Rise Above...to Where You Belong

Hi Friends,

A wee blurb today.

Something I have been musing about. Permit me just to blurt what comes to mind. May God lead and guide my blurting :)

Some of you have been given great wisdom. Some of you have spent years gathering specific knowledge in certain areas of life. But there is one thing that you are lacking. The thing that you are lacking is respect for yourself.

You have traveled, and invested significant chunks of time and money even.... in order to possess the knowledge you may now claim as your own. You should have a confident swagger in your step, but instead you are cowering in darkness.

Your body of knowledge is not random...it has been crafted and honed and sharpened over time. You have opened your heart to strangers  and allowed them to feed you with more expertise and wisdom in this area of "knowing".

But what is going on right now, in this season of your life....is that you are allowing people who are less experienced and less knowledgeable to hinder your life's journey. You are supposed to rise above their pettiness and rivalry, but instead you are getting offended by their immature comments and stares.

 You are better than this. You have come so far. You have raised yourself up beyond the spaces these people are mired in. They resent you because they do not know that they are stuck, and are haughty and overly confident in the space  in which they are stuck.

You, my friend, are not stuck. You are lonely because of your excellence. You are lonely because of your dreams. Do not run. Walk confidently....one step at a time....and write down your goals. Loneliness is not a catastrophe. You will make better acquaintances once you rise above to spaces and places...where you belong.

The simple thing is.....is that you know you are above this. You are embarrassed that you have allowed others to get you down. You're miserable not because you have disappointed others...but because you have disappointed yourself. There is still time. There is still time. This game ain't over.

That's all. May these words help you...in peaceful productivity.

Carla. 

This truth will return

I pray I never tire of experiencing this cycle....seed time and harvest....the notion of food sovereignty.

I have followed some rather unusual folks and read much of what they offered on their channels and musings....to simply connect with what God has already given to us.

What is offered in churches is often not connected to the natural world ....and, if truth may be told, is sometimes straying into bizarre mysticism.

Permit me to give a small illustration. The christian teaching supported by the holy bible supports the practice of "laying on of hands", which is exactly what is sounds like.... a human christian person laying their hand or hands upon another human being and asking God to intervene.

The same might be said from the practice of hugging.

The bible also encourages us to not be hasty in this laying on of hands....because we can "catch" things that are not holy nor healthy from the physical touch of others.

But what I see sometimes occuring in some churches, is a practice of raising one's hand to pray across a far distance for someone else in the congregation. It is an odd practice, if you don't mind me saying so. Is i scriptural to do so? Or are we trying to imitate some kind of laser beam method of prayer? Do we think of ourselves as superheroes, capable of "sending" blessings through the air, rather than the humble earthy process of putting a gentle hand on someone in need and praying fervently for God to move in their lives?

Human touch is immensely cathartic and validating. It says to the heart..."Not only do I see you, but I feel you and am proud to share a moment of human touch with you".

Hugging another human or laying a hand on their shoulder to pray is deeply humbling. That human, or perhaps yourself too, may not be in a great moment in their lives. They may be wearing too much perfume or forgot to shower in their state of grief or despair.

I would encourage you my friends, to always ask God for His leading in who you touch or don't touch. Be wary of those who are too eager to touch, and those who lack discernment. But when you get a clear inclination from heaven, that God wants and needs you to reach out physically to someone, I want you to go ahead and meet that person in all your humanity, with a gentle humble human faith filled and holy touch. Ask God daily to lead you. Pray in the Spirit.

That's all for today.

Peace,

Carla

Just Keep Writing

Hi Friends,

Perhaps this post will find a dangling few...but that's ok. 

Today is Wednesday Dec 17th, the week before the business of Christmas activities commences.

I have been chewing on this idea for a while now. Have y'all noticed that just writing....just words seems to be  harder to find...and harder to craft lately?

Perhaps it is the plethora of different keyboards I work on , or the different software that controls the fonts and formatting....But I feel very strongly that 

words are on the way out, and automation and many more pictures and virtual realities are on the way to impose and bully the simplicity of the written word only.....out.

As someone who respects black and white words....the beauty of language and expression and mastery of such.... I am trying to reposition myself. And still, I find myself not wanting to craft a new position. 

I like the old ways. I miss my Blackberry cell phone keyboard. It was tactile and provided instant "sense of typing". Using a blackberry was as close to using an old school typewriter as it could get.

My cell phone is hopelessly over programmed. Software interrupts my every word.

I still write things by hand, with pen or Sharpie on paper, and proudly do so....because I feel like I am fighting for my right to do so. There is a war against the craft of writing. There is a war against all things manual and handson.

