Mindfully Making New Years Resolution

 



Generally speaking, these aspirational changes are quite helpful and healthy. They guide us to make substantive, meaningful change in our lives. 

We might decide to get in shape in order to feel better and (hopefully) be able to live longer to spend more time with our family. We might decide to get a new job in order to feel more satisfied at work.

Whatever the desired change and motivation, New Year's resolutions provide an opportunity to recognize important personal values and articulate related goals for fulfillment.


So, what does mindfulness have to offer?   

 Is an objective awareness of the present moment with its focus on acceptance applicable to the establishment and pursuit of life-changing actions?  Put simply, "no."

 Mindfulness with its emphasis on experiencing the present as it exists is not too keen on changing it. 

Unless one of your resolutions is to practice mindfulness or acceptance more regularly in 2010, then the emphasis on being present in the now won't help you realize your goals. 

Think about it: is mindfulness going to get you to go to the gym or line-up a series of job interviews?   Of course not. 

 However, some of the essential qualities of mindfulness can be helpful for you.

In his seminal book, Full Catastrophe Living, 
Dr. Jon Kabat-Zinn outlined what he described as -

the "attitudinal foundations of mindfulness."

Non-judging

Patience

Beginner's Mind

Trust

Non-striving

Acceptance 

Letting Go






In addition, I would add "Non-identification" as another aspect of mindfulness.  

Taken together and applied sensitively to your resolutions, these qualities will help you approach your desired changes in ways that are sensitive, respectful, and supportive of change.



 
Non-judging

This perspective involves suspending our tendency to evaluate experiences.

However, if you've made a resolution for 2013, then it's too late: you've already made a judgment in deciding on something to change. Fortunately, we can adopt a non-judging approach to our resolutions subsequently. We can stop second-guessing our resolutions as good, bad, or "not enough," for example.


Patience

This one is probably obvious. Change typically doesn't happen overnight, and we need to be patient as we try to bring about something new in our lives. Intellectually, we understand this fact, but it's harder to appreciate through actual experience.


Beginner's Mind

This principle refers to the ability to experience the present moment as if it were existing for the very first time, which-of course-it is. You haven't been in this precise time and space until now. For the New Year, it means that these resolutions of ours are brand new. Even if they're something that we've made in the past, we've never had the opportunity to make them in 2013. Thus, we need to approach these resolutions with an attitude of freshness and curiosity. Whatever happened previously is over. All we have is our resolutions manifest in the here-and-now.


Trust

Trust refers to the ability to have faith in our intuitive wisdom as well as the present moment. For our resolutions, it means cultivating the ability to recognize that we'll know how to best approach them. Even if we don't know how to accomplish something, we can be confident in knowing when we don't know, and perhaps seeking some advice or guidance.


Non-striving

This one might seem a bit antithetical to having New Year's resolutions. Aren't they all about striving for something? Sure. However, we can embody our desire for change through gentle persistence as opposed to brute force. There's no need to push hard for realization of our resolutions when a simple nudge or light pressure will suffice.


Acceptance

Just as the present moment needs to be accepted as it exists, so does our relationship to whatever change we're trying to make. We are here, regardless of where we want to be. Telling ourselves that we need or should be someplace else (physically, emotionally, occupationally, etc.) provides little motivation. More often than not, we feel miserable and discouraged as we work towards change. For example, if you've lost one pound, you've lost one pound. This is true regardless of the fact that you want to lose 20 pounds or that it's Week #8 of your new diet and exercise regimen.


Letting Go

We need to abandon our desire for things to be different than how they are? Obviously, this is not relevant to resolutions in which we're actively trying to be different. However, sometimes we hold on to fantasies about our past or future, which make it more difficult to engage the present. For example, reminiscing about how athletic you were in high school is not likely to help you much in getting in shape now. So, we often need to let go of these remembrances and desires in order to better address what's happening for us now.


