New Ideas – Page 7 – Sommer Season all year

Power of the Mind

Buddha_in_Sarnath_Museum_(Dhammajak_Mutra) I’ve always been intrigued with Buddhism. The founder of Buddhism is said to have declared, “What we think, we become.” What does this really mean? I have been pondering that question for some time now. Others have said something similar. Ralph Waldo Emerson, an American essayist, lecturer, and poet, once said, “We become what we think about all day long.” Henry Ford, the founder of the Ford Motor Company, once said, “Whether you think you can or can’t, you’re right.” That is just a sampling of like-minded thinkers. So that begs the question, what do these quotes really mean?

I suppose the Buddha’s comment “What we think, we become” could be referring to self-esteem or self-talk. I know from personal experience and from observing my students as a teacher for 35 years, that self-talk is huge. I remember one particular student who thought that she could not pass my exams, and in fact, rarely did. What was interesting is this did not change until her thinking changed. I recommended to this student to visit the school counselor. She did and the counselor after much questioning discovered that her self-talk was such that she believed she could not pass my exams. The counselor worked with the student for a long while to change her thinking and lo and behold she started passing my exams. I also have worked with numerous students who told themselves that they were stupid, and these students were seldom successful. I suspect that this self-talk was reinforced at home. So quite literally “What we think, we become.”

Now this ties into what is known as the law of attraction. According to Wikipedia, “the law of attraction is the name given to the adage “like attracts like” which in New Thought philosophy is used to sum up the idea that by focusing on positive or negative thoughts a person brings positive or negative experiences into their life. This belief is based upon the idea that people and their thoughts are both made from “pure energy”, and the belief that “like energy attracts like energy.” So this law would say if you think about something long enough, you will attract it to you. Now I’ve had experiences that could be explained by this law. A number of years ago we took a family vacation to the east coast of Canada using a rental car to travel around. As we often did, we stopped to pick up pudding cups for a treat. Since I didn’t want my children to spill pudding in our rental vehicle, I didn’t allow them to consume theirs in the car. The decision was solely mine as there was much protest from my children and my wife. We all stood outside and ate our pudding. After all my lecturing to my children, along with their opposition and my wife’s belief that I was being a “worry wart”, guess who slopped all over themselves. You guessed it, me. You could call that law of attraction or as Ralph Waldo Emerson put it, “We become what we think about all day long.”

Now the law of attraction would say that when we worry about something, say “I hope the car won’t break down” or “What if the car breaks down” that we attract that into our life even though we may not want it. I can also relate to this. Many years ago my wife and I took a road trip. Out of the blue my wife asks, “What would we do if the van breaks down?” I responded with, “find a mechanic.” Well, a few hours later our van died as the alternator failed. We had to find a mechanic. Was that the Law of Attraction? Perhaps. Orison Swett Marden, an American inspirational author and founder of SUCCESS magazine, said, “Worry clogs the brain and paralyzes the thought. A troubled brain can not think clearly, vigorously, locally.” This law would say that because we were worrying, thus constantly thinking that the van might break down; we attracted that into our experience.

What I find particularly fascinating is that science is providing evidence that the mind can affect matter. Here are two studies that caught my attention. The first is what is called the placebo affect. We’ve all heard of the use of placebos used in the study of new medications. A Baylor School of Medicine study, published in 2002 in the New England Journal of Medicine (see Study Finds…), looked at surgery for patients with severe and debilitating knee pain. The patients were divided into three groups. The surgeons shaved the damaged cartilage in the knee of one group. For the second group they flushed out the knee-joint, removing all of the material believed to be causing inflammation. The third group received a “fake” surgery, where the patients were only sedated and tricked that they actually had the knee surgery. For the patients who received the “fake” surgery, the doctors made the incisions and splashed salt water on the knee as they would in normal surgery. They then sewed up the incisions like the real thing. All three groups went through the same rehab process, and the results were surprising. The placebo group improved just as much as the other two groups who had surgery.

Another fascinating example of how science is showing the power of the mind influences matter is the work of Dr. Masaru Emoto. Dr. Emoto has been studying the effects of thoughts and feelings on water. He did this by producing different focused intentions through written and spoken words directed towards water samples. He did the same using musical styles. Dr. Emoto would literally present these thoughts to water samples and the water appears to “change its expression”. One of his books, The Hidden Messages in Water (1999), explains how he demonstrated the effects of human thoughts on water. More specifically, he observed the crystals of frozen water after exposing the water to music or thoughts. I have personally read this book and found it quite captivating and he has since published many more. (See Masaru Emoto)

There are many more captivating scientific studies that provide evidence that thought, or the human mind, can influence matter. See the 10 Scientific Studies… to learn more.

170px-Timehenryford — Henry Ford, Time Magazine, Jan 1935

So maybe there is something to the Buddha quote, “What we think, we become.” Or as Henry Ford said, “Whether you think you can or can’t, you’re right.” If we think we are a failure, we become a failure. If we think we are brainy, we become brainy. Now I’m not suggesting it is magic. If we think and believe we are good at something, say hockey, doesn’t mean we magically are. However, the wanting to be good motivates a person to practice and become good at it. Eckhart Tolle, a German-born resident of Canada, best known as the author of The Power of Now and A New Earth: Awakening to your Life’s Purpose, says, “The mind is a superb instrument if used rightly. Used wrongly, however, it becomes very destructive. To put it more accurately, it is not so much that you use your mind wrongly—you usually don’t use it at all. It uses you.” I get that now. If we control those negative or destructive thoughts then our mind can’t use us. If we use our mind in positive and creative ways, then we grow as human beings. It is true. What we think, we become.”

