Responsibility And The Insane

I’m grateful that both my parents came from large families. This gives me plenty of cousins. They’re in a variety of ages, and a variety of jobs.
But mostly, it gives more relatives for my mentally disturbed sister to call. That spreads out the frustration.

She is seriously mentally ill and should not be out on her own, but she is. Last winter she took to calling me regularly at the full and new moons of every month. She’s nocturnal; I’m diurnal. The calls commonly came at her schedule, not mine.

Dawn rarely has a point to her calls. It’s her time to complain about how awful things are for her, how unfairly she is treated, how no one listens or will help her, and how she can’t move into any kind of care due to her old cat.

Since our dad died a few months ago and I’ve sent her some estate money, she hasn’t called so often. She has, however, called or spoken in person to many of our cousins about it. Each person is treated to a different version of how she hasn’t received anything.

It is difficult dealing with insane persons. You never know if what they’re telling you is true. In my sister’s case, she doesn’t want help as such. She wants someone to do everything for her while she yells and chain-smokes and tells you you’re not doing anything right.

Our current system offloads everything. Cuts to health care in Alberta has eviscerated the system leaving only the barest of publicly directed help and care available.

Persons who should be in care are turned out on the street to fend for themselves as best they are able. Sadly, many aren’t able. Those who are smart and manipulative, like Dawn, may fool you into thinking they can cope.

Who should be responsible for the insane when the insane cannot or will not take responsibility for themselves?

Sound Spiritual Health

Chakras are your spiritual energy centers. Each one has a corresponding emotion, organ, and color.
Keeping them clear and balanced helps keep you clear and balanced.

In a recent post I talked about voicing the chakra sounds while I exercise.
The specific vowel sounds which balance and clear the chakras are from top to bottom:

Uuhhhhh - root

Oooooo - sacral

Oooohhhhh - solar plexus

Aaaaaahhh - heart

Aayyyee - throat

Eeeeeeee – crown

I’ve found that making the sounds every day is good spiritual maintenance.
I make each sound three times starting from the root and moving logically through to the crown.

If one is a bit rough or doesn’t seem right I go back to it after the cycle is complete.

Sounding can help in many ways. For example, if your creativity needs a boost, then sing the sound for the sacral chakra since it’s the one that governs creativity.

If you’re not speaking up when you should, then give your throat chakra some attention.

I’m sure you get the idea. Happy chakra-ing

Alleviating Asthma With Exercise

I wrote the other day about singing the chakra sounds while I exercise. Why would I do a fool thing like that?

It started out as an experiment to see if it would help my lungs.
I’m somewhat asthmatic. For the past few years I’ve inhaled an Edgar Cayce product each night that staved off most problems, and I've kept away from most of the triggers.
Then I read a newspaper article a year or so about some asthma sufferers who took up playing the tuba or some such and it improved their lung capacity.

The chakra sounds were part of my day already so I decided to do them while exercising just to see what happened.

I noticed the improvement right away. Shortly after I started I went for a real bike ride and was able to talk to my husband while peddling.

Last spring I stopped using the product routinely. It’s been nearly a year and I’ve only needed it twice.
I’m grateful that I’ve got it, but I’m even more grateful that I rarely need it.

Making My Day

I’ve found over the years there are some things I have to do to ensure a good day. Getting up early, as I wrote in a previous post, is one of them.

I have to exercise. Some stretches for a knee I messed up a few years ago, a few minutes on a stationary bike while singing (I use the term loosely) the Chakra sounds, and recently, yoga.

Currently I’ve do five poses. They’re getting easier and I can hold them a few seconds longer each day. And I’ve noticed that when I have to reach up to get something out of a cupboard I can keep my feet flat and stretch out leg and arm muscles instead.

I think better after I’ve exercised. I feel better physically and it lifts my mood.

My morning prayer cycle is important. It’s where I thank the God/Universe for all I have and ask for specific help.
Sometimes it’s to make sure I get the house cleaned. Other times it’s to have a good day in general, and some days I like to have a bit of writing help, kind of like spiritual chocolate.

I have to have some quiet in the morning. If there’s noise it sours me.

It’s better if I take some time to meditate later on in the day. If I don’t I can always do it while I’m falling asleep.
It’s important to read the newspaper while I eat breakfast.
It’s good to watch the birds.
Then I can get to work.

Early Morning Feeds My Spirit

The time change has thrown me off my schedule a bit.

I like to get up early and get a good start to the day. I go outside for my morning prayer cycle under the stars or sun, and often have my first cup of coffee outdoors.
The fresh morning air awakens me. It charges up my brain for the day. Best of all, it’s quiet. Or it was quiet.
Trucks rumble by earlier now than they did a few years ago and with the new housing development a block over the neighbor seems unsettled and disturbed.
It’s still reasonably quiet, though. I shouldn’t complain. But I’ve slept later this past week, so claims the clock, and that means the neighborhood is waking up, too. It’s not as restful being outside in the mornings.

That’ll change soon. I’m an old farm girl and I like to get up with the sun.

I remember summer when I nine and 10. I’d get up before 5 a.m. to wander around the farm and the sun would long be up and already fairly high in the sky. This was a few years before that infernal Daylight Savings Time and 5 a.m. was really 5 a.m.

I got away from that when I was older and certainly didn’t get out of bed any earlier than I had to when I was working. Now I don’t have to get out of bed early. I do it because I want to.

I have my coffee and my quiet time, visit some websites, check the email, and write. If I get some words down before 7 a.m. I’ve had a good day already.
Early rising feeds my spirit. It opens and refreshes my mind and gets me ready to write, even when it turns out to not be a writing day.

Free Money !!

OOH! It’s too good to be true.

