Spanking and violence

This is a topic I have witnessed discussed heatedly  for some time now. I will admit I have whipped my children in the past however, looking back I regret doing so and I will explain why. Many older adults often claim the problem with kids these days is the lack of corpral punishment. ( not being spanked enough) I would have to disagree. I grew up with some spankings, but they never taught me anything positive. I learned how to be sneakier so I wouldn't get caught, how to lie better, how to get someone else in trouble for something I did, and how to take a beating and walk it off like it never happened, and if you have the power you can simply beat someone until they do what you want them to do. Over all I learned nothing positive from spankings. I also grew up hearing adults brag about how they were beat and tell glory stories about the fist fights they got in as kids. When I see the violence kids do today I recall the stories of my youth and I can't help but see this as kids trying to one up their grandparents glory stories of violence not a result of violent movies and games. Add to this the fact that as a country, every time another group of people or country does something we do not agree with we immediately jump to a violent reaction. We can't have a country constantly trying to bully and use violence to solve conflicts and blame a lack of spankings on kids being violent it's just not right. Stop glorifying beatings, stop glorifying war, and start teaching children compassion, how to see things from other people's perspective, how to deal with bad emotions in a healthy way, and how to compromise efectively (unlike our government)

Meditation

While it is possible to focus solely on the object or outcome of your affection, the most effective way to meditate is by staying present instead of mentally pretending you’re influencing the future. 

Meditation is the act of focusing on your present situation and evaluate what can be done, what can't be done, and what outcomes to expect.When you meditate do not try to stop or alter your thoughts. Your mind wants to be at rest and is constantly trying to get you to deal with bothersome things. You should not be ashamed or afraid of these thoughts (only you can hear them after all!) let your mind wander and simply observe these thoughts. Over time you can focus on certain thoughts or decisions you need to make in life. Life is about choices and if I may borrow a science quote, "every action has an equal and opposite reaction." Life is cause and effect. Your every decision affects someone in some way, many times we do not even realize how every minute action can have severe life altering implications for someone else. I have witnessed people flip from being the happiest person on earth to cold blooded psycho in a matter of seconds. How many people have died in car accidents over split second mistakes? seconds matter and even a single word or simple act of hate can cause someone to do something horrible. I believe it is important to meditate on what impression we have made on every single individual we have come across. Admittedly this is not a favorite thing to meditate on. However, I believe it is vital. We get too caught up in ourselves and our own craziness that we don't see one another. It was not always like this. People once worked together as a community and there was no competing. We are told there is not enough resources to go around, but that is BS. We are told so much crap that many people feel it is impossible to live happy. They become addicted to anything they can just to numb the pain of a miserable existence. This lifestyle is WRONG! We must learn to live a more social lifestyle. We accomplish so much more when we work together rather compete against one another. Tribes were once the way we raised families. The downside to this was pride and greed. Certain families felt that they were superior to other families and began to act accordingly. Today, the family pride is still there strong, however some have realized that we are all one big family. It does not matter where you are from, pride does nothing but cause harm. Let us move away from this and move toward compassion. Nobody is born better than anybody. We must stop acting superior to anyone and start treating one another as equals and show compassion on one another. Forgive easy, help more, and show respect to those that may not deserve it, because a compassionate individual understands that not everyone has the ability to handle the weight of this messed up world. The Buddhist define anger as an outward expression of your extreme sense of disappointment in a situation not going the way you wanted it to go. So, when you find yourself face to face with an angry individual try to put yourself in their shoes. What outcome were they expecting? Was it reasonable? Why did this outcome not happen? What can be done to come close to or achieve their desired outcome? Ask questions and show a true interest in what they are saying. Only when we communicate with one another can we find peace. Violence just makes people mad and creates more violence. Let's end this cycle and start showing some compassion. It all starts and ends in the mind. Meditation will help you strengthen your mental capabilities and be able to navigate this fast paced world so much more efficiently. You will also slowly find more peace then you thought imaginable, even if things completely fall apart....

How do you define attraction?

Who do you find attractive. What qualities make them attractive to you? Why is it that this person is attractive to you? Love, lust, sex, boundaries these are things that we struggle with today. How we define male and female and what relationships are appropriate has been an issue since mankind's origins. It is clear that men and women are different, but why are we that way and why do men try so hard to be the dominant of the two? Different doesn't mean one is superior, it just means that we have different expertise to bring to the table and together we can accomplish more then we ever could on our own. Male and Female are but two parts of what makes up humanity. At our core we are exactly the same. Men have certain qualities that make them naturally better at certain things and women are naturally better at things too. There is so much more to explaining this then genetalia. For starters, why is the jobs men typically do more important? How we define worth in our society really confuses me. I have been at the very bottom of a company and at the top of a company. Truth be told I find more worth in the individuals that do the lowest paid jobs then the ones that get paid the most. There are two ways to look at this. Science or Religion. I find many religions confusing. Parts of their scriptures teach equality, but a lot of what is preached and done is far from equality. Marriage is diacussed but its not typically about love its about male ownership of the female. Homosexuality is eather barely discussed or only male homosexuality is discussed which brings up a double standard for lesbians. Science has come a long way in helping us understand ourselves, but I have not seen anything that discusses the how or why we are atracted to certain individuals. Without fully understanding the why how can we tell people they are 'loving wrong.'

