Love and truth

Love is a very popular word. We love your hair, your clothes, food, car and so on. But is the word being overused and do we really mean something else. Love is important where friends and family are concerned and there are different kinds of love within the family and friends circle. Maternal love for our children is a different kind of love than we have for our parents and our partners.

We use the word love often when talking about things we like doing. I love to walk amongst the trees is a good example of this. I love to paint, to draw, to sew, to make things, to ride a bike and so on. Do we really mean we love these things or are we using the word love for a word such as enjoy or like?

For me love is something that represents a deep emotion of caring for someone or something. I love my children and my friends but I also have a deep love for our land and everything that lives on it. I generally hesitate to say ‘I love that’ about something such as a dress, a hair do or a car. I prefer to use the word like for those kind of things.

But that brings me to another word that is often misused, truth. I tried to find a good definition of the word truth and was not really happy with any of them. Truth is important though to all of us as a society and to all of us as individuals.There are different kinds of truth; historic truth is about something that actually happened, but truth today is often opposed . Some facts or beliefs are accepted as true even if there is no proof. But other true facts are often opposed and considered to be lies.

It is important to be honest and truthful. Honesty allows you to have a fulfilling life. It’s also about being true to yourself and not pretending to be someone else. There is nothing wrong with being who you really are and avoiding changing at times to suit others. Truth, honesty and love go together in my mind and are extremely important in my life.

Fear and the new normal

I am going to stick my neck out as the saying goes and write about things I normally shy from. I read avidly about everything I have an interest in as well as other reading which I read for information. All this reading over the last 18 months or so has led me to many different beliefs than many of my friends. But I don’t think I am alone in my thinking. Fear has been dominant over the last 18 months and fear breeds obedience. Think about that first. Fear can cause many different illnesses as it depletes your immune system. Nowhere in the last 18 months have I seen a recommendation to boost your immune system. If you have fear about something then you need to change the story about what you fear and make it a happy story so the fear disappears.

Earlier this week I came across a cartoon which said a lot of what I think. It stated that most people don’t really want the truth, they just want constant assurance that what they believe is the truth. There were two desks in the cartoon, one had a large queue at it. The heading over the desk was ‘comforting lies’ and the other desk had no queue. That heading was ‘unpleasant truths’. The truth can be uncomfortable to know but knowing it is important. It is easy to be satisfied with what you hear instead of looking to see whether what you hear is the truth or not. Reading and researching is good to do but sometimes you just know that what you are being told is a lie.

Last month I wrote a new poem called ‘A New Normal’. Here it is.

Is this how it is meant to be?
Men and women staying in
Cowed and afraid to go outside
Just in case they become ill.

Why have they obeyed so fast?
Why have they stopped thinking?
Why do they believe so many facts
Even though they are often false?

How do they change and go outside,
Learn to laugh and hug again,
Learn to tell truth from lies,
And to trust their inner selves?

I don’t understand
Why people don’t question
What we are asked to do.
Have they lost their ‘knowing’
In the chaos of life
Or don’t they care any more.

If we took more care of our bodies and minds
Our lives would change for the better,
So think about this and get outside
To find joy and beauty for ever.

Weather sayings and more

This week I spent some time thinking about the weather sayings that we use. Things like March winds and April showers,and another one about March roaring in like a lion and going out like a lamb. There are sayings about the sunrise and sunset too. Red sky at night shepherds delight and red sky in the morning shepherds warning. The one I think about most and always look for the signs is Oak before ash means a splash while Ash before Oak means a soak. Another one that comes to mind is rain before 7, fine at 11.

There are many of these sayings and I often wonder how many are true or are they just something passed down through the generations. Like any other statement in the public view I try to observe to find out if it is true. Did the ancient ones watch the sky and see what colour the sunrise was and then plan their day accordingly? Did they follow the movements of the Moon as many do today before planting seeds and also doing other things?

As we see the press of today with their fake news and lies about people and what they do, it is important to look for the truth that is out there. Maybe that is why some of us look back at these sayings as there are many that do not have anything to do with the weather or the moon.Finding the truth is so important and often it is hidden away behind layers of lies and distortions.

I am finding more and more that being out in the natural world helps me to deal with the lies and distortions of the truth. Nature does not lie and gives me hope. I managed another trip out this week to a nearby nature reserve, a different one than the week before. It was good just to be out there , to see the new growth around me and to know that life goes on whatever we throw at it.

Thinking for yourself

I have recently finished reading a book, ‘The Machine Stops’ by E. M. Forster. Here is what Wikipedia says about that book.

