Fireside III
It is to the Village Square that the townspeople come to exchange views and thoughts on their beloved spiritual philosophy, learning from each other in kindness and wisdom. Then when their minds have been filled, they retire to the tavern on the western side of the square where they share in social discussion, learning of each other’s events and challenges, happinesses and sometimes sadnesses, too. With a mug or glass in hand, they collect in front of the great Fireplace that dominates the long wall. Benches and chairs are often filled on market day with those who have come from farther away, bringing news of events and views the local people delight in hearing.
If you are feeling disoriented by all the philosophical talk by the fountain in the Village Square, then come sit down on the bench here with us for a while just to soothe your mind and share a mug of tea or coffee. Let’s all make sure the conversation is quiet and simple, caring and thougtful, exactly the kind of talk you might have around a warm hearth, the only light filling the room coming from the fireplace.
This is the third installment in the Fireside discussion series. After we reach 900 comments, the page takes too long to load on your computer, and so we start another fresh page. To review previous discussions, we keep the old pages (Fireside I and Fireside II) which you can find under the ‘Village’ tab on the navigation bar at the top of screen under the image of the tree.
I was just going to post about this…
I know we aren’t a group that get up in arms about too much…
But….. PLEASE go to google.com
for a link… to tell your congress person that we don’t want to censor the internet!
It’s a silly passion… but one that changes “virtually” everything if it passes!
Jacalyn, you get to my blog by googling ninotchka44. It’s on the top. Thanks for wanting to read.
Here’s a funny little video with one of my all-time favorite actors, sent in by Donna for our pleasure. Enjoy!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HLNhPMQnWu4&feature=youtu.be
Yes the SOPA and PIPA bills would censor the internet without due process and all kinds of not so wonderful stuff. There are other lesser know bills out there also but these two are the immediate ones of concern in the USA. Other countries have also have their own “sopa” versions out there and there is an international version that is slowly gaining votes. In case you haven’t read enough yet to have gotten to this part even our village could be shut down just for having 1 link to another site that might have copyright infringement stuff on it even if the link here doesn’t link directly to the suspect page.
Even if you aren’t a US citizen it will affect you and you can still contact our government just to let them know the world is watching what they do and might not appreciate sopa either.
re.753 what a great video I laughed so hard. xD, John Cleese is one of my favorites also.
You posted that while I was writing my post 754 and ironically the link to that is just what I was talking about that could shutdown the village under the SOPA silliness.
I also like how the video kinda highlighted the sillyness of this sopa issue. with a gentle laugh just look and watch and see the tiny mad idea for the nothingness it is (:
Nina, thanks for sharing your blog with us. I am just amazed at your willingness to confront/observe/forgive/release major internal issues. Art is such a great vehicle to help connect with the subconscious. You know, you could teach others to do the same thing, with watercolors or other media. Ever thought of doing that?
I just found this extraordinary little video on the ego.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pbWUEzCh39I&feature=player_embedded
I think it is important to keep in mind that from the Course’s perspective, the ego is not just a ‘bad inner companion’. This would be a rather simplistic way of looking at it. I’m not suggesting this is what the author of this video is trying to teach us. But it’s nevertheless important to remember that the ego is an entire thought system, a frame of reference for absolutely everything we think and believe we are. Without the ego, there is no longer any awareness of the self as an ‘I’. So undoing the ego is not quite just ‘not listening to it’ but obviously requires a lot more reflection, patience and time, and buckets and buckets of kindness towards oneself. But the goal is sure. After all, that’s what we already are – one magnificent spirit of Holiness joined with our Father – and how difficult can it be to remember what we already are?
For those who are Lord of the Rings fans…
Sauron whispers in the fathoms of our divided mind:
One Fear to rule them all, One Guilt to find them,
One Mistake to bring them all and in the darkness bind them.
Yet, there is Gandalf declaring in powerful golden tones…
One Tickle to rule them all, One Smile to find them,
One Laugh to heal them all, and in the Brightness bind them.
PIPA and SOPA and today’s lesson….
…..“invasion of privacy…..”
WOW – it’s “funny” how these ideas “pop up…”
Thinking and its results are really simultaneous,
for cause and effect are never separate!