Legalized Discrimination

I’ve always held the belief that at least in the developed world human rights were considered sacred. I wanted to believe that because we live in the 21st century we had moved beyond discriminatory practices and racism. I thought the human race was evolving for the better. It seems I’m naive and that my assumptions were wrong.

On December 10, 1948, the United Nations General Assembly proclaimed The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), a document listing universal rights entitled to all human beings. A human right is a right that is believed to belong justifiably to every person. Article 6 of UDHR states, everyone has the right to recognition everywhere as a person before the law. Article 7 of that document states, all are equal before the law and are entitled without any discrimination to equal protection of the law. All are entitled to equal protection against any discrimination in violation of this Declaration and against any incitement to such discrimination.

So why am I bringing up the UDHR? Well it appears that even in this modern era where we have an international declaration enshrining our human rights, that there are still people hell-bent on denying certain groups of people their rights.

On March 30 of this year, the State of Mississippi in the United States passed an Anti-LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender) Bill. Some of the law in Mississippi states, so long as individuals are motivated by “a sincerely held religious belief or moral conviction,” any of the following behaviours would be considered legal by the government:

Religious organizations can decline to honour any same-sex marriage or provide any services related to recognizing that marriage.
Religious organizations can refuse to hire, fire, and discipline employees for violating the organization’s religious beliefs, basically protecting those who carry out above mentioned actions towards the LGBT community.
Religious organizations can choose not to sell, rent, or otherwise provide shelter to namely the LGBT community.
Religious organizations that provide foster or adoptive services can decline service without risking their state subsidies.
Any person can choose not to provide treatment, counselling, or surgery related to gender transition or same-sex parenting.

On March 23, North Carolina passed the Public Facilities Privacy & Security Act that states, All public schools, government agencies and public college campuses to require that multiple-occupancy bathrooms and changing facilities, such as locker rooms, be designated for use only by people based on their “biological sex” stated on their birth certificate.

half-vic-lgbt — from nohatespeechmovement.org

Clearly the laws passed in North Carolina and Mississippi are in violation of UDHR, namely article 6 and 7. In essence these states have legalized discrimination. Now this is not without consequences. The Guardian says President Barack Obama has called for North Carolina and Mississippi to overturn state laws that affect gay and transgender residents. The United Kingdom Foreign Office issued to its citizens a statement warning LGBT tourists of the dangers of visiting North Carolina and Mississippi after both introduced “anti-LGBT” laws.

According to BuzzFeedNews entertainers such as Pearl Jam, Cirque du Soleil, Bruce Springsteen and Bryan Adams have cancelled plans to perform in those states. The Corporation PayPal cancelled its plans to open a new global operations centre in the city of Charlotte, North Carolina. The German Deutsche Bank announced that it was freezing plans to create 250 new jobs in North Carolina due to the state’s anti-LGBT law. At least 13 conventions in Charlotte were cancelled over concerns over the bill. Actress Sharon Stone, scheduled to film a movie in Mississippi, decided to change the location after the passage of the controversial law.

NewNowNext reported the corporation holding the rights of the musicals West Side Story and Footloose have withdrawn permission for their musicals to be done in the states of North Carolina and Mississippi, because of the anti-LGBT laws. The Blue Man Group tour was also withdrawn.

These anti-LGBT laws were passed despite the fact that the Supreme Court of the United States, the highest court of the land, ruled that same-sex marriages were legal throughout the entire country.

Now the justification for these laws is based on religious beliefs; the beliefs of Christianity. Yes you can find passages in the Christian scriptures supporting the belief that homosexuality is sinful. Having said that you can also find numerous passages in scripture justifying slavery as well. Does that mean that we should also pass laws legalizing slavery? I think there would be a huge public outcry if we did. Slavery was a socially acceptable practice in biblical times but now it isn’t. Perhaps the beliefs about homosexuality shown in scripture are also reflecting the social norms of day. From what I’ve learned about LGBT, it is not a choice. Their sexual orientation is a part of their genetic and/or spiritual makeup. They can’t help who they are.

First Nations or aboriginal people use the umbrella term “two-spirited” to describe same-sex attraction and gender variance. The term refers to a person who has both a masculine and a feminine spirit. I first heard of this term many years ago when I was teaching a scripture course to a group of aboriginal people. From what I was told, the LGBT community is much more accepted by the First Nations people.

Moreover, if Christianity is going to be used as justification for these laws, then all of scripture must be considered. Christians are called to follow and emulate Jesus. In John 8:1-11 is a story about Jesus who sat down in the temple to address a group of scribes and Pharisees who confronted Jesus. They brought up the issue of an adulteress woman, and invited Jesus to pass judgment upon her when they asked the question, should she be stoned, which is what the Law of Moses instructed. Jesus responded by stating that the one who is without sin is the one who should cast the first stone. The religious leaders then departed, leaving Jesus and the woman alone. Jesus then asked the woman if anyone had condemned her. When she answers no, Jesus said that he did not condemn her either, and told her to go and sin no more. This story clearly shows that Jesus did not judge or condemn others for their lifestyles. NOR SHOULD WE.