I’m in the running for a lump sum payout of $500,000 US just for having an email address.
Does it get any better than this? Free money!

Yikes.

I’m warned to keep this private so no one scoops the email and steals my prize.

“You are to keep all lotto information away from the general public especially your ticket number and ballot number. (This is important as a case of double claims will not be entertained.)”
They need to know a few details about me, including name, age, occupation, and email address.
Ya gotta wonder about that last one.
If I won based on my email address, and they sent it to me via email, then it follows logically that they have my email.
Hmm, maybe that’s a test in case someone has stolen my prize- claiming reference number.

That would be this:

“Your fund (Certified Cashiers Cheque) has been insured with your REF NO: YM35447XN and winning number YM09788. To claim your winning prize, you must first contact the claims department by email for Processing and remittance of your prize to you.”

Oops. I’ve let that out to the general public.
Now someone can claim my prize.

C’est la vie.

Good Working Order

I’ve re-ordered the chapters in my manuscript. It was the first order of business after reading it aloud last week. When that was done I realized my glorious manuscript was…um…randomly organized.

Now that it’s in order I feel as though I’ve truly accomplished something.
It’s got some good flow to it now, and that’ll be a great help during rewriting.

My ideas are where they should be. I can see where meditations have to be fixed, and where I’ve assumed my readers will know what I’m talking about.

Fixing the chapter orders alone showed me I needed to plump up the meditations. I also realized I should rework some of the deepening techniques I’m including to help users get to a good, working trance state.

Best if all it’s shown me the manuscript’s shortcomings.
The random order it was in led me to believe that important points needing to be covered were in it somewhere. All I had to do was find them and slot them where they belonged.

Well, I certainly meant to write them.

It’s easier to see what needs more explanation and the areas where I’ve explained something more than once. Because if this, it’s easier to spot the questions someone new to meditation and/or hypnosis would have. Now that I’ve spotted them I can answer them.

Master of Unique Words?

Now here's a quiz that made my day.

It was on this blog http://taliamana.blogspot.com/ (the Centre For Emotional Well-Being)

I'm not so great at convincing others of my point of view, but I like the part about being a master of creative phrasing and unique words.

Your Dominant Intelligence is Linguistic Intelligence

You are excellent with words and language. You explain yourself well. An elegant speaker, you can converse well with anyone on the fly. You are also good at remembering information and convicing someone of your point of view. A master of creative phrasing and unique words, you enjoy expanding your vocabulary. You would make a fantastic poet, journalist, writer, teacher, lawyer, politician, or translator.

What Kind of Intelligence Do You Have?

Thank You, Brian

I haven’t felt much like blogging these past few days.
My former boss, Mountaineer editor Brian Mazza, was found dead in his home the other day.

It’s hard to believe. Yes, we’re mortal; we die. That’s part of the deal we sign up for when we incarnate. But it’s still a shock when someone dies unexpectedly.

Brian was 45 and died due to a triple arterial blockage.

His sister Gail found him in his home on Sunday after the family became concerned when he didn’t show for Sunday dinner at his mom’s.

I was the senior reporter at the Mountaineer for 13 years. Brian had just taken over as editor in the fall of 1988 and I was his first hire.
We got along well enough although it took me nearly seven years to convince him Provincial Court ought to be covered.

He served the community and when he took on a project he got it done. He did it in his own time, which I often found frustrating, but it got done and that was what mattered.

His death’s an awful blow to his family. His dad, Lawrence, died just a few months ago. They must be reeling now.

His death stunned me, too.

I have a good life here in Rocky and I have it because Brian hired me 19 years ago. I’m grateful for that.

It was common when someone left the Mountaineer that we’d take a few minutes to say good-bye. We’d have cake, and then Brian would present the former staffer with a small parting gift and invite him or her to say a few words.
It was different with me. We had a huge chocolate cake and I got a gold watch, but when it came time for Brian to ask me to say something there was an awkward silence.

Maybe it was difficult for him. I don’t know. Maybe he was scared of what I might say as I’m usually blunt.
I’ll say now what I didn’t take the opportunity to say then, “Thank you.”

Takin

Here are some bigger and better views of the Takin at Edmonton Valley Zoo.

She was in an enclosure with another adult Takin, I'm guessing a male, and a calf.

The Takin is the national animal of Bhutan.

I wonder if zoo animals get lonely? Nothing much to do but stare back at humans and pose for photos.

For more about the Takin:
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The Fourth Mess...er...MS

Gads, my fourth manuscript stinks.

I’ve been reading it aloud to find mistakes and I haven’t been disappointed.
I always knew I was writer. That’s what I grasped on to all my life. No matter what was happening around me I knew I could write. It’s always defined me, and that’s why discovering my fourth ms is a mess hurts so much. It’s painful and embarrassing to have to actually hear what I’ve set down.

This is the first time I’ve done an editing pass out loud. It’s a wonderful tool. Typos scream out their presence. “Your” vs. “you’re” becomes obvious. And clunks in the pacing hurt my ears and tear at my writer soul.

I’m about one-fifth of the way through this first pass. I started earlier this week and I’m taking my time. I tell myself that it’s best to do a bit each day so that I stay fresh and alert.

But mostly I’m going slowly because my writing is so bad it hurts.

On the good side, it can be saved. It’s got potential and I’m finding the problems now, not next year after I’ve been shopping it.

I hold my life’s dream on one side while confronting the awful evidence that I’m nowhere near as good as I thought.

But there’s hope, and that’s what I’m hanging on to today. I’ve got to go back in later on and read a few more chapters. I anticipate being done this stage by the middle of next week, and then I have to go about spinning gold out of straw.

It’s not a setback. It’s part of the process and it’s a wonderful learning experience.

Pain is a character-builder, right?