Seventeen: In Times Of Political Turmoil

     "When you see that in order to produce, you need to obtain permission from men who produce nothing - When you see that money is flowing to those who deal, not in goods, but in favors - When you see that men get richer by graft and by pull than by work, and your laws don't protect you against them, but protect them against you - When you see corruption being rewarded and honesty becoming self-sacrifice - You may know that your society is doomed."
                                                                                               Ayn Rand
                                                                                               Atlas Shrugged 1957

     Normally we do not have political posts, but recently in cleaning out my notes on my I - phone this quote popped up. It was something that struck my senses very deeply. It is hard to make your way through the fear of Coronavirus, dying, suffering untold agony, isolationism to the extreme and the outright lying and deceit that is cable news media these days. We have never been the type to bury our heads in the sand. To not recognize the truth and post it would be beyond any reason that we would ever have for writing. While there are no other answers than to see it and to say it, we all must find the truth to believe in and hold steadfast to it. When we were young we protested, we believed in what we were doing so much we fought in the streets. When we see the people in the streets now, we can't help but to understand their frustration. We believed these things were addressed and yes even taken care of. Enter our President and Disrupter in Chief and in a few short years, chaos reins supreme, with the above quote being the truest words that have been spoken in years.
     Get out and vote, protest, become an activist but do not go quietly into the night. What ever you believe, you had better believe with your entire heart and soul, because you are being sold a bill of bad goods by those that are elected to serve you. They are serving themselves to whatever you and your children thought you had in the way of a society and a country. You need to speak your mind and your peace, you need to do it loudly and with great conviction. Change takes place with you, me, and the next American. Be the change you want to see in the world. If you sing, sing, if your write, write better, if you paint, paint your masterpiece!

Sixteen: The More You Use What God Has Given You, The More God Will Give You

     Finding your way through the page can often be daunting and seem difficult. The thought sometimes is can we fill the page, will it be anything of interest to anyone else but us. Do not fear the more you use what God has given you, the more God will give you. Years earlier working out to train for a ski vacation in Utah a friend who was also a handball partner would train on these wonderful pneumatic machines with me. The saying was on a very difficult abdominal machine that we would do crunches on to build our core for back country hiking and out of bounds skiing. The saying stuck in my mind. Especially after we were standing on an incredibly steep out of bounds chute with two feet of fresh powder. We would look down the untouched slope and then at one another and say The more your use what God has given you, the more God will give you, and then we would jump into the chute and have the ski run of a lifetime to remember always.

     Use the gifts that you were given, they were not given to be kept silent and quite in your hidden places. Shout your special talents from the rooftops, cliff tops, until they echo down the mountain sides. Proclaim your individuality and the deep beliefs about life, love, and happiness. Lately the words seem to flow. Ever since that the Mountain Pearls that once took up all my energy and time were put away and shelved, my mind is clear and free. The thing that has become apparent is that the enjoyment that comes from being supportive is far greater than any ski run or mountain that has ever been conquered. Through positive self thinking and wonderful meditation time, the joy of writing is rolling off the keys like giant soft snowflakes and accumulating into a wave of fresh powder down. We hope that you find your joy in life and make your way through the Coronavirus with conviction, strength, fortitude, and self awareness of your health.

Fifteen: Many Rivers to Cross

     Seeing the future through the trees is a very difficult proposition right now. One could very easily be discouraged or absolutely paralyzed with fear. If you have half of a mind in the world today, you could certainly be distraught. Every thing changes, times will change and we will get past the pandemic. We are absolutely avoiding political posting. There are way too many crazies in the world today. The other side truly believes in its views.

     The thing that we hold deep in our heart these days is that more change has been wrought by a quill, pen, typewriter and paper then any sword, gun, artillery, jet or bomb. We cling dearly to the premise that change will come and that we hope to be a spearhead in the wave. Never before in our existence have we been more confident in the fact that now is the time to move forward and to pursue publishing. One should assess their place, their orientation to their life and to move forward in the way that is best suited for them. Gone is the anger, fear and lack of self confidence. It is now replaced with certainty and absolute belief in the abilities of moving forward. It is as if the awakening has happened and the desire and motivation to move forward and pursue what has been dormant for all these years. The statement about someone spontaneously catching on fire and accomplishing things that normally they would not have attempted has attracted my attention and that the need to pursue the things that would never have been of interest in my world. The world to us has opened the door and asked that we step into it. For what it is worth, never before do we think we have been ready willing and able to move forward on the journey. Time truly is the great healer of wounds and the desire to heal and to cross the rivers of doubt have never seemed so conquerable.

     May all your thoughts be of great accomplishments!

Many Rivers To Cross

Fourteen: In Time of Question Consult a Spiritual Diary

   
 

 Don't concern yourself with the faults of others. Use the scouring power of wisdom to keep the rooms of your own mind bright and spotless. By your own example, other people will be inspired to do their own housecleaning. ... Paramahansa Yogannada Sayings of Paramahansa Yogananda.


When the thoughts don't come, don't force them. Through diligence and right thinking you again will find your way. Let yourself have the time for self examination and deep thoughts. Let your mind be unburdened by the daily onslaught of negativity that the world appears to be today. Tomorrow is a fresh canvas upon it paint your masterpiece!