Which finally – for me – is GOOD news!
Dear Jacalyn, thanks for those kind words. I started to think about it in 1988 (: – and have worked as an expressive arts therapist since then. And as an artist, I am thinking in these ways always. I am glad you see that I have potential!
Found a lovely poem from Dr.Seuss on my mail today:
You have brains in your head.
You have feet in your shoes.
You can steer yourself
any direction you choose.
You’re on your own.
And you know what you know.
And YOU are the guy
who’ll decide where to go.
~ Dr. Seuss ~
(Oh, the Places You’ll Go!)
So when did Nick and Heather drop from Jamie’s site as contributors-anyone know?
And Debbi?
maybe they dropped the contributing: nothing to do there anymore. he really HAS simplified the site!
Don’t know about anyone else. I find much help in starting every day with a new Ken video, a question/answer to ponder, and a poem by Helen to keep me focused.
Anne – I have got the Course in Norwegian, and it feels like reading it for the first time. A good friend of mine is publisher and has published it and is one of the 5 translators. It has taken 10 years!!
I start each day now by opening it at random. I find that each time i do that, it answers some question I have struggled with. It gives me such joy to see how guided i am. Not alone.
Love to all
Hi Annie –
It’s most likely after Jan 16th, (for your question above in 761). I finally purchased a class (on Jan 16th) that I had wanted to do so for 2+ years, but not being able to due to no Paypal account, etc, etc.
When I did that purchase, I “think” I saw the Nick/Heather pictures up-top-right. I do visit the site daily – the Ken questions are still terrific resources, and I’m still glad/grateful that Jamie has made it easy to access one-a-day.
Then again, maybe they were already not there on the 16th, and I’m just remembering it incorrectly ! (:
Thank you Anne in Tn for the gentle reminder that its the content that keeps me returning to Jaime’s site.
I think you must be correct in your remembering a* and I thank you also for your response. Congrats on the Paypal account and of course accepting/receiving a long held wish to start off your new year.
I trust Junior is doing well.
Big Hugs to all,
Annie
I have a new second job…. I’m “sitting” with a woman who liks to sleep in a chair about 4 hours a day! So I really got to work on my acim blog! They not only allow me to go online – they encourage it! I mean…. you can only watch so much of The View….
I’m also really and actually doing the lessons this time around….
I was before, but this time, they are “sticking”!!
“Woman who likes to sleep” That line got my attention.
Yesterdays lesson; “I can escape the world I see by giving up attack thoughts”
So closing our eathly eyes doesn’t get us out of this so called reality.
Wathching “The View” is one of the thousand paths home.
The view of parading attack thoughts that is.
I have to admit I luxuriate the those moments when Joy Behar zings it to Elizabeth Hasselbeck.
Back to the Garden of Forgiveness to keep fresh before me those moments of HIgh Resolve.
Sticking is a good thing.
Keeping swimming upstream my Salmon buddy. I’m right next to ya even though I’m not following any lesson plan this year.
Annie you have such a nice way of weaving a response to everyone’s latest posts in yours. I see it as your unique way of joining and expressing similar interests. TX…to you, my morning practice is similar to yours. I read my lesson from within Ken’s Journey Through the Workbook, I’m on lesson 342: I let forgiveness rest on all things, For thus forgiveness will be given me. By then my french press coffee is ready for the plunge and pour into my cup and I drink it watching Ken’s video and the Q & A. I was taking the time to include Helen’s poem, but have dropped it off. I then come here and read the latest comments.
I feel so blessed to be able to start my day this way. Monday nights are my ACIM study group nights. We have a small group and a new to us, but long time student of the Course, has recently joined us. There is a study group she attends in Mill Valley on Tuesday nights and I’m going to check it out tonight.
Sticking is a good thing and I’m sticking to watching the depth and breadth of the parade of my ego’s offerings on my movie reel.
Love to All, Michele
I offend myself with ideas that I need a Sherpa through the workbook…
Or the text, for that matter…..
Not that I am opposed…..
I own every book KW has written…. but never read the Journey through the WB.
I have a friend who was “Course Curious”….. she loves Ken, and Jamie, and all….
But I asked her once if she had actually real the COURSE itself….