But back to my point for this post. The reason I write is to develop my thoughts, to create what consumes my latest pondering and hone their legitimacy or toss them out of mind, as the writing forces me to 

look with greater clarity at my latest obsession.

Writing with being interrupted, by pop ups and grammar "fixers" is a choice. It's like hammering a large nail in a fresh piece of wood...simple and satisfying. 

With the onslaught of so much info, so much data and so many opinions, it has become even more important for us all, as human beings, to no only consume ....but to create. To be a constant consumer and never push back with creations of our own, is highly imbalanced and borderline perverse.

We live in a free country...where we can type and say what we want, as long as it does not harm someone else. We must exercise that freedom. Use it.....my friends. Use this power. Don't get drunk on data consumption and let your mental faculties become limp and unwell. Your brain and spirit are "muscles" that must be flexed to grow in strength and complexity.

Yes, our world is growing in skill and expertise at lightening speed. But we must stay the course to keep ourselves responding and processing what is going on around us. Don't just blindly consume. You must talk back....you must respond.

That is all.

Peace,

Carla

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Goat Gals

Hi Friends, Long time no write.

This past week or two I was thinking....who out of all the female public figures out there, really can be categorized as being capable of going full on "beast mode" with confidence.

And so I started crafting a list:

Sha'Carrie Richardson

Kim Mulkey

the late Christie Blatchford

Christiane Amanpour

the late Kirstie Alley (if you don't why I added Kirstie to this  list....you never read her tweets)

Would you like to add a few names to the list?

I feel like Melissa McCarthy has come pretty close to being added to the list, but has to let loose even more to be written in said solid bold print. 

We are trained to be polite and agreeable, to not be too loud or too confrontational. But what is the fun in that? There comes a time, when we can choose the safe route or the great route.

Peace,

Carla

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The Roar Against the Music

The somewhat faded photo attached epitomizes my effort made many years ago to preserve what I felt was fading....which were the names of the composers of the piano pieces I learned as a child.

The names of these classical composers were no longer on people's lips....Youtube had not assisted in their preservation. 

Those many years ago, I had a faint panic set in when I realized that these composers were not being taught any more, at least not in the common music venues or in public schools. I felt like I was on an archeological dig, but simply putting these names on to paper. I purposely wrote them out by hand.

I recall asking a graphic art print shop to make something out of the names and it was a strange experience. They did not understand my request and did not value the treasure trove of names on this list. They did not understand my desperation to preserve that which is faded and too often forgotten.

And so I left that print shop, disappointed and alone in my quest...gripping a yellowing copy of hand written names of classical piano composers.

Tell me friends, how do you preserve those old things you cherish? Old recipe books or photos that are fading and recipes cards that are worn and covered in crumbs?

Are you uploading all your precious memories onto the cloud? Is this the best choice?

We must not let the huge computer conglomerates "own" all of our memories. 

Keep some of your memories in actual literal tangible formats. Keep some recipe cards in paper or cardstock format. Let some things in your life still be touchable and "feel-able". Keep some photos on the walls, even if it makes your home look dated. Allow some of your instruments to be "dumb" and without electrical aspects. You don't need to plug in a grand piano. May it always be so.

I know that this generation is very much oriented towards putting absolutely every aspect of life online.

We must thing deeply about the ramifications of having everything online. That which is online can be altered and misfiled and put to the back of the line. It is very easy for computer systems to promote that which "they" want us to think about and recall. The items and knowledge and skills that are deemed irrelevant or unworthy are not "boosted" to top of mind reminders. There are billions of virtual garbage dumps of data that someone in some computer head office has decided is not worthy of preservation. Much knowledge will be lost if we do not continue to preserve and practice that which we value....in real life. Hands on playing of instruments. Real singing in real choirs with real voices.

 Well trained classical pianists are few and far between. How many people can easily identify a classical composer if asked to "identify the writer of a classical piece"?

Yes, it is a learning curve, assisted by many hours spent listening to classical music, whether it is being played live in person, or remotely by a livestream, or in past tense via file downloads, or CD's, cassettes, or vinyl records or on classical radio stations or classical moments on pop radio stations.

 Time spent learning and absorbing the music of the great classical composers is not time wasted if one is truly respectful of that which was carefully created for timeless enjoyment and expression.

Classical music is on a higher level than pop or rock or rap. It trains the human spirit and the mind and the heart to sense and express that which is subtle and sublime. We must not reduce this expression and sensitivity. We must protect it's very existence.

And so I thought I would revisit this faded photo to impress upon my readers once again....that there is a war going on right now. 