No one should be denied their human rights no matter what their sexual orientation is or what the colour of their skin is or for any other reason for that matter. If the makers of these laws truly proclaim their actions are rooted in Christian belief, then they should take heed to Luke 6:35 (NRSV) where it says, But love your enemies, do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return. Your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High; for he [God] is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked. Now don’t get me wrong. I’m not suggesting in any way that the LGBT community is wicked. I am only trying to get across the point that God treats everyone with kindness, even the wicked. As far as I’m concerned, LGBT individuals are like you and me. They are merely trying to happily live their lives like everyone else. No matter what our beliefs are, we must still learn to be tolerant and understanding of all people.

Stop the Complaining!

shame-clipart-152726101 Grumpiness is so common these days. For many people it could be called a way of life. Now I understand everybody complains at times. I personally hear lots of complaining. Where I currently live, the economy is not good because of the low oil prices. I hear people grumble about the economy and most often will blame the government as if they have control over the oil markets. I hear people complain about the weather. It’s too cold, too hot, too much snow, not enough snow, too much rain, not enough rain and well you get the picture. I’ve heard people complain about their jobs, their bosses, and their families. When I taught school I heard people complain that teachers were too difficult, marked too hard, had no discipline, didn’t teach, and on and on. I even heard people grumble about all the time their children had off from school and how easy the teachers had it. Everywhere I go I hear complaining.

Now what good does complaining do? Really, no one wants to hear grumbling. Nobody really listens to you when you’re complaining nor do they feel sorry for you. So I ask again, what does complaining really do? The answer is pretty straightforward. It accomplishes nothing.

A few weeks ago I found this message in my email.

Moaning and groaning about things changes nothing, and it never does anyone any good.

The email went on to say, “If you don’t want to do anything to change it, stop complaining about it. If you can’t do anything to change it no matter how much you want to, then accept it for now and simply resolve to create a different tomorrow, but don’t let today be ruined while you are waiting.”

I think that is brilliant! Especially the line, “If you don’t want to do anything to change it, stop complaining about it.” Unless a person is willing to make changes, then you do not have the right to complain. Really, complaining is a useless activity as far as I am concerned. I know we all get on the ‘complaining bandwagon’; myself included, but is it good for us. Does it help us? I suspect not.

It’s not good for us according to the article, How Complaining Wires Your Brain for Negativity, published in Good Magazine. The article states:

“The brain is rewiring its own circuitry, physically changing itself, to make it easier and more likely that the proper synapses will share the chemical link and thus spark together—in essence, making it easier for the thought to trigger.” So essentially, the more often you complain, the more negative connections are created in your brain.”

According to the article, Top 10 Reasons Why Constant Complaining is so Toxic, it does things like:

Makes things look worse than they are
Becomes a habit
Attracts more negativity
Kills innovation
Promotes bad relationships

The article goes on to say that researchers of positive psychology say that people who see the world in a positive light have a long list of advantages, such as:

They live longer
They’re healthier
They have more friends and better social lives
They enjoy life more
They’re more successful at work

The late Dr. Wayne Dyer, a well known author and speaker, said, “Change the way you look at things and the things you look at change.” That is sound advice. Instead of focusing on the negative, start focusing on the positives. In other words, start showing gratitude for the good things in life. In fact, research is revealing that gratitude is healthy.

In the article, Why gratitude could be good for your health, published in Maclean’s Magazine, researcher Adam Anderson, a neuroscientist at Cornell University, examined the brain mechanisms of emotions. He discovered that negative experiences actually restrict humans’ ability to think in fresh ways whereas positive emotions, such as gratitude, activate neural circuits related to novel, creative thought processes. Anderson’s more recent research suggests gratitude also has the extraordinary ability to make good feelings last longer.

Positive thinking is good for you according to the article that I mentioned earlier, How Complaining Wires Your Brain for Negativity, as it says,

“The power of positive thinking has fantastic, far-reaching benefits. According to the Mayo Clinic, a positive attitude can increase your life span, improve your coping skills, and give you greater resistance to the common cold. Plus, it makes you much more fun to be around.”

Criss Jami, an American poet, essayist, and existentialist philosopher, is quoted in his writings, Killosophy, as saying:

“When you aren’t satisfied with what has already been done, make something better. That is the greatest responsibility and the true freedom of creativity. The freedom is in that it doesn’t need to complain.”

Jami is bang on. If we don’t like the way things are then make some changes. Do something about it and I don’t mean complain. You are in charge of our own destiny, so stop complaining and make some changes. As Jack Welsh, American business executive and author says, “Control your destiny or somebody else will.” Or, as American motivational speaker, Anthony Robbins says, “It is in your moments of decision that your destiny is shaped.” The bottom line is, stop complaining and make some changes!

Don’t throw that away!