*crickets*
I guess we all start where we are at!
And Annie – I didn’t get the two references….
“liking to sleep” and “watching The View”….
Maybe I do need a guide, eh?
*winking Salmon eyes*
*splashing around little Salmon Tail*
*tying up little Salmon-shaped water balloons*
They go upstream to Spawn, eh?
Treacherous – that!
Tex to you: That line “Woman who likes to sleep” sounded like a Native American Indian name that would have fit me a few years ago. Now I dream of getting a good nights sleep and miss those days when I could fall asleep in an instant whenever I was tired…although never in a chair.
Please don’t infer any of my postings as trying to guide you or anyone. I like to take my morning readings and see what stands out for me and most of the time there is a kind of theme that develops. Often times it validates how HS uses everything at its disposal to get a particular point across. Yesterdays reading of Howard Thurmans High Resolve contrasted with my indulgent days of watching “The View” and enjoying Joy Behars zingers was the perfect example how two very different posts brought a point home for me. I’m much too tolerant of my mind wanderings. Ahhh its always the same thing isn’t it.
Love yourself, forgive yourself and be grateful.
I start my day here loving all of you first cuz its easy to do that and it gives me hope that I can take it out into my day. I may use a bit of imagination and envision everyone I meet as a Salmon swimming upstream winking their eyes at me. I like that Tex; I can use your Omega6 tripping ways and enjoy this treacherous journey. It’s good for the heart❤
Hi Ho everyone Got an e-mail from Winnie ..She became the proud grandma of a baby boy on Dec 27 2011. She sent me a package of fairy dust to sprinkle around the tavern to celebrate with.
Said she is going to delay her travels around Austrialia to hang out and “be of service” to her family for awhile to see what “secret sneaky bits” there are to be forgiven. (:
Yay for WinWin…
Baby- Shaped Salmon Cake for everyone in the Tavern…
With Cod Liver Oil or Coconut Oil Shots on the house!
And Annie, my dearest darling…. I never infer…. that’s my point exactly!
Since I went blonde, all my ability for inference just went out the window.
In fact you pretty much have to spell it out for me.
Oh look – a pony!
Now what was the topic? Oh, yes. Mind wonderings!
Did I mention to anyone that I love what WinWin is doing SOOO much
that I have toyed with the idea of becoming a Travelling Nurse?
Maybe just in the Summer…. to escape the Texas heat.
My first planned stop? Alaska – of course!
Try my hand at Salmonizing. Of course, I’ll need a dog.
A nice big- to bigger type dog.
And a fishing pole. Who knows… I might even chicken out.
Or to quote KW in “Absence From Felicity” [talking about Bill and Helen, in this case]
“…what might have been, remained only within the realm of possibility and not actuality…”
But it’s still fun to plot!
Anne, when you go to Alaska, please say hello to the town of Cicely from me.
Just popped a bottle of pink champagne for Winnie’s granddaughter. Ya” are welcome to share in the Tavern!
Oh, Tex, the Journey Through the WB is sooooo wonderful!! I have lots of KW books, tapes and CDs, but if someone said I could only keep one thing, it would definitely be the Journey Through the WB. It is a masteriece. Ken is so amazing. The book is helpful for any level of student, really sheds light on the real meaning/implications contained in each lesson. Maybe you can sell some of those delicious salmon cakes to earn the money to purchase the set.
Pam…thanks for the great news about WinWin’s grandson! Secret sneaky bits are so Winnie speak.
Blonde Tex to you…..My sherpa lies over the ocean, my sherpa lies over the sea. The ego sherpa really does lie as we all know. 5 or 6 years into this exploration of the Course and it seems like the truth of projection makes perception as it plays out in special relationships is just dawning on me. I really like the idea of you traveling to Alaska in the summer time especially if you’ll pass this way.
I agree with you Jacalyn, really love JTW.
See you all in the Tavern at the party for Winnie’s first grandchild.
Hi. Bernard sent me an e-mail asking me to let everyone know he is working out of town and can’t find a place with good enough wifi to get connected with the homepage here at the village. Just another forgiveness opportunity (;
Thx for the updates, Pam ! (:
Jacalyn – I own the set already… I just have never cracked it open.
