Gozarks April edition shall be on line soonly.... but probably not until the end of this week when I shall have numerous tidbits of titillating news to share....!!! Until then, (choose to) be happy. As recently confirmed by the cognitive sciences (learn about Integrative Medicine), the state of 'being happy' it is a developed skill....

Think about that....

Spiritual realignment...
It seems self-evident to me that many of us are going through a period of (what I will call) 'spiritual realignment'. That we are becoming (have become) increasingly dissatisfied with the  structure imposed upon our conduct and thinking by our immersion in the material realm and that we are essentially struggling to divest ourselves of these 'attachments.'

In a personal sense, this feels like being engulfed by cascading waves of emotional tumult which both clear my head and confound my thinking leaving me feeling dazed and numb, experiencing a type of paralysis which renders me incapable to do a certain thing, even though it is a thing that I am quite capable to do and there is absolutely NO rational, logical, or ethical reason that I should (at that moment) so abhor that particular task.

I have learned that when I find myself in that place the best thing for me to do is to simply go with it. Not to 'fight' it. Not to challenge myself to feel differently or try to behave in a particular manner... not to shame myself into doing what I (or others) think I *should* do, but to simply be okay with being 'the way that I am' at that moment.

I have learned that to be totally okay in this space is to know with perfect confidence that there is a mighty purpose to it. To know that my body and my innermost intuitive being are in tripartite harmony with my conscious will and that by recognizing the potency, goodness and value of the ineffable process of 'me working things out' -- even though at the 'real world' level it feels at times like things have ground to a halt -- I effectively quicken the deliverance of myself to that proverbial 'higher ground.'

I have learned that to climb this particular mountain I must know with certainty and confidence that when 'the time is right' I will know what to do and I will do it. I must know that the most important thing I can do to aid and abet my own manifestation of any desirable reality is to *know* with perfect confidence that such desirable conditions exist for me here and now and that I must trust myself to discover and receive it.

I have learned that it takes a quantum gulp of spiritual energy to *know* these things and to behave accordingly because the material reality in which we are immersed is so completely devoid of (and in fact condescendingly rejects) most all ideologies which consider 'the spiritual' and 'intuition' and 'faith' to have any practical significance in relevance upon day-to-day decision making about 'real world' matters. And that on top of this general dismissal of the significance of our spiritual nature, we have all (men & women) been inculcated with an inherent disrespect for 'the feminine' and the fact is that women must emancipate themselves from this culturally imposed paradigm before men will be able to follow suit... but that's another whole issue which I shan't get into here <grin>.

My point, however, is that as we become fully emancipated it is natural for us to go through some rigorously unfamiliar 'rights of passage'.... and that we *must* come to see, understand, and accept these new and different experiences (ie: feelings of paralysis) as diagnostic symptoms of 'good' things yet to come. We must *trust* that the better we get at 'being one' with the magnificent Creative potency of the universe the stronger is our faith and the easier it becomes to go with the flow and be all that we are capable to be.

Everybody's problems...
Every 'problem' known to humankind throughout the course of history and even now permeating everyday events is traceable to one and only one causative action.

Do you know what it is?

A dear friend and remarkable woman shared a different question the other day that she'd heard on a radio talk show. It went something like this:

What would you do if you learned that something you took for granted -- something you believed in so deeply that you *knew* it was truth -- was de facto false.

Completely untrue. At base line, a lie.

Optimally, you would re-evaluate the course of your life, yes?

But how would that translate to 'changes in your behavior'? I mean, would you actually (choose to) make any? And what would your attitude about this be?

Would you -- if for example an errant medical diagnosis wrecked havoc on your life -- jump off the cliff of victimization, bemoaning the indecency, railing against the injustices done, and furiously ranting a berating trail of animosities about the abuse thrust upon you by evil doers of ill repute?

Would you -- if for example you discovered that the 'love of your life' had been, for years, carrying on an illicit affair -- become a flailing wretch of conflagration, wailing and moaning an effuse string of derogatives while digging a deep pit of self-pity?