The CBC news article, Starbucks pledges to donate 100% of unsold food, reported that Starbucks corporation on March 23, 2016 publicized plans to eliminate food waste and donate all of its unused food items from its U.S. stores to the needy within five years. Perishable items such as breakfast sandwiches, salads, and other ready-to-eat meal packages would be donated. The company said it will add up to five million meals in its first year, and more than 50 million free meals by 2021. They plan to use an agency called Food Donation Connection (FDC) to get the items to the food banks and homeless shelters. Since 2010, Starbucks has been collecting pastries at the company’s 7,600 stores after they can no longer be sold to customers, and working with FDC to get the pastries to people who need them.

Canadian Starbucks locations will not be included in the program, but a spokesperson told CBC News that Canadian Starbucks is watching closely. Food consultancy Value Chain Management International Inc. estimates that roughly $31 billion worth of food is wasted in Canada every year. According to a Starbucks spokesperson, “In Canada we currently have measures in place to donate unused food and are working to formalize the practices so that we can maximize our efforts in this market.”

I did some research and learned that there are other companies who donate unsold food. According to an article on AME Science, Tesco is a British multinational grocery and general merchandise retailer who plans to eradicate all its food waste by 2017. They’ve started several projects to achieve this goal. It has also started selling “wonky veg” boxes, to encourage consumers to buy imperfect foods. In a 14-store pilot programme the company provided the equivalent of 50,000 meals to less fortunate people.

According to figures published by Tesco 55,400 tonnes of food were thrown away at its stores and distribution centres across the country in 2015. This would be the equivalent of over 125,000,000 meals, assuming all the food were edible. Even if half of it is edible, that still brings a huge amount of meals. Another article by Salon reports Tesco’s initial report found the biggest losses were in bagged salad, two-thirds of which was being discarded either in-store or by customers; it was also wasting 40 percent of apples, a quarter of grapes and a fifth of bananas.

I was curious as to why grocery stores throw out so much food although it is only 10% of the total food wasted, whereas about 14% of all household food is wasted according to davidsuzuki.org. The site says over 30 percent of fruits and vegetables in North America don’t even make it onto store shelves because they’re not pretty enough for picky consumers. According to Business Insider, the reasons why stores waste is:

Most grocery stores assume that customers are more likely to buy produce if it’s from a fully stocked display.
Customers expect perfect produce. Retailers stock their produce according to that expectation.
Customers don’t understand what expiration dates, sell-by dates, use-by dates, or best-by dates mean. They assume that food is no longer good after these days. Instead, sell-by dates are guidelines for sellers to indicate peak freshness. Most foods are good long after the sell-by date. Consequently, most grocery stores pull the items from the shelves several days before the sell-by date.
Sometimes, product packaging gets damaged during shipping, causing supermarkets to toss products even though the food hasn’t been compromised. The assumption is that no consumer is going to buy it if a faulty one is right next to it.

So why don’t all stores donate the unsold food to charities. From what I can determine, the reason is businesses fear they will be held liable should the product donated later cause harm to the recipient. It’s Interesting to note that in 1996 U.S. President Bill Clinton passed the Good Samaritan Act to encourage companies to donate healthy food that would otherwise go to the waste dump. This law protects businesses from liability when they donate to a non-profit organization. To my knowledge Canada has no such law. The province of Ontario, however has such a law called the Donation of Food Act which was passed in 1994.

Kudos to the Starbucks and Tesco corporations. I’m quite sure my research is not thorough. I’m sure there are other companies out there so I applaud any of the companies I’ve missed who donate unsold food to charities.

On August 7, 2015 I wrote a post about the France National Assembly who voted unanimously to ban supermarkets from throwing away or destroying unsold food. According to the article, France pass new law forbidding food waste, large grocery stores must donate edible food to charities and allow inedible food to be used for animal feed or compost.

I have since learned that Italy is set to become the second European country to pass legislation that will pressure supermarkets to stop throwing out food waste, and instead give it to those in need. (See Italy’s about to pass law). The soon to be Italian law is slightly different from the French law in that Italy’s legislation rewards companies for donating by reducing their rubbish tax. The more food companies donate, the bigger savings they’ll receive in taxes.

Thumbs up to the European countries of Italy and France who are making efforts to waste less food and support less fortunate people. Kudos to the United States and to the province of Ontario for passing laws that protect companies who choose to donate food instead of throwing it out. It is time for other provinces or Canada as a whole to do the same.

My research also showed me that there are many food rescue (also known as food recovery or food salvage) organizations in Canada and the United States. These organizations glean edible food from places such as restaurants, grocery stores, produce markets, or dining facilities and distribute it to emergency food programs. The food would otherwise go to waste. In Canada there are organizations such as Second Harvest and Forgotten Harvest. In the US there is Feeding America, Food Forward and many more. I salute those charity organizations who do the right thing.

British novelist and author of the Chronicles of Narnia, once said, “Integrity is doing the right thing, even when no one is watching.” I am so grateful that there are people, organizations, companies and countries in this world that have integrity.

