LaPlante Family - Independence Day

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Joyful Nature

Choose Peace

Choose Peace

A friend confided in me that he was struggling to understand his responsibility in a world obsessed with war. I told him the answer is simple: choose peace.

While you cannot control the attitudes or actions of politicians or others, you have total control over the thoughts, feelings, and energy you are exuding. If you are steeped in fear, anger, or a sense of victimization, you are contributing to the darkness. If you hold a sense of peace, compassion, kindness, and the presence of love, you are contributing to healing. As Kipling nobly penned, "If you can hold your head when all about you are losing theirs...”

Mother Teresa was once asked to speak at an anti-war rally. She refused. "If it were a pro-peace rally, I would attend," she explained. "But fighting against war, like fighting against anything, is just another form of war."

A liberal spiritual teacher once recounted that on his altar he has pictures of Christ and many other spiritual masters. He recently added a photo of George W. Bush. Why? "Until I can find the same divinity in George W. Bush as I find in other holy beings, I am stuck. When I can see and honor his soul, then I am in a position to protest. Until then, I am ineffective."

The power of intention and prayer goes a long, long way. At any given moment the world situation is a precise expression of the consciousness of all the people who live here. As you shift your consciousness in the direction of peace, wholeness, and faith, you tip the balance in that direction. You literally become the tipping point for the world you would like to create.

Be less concerned with what you are doing and more concerned with how you are doing it. Actions that spring from fear or hatred, no matter how nobly clothed, create only more of the same. Actions that issue from faith and love, no matter how humbly clothed, create only more of the same.

A visionary thrives under all circumstances, for he or she sees beyond the obvious. At this time the world needs good visionaries. If you would save the world, begin with your own consciousness.


Author: Alan Cohen
Image: Unknown

Our Deepest Fear

Our Deepest Fear

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate.
Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.
It is our light, not our darkness
That most frightens us.

We ask ourselves
Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous?
Actually, who are you not to be?
You are a child of God.

Your playing small
Does not serve the world.
There's nothing enlightened about shrinking
So that other people won't feel insecure around you.

We are all meant to shine,
As children do.
We were born to make manifest
The glory of God that is within us.

It's not just in some of us;
It's in everyone.

And as we let our own light shine,
We unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.
As we're liberated from our own fear,
Our presence automatically liberates others.

Author: Marianne Williamson
Image: Gilbert Williams

Look Well to This Day

Look Well to This Day

Look well to this day,
For it and it alone is life.
In its brief course
Lie all the essence of your existence:

The Glory of Growth
The Satisfaction of Achievement
The Splendor of Beauty

For yesterday is but a dream,
And tomorrow is but a vision.
But today well lived makes every yesterday a dream of happiness,
And every tomorrow a vision of hope.

Author: Anonymous, 50 B.C.
Image: Unknown

Hidden Mystery

Hidden Mystery

In the deepest depths of you and me
In the deepest depths of we
Lies the most beautiful jewel
Shining forth eternally

Within that precious jewel
Within that priceless piece of we
Lies a time beyond all time
Lies a place beyond all space

Within that sacred source of radiance
Lies a love beyond all love
Waiting
Waiting
Waiting
Ever so patiently

Waiting for you, waiting for me
Waiting patiently for all to see
The beauty that is you inside of me
The beauty that is me inside of thee

In the deepest depths of you and me
In the deepest depths of we
Lies the love and wisdom
Of all Eternity

Author: Fred Burks
Image: Unknown

Be Peace

"We can never obtain peace in the world if we neglect
the inner world and don't make peace with ourselves.
World Peace must develop out of inner peace."
—The Dalai Lama

Link: Let There Be Peace On Earth

Love is Life's Sweetest Flower

Love is Life's Sweetest Flower

Our love is like the blossoms sweet that open one-by-one.
Our love is like a pair of wings that lift us towards the sun.

Our love is like a precious jewel wih many facets to explore.
Our love is like the universe that forever shall endure.

Image: "Love is Life's Sweetest Flower" by Jody Bergsma

Jill Bolte Taylor: My stroke of insight

Who am I?

Link: The Call

Inspirational Videos

My collection of inspiring videos at YouTube:
                OpenHeartOpenMind







Image: crystalinks.com

This is the year! & Fresh Beginning

This is the year!
This is the year that my dreams come true!
These words from a beloved poem invite me to eagerly welcome the new year: “Wonderful, wonderful, fortunate you, this is the year that your dreams come true!”
This is the year that my dreams do come true as I am blessed with life-celebrating opportunities. Some at first may appear to be happenstance. Yet I know that they have come to me by divine appointment.
This is the year that expectations flow from my vision of good. I am an active participant in the joy-filled life of me!
This is the year that I move forward with zeal and enthusiasm, giving and receiving, committing to purposeful, rewarding goals.
This is the year that brings happiness, a year that I will live to bless. Wonderful, wonderful, fortunate me, for this is the year that my dreams come true!
Fresh Beginning
I am moving forward in fresh, new beginnings.
The new year brings fresh beginnings. Not just on calendar pages of new months and days, but from within me, new beginnings rise up. I have the attitude of mind and heart that I can begin anew.
I do not begin to do it over again, but begin with a freshness, an outlook and knowingness that propel me forward. Releasing any doubts, maybes, or I can’ts, I have moved from replaying discouraging messages in my mind to participating in a new beginning.
With attitudes and affirmations of overflowing faith, trust, and confidence, I reach new heights of spiritual expression. I do not circle repetitively. I spiral higher! With renewed attitude of mind and heart, I affirm: The radiant light of newness illumines my way, and I move forward in fresh, new beginnings.