Or would you -- given either of these aforementioned circumstances (or any other which fills this bill) -- take a long, close, vigorous look in the mirror of your own psyche, determined to trace the life-quaking disruption to it's roots in the predispositions, ideologies, and foregone conclusions held sacred in the your own mythology of life, bent on plucking all self-inflicted stumbling blocks, like thorny stands of pig-weed, from the fertile soil of your mind?

Ah-h-h-h-h.... sweet mystery of choice, responsive to the question What comes first, the attitude or the event attributable to it?

Which brings us back to that first question I posed: What do YOU think is the one and only causative action which results (in accord of the science of 'cause and effect') in the manifestation of every 'problem' known to humankind?

What would you do if you knew, factually, that said cause is the simple, mundane and socially sanctioned act of NOT 'keeping our word.' NOT being 'accountable' to the promises we make. NOT paying personal attention to the details of our own convictions and thus, essentially, NOT being true to our our selves and thus incapable of being true to anyone else...

And that the ONLY thing any one of us may do to balance the equation -- thus precluding ALL the shit that seems to run rampant upon the face of the earth -- is to establish and honor a covenant of trust, truthfulness and integrity with self...

Think about it...

What would YOUR life look like if you swore an oath to do this 100% of the time and gave the rest of your life to upholiding it....????

As always, lemme know....

Some times...
Some times, when I have some things to say, I have no time to say them. Other times, when I have nothing to say, I have all the time in the world.

Life is a paradox (or is that a paradigm?) of the muse.

Also, I know that 'some times' is usually written sometimes. But that's the muse again. Making her point. Anyway...

For those of you with DSL (or ISP and the will to wait), you must see this video of Chris Bliss (pictured at right) performing some amazing juggling set to some awesome music.

Arguably the world's most famous juggler, Chris, using music ranging from the Beatles to Peter Gabrial augmented with custom lighting and special effects, transformed juggling into aerial choreography -- a jazzed-up, hard-rock thumping, classical ballet of heart, mind and body, danced with the hands in mid-air -- Chris routinely shared the bill with superstars Eric Clapton, Julio Iglesias and Willie Nelson, being the sole opening act for Michael Jackson's Victory Tour in 1984.

From there it was on to big production shows in Las Vegas, Paris, and even Japan. But, as Chris recalls, it all had the same Catch-22. "Imagine", he recounts, "finally getting over the rainbow, and the pot of gold is there. And all you have to do to get it is perform the same 12-15 minutes a night. Forever. That was it for me."

With a flair for innovation and a love for the performance arts which plainly shows in the crinkle of his grin as he plays his skillful talent, Chris determined to expand his horizons, took on a comedic edge (video here), and has since been headlining top clubs around the country, appearing on numerous cable comedy shows, making regular appearances on the "Tonight Show" and receiving international recognition in Singapore, Montreal and Ireland at the most prestigious and prominent comedy festivals in the world.

To learn more about this man's mighty stage presence, visit  www.chrisbliss.com and then, no matter your esurfing rig, check the civic activists project Chris is coordinating with which we encourage all  Great Gozarkians to get vigorously involved:

On other fronts, I just recently finished reading The Da Vinci Code. I found the historical details regarding the transmutation of doctrinal practices from Paganism to Christianity by Constantine quite interesting, though I was already much familiar with the general idea that the tenets of of widely standardized mainstream dogma which infiltrate nearly every dimension of life today have been heavily influenced and grossly manipulated by the cultural predisposition and 'social engineering' objectives that reigned supreme with the dictatorial rulers at some (usually long removed) time. If you can read the book from this perspective, I highly recommend it. But if you're looking for a gripping plot replete with the high-tension drama of 'unpredictability' and a remarkable conclusion, you may find it more enjoyable to read some thing else.