I have possibly every book KW wrote!
Odd, I know in my heart who he is… BUT
my intrigue of KW is that he knew Helen!
*sigh* Silly of me, I know!
40 + days till the March Seminar….
I have to tell you Temeculians (and Californians)
that I won’t be seeing you this year! [simper]
Months ago I signed up for a vacation in a different part of the world.
Once I road those Mules in the Grand Canyon, it was all over for me.
I am partaking on a Cruise that is just for LoCarb/ Paleo people!
Now, I know I’m dreaming…. honestly… what are the odds of that being true?
100 days or so till we set sail!
Now my Sherpa really IS over the ocean!
Hey Tex…to you LOL! [off to google lo carb/paleo cruises so i can guess where you might be headed]
You know my little salmon eyes are twinkling here…..
Just the Gulf of Mexico stuff….
They say in a cruise every one is
Over Fed,
Newly Wed,
Almost Dead!
So I figure it has my name all over it!
I’ve already picked out my outfit to wear on dress- up night:
A Kilt! ….. I hate to wear a dress… but a kilt – yep…
Typical Backwards “Logic,” eh?
THAT – and they opened In -n- Out (Hamburgers) here in Dallas….
And they’re opening a Trader Joe’s soon….
We’ve turned into a little L.A. here!
Gosh – I talk about food alot…
Better get to the tavern for some Salmon Shots!
Anne, just in time for salmon-shots with dill and chili…oh! are those flames out of your mouth, dear? here’s some pink champagne to help the heat –
Anne, i think we all look forward to photos from that cruise. AND I wanna see you in that kilt, too (:
You know – I woke up one day and realized there are no restrictions on me….
AND there is “no death”…. with finally became a blessing…. and not a curse!
So I said – HEY! Why not go for it!
Does the Course have a “real life” application?
I don’t know. Not like “The Secret,” but more like the
“Smiling eyes” and “Serene forehead” thing…
And I even forgive myself for all of the turbulence it took to get to this point!
If someone told you that your life was an illusion, the only “real” first response
would probably be a classic Reaction Formation!
Well…. they DID… and it WAS!
MMMM…. this pink salmon champagne is wonderful Nina! Who woulda thunk it!
Low Carb Cruising, sounds like the perfect traveling nurse job for you Anne!
Perhaps in time I could get a job on a Love Boat!
…. this one is a real vacation… not so much a working one.
I shall miss you, and Temecula…. I will wave to you from the beaches!
I can’t wait to start my working vacations…. as a Nurse Traveler… maybe next year!
Think of all the places a nurse can go. It is astounding!
simply love the goings on here
love that annie is home again and sharing with us, you were missed so much
tex anne is always up to something wild and crazy fun … love that you are posting and sharing and enlivening this little village of ours
nina mahalo for the champagne!
loved the a garden sharings a while ago, much appreciated
michele wonderful that you have an acim study group … a study group is a valuable resource
just like this village!!
pam mahalo for sharing about winnie’s grandson and spreading her pixie dust around … and all the ways you keep this gathering connected and flowing!
jacalyn glad you are enjoying ken’s journey through the workbook … that’s like a study group too
hawaii update ~ the ocean has been rough and turbulent these last few days … strong undercurrents and rip tides
several turtles usually resting on the beach each day … they live to be about 150 years old they say!
every day I get to go walking in our winter wonderland … along the shore and in the waves and loving every step of the way everything in every direction … love the sky and surf and sand and rocks and shells and turtles and little fish and flying iwa birds and rainbows and everyone and everything
it’s sooooo beautiful here
have certainly found a way to stay and live in this wonderful somewhere over the rainbow place
everything is working out in divine order
the beginning lessons of the workbook are so fresh and new … love them too
this new year of the water dragon has begun with fresh energy too … I’m a water dragon … turning 60 this year … lots of fruition and gratitude for the journey and manifestations of miracles!!
am so thankful we have a course in miracles to guide the way
aloha to everyone!!
Ah….what a lovely stroll through our village. We’re all over the map and it’s always so satisfying to walk by your footprints Zafu and hear the reflections of your thoughts.