Fear or Love

BELGIUM-BLASTc2303_620_427_100 — Banner reads ‘I am Brussels’ in French & Flemish – Reuters pic

One week ago on Tuesday, March 22, 2016, three coordinated bombings occurred in Brussels, Belgium’s capital. Two attacks occurred in the Brussels airport, and one at its metro station. During these attacks, 31 innocent victims were killed along with three suicide bombers. Even more disturbing is the 300 innocent people who were injured.

I feel great sadness when I hear of a terrorist attack especially when it occurs in Europe because just six months ago my wife and I were in Europe. In October of 2015, my wife and I visited Belgium. While Brussels was not one of the places we visited, we did visit several of the World War One sites in Flanders’ Fields. We also visited Paris, France on our trip so when the Paris attacks happened it deeply affected us both, as did the Brussels attack.

As I stated in my November 27, 2015 post about the Paris attacks, terrorism is something I cannot understand. I’ve tried to put myself into the shoes of a terrorist in order to comprehend how someone can cause harm and death to innocent people like the bloodshed that happened in Brussels. The news media repeatedly tells us that the people who carry out such acts of violence have been radicalized. Merriam-Webster dictionary defines a radical as “advocating extreme measures to retain or restore a political state of affairs”. So as I understand it, radicals are people who carrying out acts of murder for political gain. This is what I can’t wrap my head around. In my mind killing innocent people for political gain, or any reason, is wrong!

How can someone with any kind of conscience murder innocent people? As I mentioned in the November post, the only thing I can come up with is that these people have been brainwashed. It is the only explanation that makes sense.

What disturbs me the most is when a terrorist attack happens on our planet panic sets in. Panic is a symptom of fear. The school that I taught in is taking a group of students to Germany this month. The Brussels event set off a wave of panic among the parents. These parents were fearful because their children were off to Europe, where terrorist attacks occur. Now I’m a parent, so I understand the need to protect your children. But when we cave in to fear, the terrorists succeed.

Perhaps it’s time to look at the issue of terrorism from a different perspective. According to many spiritual writers today, all behaviours and emotions can be put into two categories – love and fear. These writers tell us fear is the opposite of love. So what is fear? Fear results in a feeling of not being protected or feeling secure. So when it comes to terrorism, fear sets in because we feel insecure and vulnerable. In fact, that is what terrorism is all about, instilling fear. Terrorists want us to be fearful. They want to cause terror. In fact, ‘terror’ is the root word of ‘terrorist’ or ‘terrorism’.

Fear limits our minds. People who live in fear will do harmful things. They lash out at those whom they perceive to be the cause of their pain. The same could be argued for animals. When do animals attack? It is when they fear for their survival.

Now most people would argue that the opposite of love is hate but when you think about it, hate is really stemming from fear. A person might “hate” someone who has abandoned or disrespected him. Abandonment makes more sense in terms of the fear. When a person feels abandoned, their emotions are stemming from fear of being alone. Disrespect is when a person feels scorned or disregarded, so it stems from the fear a person has when they are not honoured or regarded.

In a CNN report, Republican front-runner Donald Trump is quoted as saying,

“It’s going to get worse and worse. In my opinion, this is just the beginning. It will get worse and worse because we are lax and we are foolish — we can’t allow these people, at this point we cannot allow these people to come into our country. I’m sorry…”

His remarks clearly come from fear. His and others like him lack love and compassion. Banishing others does not stem from love. It stems from fear which indicates that there is no love.

Love on the other hand doesn’t hurt. If it hurts it is fear. Love is a core emotion from which many other emotions are created. Emotions such as happiness, kindness, charity, faith, empathy, fairness and compassion all come from loving intentions. This type of love is what the Greeks called agape love. This love is selfless, sacrificial, unconditional love. It is the highest form of love there is. With this type of love there is no exclusiveness.

Fear is the opposite of love because fear is the base emotion from which hate, prejudice, greed, stress, paranoia, and many other negative emotions are based.

1 John 4:18 of the Christian scriptures tells us, “There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear; for fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not reached perfection in love.” It is also interesting that scripture scholars tell us the phrases “do not fear” and “do not be afraid” appears 365 times in the Christian Bible. I don’t think that is coincidence. Perhaps a basic message in the scriptures is, do not have fear because when you are fearful, you do not possess love.

The CNN report referred to above quotes Pascale Rouhier, a 38-year-old resident of Brussels, as saying, “I’m not going to change my way of living because Brussels is my city.”

The article also reports that 2,000 people gathered in front of the Brussels stock exchange, with Belgium Prime Minister Charles Michel and other leaders who laid wreaths at Maelbeek metro station.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said, “Our strength lies in our unity, and our free societies will prove to be stronger than terrorism.” (see article)

These are all examples of people whereby fear has not taken hold. Their reactions and comments stem from love. Love unifies while fear divides.

Perhaps former Beatle John Lennon sums it up best when he said,

“There are two basic motivating forces: fear and love. When we are afraid, we pull back from life. When we are in love, we open to all that life has to offer with passion, excitement, and acceptance. We need to learn to love ourselves first, in all our glory and our imperfections. If we cannot love ourselves, we cannot fully open to our ability to love others or our potential to create. Evolution and all hopes for a better world rest in the fearlessness and open-hearted vision of people who embrace life.”

