Vol 5, No. 3

Honoring Myself

I humbly honor myself today.
I respect and appreciate the beauty and perfection of who I am.
I treat myself with the love and respect that I show to others.

-- from Seed Thoughts for Loving Yourself
by Suzanne Harrill, M.Ed.

This Month's Issue:

By Suzanne E. Harrill

Poems

By Peggy Floyd and Tim Bellows

By Dr. Joe Vitale

BOMBINGS, BLESSINGS,
AND LIFE’S BALANCE

By Tim Bellows

Questions & Answers

Goodies

Enlighten Up

Greetings from the Editor:

Grandmothering

I am a grandmother again for the third time. This is the absolute best way to have a baby. New babies bring out the joy in us. For me, babies represent new beginnings, hope, unlimited potential, and the continuation of life. Holding a newborn brings out feelings of compassion, protection, and affection. As I look into my new grandson’s face, I see a reflection of unconditional love and acceptance. May each of you share my joy and see your own beauty in the face of the next baby you see.

Fortunate Blessings,

Suzanne

 

Personal Growth

Keeping a Journal

By Suzanne E. Harrill

Writing is a good way to get to know yourself, solve your problems, lower your stress level, and balance yourself emotionally. If you are new to this, buy a notebook to begin keeping a journal, not a diary, a journal. What is the difference?

A diary reports events and usually makes sense if another were going to read it. A journal, on the other hand, is about your emotional reactions to people and events, insights you have in understanding yourself, lists of your needs, wants, values, and goals. You can write about your dreams, both daydreams and dreams during sleep, giving your feelings and your hunches free range to explore meaning for you. A journal is a good place to record your guiding beliefs and patterns of behavior that keep you stuck, and your rewrites...

(read the article)

 

Suzanne Says

Questions & Answers

Question: I have just recently started a conformation program with a Catholic church. The reason I wanted to do this is because I was brought up to go and was taught that I should get my children baptized. So now I have baptized my daughter who is two and my six year old son is going to be baptized and confirmed with me on Easter. My husband does not believe in church or God at all. Through this whole experience I have not been my self. I feel that church is good for the kids because it teaches them how to be giving and to be a good person.  Also, I feel am doing the right thing as in making them be a part of a religion. I have a lot of mixed emotions right now and we are already involved with the church and I am not sure if I made a good choice. I guess in my own mind I feel that we don’t have to go to church to believe and now I am battling what I was taught to do. Any suggestions?

(read the whole article)

 

Poetry

Poems

By Tim Bellows

IMAGE SERIES,
AUGUST NIGHT

(read the article)

 

 

Personal Growth

What are You Dismissing?

By Dr. Joe Vitale

I had lunch with a dear friend the other day. While I enjoyed the company and the food, I left feeling a little depressed. When I thought about it, I realized my friend was brilliant at dismissing every book, concept, guru, self-help method, or healing approach he had read or heard about. He was not directly negative or purposely critical. He sincerely wanted something that would work in his life. But he was unconsciously dismissing everything that came his way.

At one point I told him about a guru I had studied over two decades ago. I told him that people said, "My guru was obviously enlightened. He radiated it." My friend cut in saying, "I'm sure there are people who saw that guru and didn't think he was any smarter than a paper bag."

Well, my friend is right. But my friend is also unhappy. I think there's a lesson here. When we dismiss people and ideas because the entire world doesn't agree with them, we get to be right. But we also get to stay empty inside. By dismissing what could work, we dismiss our own growth. We dismiss what's possible...

(read the whole article)

BOMBINGS, BLESSINGS, AND LIFE’S BALANCE

By Tim Bellows

I read the news story about the bombing of a great holy shrine or temple in Iraq. About the revenge, close to civil war in that alarmed country. Remember that story? I thought of how a major statue of Buddha was destroyed a few years back – and how humans can become so angry as to commit ugly acts, causing more anger-revenge. Seems that even cruel thoughts come back to taint and injure us. Round and round goes the wheel of tit for tat.

To me, the point is to get off that wheel. To look for life to teach us love and love only. Jesus said to love our enemies. Rudyard Kipling got into the act too...

(read the whole article)

Enlighten Up   --    Humor

 7 Reasons Not to Mess With Children

Irish Humor

(read the humor)

Goodies

A Miracle Took Place at the US Capitol

The Bleeping Herald

(read the Goodies)