Non-identification

Mindfulness encourages us to recognize the present moment without becoming too wrapped-up in it personally.  Similarly, our self-worth is not dependent on whether or not we succeed or fail in realizing our New Year's Resolutions. If you abandon or forget your resolution, it's okay. You are not a better or worse person. And, if it truly troubles you, you can always try again in the next moment or even wait until next year.


Finally, it's important to recognize that your realization of your New Year's resolutions likely will not happen in an instant.

It's not as if you suddenly will lose 20 pounds or instantly land a job. Rather, it will take a series of successive moments as you work towards the change that you seek. Hmm...successive present moments? What can we do with those?

 Source:
The Mindful Gorilla

 http://themindfulgorilla.blogspot.ca/

Practice Mindfulness

Fully Present: The Book

MARC announces the publication of Fully Present, The Science, Art, and Practice of Mindfulness by Susan L. Smalley, Ph.D., founder and director of MARC, and Diana Winston, Director of Mindfulness Education at MARC.

Fully Present brings together the cutting  edge science of mindfulness with clear explanations of how mindfulness  works and practices to make it part of your daily life.

Uploaded on Aug  3, 2010

Sue Smalley, PhD describes how when  you practice mindfulness you learn to relate to your thoughts and  feelings and bodily sensations differently.


Susan Smalley is a  Professor of Psychiatry, and the Founder and Director of the Mindful  Awareness Research Center (MARC) at the Jane and Terry Semel Institute  of Neuroscience and Human Behavior at UCLA.

Fully Present introduces you to the science, art,  and practice of mindfulness:

Mindfulness—being in the present moment—  can be cultivated through
explicit practices, such as meditation, yoga, or t’ai chi, through
creativity or even by walking in nature.

All of these are various means of enhancing your awareness to be more
present in life. We coined the term “Mindful Awareness Practices,” or
MAPs, to refer to this general class of practices and to the mindfulness
practices we teach throughout the book and at UCLA. MAPs can be done by
anyone, regardless of age, background, or religion.

Each chapter of Fully Present offers a scientific and
experiential look at how mindfulness can shape your life, along with
practical exercises, alternating between what we call “The Science,”
“The Art,” and “The Practice.”


What the Research Says:


The research exploring mindfulness, although still relatively new, is
demonstrating that repeated practice can lead to changes in our lives,
including:

• Reducing stress
• Reducing chronic physical pain
• Boosting the body’s immune system to fight disease
• Coping with painful life events, such as the death of a loved one or major illness
• Dealing with negative emotions like anger, fear, and greed
• Increasing self-awareness to detect harmful reactive patterns of thought, feeling, and action
• Improving attention or concentration
• Enhancing positive emotions, including happiness and compassion
• Increasing interpersonal skills and relationships
• Reducing addictive behaviors, such as eating disorders, alcoholism, and smoking
• Enhancing performance, whether in work, sports, or academics
• Stimulating and releasing creativity
• Changing positively the actual structure of our brains

Link: http://www.fullypresentthebook.com/about





Category

Education


License

Standard YouTube License

Source:

Fully Present: The Book | UCLA Mindful Awareness Research Center



 http://marc.ucla.edu/body.cfm?id=60

Pictures of the Day at Smithonian

 

 

 

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A Spooky Tree on the Blue Ridge Parkway

Photo of the Day: October 31, 2012, Halloween
Bill Mcclung (Hendersonville, NC); Photographed October 2007, Mt. Mitchell, NC

 

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Have Fun. Make Money. Change the World.

 

“Smile, breathe, go slowly.”
Thich Nhat Hanh

 

“There is no charge for awesomeness, or attractiveness.”

Po ~ Kungfu Panda



Life flies by. And the older we get the faster it seems to go.

There never seems to be enough time in the day to get everything done. Let alone squeek out a moment of peace for ourselves.

So with all of responsibilities and obligations is there something that can help us?

What can we do to not feel overwhelmed, overworked, or overtired?

Maybe it’s time for a different approach to life.


 

Source:
3 Keys To An Awesome Life From A Zen Master | Success For Life - Have Fun. Make Money. Change the World.