Source: Daily Word ~ Tuesday, January 1, 2008 and Monday, January 7, 2008
Image: "Angel Wings Celestial Harmony" by Ki Fujinaka

The Ontologer's Pen

In these monthy articles I try to challenge you and me to look at what we believe and how our beliefs affect our day to day living. For instance, how you think of your God directly affects how you interact with people and how you live your life. A person whose God belief is one that says God is "up there in Heaven" and is angry and ready to get even for any small infraction of the rules is usually a person who is very righteous and afraid and quite often very judgmental and isolated from other people. A person whose God belief is that God is pure love expressing through all things treats people and the things of the world with reverence and respect and feels a oneness with all life. Being environmentally conscious is second nature to this person.

One goal I have is to challenge you and me to change our viewpoint and stop accepting violence in all of its forms just because we've been taught that's the way it has always been. I don't know about you, but I was never given equal opportunity to study a non violent way of life and its rewards and pitfalls. Instead I have been taught nothing but threats, war, violence, and veiled violence. But surely there must be a better way.

When I get lost in this kind of question I turn to my friend and teacher, Jesus. I read His words and listen to how they sound in my head and heart. His teachings that I can understand, and that reverberate through my body, I put into use. I am learning about defenselessness. Little by little I am practicing defenselessness more each day. When I find myself resisting anything, I stop and take a deep breath, let go, and stop resisting. Surprising things happen. Events take place very quickly that change the direction of the action or the event in question, usually in a direction I would never have imagined. And it works out for the good of all concerned.

Defenselessness leads to forgiveness. I read recently that forgiveness is your only path to your God. That's a pretty strong statement and one that bears investigation. My mind says, "Just a minute, prayer and meditation are the paths to God." Well, let's look at that.

If I am harboring a grievance or anger toward someone, what kind of prayer time will I have? Prayer and meditation are our connection time with our God. Our God does not come down to our level of upset and misery, we must raise our consciousness to meet our God. In my world, my God knows no anger, no fear, only love. If I come to my God full of anger and resentment, there will be no connection.

With my basket full of misery and upset I can't even get out of my own way let alone allow myself to love God enough to connect with Him. After all, I'm too busy being righteous and indignant and hurt and wanting to get even. Have you ever watched a friend or neighbor be upset and angry about something? They won't let it go and they keep getting more upset. You stand back and watch, amazed at the intensity of their anger and righteousness. You can see that they are just keeping themselves upset and unhappy. Have you ever watched yourself do that?

Imagine that you are the Creator, maker of all the galaxies, the stars, the moons and planets, all of life in all of its exquisite forms. There you are living in all the immense beauty of your creation and this human wants you to get involved in how offended she is because Aunt Sally didn't send a thank you note. All the Creator sees is the true beauty of you and Aunt Sally, and knows nothing of your temperamental demands.

Righteousness, indignation, hurt feelings, demands, anger, judgment, hatred, are all expressions of fear. But the Creator knows nothing of fear. What would the Creator fear? When you are the power and beauty of Creation there is no fear, only love.

If I want to approach my God, the Creator, I want to go with a gift in my hands, the gift of love, the gift of gratitude for each day of being alive. It is a gift of wonder and awe. When I am full of resentment, irritation, and anger, I find it very difficult to be grateful, full of wonder and awe, to give thanks for being alive. That's where forgiveness comes in. I can choose to be offended, resentful, or angry or I can just let it go. I can forgive, I can look past the perceived offense and let it be. Who is affected by my decisions? I am.

All prosperity comes from the Creator and it is filtered into my life through my consciousness, my thoughts, emotions, feelings, and beliefs. What kind of prosperity do I have when I am filled with resentment and anger? Do I see things and people to appreciate and love, or is my attention focused on what is wrong? Do I see all of the wonderful opportunities placed before me to increase my richness of life?

If you are looking to expand your financial prosperity in the new year, wonderful ways to do just that are passing through your life daily. Because of your unforgiveness of the past, your present perceptions are distorted and cloudy and you miss your opportunities. Can you see how defenselessness and non resistance enter in here? If I am busy fighting, defending and resisting anything, I am giving my attention to what I am resisting. When will I have the opportunity to see the wonderful gifts that are being given me moment to moment?

It may be that you are so caught up in your righteousness that you cannot fathom what I am talking about. Your anger, fear, resentment, vengefulness, are totally blocking you from hearing your own inner self trying to get you to forgive and let it all go.

What is the cost of anger, resentment, getting even? Your health, dollars, relationships, peace of mind and heart, your creativity, joy. Need I go on?
I cannot make your decision for you, I can only look at myself and ask myself this question when I want to be right instead of happy. "Bob, is this upset really worth giving up your health, happiness, dollars, and joy?"

Author: Reverend Robert K. Eagan
Publication: Unity Center Gazette ~ January 2008   [Article posted w/permission]