Tex…your love boat quote got me spinning and remembering that….one day on a walk cleaving to the many harbors in my town, I chanced upon a big fancy visiting yacht. There was a smartly suited up chap I chatted up. He was the butler and I learned from him that there is an understaffed service industry in the world of large yacht owners. The staff can enjoy health benefits, healthy salaries, and all the usual paid time off benefits. They also enjoy the fact that owners aren’t on these yachts that often and the crew motors them to different locations in the world and they network with each other in this industry. I stored the factoid away in my resources/networking cap and thought it would be a great gig for young people wanting to explore the world before they settle down.
Of course it works for people at different ages and those who have great experience in different skill sets. So thinking you love food, know the benefits of locarb/paleo diets and all your wide nursing skills just wanted to mention this thought that popped in my mind.
I had a great counseling session with Jamie on Friday. This was only my second one, and it was so helpful and I came away with a good way not to skip steps in the forgiveness process by being directed to listen for the pain, her pain in my relationship with my daughter. Being able to listen and witness the pain in whatever form the calls for love appear, will help me uncover and release my own. He is so skilled and really does counsel from the heart to the heart. I think the world of Jamie, well in course speak that’s not a compliment, but you know what I mean.
I stayed home from work hoping to thwart the development of a head cold, so that I could go on a hike with my Questies from work. The Saturday plan was to meet at Jay’s houseboat and carpool out to Bolinas and do a 2 hr hike out to Alimere Falls. I didn’t thwart it enough to go, but it sure was a beautiful day here for it. Jay, my “boss” and close friend and former personal assistant client called me in the am to see how I was and then after the hike to tell me I was missed and see if he could bring me soup or dinner. I feel so blessed to be apart of this great quirky group of folks. I don’t know if I already mentioned here, so forgive me if this is a repeat, Discover Magazine did a January 2012 double issue with the cover story ” Top 100 Scientific Stories of 2011″. Quest Clinical Research was story number two! If you google QCR and reach the website it’s very old, but is updated with the latest clinical trials we do.
Much Love to all xox Michele
Ahh this wood dragon is floating in the flow of all this water Course talk soaking it all up. (: Hugs to all
A SPIRITUAL CONSPIRACY
On the surface of the world right now there is
war and violence and things seem dark.
But calmly and quietly, at the same time,
something else is happening underground
An inner revolution is taking place
and certain individuals are being called to a higher light.
It is a silent revolution.
From the inside out. From the ground up.
This is a Global operation.
A Spiritual Conspiracy.
There are sleeper cells in every nation on the planet.
You won’t see us on the T.V.
You won’t read about us in the newspaper
You won’t hear about us on the radio
We don’t seek any glory
We don’t wear any uniform
We come in all shapes and sizes, colors and styles
Most of us work anonymously
We are quietly working behind the scenes
in every country and culture of the world
Cities big and small, mountains and valleys,
in farms and , tribes and remote islands
You could pass by one of us on the street
and not even notice
We go undercover
We remain behind the scenes
It is of no concern to us who takes the final credit
But simply that the work gets done
Occasionally we spot each other in the street
We give a quiet nod and continue on our way
During the day many of us pretend we have normal jobs
But behind the false storefront at night
is where the real work takes a place
Some call us the Conscious Army
We are slowly creating a new world
with the power of our minds and hearts
We follow, with passion and joy
Our orders come from the Central Spiritual Intelligence
We are dropping soft, secret love bombs when no one is looking
Poems ~ Hugs ~ Music ~ Photography ~ Movies ~ Kind words ~
Smiles ~ Meditation and prayer ~ Dance ~ Social activism ~ Websites
Blogs ~ Random acts of kindness…
We each express ourselves in our own unique ways
with our own unique gifts and talents
Be the change you want to see in the world
That is the motto that fills our hearts
We know it is the only way real transformation takes place
We know that quietly and humbly we have the
power of all the oceans combined
Our work is slow and meticulous
Like the formation of mountains
It is not even visible at first glance
And yet with it entire tectonic plates
shall be moved in the centuries to come
Love is the new religion of the 21st century
You don’t have to be a highly educated person
Or have any exceptional knowledge to understand it
It comes from the intelligence of the heart
Embedded in the timeless evolutionary pulse of all human beings
Be the change you want to see in the world
Nobody else can do it for you
We are now recruiting
Perhaps you will join us
Or already have.