 Link:
http://ianpaulmarshall.com/3-keys-to-an-awesome-life-from-a-zen-master/

Quotes

Thoreau: "I had three chairs in my house: one for solitude, two for friendship, three for society."



Virtue is unfailingly the means to happiness because it is supremely rational, making it impossible to err in the choice of means. Aristotle

 "A man wrapped up in himself makes a very small bundle." -Benjamin Franklin


 

"Achieving durable happiness as a way of being is a skill requiring sustained effort in training the mind..." -Matthieu Ricard ‪

 

"The most robust finding of positive psychology is that other people matter." -Chris Peterson 

 

Willpower is a muscle that gets tired over the course of the day, and improves with use. Build your willpower starting with small tasks. 

 "Happiness is a skill, a manner of being, but skills must be learned." -Matthieu Ricard

"Most powerful is he who has himself in his own power." ~Seneca


80% of Prozac Power is Placebo. Placebo is Latin for "I shall please"




Hedonist Philosopher Epicurus Was Right About Happiness (Mostly): "If a little is not enough for you, nothing is."

How to be Happy in 12 Simple Steps

By SONJA LYUBOMIRSKY



STEP 1 - Show gratitude 

(* There's a lot more to gratitude than saying "thank you." Emerging research shows that people who are consistently grateful are happier, more energetic and hopeful, more forgiving and less materialistic. Gratitude needs to be practised daily because it doesn't necessarily come naturally.)


STEP 2 - Cultivate Optimism


STEP 3 - Avoid overthinking and social comparison

(* Many of us believe that when we feel down we should try to focus inwardly to attain self-insight and find solutions to our problems. But numerous studies have shown that overthinking sustains or worsens sadness.)


STEP 4 - Practice kindness



STEP 5 - Nurture social relationships


STEP 6 - Develop coping skills


STEP 7 - Learn to forgive 

(* Forgiveness is not the same thing as reconciliation, pardoning or condoning. Nor is it a denial of your own hurt. Forgiveness is a shift in thinking and something that you do for yourself and not for the person who has harmed you. Research confirms that clinging to bitterness or hate harms you more than the object of your hatred. Forgiving people are less likely to be hostile, depressed, anxious or neurotic.


* Forgive yourself for past wrongs. Recognising that you too can be a transgressor will make you more empathetic to others. )


STEP 8 - Find more flow

(* "Flow" was a phrase coined by psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi in the 1960s. It means you are totally immersed in what you are doing and unaware of yourself. Happy people have the capacity to enjoy their lives even when their material conditions are lacking and even when many of their goals have not been reached.)


STEP 9 - Savour the day



STEP 10 - Commit to your goals 

(* People who strive for something personally significant, whether it's learning a new craft or changing careers, are far happier than those who don't have strong dreams or aspirations. Working towards a goal is more important to wellbeing than its attainment.)


STEP 11 - Take care of your soul

 (* A growing body of psychological research suggests that religious people are happier, healthier and recover better after traumas than nonreligious people. ...

* Find the sacred in ordinary life ...)

STEP 12 - Take care of your body

"The How of Happiness" Sonja Lyubomirsky - TalkRational



Sonja Lyubomirsky

link: http://lyubomirsky.socialpsychology.org/

Robbie Burns: To A Mouse

 

 

TO A MOUSE

ON TURNING HER UP IN HER NEST WITH THE PLOUGH, NOVEMBER, 1785

by: Robert Burns (1759-1796)

I

 

EE, sleekit, cowrin, tim'rous beastie,

Oh, what a panic's in thy breastie!

Thou need na start awa sae hasty,

Wi' bickering brattle!

I was be laith to rin an' chase thee,

Wi' murd'ring pattle!

 

II

 

I'm truly sorry man's dominion

Has broken Nature's social union,

An' justifies that ill opinion

Which makes thee startle

At me, thy poor, earth-born companion

An' fellow-mortal!