If we love classical music and being literate in it's cultivation, we must celebrate these things by bringing more of these practices into our lives. We must attend more classical concerts live and recorded. We must practice the art of whatever instrument allows us to play classical themed music. Whether this is through singing in choirs or playing an instrument that isn't electric.... We must create new pieces which carry that same respect for beauty and musical delicacy that classical music embodies.

Thank you for listening friend. Go on  and have a lovely day.

Peace,

Carla

Thank you God, for the composers below....both baroque and classical. These gifts keep giving.

JOHANN STRAUSS

Peter Ilich Tchaikovsky

JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH

C.P.E. Bach

M. CLEMENTI

W.A. MOZART

G. Grovlez

FREDERIC CHOPIN

GIUSEPPE VERDI

ALEXANDER BORODIN

JAN IVANOVICI

Antonín Dvořák

EDWARD MACDOWELL

Domenico Zipoli

Johann Ludwig Krebs

Friedrich Kuhlau

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Classical music. No lyrics. Nature's beauty. Whole playlist on ...

 This playlist is helpful for those who are trying to study and get work done and want a calming music background so they can focus and concentrate on the task at hand. Enjoy and share it with your friends:

 

https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLT4kcjC379hulwyZREKCAk2GbypaYSNMz&feature=shared

The World is There for You

I haven't blogged much lately. The trend seems to be towards podcasting rather than blogging.

But for me, the written word will never lose it's appeal.

I like writing so much still, that I contemplate buying an old fashioned type writer, just so that my words and I can be closer, rather than divided by apps and the AI interfaces that inhabits most devices now a days.

Well, I just wanted to encourage someone today.....

I feel like there are some folks needing some encouragement.

You feel alone. You feel disappointed because some of your goals have not yet been reached. You doubt whether God has heard you and you doubt your own ability to achieve your goals.

First of all, I want you to stop being so hard on yourself. I want you to take some time to unplug and get as quiet as possible. Don't let too many apps clutter your mental space.

Give yourself time to think. Time to pray. Time to just be quiet.

You know that when you seek God, that He rewards you by bringing your own desires closer to fulfillment. So we need to remind ourselves sometimes that our efforts to serve or seek God and spend time in His presence is not "wasted" fruitless time.

When you please God, joy ....the kind that is simple and clean, comes closer to your heart.

Communing with your Creator is the same as communing with Jesus. God is one.

Well, funny enough, I feel like I have said enough. I thought I would be writing many pages, but I feel at peace.

By the way, the picture I took and pasted at the beginning of this post....is a pear that hangs in our community fruit forest. I am so proud that our city has spent time and money to install and maintain a free community fruit forest. There are at least 2 that I know of, in this area.

Feeding one another can only be good.....do you agree?

Peace,

Carla.

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Local Make Your Own Juice? Let´s Talk

Perhaps you are one of those folks like myself who really dug into that documentary Joe Cross Produced so many years ago... ¨Fat Sick and Nearly Dead¨ was it´s title.

A couple of weeks ago, I accessed a local Raw juicing shop and paid good money for some 100% celery juice. I bought some ABC juice

for my kiddo. ABC juice is made from Apples, beets and carrots....all raw cold pressed into a wonderful juice.

I was talking to some locals this week about the whole juicing idea....as my experience was quite positive. It´s not that juicing is hard, but it can be costly in terms of time and effort. Funny enough, the whole challenge of cleaning a home table top juicer seems to be a big obstacle for those who want to juice at home. Lots...and I mean LOTS of folks who I have talked to about making raw fresh juice at home, get hung up on the task of cleaning the juicer. It can be a royal pain.

And so when a REAL raw juice store pops up in your local town, be sure to support them with your business if you can. There is something so blessed about raw juices, even if they are expensive. Your body just responds so actively to the active enzymes and other nutrients in raw fresh fruit and veggie juice.

I was curious as to what Joe Cross is up to lately so, I found the pasted clip above on his youtube channel. Enjoy. Wishing you health and peace in Godś way.

Carla

Our Fabulous Canadian Chaos

We are perched as a nation for this next month of April to actually achieve the mysterious miracle of having 3 prime ministers rule over our beloved Canada within the same calendar year.  

Yes, tis true. We are unfortunately unfamiliar with so much international attention...and squirm in the limelight.

Being Canadian has it's strengths.... born through the natural struggles of living in this land....battling the constantly changing weather but fiercely and unapologetically proud of all it's magnificence.

Other nations have historically underestimated us, and we have been quite content with that arrangement. (There is nothing more annoying than someone brilliant who needs constant assurance, that yes, they are indeed.... smart.)

