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GIVING PEACE A CHANCE

 


THE ROOT OF IT ALL


I went to the Maple Ridge Public Library the other day to find a very basic book that speaks to the mystery of trees. I did this because recently I attended a Peace Tree Planting Festival in Amsterdam. I had no idea what I was getting into nor did I realise we can all learn a lot about the existence of trees and their importance on this Earth.


A theory has arisen that since humans have been largely failures in their longstanding efforts to establish peace in our world, maybe looking at the example of trees we can move the process of establishing peace on earth along with success. After all, if you look carefully at a cluster of trees in a yard, a park or mountain range, you can see they all seem to get along quite nicely.  They breathe and drink; they are awake by day and asleep by night; they live and they die and between those beginnings and those ends, they reproduce;  they sweat and shiver; droop and reach out; they wave and exercise; grow tall and grow old. They are parents; they are children. They are fostered and they are adopted. They have friends and enemies. They have good health days and sick days. They hang out in clusters or as solos. Their roots are deeply embedded as they grow and grow and intertwine with other roots, cuddle and caress, comfort and communicate. When we look at them we see, feel and hear peace.


In today’s terminology, one could say trees have created their own form a peaceful and effective cohesive living; their own way of survival; their own worldwide web and yes: their own internal internet of effective communication into which we can tap. 


Their literacy is not typed, written or spoken words as we know it as humans; their literacy comes through scents, senses, vibrations and movements. Learning about that unique form of communication is key to the power of using the strength and determination of trees as a viable pathway or root highway to better spread the message of peace around the world.


The success of this theory really does depend on humans to be on board to help feed the mission telepathically through meditation, contemplation, expressions of hope and conviction, in addition to breathing and the sense of touch, and the collective human will to try to make a difference.  If one needs a correlation to shed light onto this theory, it is much the same as non-secular people believing praying, chanting and penance works.


Based on centuries of examples, conventional methods to establish peace have clearly been ineffective; trying something completely new like openly and outwardly honouring trees, understanding and respecting trees, and working with trees, could possibly be the better pathway to accomplishment. The exercise is harmless. 


When you look at Nature whether it’s the flora or fauna, it does look like a peaceful existence. When you stand alone in a forest, you can feel the peace. It’s a profound and mysterious experience, but very real and effective. There’s something to that.


Sure flora and fauna have their challenges, but somehow they manage to work things out, adapt and survive. They know how to solve problems and move on.  The bottom line is humans learn by example — maybe the time is right to spread our wings and embrace Nature, or partner with Nature, as our newest example of a sincere effort to help our troubled world? This concept is really no more bizarre than any other bandwagon out there.


It is in that light that I went to the Peace Tree planting events in Amsterdam and on Aruba. It is in that light that I planted and continue to nurture a Peace Tree in a tiny forest in my neighbourhood. It is in that light that I continue to highlight the mission to get more people interested, on board, and willing to create an effective partnership with Nature as a plausible secular-supported means to an end. It is a huge undertaking, a major challenge, but sitting back while the status quo continues to fail, is not in my nature. 


Our whole world is in our hands. Partnering with Nature may well be the shake up indoctrinated and unsettled minds need to get our world and ourselves to peace. This “out of the box” notion may well be the “root canal” for the salvation of the Earth as well as the salvation of global and individual humanity for generations to come. It is a theory; it is an approach; it is harmless; the image of finding success rooted in partnership with Nature is priceless.


MICROHABITS MATTER

 LEARNING NEW THINGS


MICROHABITS MATTER


One of my life long friends who lives in Moncton, New Brunswick, Canada for six months and Spain or France the other six months, has befriended a physiotherapist in Spain. She writes intellectual pieces for the users and students of physiotherapy. One such article caught my attention as it further advances my appreciation of QiGong and TaiChi exercising for the health of my body and mind.


Those of you who know me well, know while I was a student at the University of Ottawa, I was required to take a philosophy class. I loathed the thought but after the first class I was riding high and keen to get totally into it! The focus was “logical reasoning” and it introduced me to various philosophers such as Aristotle.


One quote that he adopted, and that the physiotherapist covets, is something like “We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act but a habit.”


Through my taking QiGong and TaiChi classes, I have felt the mental and physical benefits of simple repetitive movements. All of them keep the blood circulating and wake up our marrow, joints, muscles, organs and mind. They calm our central nervous system and stimulate our brains.


Our insides do need attention, love attention and thrive on attention. Every careful learned move (microhabit) matters. Every careful learned move makes a difference. Every careful learned move brings happiness to the inner mechanics that keep us alive and healthy. I call it silent inner body education. In fact when people ask me to explain QiGong and TaiChi, the best simple answer is just that: “silent, slow and easy, repetitive inner body education” — its focus is on our inside physiological and mental health. 


The microhabits within both of these Ancient Chinese exercises have raised an awareness and presence within me that I had never considered— my insides are much more important than my outside! Consistent repetition of physically easy exercises is key to our short term and long term physiological, neurological and full body health. The experience gives me inner peace, and that peace is both healing and empowering.


I say go slow and simple for a moment, a few moments, once a day and several times a day — every learned and repeated effort (microhabit) helps, every learned and repeated effort matters. Make it a habit!

Story about Sugar Cane in Colombia

 

                                        


𝐋𝐄𝐀𝐑𝐍𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐍𝐄𝐖 𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐍𝐆𝐒

There are pluses in sugar cane.

While I was away at my home away from this home, standing in a long slow moving line up at the Juan Valdez Café, I looked over at the counter and saw something orange, orange packets of something. I reached over to hold one in my hand. The words on it were foreign; the contents felt powdery. I carried it home with me to investigate later.

Turns out the contents are the best part of sugar cane grown in Colombia. Sugarcane juice is processed into a type of organic raw sugar. It’s called panela. This unrefined sugar is traditionally produced and consumed in Latin America. It is flavourful, aromatic and organic, and contains naturally-occurring vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants that you won’t find in sugars that go through an industrial refining process: potassium, calcium, magnesium, manganese, vitamins A, B, C, D, and E.

Panela is still produced using old school traditional technology by small scale farmers in Colombia and other regions of Latin America. I say kudos to the Juan Valdez coffee shop chain for supporting the specialized environmentally sound sugar cane industry of Latin America, and for providing customers with a sweetener that has so much more to offer than the overly processed white stuff!

Today I mixed the contents of my one packet of Colombian panela with Sri Lankan cinnamon;  it’s become the topping on my carrot blueberry loaf for the neighbourhood work party coffee break this weekend. It will no doubt give me a chance to share the good news with others, and energize the crew to get the new fence completed before the sun sets.

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