Thirteen: Searching for the Mountain Pearl.

   
   

      Often it is easy to become mired in the present and the thought of any type of future is not within your comprehension. Since retiring and taking a year off from actively thinking about any future is a luxury that we have never known. We have always been engaged in a business or property that has taken our concentration from ourselves and our own lives to be filled with responsibility for others or other's things. After a year of decompression our thoughts through meditation and yoga practices have turned to personal enrichment. Projects long shelved have been brought out and given the light of day. They have been reviewed for their merit. In taking the time to examine the premise of my collection of short storiesI find them valid. The thought of setting individual stories for the people of America and other countries in American Mountains is a valid concept. It is especially relevant with the years that Winter Olympics are presented. The concept was the the Olympics are every four years. I never thought that thirty years would pass from inception to completion. However I find they are as topical now as they ever were.  I still believe it possible to deliver a book of stories set in mountains of America talking about freedom and Liberty to the athletes of the nations at the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics in Italy. Cortina is known as the Peal of the Dolomites. There will be 3,500 athletes and 93 countries represented in the olympic and papralympic games. How befitting for the Mountain Pearl. It is also the climbing and sliing Mecca of the World. The corner stone story was awarded an Honorable Mention in the 57 Writer's Digest Genre Fiction Competition. The idea of a Mountain Pearl was given to me by my Wife, Kathy, being from the sea she suggested I was like an oyster for over twenty years polishing my ski stories to almost an obsession. If the truth be told the inception of the stories was actually twelve years before. It makes the story thirty two years old. The premise is still topical and pertinent. There are no other stories like them. Since reviewing the work. It could almost be split off into three different novels. The first fictional history of The Ski Area A-Basin. The second set in Union College and Beaver Creek and Vail Ski Resorts, and the third would be the horse stories, set in Storm King Mountain and the West. Do I believe they can stand alone as short stories. Yes I do! I guess time alone will tell. The Mountain Pearl is an object that is unobtainable. It is the thing that drives men or women to mountains. It is intangible, you can feel it, it is palpable but cannot be held. It is the desire to possess the crown jewel. It is the the supreme Joy of Ascending and Beholding the Mountain Top!

     They are in rest having read and edited them for too many years. They need a fresh approach. They shall remain at rest for now. The enjoyment of writing freshly and openly is alluring and challenging. I look forward to the beginning of the games! Never let let the Summit go until you touch the pearl!

Eleven: Assuming the Right Attitude

July 14                                                                                                                          Right Attitude

July 14	Right Attitude
I do not expect anything from others, so their actions cannot be in opposition to wishes of mine. - Sri Sri Swami Sri Yukteswar Giri "Autobiography of a Yogi" One should rely upon one's own creation to move  forward in their existence. To have the confidence and strength to believe in your own dream and set of circumstance for obtaining that dream is the true meaning to personal success. It is very easy to be corrupted into thinking that someone else may best serve your wishes, be your own Master of your own Fate. Decide on the course that you wish to move forward in and do so with the knowledge and belief of assured success. Perhaps you alone are the person to move the mantle forward and accomplish the goal. State your goal simply and with great conviction! "Forget the past. The vanished lives of all men are dark with many shames. Human conduct is ever unreliable until man is anchored in the Divine. Everything in future will improve if you are making a spiritual effort now." Paramahansa Yogananda

Ten: Expanding your Horizons in The Time of The Coronavirus

   “make a radical change in your lifestyle and begin to boldly do things which you may previously never have thought of doing, or been too hesitant to attempt. So many people live within unhappy circumstances and yet will not take the initiative to change their situation because they are conditioned to a life of security, conformity, and conservation, all of which may appear to give one peace of mind, but in reality nothing is more damaging to the adventurous spirit within a man than a secure future. The very basic core of a man's living spirit is his passion for adventure. The joy of life comes from our encounters with new experiences, and hence there is no greater joy than to have an endlessly changing horizon, for each day to have a new and different sun. If you want to get more out of life, you must lose your inclination for monotonous security and adopt a helter-skelter style of life that will at first appear to you to be crazy. But once you become accustomed to such a life you will see its full meaning and its incredible beauty.” 
― Jon Krakauer, Into the Wild
     Change is inevitable and should be welcomed with open arms. Lose rigidity and accept the flow of life around you. Do not allow fear to determine your course of action. We are in extremely trying times and fear is palpable and real. Think of your being as a being of light (Carlos Castaneda's Don Juan) with shields polished and armed against the assault of fear and darkness. There is no crack in the armor. You are protected and free to move in the direction of your heart's desire. Move forward Today in some form or way, do not stay stuck in negative thoughts or old patterns of defeatism. Choose to confront the truth in every situation. Let go of the past whatever your transgressions are or were. Accept the responsibility for those actions and the Karma that has visited you in response to them. It is not relevant to your life today. Use every part of your personality and being to move forward into Tomorrow accepting the past and embracing the Lessons learned in the Ignorance of Youth. Walk forthright in the knowledge that expanding your horizons today will bring joy and happiness to yourself and those around you. Be Free and Open in your Life and Dealings in it!

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