 

III

 

I doubt na, whyles, but thou may thieve;

What then? poor beastie, thou maun live!

A daimen-icker in a thrave

'S a sma' request;

I'll get a blessin wi' the lave,

And never miss't!

 

IV

 

Thy wee-bit housie, too, in ruin!

Its silly wa's the win's are strewin!

An' naething, now, to big a new ane,

O' foggage green!

An' bleak December's winds ensuin,

Baith snell an' keen!

 

V

 

Thou saw the fields laid bare an' waste,

An' weary winter comin fast,

An' cozie here, beneath the blast,

Thou thought to dwell,

Till crash! the cruel coulter past

Out thro' thy cell.

 

VI

 

That wee bit heap o' leaves an stibble,

Has cost thee mony a weary nibble!

Now thou's turn'd out, for a' thy trouble,

But house or hald,

To thole the winter's sleety dribble,

An' cranreuch cauld!

 

VII

 

But, Mousie, thou art no thy lane,

In proving foresight may be vain:

The best-laid schemes o' mice an' men

Gang aft a-gley,

An' lea'e us nought but grief an' pain,

For promis'd joy!

 

VIII

 

Still thou art blest, compared wi' me!

The present only toucheth thee:

But och! I backward cast my e'e,

On prospects drear!

An' forward, tho' I cannot see,

I guess an' fear!

"To a Mouse" is reprinted from English Poems. Ed. Edward Chauncey Baldwin & Harry G. Paul. New York: American Book Company, 1908.

 Source:
 http://www.poetry-archive.com/b/to_a_mouse.html

  

 Robert Burns by Alexander Nasmyth
(By permission of the National Galleries of Scotland) 

WE NEED AN AUTHENTIC MEASURE OF WEALTH

 “Earth provides enough to satisfy every man’s need, but not every man’s greed.”
- Mahatma Gandhi

The Mismeasure of Wealth | NationofChange
 

Anatha Duraiappah and Partha Dasgupta

Project Syndicate / Op-Ed

 "As a whole, humanity has achieved unparalleled prosperity; great strides are being made to reduce global poverty; and technological advances are revolutionizing our lives, stamping out diseases, and transforming communication.”

The Measure of Wealth

http://www.nationofchange.org/mismeasure-wealth-1333891185

Despite many successes in creating a more integrated and stable global economy, a new report by the United Nations Secretary-General’s High-Level Panel on Global Sustainability 


 Resilient People, Resilient Planet: A Future Worth Choosing

 recognizes the current global order’s failure, even inability, to implement the drastic changes needed for true “sustainability.”

The Panel’s report presents a vision for a “sustainable planet, just society, and growing economy,” as well as 56 policy recommendations for realizing that goal. It is arguably the most prominent international call for a radical redesign of the global economy ever issued.

But, for all of its rich content, Resilient People, Resilient Planet is short on concrete, practical solutions.

 Its most valuable short-term recommendation – the replacement of current development indicators (GDP or variants thereof) with more comprehensive, inclusive metrics for wealth – seems tacked on almost as an afterthought.

Without quick, decisive international action to prioritize sustainability over the status quo, the report risks suffering the fate of its 1987 predecessor, the pioneering Brundtland Report, which introduced the concept of sustainability, similarly called for a paradigm shift, and was then ignored.



Resilient People, Resilient Planet opens by paraphrasing Charles Dickens: the world today is 

“experiencing the best of times, and the worst of times.” 

As a whole, humanity has achieved unparalleled prosperity; great strides are being made to reduce global poverty; and technological advances are revolutionizing our lives, stamping out diseases, and transforming communication.

On the other hand, inequality remains stubbornly high, and is increasing in many countries.  

Short-term political and economic strategies are driving consumerism and debt, which, together with global population growth – set to reach nearly nine billion by 2040 – is subjecting the natural environment to growing stress. 

By 2030, notes the Panel, “the world will need at least 50% more food, 45% more energy, and 30% more water – all at a time when environmental limits are threatening supply.”