Franklin D. Roosevelt, the 32nd President of the United States was right when he said during his inaugural address on March 4, 1933, “Let me assert my firm belief that the only thing we have to fear is…fear itself.” If terrorists succeed in their mission to instil fear into the world then they will create a culture of fear; a culture where there is no love; a world full of hate, prejudice, greed, stress, and paranoia. But, if we don’t allow fear to take hold then we will have a culture filled with happiness, kindness, charity, empathy, fairness and compassion; a culture where there is love. The choice is ours.

World Water Day

WaterDay Tuesday, March 22, 2016 is World Water Day. I had not heard of this day until recently when reading a news article, so I decided to do some research to find out why a day deemed World Water Day was created. What surprised me is this day has been held annually since the 22^nd of March 1993, which was the first World Water Day. How could there have been twenty-three World Water Days in the past and I had not heard of it before? Do I live in a bubble? I’ve always known that fresh water was, and still is, a precious resource and that it is rapidly disappearing due to pollution and melting glaciers. In fact, I taught many lessons to my students about it over the years, but when I did some research on the topic, I was surprised by what I learned.

If I am truly honest with myself, I have to admit that I’ve always taken water for granted. There has never been a water shortage where I live. There has always been plenty of fresh, clean water to drink, to have a shower, to operate the clothes washer, to run the dishwasher, and to even water the lawn occasionally. I’ve always assumed, like most people I suspect, that we would always have a supply of fresh water. After doing some research, now I’m not so sure.

The Water Project is a non-profit organization providing reliable water to communities in sub-Saharan Africa. According to the website, water Scarcity is a reality on our planet! That means there is either the lack of enough water or lack of access to safe water. This site says 1 in 9 people worldwide do not have access to safe and clean drinking water. That means over a billion people on our planet lack access to safe water. The site also says that in developing countries, as much as 80% of illnesses are linked to poor water and sanitation conditions.

The World Water Council is an international multi-stakeholder council that promotes awareness, builds political commitment and triggers action on critical water issues. According to the Council, 1.1 billion people live without clean drinking water. The daily per capita use of water in residential areas is

350 litres in North America and Japan
200 litres in Europe
10-20 litres in sub-Saharan Africa

That means each citizen of North America uses 350 litres every day. That’s a lot of water. It begs the question, are we wasting water?

From an agricultural perspective, the Water Councils says the quantity of water needed to produce 1 kg of wheat is 1 000 litres. Rice needs 1 400 litres and beef requires 13 000 litres of water. Perhaps it’s time to eat less steak.

Water.org is an international non-profit organization that brings water and sanitation to the developing world. Here are some interesting statistics I found on their site.

663 million people – 1 in 10 – lack access to safe water.
4 billion people – 1 in 3 – lack access to a toilet.
Twice the population of the United States lives without access to safe water.
More people have a mobile phone than a toilet.
Every 90 seconds a child dies from a water-related disease

The Guardian’s article, How will climate change impact fresh water security? says fresh water scarcity is best understood by contemplating the distribution of fresh water on our planet. Approximately 98% of our water is in our oceans, which consists of salt water, and only 2% is fresh water. Of that 2%, almost 70% is snow and ice (namely glaciers), 30% is groundwater, less than 0.5% is surface water (lakes, rivers, etc.) and less than 0.05% is in the atmosphere. Climate change has had enormous effects on the amounts of fresh water available to us on the planet. The primary one is that global warming causes the polar ice caps and the world’s glaciers to melt into the sea, turning it into seawater.

Does this mean we should we alarmed? Yes it does. Does it mean we should lose hope for the future? No it doesn’t. All the various organizations I mentioned above are working towards solving the water scarcity problem. Science is also working towards solutions.

According to The Guardian’s article, 8 unbelievable solutions to future water shortages, science has come up with innovative ideas such as,

Waterless bathing using a lotion called DryBath which is a blend of essential oils, bioflavonoids (group of plant pigments), and an odour-eliminating chemical that is said to save four litres of water ever session.
Ultra efficient showers that use a screw-in device that captures water at the beginning of a shower and feeds it back into the system.
Using lasers to induce rain at times of drought, an idea debated by the World Meteorological Organization.
Folding toilets that make more efficient use of water. Its inventors claim that if installed it could save 10,000 litres per person every year.
Using a solar-chemical purification process that involves exposing titanium dioxide and zinc oxide to ultra violet radiation from the sun to produce a photo catalytic composite that cleans water.

According to the Canada Free Press’ article, Israel holds the solution to world water crisis, Israel has many new innovative products and policies. Some of these are drip irrigation and “fertigation,” a process of injecting fertilizers, soil amendments, and other water-soluble products into an irrigation system. Israel promotes dual-flush toilets, seawater desalination, advanced wastewater treatment and reuse, free-market pricing of water, drought-resistant seeds, cutting-edge metering and leak-detection systems, conservation education and precision agriculture.

Perhaps the most alarming thing that I’ve learned was on the World Water Council website. It said,

“As the resource is becoming scarce, tensions among different users may intensify, both at the national and international level. Over 260 river basins are shared by two or more countries. In the absence of strong institutions and agreements, changes within a basin can lead to transboundary tensions. When major projects proceed without regional collaboration, they can become a point of conflicts, heightening regional instability.”