‘The Machine Stops is a short science fiction story. It describes a world in which almost all humans have lost the ability to live on the surface of the Earth. Each individual lives in isolation in a ‘cell’, with all bodily and spiritual needs met by the omnipotent, global Machine. Most humans welcome this development, as they are skeptical and fearful of first-hand experience. People forget that humans created the Machine, and treat it as a mystical entity whose needs supersede their own. Those who do not accept the deity of the Machine are viewed as ‘unmechanical’ and are threatened with “Homelessness”. Eventually, the Machine apocalyptically collapses, and the civilization of the Machine comes to an end. –Wikipedia

Reading it myself I could see how easy it would be for this to happen in the future as we lose the ability to think for ourselves. Many people take what they read or hear as the truth and never think of checking out what they hear or read to see if someone else thinks differently. There are always more sides to a story than are apparent. Although I rely on my gut reaction or my intuition as well as my inner knowledge of things I am one of those people who like to check out facts. From my own experience I know that statistics can be ‘played with’ to make them state what you want them to state.

When the pandemic started I did a lot of reading from various sources, scientific and medical and made up my own mind about it and what should or could be done. People have been asked to isolate or keep their distance from others even though we can now meet a certain number of people outside we still have to keep our distance. This is hard for many as social interaction is a large part of their lives and closeness to family and friends is important. Communications via phone and other forms of technology have become important as have ways of working from home. Forster’s book talks of this and how those in his book live purely via technology.

I feel that now is the time to think about what we really want our world to be like. We need to look at all the options that are there for us and make informed decisions. Take everything that is in the media with a pinch of salt and think about what is really being said. When this pandemic is over we need to have in place a good idea of how we want our world to look and how we want to live in it. Read and inform yourself then make your decisions.

Dealing with disappointment

I have been working on the words for this blog since Friday and hope that my words will help some of those who are feeling let-down and disappointed after the recent election in the UK. (although this can apply to other situations) First of all, it has happened and it is done and cannot be changed so acceptance is the first thing. Getting angry is no good either as that only hurts you and no-one else. So try to accept what has happened. I have heard some people gloating but that does not say much for them. Gloating over someones else’s misfortune is not good and shows a shallow personality. Ignore these people.

Next sit down and look inside yourself. Have you changed or are you still the same person? Are you still compassionate and caring for those less able, are you still loving your family as before, are you still aware that we are all connected? Whatever our colour or political beliefs we are all members of the human race. We come from the same source and we all have a spark of the divine within us. Find that spark and allow it to help you through the next days and maybe years. There is much for us to do if we are going to eventually get the change that the world needs. We have to care for others, look out for those needing our love and help and most of all we have to look after ourselves. If we are angry and frustrated then we won’t get anything done as we will be trying to do it while in the wrong frame of mind.

I believe there is a larger plan out there and often it takes time for the real plan and the truth to come out. Over the last few years you may have noticed that hidden things are coming to light much quicker than they did in the past. It is harder for those in government and high places to get away with wrongdoing. Have hope that all will be well in the end but we will have to work to get there. Success built on lies will always founder and the truth will come out.

Take heart, care for each other and those less fortunate, speak your truth and stay calm and centred. I send you all love and peace and the blessings of our Mother Earth.

Balance

We are now at the Autumn Equinox here in the Northern Hemisphere, a time when day and night are equal and in balance. The sun is in the sign of Libra which is again about balance.

So a time of balance and it is time maybe to look at how our world and its inhabitants are in balance or not in balance as the case may be. Taking a look at nature itself first of all. The food chain shows balance in nature but what if one part of this chain  has too many members and wipes out another part of the chain? It can take some time to get back in balance and in some cases when a species has been wiped out, that part of the chain can stay broken for a long time.

On a larger scale perhaps, what about our world? The number of wars and refugees and areas of great poverty shows us that our world is not in balance. Not only wars but there is the way we have been stripping our earth of its assets, plundering the soils and forests for material gain. This is not a way of balance.

But what of ourselves, our bodies and our lives. If we overeat all the time or drink too much then we get out of balance. What we eat plays a part in this too. Too much of one kind of food can also make us out of balance. Our mental states can also get out of balance as we get stressed or depressed. How we spend our money can also make us out of balance. Do we buy too many gadgets or clothes or chocolates? If we do then we can easily get out of balance.

So now at the time of balance of the Equinox, for me it is time to take a look at my life and see what is out of balance so I can do something about it. I hope I have encouraged you to do the same.

Where to start?

I have got lots of ideas in my head about what to write about this week but where to start? One of the main things that got to me this week was the attitude of those who don’t vote because they say whatever happens won’t affect them. One local seat was lost by fifty votes and I wonder how much difference it would have made if those who did not vote had actually gone and voted. Many years ago only men who owned property could vote and then it became all men as long as they were employed. Eventually women were able to vote as well. We owe it to these ancestors to use our right to vote which they fought for.

Another thing that got to me this week is how brainwashed a lot of people are. They seem to think that what they read in the papers and hear on the television or radio is the truth. They are not able to discern fact from fiction. Our local paper had a wraparound cover the other day paid for by the Tory party. I found it rather offensive but then the newspaper is owned by a large firm who will do anything to get more money. The money that paid for this cover in many other newspapers too, could have gone towards our health service and helped many people.