Despite significant advances in the past 25 years, humanity has failed to conserve resources, safeguard natural ecosystems, or otherwise ensure its own long-term viability.
Can a bureaucratic report – however powerful – create change?
Will the world now rally, unlike in 1987, to the Panel’s call to “transform the global economy”?
In fact, perhaps real action is born of crisis itself. As the Panel points out,it has never been clearer that

 we need a paradigm shift to achieve truly sustainable global development.

The 2010 Report by the Commission on the Measurement of Economic Performance and Social Progress echoed the current consensus among social scientists that 

we are mismeasuring our lives by using  per capita GDP as a yardstick for progress. 

We need new indicators that tell us if we are destroying the productive base that supports our well-being.

...working to find these indicators for its “Inclusive Wealth Report” (IWR), which proposes an approach to sustainability based on natural, manufactured, human, and social capital. ...to provide a comprehensive analysis of the different components of wealth by country, their links to economic development and human well-being, and policies that are based on social management of these assets.

The first IWR, which focuses on 20 countries worldwide, will be officially launched at the upcoming Rio+20 Conference in Rio de Janeiro.

Preliminary findings will be presented during the Planet under Pressure Conference in London in late March.

The IWR represents a crucial first step in transforming the global economic paradigm, by ensuring that we have the correct information with which to assess our economic development and well-being – and to reassess our needs and goals. 

While it is not intended as a universal indicator for sustainability, it does offer a framework for dialogue with multiple constituencies from the environmental, social, and economic fields.

The situation is critical. 

As Resilient People, Resilient Planet aptly puts it, “tinkering around the margins” will no longer suffice – a warning to those counting on renewable-energy technologies and a green economy to solve our problems. 

The Panel has revived the call for a far-reaching change in the global economic system.

 

ABOUT Partha Dasgupta

Partha Dasgupta is Professor of Economics at the University of Cambridge and Fellow of St. John's College, Cambridge. His most recent book is

"Human Well-Being and the Natural Environment".

Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi Flow Thinking Allowed - YouTube

Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi Flow Thinking Allowed - YouTube

Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi - 2011 UW-Madison Big Learning Event - YouTube

Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi - 2011 UW-Madison Big Learning Event - YouTube

Uploaded by uwacademictech on Jun 20, 2011

Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi's presentation at the 2011 UW-Madison Big Learning Event.

 

 

Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi - FLOW - YouTube

Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi - FLOW - YouTube



loaded by flowinstitute on Oct 20, 2010

Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi is one of the greatest living psychologists of our age. He earned his fame by defining and providing a detailed description of the FLOW state.
Category:

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Csikszentmihalyi
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Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi: Creativity, fulfillment and flow - YouTube

Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi: Creativity, fulfillment and flow - YouTube



 oaded by TEDtalksDirector on Oct 24, 2008

http://www.ted.com Mihaly Czikszentmihalyi asks, "What makes a life worth living?" Noting that money cannot make us happy, he looks to those who find pleasure and lasting satisfaction in activities that bring about a state of "flow."


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A Personal Safari to Find Our Inner Lioness

Published on Town Square Buzz (http://townsquarebuzz.com)

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A Personal Safari to Find Our Inner Lioness