My fellow Canadians, what are we going to do with this newly found attention? Are we going to learn to enjoy some more light....some more press...more inquisitive international travelers coming to check out our beautiful nation?

We have been an undiscovered gem for so many decades, we wrongly assumed that this would always be the case. And so, a loud world leader has uncovered some of our potential and we are in shock. 

Hidden seclusion is a luxury we can no more afford.

Rise up my friends....rise up my fellow Canadians. We must learn to dance in the spotlight and endure this newfound attention. If we dance well, the songs will be exquisite and the rewards unlimited. But if we shrink and try to go back in our virtual cave.....we will have missed out on some of the biggest opportunity we never knew we were waiting for. 

Wallflowers no more, we must embrace this new path and forge a new stronger fence around our country. But we must also build smooth and lucrative entrepreneurial paths so that those who wish to engage in trade with us, can do so, without tripping or feeling unwelcome. We can not get gruff and grumpy and assume that the world will just "let us be" as we have been for so many years.

More investment and participation in public global trade will bring better opportunities for us and our children and grandchildren, who won't have to leave our country to find juicier hunting grounds. We will learn to embrace entrepreneurs and honour their risk taking ways.

We can always hang onto our identity as a solemn solid dependable resilient work horse, but that can not be all that we are. Without innovaton and a willingness to learn from strangers, the brain drain will grow deeper and wider. 

Plus that drain, my friends....we need the shakers and investors to move here, not move out.

We have more clout, with a doubt, than we ever gave ourselves credit.

Time to shine.

Carla

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Actors Actresses

I don´t know if y´all watched as much tv as I did as a kid. It was a welcome get a way from the chaos I sensed around me.

But with those hours inspecting and enjoying so many films, I began to curate a list in my head of my favourite actors and actresses. Do you have your own list too?

And so without further ado, permit me to share this list of legends, some living and some having passed on already...

Phillip Seymour Hoffman

Toni Collette

Al Pacino

Edward Norton

Gene Hackman

John Malkovich

Noomi Rapace

Michelle Pfeiffer

Hilary Swank

Kathy Bates

Juliette Lewis

Some of the above are so wonderfully quirky....and brilliant.

What qualities craft your list of faves?  do tell :)

Peace,

Carla

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The Beauty of a Rough Draft

It doesn't have to be polished. You don't always have to shine. 

When one is learning a new skill...it's supposed to be messy, sloppy and imperfect. 

Step down off that pedestal my friends. 

The mitten pic is my very human

Example of how I learn. Finally now at middle age, I know how I learn. I am not the kind of human who can pick up a technical manual or 2 dimensional pattern and learn a new skill. I often need to watch someone else do things in person....as I learn by osmosis and then I learn by just doing it over and over again myself until I work the bugs out.

The ways we learn can change and morph.  A bookworm today may be a tactile learner tomorrow and next year a fabulous combo of both.

I have learned to be patient and proud of myself and my unique ways of mastering things. 

I preserve my confidence as a treasured jewel. It is so easy to hang around the wrong kind of folks...folks who are not meant to be a part of your journey. They will bring u down and steal your confidence.

Not every thing u create needs to be picture perfect or Instagram worthy. GIVE YOURSELF THE OPPORTUNITY TO LEARN FROM MISTAKES....MISTAKES CAN BE JOYFUL AND INTENTIONAL.

Life is not always linear. It is multi dimensional.

What u don't understand today may become something you grow into next week. 

Be good to yourself friends and followers.

 Sometimes you can live in an imperfect moment and be at perfect peace with God and man.

Carla.

WInter is Gorgeous if You´re Brave

Winter in my neck of the woods....is gorgeous if you can put on your grown up pants and face the monster. The monster is the subzero temperatures...with possible windchill and unknown possibly black ice lurking underneath whatever fluffy white snow you are traversing.

My City is chock full of paths, trails and trees and a fabulous waterfront whose bay has still not frozen over yet.

What our city lacks in intellectual hobbies .... it overcompensates for with public parks and trails. The amount of money that our city spends on maintaining all these trails and the attached parking lots next to these trails and public spaces must truly be shocking.

But hey, can you really have too many parks and trails? Can a city spend too much on trees and perennial gardens? I doubt it.

And so I look out my window at the possibilities and realize that if I am to truly enjoy this crisp weather that I simply must stop squealing and just invest in warmer pants, possibly even the legendary ugly puffy snow pants.

So, friends, what weather are you stuck in today? Sun...rain? Sleet or ice? Do tell.

Peace,

Carla