I try to keep politics out of my writing but I want to see a fairer world where children do not go hungry, where education is good and free and where our health service is available to everyone. We should not be seeing homeless people on the streets or people having to use food banks. As a population we should be moving forward and looking towards a better, fairer future, not moving backwards to what life was like in the Victorian age and before. What went wrong I often ask myself. Where did we become complacent about our government and when did we stop believing that they had our interests at heart? How can we help others to learn to discern truth from lies and find out the best way to get things changed? I’m not sure it will happen in my lifetime but I hope it happens soon so our children and grandchildren have a decent future to look forward to.

 

News, change, negativity and more

There has been so much going on this week in my mind. First of there was Storm Doris who swept through our area at a rapid speed demolishing objects in her way and bringing down many trees. I had hoped that she would sweep away all the negativity but that has not seemed to have happened as the news is full of it.

I understand that good events are not good news but they should be. I can look at a newspaper and find lots of items about bad events but not very much about good ones. No wonder we all feel negative. I try not to get emotionally involved with the news but try to stand back and look at what is stated overall. Facts are important but we are now in the age of fake news. Journalists seem to have forgotten about truth and reporting in a factual manner but make up things to get good headlines and more readers even though some of what you read is blatantly untrue.

What sort of a world have we made? What happened to truth and compassion? How can we turn the negativity into positivity? Is it right to keep revisiting the past or should we be looking only to the future? Now that is a question that could bring a lot of discussion. What has happened in the past makes us who we are today but should it influence how we go forward and if so how?

We are going through a period of rapid change in our world. Change in the way we live, the way we travel and the way we spend money. We need to accept that without change we cannot grow. Change is a good thing not a bad one and from each change we make, we learn something which helps us to lead a better life. It is so easy to get in a rut and stay in what feels a safe place. Sometimes risks have to be taken in order to move forward. Please tell me your thoughts on all of this. I love to read your comments which often help me to change things too.

Reality or Illusion

Recently there has been a lot of talk about Fake News. But all news media reports are often not true or only partially true as they miss out important facts about what they are reporting. Live news reports have a time limit and the person doing the report has to choose which bits to keep in and what to leave out. This often gives a distorted view of what is actually going on.

So what about the reality of all this? According to one dictionary definition, reality is the state of things as they actually exist. We all know about our own reality, the things we do, what we see around us in our daily lives, etc., but we rely on the media to tell us what is happening elsewhere and to tell it as it is not what they think it is. The media is often used to persuade us to see things differently, to not see the reality but to see the illusion they are sharing with us. The dictionary definition of illusion is a deceptive idea or impression, a false idea or belief.

Over the last year or so we have seen false ideas and many false impressions of what is going on in the world. Look at Brexit, the US Presidential election, the war in Syria and the issue at Standing Rock for starters. How can we decide what the reality is in those areas? This is difficult if we know nobody personally who can tell us. But then we all have a different perception of what we see so what is the reality of these situations? Is it what we see or hear from others or what we are told in the media?

I currently see two world situations where I am concerned that the truth is not being told and that we are given false ideas of what is going on. One of these is Syria and the other is Standing Rock. I am lucky that I have what I call a ‘gut conviction’ of what is the truth and what is an illusion but it is still hard to know what is the reality and what is media hype. It seems as if the whole world media want us to believe things are different from what they really are and I wonder who is paying them to do this. For me it is all about being controlled by people who don’t want us to see the truth, the reality of our world or they would lose their power.

I will stop here as I am sure that many of my readers will have lots to say about this. I look forward to reading your comments.

Sifting through words to the truth

This week has been busy again but I have had time for thinking. One thing that strikes me this week is how the media choose what they want to tell us about and ignore other events that we should also know about. I’ve always known about this but it just seems worse this week.  I do not read the papers that I know change events to suit what their agenda is and who also tell lies. I try to only read what I know is a balanced piece of writing about an event. But what about those people who believe that what is in the newspaper is absolutely true. I have seen this happen when sitting on a bus and listening to someone reading a paper I would never dream of buying.This person believed every word she read.

If we are going to change our world then we have to listen to our inner feelings and thoughts about what we read and what we see on the TV. There are some good reporters but not many. There are those who edit their reports so that they only show the bad bits and not the good bits. Unfortunately unless we are present at an event we cannot know exactly what happened and if we were present then we may not want to talk about it.

So how do we sift out the truth from what we read and hear? I always seem to know what is true but this is because over the years I have honed my intuitive side so that it becomes easier to listen to. I always trust what I call my gut reaction as well and find that I am rarely wrong about things. But sometimes it can be easy to ignore the gut reaction and look at the logical side of things. But this can be wrong and I have found that experience in trusting my gut reaction has been important. How do you deal with what you see and hear about current events?