A concluding thot for this time around, we note some major reorganizing is in process with long-time Gozarks friend and client ArmchairHoodlum.com and thus in the very near future that website  shall be no more. In the closing of this site, we at Gozarks wish to express our steadfast appreciation for the endearing opportunity to have been involved with the development and publication of the works of Michael C. Kelley, thus we hope his SanLuisObispoCorruptionCounty.com site blossoms with his most altruistic desires, not just some times... but all the time. ~Amen~

Juistice Stephen Breyer:
"What's the alternative?"
The one point Justice Stephen Breyer, sitting jurist of the United States Supreme Court, made redundantly clear during the open forum held in the Great Hall of the Clinton Presidential Library in Little Rock, Arkansas, on March 7, 2006, was that for the democratic principles codified by the U.S. Constitution to ‘work’ citizens must be ‘involved.’ And I’m getting ahead of myself...
Gozarks exclusive feature pictorial -- click here

"And so it goes..."
A friend, Ralph McCormick, Editor of Fly-Low Magazine, often closes his emails, "And so it goes..." Another friend, Bernice, grandma to one of my twelve-year-old's best friends, is partial to saying (with a mockingly casual shrug of nonchalance) "Oh well..." And as we all know, Traditional Southern Wimmin -- when faced with the unfathomable in redressing issues of inept or arrogant behavior -- are prone to propagandize (with honey-buttered pecans rolling sweetly on their tongues) "Bless your heart...."

Recently, these three personal tag lines have become somewhat of a mantra of mine: "Oh well... and so it goes... bless your heart." I find the mind set particularly useful when dealing with my kids <grin>.

Today, for example -- though the theme seems to routinely regurgitate -- my youngest son took on the task of installing a small clothes-hanger hook on the wall next to the door of my bedroom closet. The first step in the project was to locate a stud in the wall.

Having recently acquired one of those nifty gadgets that do this deed with some type of electronic sensor and not knowing if my son recalled this fact, I proposed that he might go find it.

"I don't need to 'find' it," he replied, his countenance being of that particularly teenage persuasion that tells you you've offered unwanted advice. "I know where it is. I'll go 'get' it." He smiled sweetly and left my room.

Back in a flash with the hand-held device, he raised it to the wall in the appointed area and began sliding it up and down....

Being familiar with the use of the tool, I softly and gently offered that in order to get an accurate reading, the unit had to be slid 'back and forth' -- on the horizontal plane, from side to side -- in order to work.

"Un-huh..." my son acknowledged, continuing to slide the tool up and down.

After a minute or so of watching his futility, I again gently nudged "Really, there is only one way the thing works, honey. You slide it side to side." This helpful and generous guidance, however, went unnoticed by my son who continued to ply the tool vertically.

Now, had this installation project been happening in his room, I would have most assuredly applied the Oh well. And so it goes. Bless his heart... technique, left the room and done something else, leaving him to figure it out on his own. However, this job was in my room and -- with visions of unwanted holes poked in my wallpaper -- it seemed to me that I had a rightful voice in how to do the deed at hand. Thus with some measure of authority in my voice, I repeated the instructions a third time.

Well...

My darling son jumped all over me. His voice accusatory, his body posture glowering, he rebuked me for not for the instruction I'd given (because, having finally listened to me, he'd seen I was right) but for the 'tone of my voice' as, he alleged, my adamancy (even though I'd been 'stern' my tone reverberated well within the comfort zone of respect) was unnecessary. Thus I responded to him:

"You know, I'd like to know why... when I say something politely one time, and you ignore me, and then I say the same thing just as politely the second time, and you again refuse to heed my words, so then I finally put some muscle into my request in order to get your attention, and then you do actually hear me, do what I've suggested and found out that my instructions work... Why do you think it is okay to belittle me and make me 'the bad guy'? What exactly have I done to you that is 'wrong'?"

As my words clattered around inside his head I watched the chip on his shoulder dissolve. And really, I detest it when I have to humble a child like that... But then, oh well. Parenting is a tough job... and so it goes that somebody's gotta do it. Bless my heart....

If elements of the foregoing conversation interest you, I highly recommend the following books. Order here through Amazon and we at  Gozarks (aka: my kids and me) actually earn a few cents...!!!! Thanks!!!
 

A New Science of Life by Rupert Sheldrake Avg customer review: Usually ships in 24 hours Price: $11.53

Chaos, Creativity, and Cosmic Consciousness by Rupert Sheldrake Avg customer review: Usually ships in 24 hours Price: $10.17

Seven Experiments That Could Change the World: A Do-It-Yourself Guide to Revolutionary Science (2nd Edition with Update on Results) by Rupert Sheldrake Avg customer review: Usually ships in 24 hours Price: $11.53

Christine Beems [read my blog]
editor@gozarks.com

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