountable task is almost coming to its conclusion.

Though I still have a way to go, the end is in sight. I have missed all of you tremendously. I know you miss me like I miss you. I can feel your loving eyes pressed against the monitor anxiously awaiting my return.

Don’t worry, I am on my way.

“All things on earth point home in old October; sailors to sea, travellers to walls and fences, hunters to field and hollow and the long voice of the hounds, the lover to the love he has forsaken.”

~Thomas Wolfe