By Debo888

Created Mar 2 2012 - 8:13am

By Deborah Viapiana-Ricci, TSB Contributor March beckons as February parts. March will begin with our "inner lioness" lying in wait…for just the right moment to carry out her “mindful” mission. Yes, the message for March will be Mindfulness.
Dr. Ellen Langer's book, “Mindfulness” speaks of how much being mindful can make an incredible difference in all of our lives.
And, truth be told, most of us lull in and out of our days rather mindlessly…sadly. Bringing this kind of awareness to the table won’t be as easy as a fleeting conversation about it. Nothing this meaningful can be truly sought after lightly.
It’s all or nothing, my friends…we are awake or we sleep; not much gray area there, I’m afraid. Every year, we New Englanders ponder the oncoming of the first taste of spring. There’s just something about winter leaving us with the hope of warmer days on their way.
Each season has something to offer but I think spring in this part of the country is a welcome event. We begin to chase away the dreary days with thoughts of our garden to come. The magic of it all somehow makes us glad to be alive. It’s a wonderful time, indeed. Okay…now for the tough part. We’ve had all winter to be holed up with our hopes and dreams.
S0, now what are we willing to do to bring them to fruition? Have you been journaling? What have you been thinking about? What kinds of things do you want to change? We have work to do if we intend to have a great crop of accomplishments come harvest time…and spring is the perfect time to start! Here’s what we’ll do. Let’s pick one thing we could use a little more clarity about.
We’ll take small steps to build on that idea so we bring ourselves closer to manifesting our desired outcome. We don’t need to have all the pieces in place at once, just so long as we keep our eye on the prize. You know…our very own prize…the one we’ve been searching for a good long while.
Then, plot a course by being accountable to yourself…Create a list of measurable results and peck them off one at a time. Maybe you have a gal pal who wants to embark on her own treasure hunt and is willing to help you with yours. You can meet once a week and report of your successes and celebrate together. I love crossing things off my list, don’t you? As we happily step into March, summon your inner lioness and keep an eye on the periphery of your life…mindfully…one day at a time, and in two weeks when we check back in with each other, let’s share our victories, big and small…they ALL matter.
Now then…get some water, sit down with pen and paper and make that list…keeping it small though. We don’t need to set ourselves up for failure. Remember thirty short days is all it takes to begin a new pattern of behavior…not that much in the vast scheme of things.
When the end of the month rolls around, our lioness will give way to our peaceful lamb that can begin calmly guiding us with a pace of grace.
Deborah Viapiana-Ricci is a freelance columnist living in McKinney, with her husband, Wil. She can be found brushing her mane and practicing her roar just in time for spring! Feel free to write Deborah@teresinas.com

• Clarity
• Deborah Viapiana-Ricci
• Mindfulness

---

Source URL (retrieved on Mar 9 2012 - 4:27pm): http://townsquarebuzz.com/ams/40165/personal-safari-find-our-inner-lioness/18225/ams/40165

EMPTY BOWL FUNDRAISERS

Douglas, Elbert fundraiser to benefit victims of domestic violence

  

Posted:Saturday, February 18, 2012 11:00 am

By Rhonda Moore | 0 comments

Steve Buck has been a potter since his high school years.
He has a studio in his Kiowa home, has taught countless students the art of throwing at various metro-area art centers and this year joins about 70 potters for the 12th Empty Bowl, the Women’s Crisis and Family Outreach Center’s premiere fundraising event.
The Empty Bowl is a two-fold event, featuring the work of metro-area potters, with hundreds of hand-thrown bowls available for visitors. In exchange for the price of their ticket, those who donate at the Empty Bowl get the chance to sample the soups, breads and desserts donated from local restaurants, bid on silent auction items and choose from among the bowls potters donate to make the event happen.
Some, like Buck, make it their goal to donate more than 100 bowls each year.
“It’s a lot of fun, it’s a good gathering of people to stand up for this cause,” Buck said. “I’ve known different ladies in my life who have had problems and such. I just think of them.”
The Empty Bowl benefits the crisis center, which serves victims of domestic violence in Douglas and Elbert counties. The crisis center provides myriad services to victims, both male and female, as well as families in need of emergency shelter, crisis intervention, counseling and advocacy.
In 2011, the center served more than 12,000 people through its community outreaches, said Ann Carter, director of development for the crisis center.  The number reflects a 13 percent increase in individuals served from 2010, Carter said.

The Empty Bowl is from 6 to 9 p.m., March 2 at the Douglas County Events Center. Tickets are $45 per person or $500 for a table for 10. For more information visit the crisis center website at www.twcfoc.org

Sixth Empty Bowls fundraiser to benefit Urban Ministries

DURHAM – The annual battle for the “Best Soup in Durham” will take place Thursday from 5:30 to 8 p.m. at the Durham Armory, 220 Foster St. Urban Ministries of Durham will hold its sixth annual Empty Bowls event, presented by RTI International, to raise funds to help UMD serve more than 200,000 meals a year to those in need.

