Self-Contained Heart

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Fun, huh? I love how this heart looks so timeless and perfect.

"The truth shall set you free."
- Jesus Christ

This image puts forth a balanced energy,
showing protective safeguards and healthy boundaries,
at the same time radiating a lot of love.
The heart is yin, the golden sun behind it is yang.
The thorns are neutralizers.
This is the image of a young adult heart
who has come into his or her own self.
It not only radiates faith, but self-trust and kindness.
At the same time, it is not leaking any energy;
it is cautious, aware, contained.


Y


"I will reveal all things, beloved,
so that through knowledge and understanding
you will become like Me.
I will reveal the hidden things to you.
Now, put forth your hands and hold on."

- Jesus, The Second Apocalypse of James

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Here's a photo of my town, the city of Seattle...

Many of you reading this blog
are too young to remember or know about


The Battle In Seattle

November 30, 1999 -
December 2, 1999




It was the first national protest
organized by caring American citizens,
on the internet.



Organizers and citizens came together to protest
against the World Trade Order (WTO).
People intended for it to be a peaceful protest...



However Seattle city officials
were very concerned about the crowds of people showing up...


So the police force was called in
to watch against any disorder.

You see, President Clinton
and other important officials
from all over the world were coming to town!

There were diverse crowds
of every nationality and age!



People wanted to take a stand
against the exploitation of people in other countries,
the loss and outsourcing of our jobs,


the quality of our food,
water, and air...


All these concerns affect us directly
and were, and continue to be based in
corporate greed.



So the people came together,
standing in one voice
as the officials came into the airport
and through the gates of Seattle...



It was very cool,
how the people of Seattle created blockades,
so officials for the WTO
could not meet in their conference rooms
or gather at the Space Needle.


Instead, they were forced to face the people!



Of course, the cops didn't like that.




By late afternoon
the police were given permission to use
whatever tactics they thought necessary
to drive back the crowds.




Therefore, police began
to push the people
out of the way using tear-gas.




By the end of the night
police had pushed the people up the hill,
and into my neighborhood,
where my friends and neighbors
were tear-gassed, too!



The next morning,
some people began to riot
and the windows of many buildings owned by corporate companies were busted down.
Since no person was being physically hurt,
some thought about it and felt
creating material damages was okay.
Newspaper boxes were uprooted from the sidewalks and thrown into the glass!



Again, the peaceful protesters
returned to the streets, chanting:

THE PEOPLE
UNITED
WILL NEVER BE
DIVIDED!


They came again
to block the WTO organizers from gathering.



And again,



protesters were tear-gassed,
beaten with clubs, and driven by police
up to the hill where I live.



The protests went on in the streets
for a total of three days.



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This year will be the 10th Anniversary
of the Battle in Seattle.






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The citizens of Seattle were put on a nightly curfew:
we were told to be out of the streets by 7:00 p.m.,
or we would be tear-gassed.


Naturally, not everyone
was able to get out of the streets in time!


For three days and nights, all we could hear were helicopters...


On the third night, I rushed home from work.
I couldn't find anything on the local news
about how the night would go.


But I tuned-in to PBS and saw
there were police lined up


right in front of my apartment building.


Dozens of squads stood out in the street,
in lines outside my door,
poised in their "riot gear",
face shields down like Darth Vader.
They stood waiting for the downtown squads
to push the protesters up the hill one more time.


People I worked with got tear-gassed on their way home from teaching at night.



A friend who was tear-gassed had to sleep on my living room floor.



There was no way a lot of people could get home!



Reporters said
the protests weren't helping much
with the Christmas Shopping season.


By the time the protests were over,
some people went to jail...
Merchants boarded up their windows.



Which did not look very welcoming
uptown or downtown.


(No one was really in the mood to go shopping.)

Y

In fact, Seattle has never been the same.


We all know
knew this event
would slowly change the world.


Y

This is a story about greed.


http://www.zmedia.org/WTO/N30.htm


http://www.gapsucks.org/gwa/history/wto/


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_in_Seattle

http://www.johncallan.com/Archive/PM/WTO--%20The%20Battle%20for%20Seattle.htm


http://www.spectacle.org/0100/main.html


http://archives.dailyuw.com/2000/120100/N2.WT.html


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Baby's Heart

The Baby Heart is the sweetest of all hearts...
We see a little bit of ourselves
in the hearts of all babies,
for they are open and innocent and new to life.

Y

God, thank You for the little babies in our lives...
Help us to give them good homes,
safe places to live and be nurtured.
Help us to have a better understanding
of nutrition and psychological care
for our little newborns.
Show us how
to get to the right resources we need
to empower our little children.
Help us to be more aware
of the need to surround all babies,
new and grown, at whatever ages,
with comfort, love, safety and healing.
Help us to remember
these are the basic needs of all human beings.
Give us understanding of one another
by helping us to see
these qualities in each other.

Y

I go through my day surrounded by many young adults... I sometimes have to remind myself they are old enough to be my own children. Their worlds have become even more complicated than mine, when I was their age. Sure, they have all the wonderful things modern-day technology brings! But I can see how together, we all get burned by information overload.

Sometimes they don't need to hear what I have to say. Sometimes, all that is needed is a hug, or a pat on the back; a little relief and assurance that things are okay.

We all live in the city... It can be an existence of great paranoia at times, dealing with strangers and random encounters on the streets and buses. Our living spaces have become so tight! If we want some expression or outlet for frustrations, we have to find places to go - and often pay money to do it. I don't envy the young adults of the new millennium.

Young children are brought up in this country to believe we live in a world of entitlement, and that's a lie. We have been given privileges and freedom, and we are required to uphold these gifts in order to enjoy them.

Just because you look cute, and can play games and/or perform well, does not mean you or anyone else is entitled to anything.

If anything, we are living in a time when Americans are being forced to learn about sharing.

We have to work hard to keep our hearts open and free of judgment and the bad attitudes that keep us from connecting with the hearts of others.

Y

God, thank You for the miracle this week, of bringing Chesley B. "Sully" Sullenberger III, to guide Flight 1549 safely to the surface of the Hudson River!! Thank You for giving him the desire he had from the time he was a little boy, to fly, and the knowledge and experience he was given to become an expert.

Thank You helping all 154 passengers to survive it, standing together on the wings of the plane!
And for allowing the city of New York
show what brave and resilient souls they are to help.
God Bless You All!



Y



For those babies and children,
the little angels that did not make it through the night, God, I pray that they are in Your Light,
and that their passage to You
was quick, and fast.



Y