Logo from touchland.com

The prospect of “water wars” has been flaunted for decades and according to the article, Global ‘water war’ threat by 2030 – US intelligence, it may become reality within a decade. The article says the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI), the organization that oversees US intelligence agencies such as the CIA and FBI, was commissioned by President Barack Obama to examine the impact of water scarcity worldwide on US security. The ODNI predicts that by 2040 water demand will outstrip current supply by 40 per cent. The organization says it could lead to outright fighting, or water could be used as a tool of political leverage, similar to how gas and oil are used today. It suggests revising international water treaties and investing in superior water purification technologies that will make the increasingly scarce resource plentiful again.

The world faces many serious problems such as global warming and water scarcity. It is time for us to get our “heads out of the sand” and educate ourselves about these issues. Even more, it is time for us to get involved, even if it is something as simple as donating to an organization that brings clean water and sanitation to the developing world, taking shorter showers, or purchasing water efficient appliances. If we all do our small part, we will make a difference.

“You’re Chicken”

Anybody that knows me understands that I am not one of the bravest people on the planet. I do not like speed so I avoid being in fast cars, speed boats and roller coasters. Moreover, I am afraid of heights. I was terrified standing on the CN Tower in Toronto, Canada. You could not pay me enough to stand on that glass bottom. Strangely, standing on top of a mountain or walking along a trail with a steep cliff beside me, I’m not afraid. But put me on a roof to shingle it, I’m terrified. My brothers, when asking for family members to help shingle a roof don’t even bother asking me because they know I’m useless due to my fear of heights.

My wife loves anything Disney, so in 2004, we took a family vacation to spend time at Disneyland in California, U.S.A. I will admit, to use the idiom, that I was a “chicken”. I refused to go on anything labelled a roller coaster. That meant that the Space Mountain ride was out. We were in line to experience the ride Big Thunder Mountain Railroad when I noticed a sign stating that the ride was a roller coaster. I questioned my wife about it and she assured me it was a very mild roller coaster. So I went. That was a one time experience though. Then there is California Adventure Land. They have the California Screamin’, a huge roller coaster. There was no way in hell that I was going on that. Then there was the then newly opened The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror ride. That is a ride that simulates an out of control elevator dropping. That sounded just too terrifying for me, so I used my “I’ll pass” card. Let’s face it, I am just a big chicken.

Three years ago, in 2013, my daughter volunteered in South Africa for two weeks with a group of university students. She also spent two weeks traveling on safaris and experiencing Africa. My daughter declared her motto to be, “This is a once in a lifetime opportunity, so I’m going to experience all that I can.” I was so proud of her. She tried new foods such as crocodile, wildebeest, and warthogs. She went shark cage diving. She did cliff diving, surfing and caving. The list goes on and on. I thought she was incredibly brave.

That same year, my wife had a work related conference in Anaheim, California, so we decided to make a vacation of it. I, along with two of our children, went with her to once again experience Disneyland and California Adventure Land. So I thought, if my daughter can be brave and was willing to try new things in Africa, then I can be brave too. My new motto for the trip was, “If my daughter can try new things, so can I”. It was carpe diem; “seize the day” for me. No one was going to accuse me of being chicken this time. So off we went to experience the theme parks.

1280px-Tower_of_terror_dca — Disneyland’s Tower of Terror

My wife loved Space Mountain, so I said, “I’ll try that.” I did but only once. Then there was the The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror which I was terrified to go on in 2004. Not this time. While waiting in line, I’ll be honest, I was nervous, very nervous actually, but if my daughter could be brave so can I. The ride turned out to be fun. In fact, we went three more times after that. I drew the line at the huge roller coaster known as California Sceamin’. My wife and son loved it. My eldest daughter and I just waited for them. She is a bit like her Dad. She is not overly brave but she did try most rides like me.

We also spent a day at Universal Studios in Hollywood, California. I am so proud of myself as I did the new Transformers: the ride 3D and Revenge of the Mummy: the Ride, both of which are a type of roller coaster.

So, I learned something on that trip. It is okay to try new things; to have new experiences. Sometimes we just have to face our fears and ‘seize the day’. I made a deal with myself then to take some risks and to just go for it, although I do draw the line at extreme activities such a sky diving and parasailing. Author Neil Gaiman in The Graveyard Book, says, “If you dare nothing, then when the day is over, nothing is all you will have gained.” That is so true!

The article, Seeking the potential vs the risk, in Huffpost Business says,

Taking risks empowers you to establish new limits in your mind. We all have boundaries or a comfort zone where we’d like to stay and many have misconstrued visions of what we think we deserve or are capable of accomplishing. When you take risks, you can eradicate that thinking, establish new boundaries, improve your outlook on life and your ability to achieve on high levels.

That is what happened to me. I like my comfort zones. In my mind I set limits like “no roller coasters” but when I decided to take risks, I eradicated those old limits and established new boundaries. I decided that I could handle some roller coasters and even an out of control elevator ride. So take some risks. Have some adventures in life. Life is too short to be scared. Helen Keller in her book, The Open Door says, “Life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all.” I prefer to have adventures. You should too.