New to this year’s event is an after-party hosted by Fullsteam Brewery (726 Rigsbee Ave.) and Motorco (723 Rigsbee Ave.) at 8 p.m. featuring live music and a food truck round-up.

Empty Bowls features chefs from some of Durham’s finest restaurants such as blu seafood and bar, Papa Mojo’s Roadhouse, Revolution, Watts Grocery, Whole Foods Café, Toast, Thrills from the Grill, L’Uva, Saladelia Café, Guglhupf and Mad Hatter’s Café and Bakeshop. The chefs will present their soups and battle for the title of “Best Soup in Durham.”

Tickets are $30 each and include a one-of-a-kind keepsake bowl created by local artists at Claymakers, Clayworks Guild, Carrboro Clay, Havenhill Studios and Durham Arts Council. There is also a $15 ticket available for attendees who just want to sample soup only. Children six and under can attend for free.

The “People’s Choice” award will be voted on by attendees and the “Judge’s Choice” award will be voted on by a panel of local celebrity judges including Locopops owner Summer Bicknell, Parker and Otis owner Jennings Brody, WTVD news anchor Tisha Powell, Fullsteam Brewery owner Sean Wilson and Independent Weekly editor Lisa Sorg. Frank Stasio, host of “The State of Things” on WUNC, will be the evening’s emcee.

Last year’s event sold out with close to 800 attendees bringing in almost $30,000 for UMD. Due to the popularity of the event, attendees are encouraged to order tickets prior to the event. To purchase tickets, stop by UMD at 410 Liberty St. or visit www.umdurham.org.

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March 10, 2010 | 24 months ago

Empty Bowls 2012

Reported by: Allie Ware Email: aware@wtva.com Last Update: 2/29 8:48 pm

Print Story | Share

(David Chimahusky, WTVA)

TUPELO, Miss. (WTVA) — People in Tupelo came together Wednesday for a unique fundraiser that benefits The Salvation Army, an organization that helps feed so many.  Hundreds arrived at the Tupelo Furniture Market for the 14th annual Empty Bowls event where people were offered several types of soups provided by local restaurants and organizations.   Money from the event allows The Salvation Army to help the less fortunate.

"We do a soup line everyday that feeds anywhere from 75 to 100 people," says Major Sue Dorman with the Salvation Army. "We also have our lodge where we serve three meals a day."

Everyone who attended the luncheon recieved a ceramic bowl as a reminder that someone's bowl is always empty.  In 2011 alone, the Tupelo Salvation Army served 76,441 meals.   This number includes meals that went to help the residents of Smithville.

Eternal Spring

Step by step
a new-born lamb
eternal spring 

Zen Master Soen Nakagawa

1955

In his "Preface" to Endless Vow: The Zen Path of Soen Nakagawa (presented with an Introduction by Eido Tai Shimano, Shambhala 1996) Kazuaki Tanahashi writes: "Zen Master Soen Nakagawa was a key figure in the transmission of Zen Buddhism from Japan to the Western world. As abbot of the historic Ryutaku Monastery, he trained monks and lay practitioners. Among them were Robert Aitken and Philip Kapleau, who later became two of the first Westerners to teach Zen in the United States . . . Soen Nakagawa was also an extraordinary poet. In Japan his haiku are renowned, even though no substantial collection of his work has been made available to the general public."

Action Creates Abundance

"Think like a man of action, and act like a man of thought."
- Henri Bergson

Meaning:
Think and analyze quickly and thoroughly, but don't act impulsively. Come up with a plan quickly, but take your time putting it into action.