All are welcome
The door is open
~ author unknown
I wanted to drop an poem / a random musing that was sent to me years ago and allow it to speak for me today. But then I had this little thought ohh Annie be cute and emphasize the word Village in italics. I guess its been a while since I’ve done that or its too early in the am
(4:19) that I messed something up and the entire word “Village” was swallowed up it’s gone and the rest of the text is tilting to the right.
My first forgiveness lesson of the day.
(:
This is so beautiful Annie! I’m going to copy it and send it out by email. xox Thank you!
Yes, me too, Annie! I am going to send it out to my “soul buddies”. Looooovely! Thanks so much, dear lady!
Yes do forward. And remember to insert the word “village”.
It’s on line 22 (in farms and ********, tribes and remote islands comes)
I visualized Zafu on the remote Island, Pam on the farm, Jacalyn, Donna, Bev, Winnie, Jaime, I imagine have some beautiful mountains near by, Big cities like Philedephia, San Francisco, Singapore, Dallas, Las Vegas, you know who you are. Then there are cities like Temecula, a town that I suspect most of the worlds population has never even heard of doing their fair share of chopping wood and carrying water.
Have a good one today Village.
Keep on Keeping on.
I did a double take today… as more and more areas in Dallas “turn into L.A”….
We are adding all the rights stores and eateries…
That, and the cool Spring-like weather we’ve been having here…
I ACTUALLY had to remind my self that I was here, and not in Temecula.
I guess I was transported for a moment… getting ready for another day in the Theatre….
I was getting all ready to meet up with My Win-Win and Annie!
And my Zafu and Katrina! The whole gang.
I actually checked myself in the mirror to see it I looked ok!
But no…. I’m just still “here” ….with mah Texas accent.
Brought a little tear to my otherwise twinkling Salmon-esque eyes!
Miss y’all!
Dearest Anne – I am so happy you are still “here”
yes I am!
what fun we did share in temecula
wish the whole village could have been there too
it truly was soooo wonderful
am so thankful
pure love
and I’m sure you look divine …
you are darling!!
Hi all!
I’m silent – but still here! I just want to say that I’m so grateful for Jean’s notes from Temecula. I was at the workshop – and never take “formal notes.” What I mean by that is – that I write “aha sentences” – right in the blue book when they strike me! Then, as I re-read the blue book – I get many aha moments as I “run into them!”
I emailed Jean privately to thank her, but just want to tell y’all that these notes are like being at the workshop all over again! 🙂
Annie – and anyone else I missed seeing – I’m so sorry we didn’t get to meet in person! (Hope you got my email in answer to how you knew I was there!) I’m grateful that I did get to meet our ninja note taker – and it was a complete pleasure. 🙂
Love to you all – and a huge thank you to Bernard for this site – all of you – and ninajean for doing an excellent job in taking notes!
Yes Anne, like Zafu said; I’m sure you look divine and where ever “here” is for any of us is exactly where we are supposed to be. Right on Nina. And thank you Melody for popping in to give a quick hello and reminder that you are silent yet very present in the Village…how could I forget to mention the windy city Chicago. Speaking of silent ones, I sure wonder what the Mayor has been up to? I know he mentioned that he wanted to pace Jeans notes out a bit so we could savour them. This last flood of notes is highly suspicious, he may be going underground for a while or just pitching a tent. I know how he loves his camping. I heard the Occupy movement was a slow start in France maybe he’s showing his support. After all he did leave Wall Street once upon a time. Keep us posted Pam if you hear anything.
And yes, thank you Jean for the great notes.
Have a great weekend-see you guys on Monday.
p.s. miss ya Papa Lawrence
Hi Zafu –
There’s a new Ken video on the Foundations YouTube channel (titled “Getting in touch with our hatred of God”) — I’m sure Jamie will put it up on his site as well in time, the video is very new, just posted 3 hours ago, as of my writing now.
About halfway(or more ?) through the video, the camera pans through, and there looks to be a person in the audience who looks like you ! (: — is it ? (:
thanks for all your messages over the years on this Village. i learn from them each time.
peace,
a