Someone is Watching You

I regularly receive emails from various websites. Most of them are emails containing inspirational quotes or sayings; basically emails that encourage us to be better human beings. I recently received this one.

Remember that someone is looking up to you now, preparing to follow your example. Let this guide your next choice.

We often think that we are operating in a vacuum, that no one is watching us, that our actions are mostly private. Yet, what if you knew that your every thought, word, and deed today was going to be imitated by one who admires you?

I’ve been pondering on this email for a while now. Being in the teaching profession for 35 years I know unreservedly what being watched is like. Whether we teachers like it or not, we are always being watched by our students and their parents. It is a rare occurrence for me to not be seen by a former student of mine when out in public. It is not unusual to have some young person from the school I taught at in my community to yell out to me with a greeting or to wave at me when I am out and about in the community. It was also common to have a student, when I was still teaching, come up to me and tell me that they saw me in some store or walking on the street, or some such thing. As a teacher, you are always in the public eye. Now I admit, I have always had struggles with this. I sometimes avoided attending community events because of it. It has also given me a much greater compassion for our political leaders, entertainers, sports stars and other people who are even under more scrutiny by the public.

I often think of celebrities and how difficult it must be for them. Not only do random strangers notice them, but many of them are constantly followed by the Paparazzi. There is a reason that LAX is providing a new option for Hollywood celebrities looking to skirt airport paparazzi. The article states LAX is set to approve plans to convert a cargo office into a small new terminal that will allow passengers to drive into a secluded entrance, get screened by the Transportation Security Administration privately and be driven across the airfield straight to the stairs to board their flights.

In August of 2015, Buckingham Palace issued an appeal to world media not to publish unauthorized images of two-year-old Prince George, the elder child of Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge. He is third in line to succeed his paternal great-grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II, after his paternal grandfather Charles, and his father, William. (see Prince George harassed)

The palace says in recent months, photographers have done such things as used long-range lenses to photograph the Duchess of Cambridge playing with her son in private parks, have monitored the movements of Prince George and his nanny around London parks, as well as observed movements of other household staff, pursued cars leaving family homes, and used other children to draw Prince George into view around playgrounds. Whether people are a member of a Royal family, a Hollywood celebrity, or politician, these people have a right to privacy, although I am certain that they are all very aware that they are in the public eye.

dead-poets-society*580xx936-624-0-45 — Scene from Dead Poet’s Society

Over the years I have become more and more aware of how much I was being examined. Sometimes when talking to former students I will ask them what they remember about my classes. I have yet to have a former student tell me it was one of those brilliant lessons (at least I thought so) I had taught. Instead their response to my question is always connected to relationship. Former students would tell me it was most often something I said to a student. I had one former student tell me that it meant the world to him when I told him in school, paraphrased “You’re a lousy student but you are a really nice guy.” He said he appreciated the fact that I still liked him even though he wasn’t the best student. Another student told me that I was one of the teachers that cared; I was one of the teachers that always listened and helped. Now I write this with the risk of sounding vain but the point I am making is that students notice. They notice when you care. They notice when you are kind. They know when you like them or not.

A person does not realize how much they have impacted a student until they receive letters from them. One student wrote, “I haven’t been in this school very long; you were one of my first teachers… During the many classes we had together you made it very enjoyable and you were very understanding when people didn’t have a clue on what you were talking about.” Another student in a “Thank You” card wrote, “Thanks for being a part of my high school career. I know we had our ups and downs, but just know you have made a difference in my life, and every one else’s”. Still another student wrote in a letter, “I would like to start this letter of appreciation to you by saying what a great teacher you are. Whenever I needed help, you would come right over and do your best to help me understand and that goes for the rest of the class too…I feel lucky to be in your classes at school.” My intent here is not to boast but to demonstrate that people notice how you treat them, what you say to them and most importantly your attitudes towards them.

In the 1980s I worked at a summer camp for three years. I was part of a team that planned, organized and implemented the programs. One of the first weeks of camp we did was what was called Counsellors Week. It was the week where we prepared the counsellors for the weeks where they would be working with the 9, 10, 11, 12 and 13 year olds. I just went about doing my duties as a team member and being me. I had no idea how much I had impacted this one counsellor until I received a letter from him a number of weeks later. In the letter he told me that he had watched me during Counsellor’s Week, that I inspired him, and that he wanted to eventually be part of the team at camp so he could emulate me. I had no idea that I had such an impact on this young man. To say that I was shocked when I got the letter is an understatement. The point is people are noticing you even when you are not aware of it.

During a parent teacher interview many years ago, I expressed concern to the parents that I had noticed a change in their child. I was stunned to learn that the reason for this change was due to something I had said to the child; something the young person took offense to. The choices we make affect others whether we’re aware of it or not.

lg-Eyes-Ojos So always remember that someone is likely seeing you, maybe even looking up to you, and preparing to follow your example. Let this guide your next choice.

We are NOT operating in a void where no one is watching us, that our actions are mostly remote. Someone who admires you will reproduce your every thought, your every word, and your every action? Make your next choice with this in mind. Your choices could impact another person for the rest of their lives. That could be positively or negatively. If you are not sure how to be the kind of person that people look up to, check out, How to be a good person that people look up to.