“To exist is to change, to change is to mature, to mature is to go on creating oneself endlessly.”
- Henri Bergson (French Philosopher, 1927 Nobel Prize in Literature, 1859-1941)

Life does not proceed by the association and addition of elements, but by dissociation and division.”
- Henri Bergson


“Watch your thoughts, for they become words.
Watch your words, for they become actions.
Watch your actions, for they become habits.
Watch your habits, for they become character.
Watch your character, for it becomes your destiny.”


“Thinking is easy, acting is difficult, and to put one's thoughts into action is the most difficult thing in the world.”
- Johann Wolfgang von Goethe  (German Playwright, Poet, Novelist and Dramatist. 1749-1832)


“We do not have to visit a madhouse to find disordered minds; our planet is the mental institution of the universe.”  ~Goethe

“Only by joy and sorrow does a person know anything about themselves and their destiny. They learn what to do and what to avoid.”
- Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

“Behavior is a mirror in which every one displays his own image”
-  Johann Wolfgang von Goethe


“Wise men speak because they have something to say; Fools because they have to say something.”
- Plato

Coca-Cola

What Happens to Your Body When You Drink a Can of Coke?



By Wade Meredith from Blisstree.com


Have you ever wondered why Coke comes with a smile? Because it gets you high. They removed the cocaine almost 100 years ago. Why? Because it was redundant.
In the first 10 minutes: 10 teaspoons of sugar hit your system. (100% of your recommended daily intake.) You don’t immediately vomit from the overwhelming sweetness because phosphoric acid cuts the flavour, allowing you to keep it down.
20 minutes: Your blood sugar spikes, causing an insulin burst. Your liver responds to this by turning any sugar it can get its hands on into fat. (And there’s plenty of that at this particular moment.)
40 minutes: Caffeine absorption is complete. Your pupils dilate; your blood pressure rises; as a response, your liver dumps more sugar into your bloodstream. The adenosine receptors in your brain are now blocked, preventing drowsiness.

45 minutes: Your body ups your dopamine production, stimulating the pleasure centres of your brain. This is physically the same way heroin works, by the way.
> 60 minutes: The phosphoric acid binds calcium, magnesium, and zinc in your lower intestine, providing a further boost in metabolism. This is compounded by high doses of sugar and artificial sweeteners also increasing the urinary excretion of calcium.
> 60 minutes: The caffeine’s diuretic properties come into play. (It makes you have to pee.) It is now assured that you’ll evacuate the bonded calcium, magnesium, and zinc that was headed to your bones as well as sodium, electrolytes, and water.

> 60 minutes: As the rave inside you dies down, you’ll start to have a sugar crash. You may become irritable and/or sluggish. You’ve also now, literally, pissed away all the water that was in the Coke. But not before infusing it with valuable nutrients your body could have used for things like hydrating your system

Statues of Buddhist monks

 

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Statues of Buddhist monks are lined near a temple in Payathonzu, near the Burmese border with Thailand, February 20, 2012.
REUTERS/Sukree Sukplang 

 

Statues of Buddhist monks are lined near a temple in Payathonzu, near the Burmese border with Thailand 

 

Myanmar's new government signed a ceasefire deal with New Mon State Party and its military wing, the Mon National Liberation Army, on February 1 after decades of conflict and has outlined a three-stage plan for permanent peace with all 16 of the country's ethnic rebel groups, promising of village development projects like housing, roads, water electricity and resettlement of refugees and internally displaced people. 

 

It is in talks with investors to set up factories in former conflict areas once political deals are signed, with the promise of higher wages for the hundreds of thousands of people from Myanmar working across the border in Thailand.

 

 

 

 

 

Python Love

Photos of the Day 02/14 - The Christian Science Monitor - CSMonitor.com

Erroll Escobar kisses his partner Princess Madrolejo as they pose for photographers while carrying a 16-foot and 200 kg Albino Burmese Python during a Valentine's Day presentation inside a Malabon zoo, north of Manila.
A survey conducted by Social Weather Stations (SWS) from December 3 to December 7 last year shows that only three out of 10 Filipinos would change their religion in the name of love. The SWS noted that the unwillingness to change their religion for their loved ones is strong in all religions, a local media reported.