They Fear You Because You Are Strong

by Conscious Reminder 2016

Maybe they’re afraid of you because you are too honest at time when people are attracted by sweet-talkers and manipulators who make lies sound better than the truth. Maybe your truth is too bitter for those who don’t want to feel and taste your genuine self- the people who only want the cherry on the top of the cake.
      They might feel threatened by you because you  know exactly what you want in life, when the rest of them feel lost in their search. They might be so caught up in their insecurities, that they reject everybody who follows their own path. Even worse, they might be simply used to being in the company of  people who are insecure and have no idea who they actually are.
    Maybe they’re just afraid of you because you don’t want to take part in their games where everybody is so consumed by winning, and those who refuse to participate are considered losers. In this case, you’re probably surrounded by people who became experts in playing this game, that they don’t want to go back and try again because that would mean that they’re at the start line all over again.
      They might be afraid because you say things that they don’t want to hear; and it’s totally normal since they got used to the lies that they have been served for so long. These people believe in the image they created of themselves, not in who they really are. Maybe your words sound so unfamiliar to them that they simply don’t understand them or don’t believe in them.
       Maybe you scare them because you pay attention. You don’t forget what they said when they were angry or vulnerable; you pay attention to their eyes and body language and the tone of their voice and gestures. Maybe they’re not used to being seen or heard and your attention makes them feel uncomfortable, because it means that they have to take the mask off.
      Maybe they’re scared of you because you are aware of their fears, and yet you are not being overly cautious. Maybe you’re carefree with your heart and feelings, and they don’t know how to cope with them; it confuses them. They actually can’t deal with anything that affects their routine and reality. Maybe your heart rate is a bit faster and they can’t keep up.
      Maybe they’re afraid of you because you don’t need them; because they know you can survive without them; because they know you won’t wait for them; because they know you stand up for yourself; because they know you won’t be just another number in their phone book.
       Maybe they’re afraid of you because you appreciate yourself; because you’re strong enough to let go and leave and that you are smart enough to know your value. Maybe they got so used to the pedestal that they’ve been put on that have no idea how to function nowhere else.
     Regardless of the reasons, keep scaring them. Keep scaring them with your sincerity, with your strength, your goodness, love, understanding, with your words, with your eyes with your presence, and your ability to read them. Keep reading until you find somebody as brave as yourself. The one who won’t be afraid of you; someone as scary as you.

Yin Yang Symbol

This symbol is known to most people. However, I believe its true meaning is lost on most individuals. This symbol represents the equal amount of light and dark that is inside every individual at all times. It also represents every situation you will ever find yourself in. Every situation will either be good or bad. However, as you can see there is a ball of good and bad on both sides. Why? The balls represent the small amount of good or bad that accompanies both situations. Meaning if you look hard enough you will find something bad in every good thing that happens. It also means that if you look hard enough you will find something good in every bad thing that happens. What often happens in life is that individuals have good things happen to them and they will focus so much energy on that little black ball that it begins to grow until you end up on the other side and you have all bad and a small ball of good. The good news is the same thing can be done when bad things happen. If you choose to focus on the small good that is ALWAYS present in every bad situation then it will grow until you find yourself on the other side. Life is about choices and perspective and if we choose to focus on negativity then that will be our life, but if we choose focus on the good even when its a small ball that is barely visible. The light will always find a way to get brighter!

May compassion find your heart!

Christopher Laurent

Prayer

“And when you pray, don’t babble on and on like the pagans, who think God will hear them better if they talk a lot. Don’t be like them, because your Father knows what you need before you ask him. You, therefore, pray like this: ‘Our Father in heaven! May your Name be kept holy. May your Kingdom come, your will be done on earth as in heaven. Give us the food we need today. Forgive us what we have done wrong, as we too have forgiven those who have wronged us. And do not lead us into hard testing, but keep us safe from the Evil One. For kingship, power and glory are yours forever. Amen .’ For if you forgive others their offenses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you; but if you do not forgive others their offenses, your heavenly Father will not forgive yours. Mattityahu (Mat) 6:7‭-‬15 CJB https://bible.com/bible/1275/mat.6.7-15.CJB

I have always been bothered by prayer for some reason, and when I compared this version to the kJV it appears different to me. This version seems to really bring out our humility and emphasize how we are to be forgiving, humble and non-judgmental. This seems to be an issue with Christian's today. I do find it interesting that these verses say don't bable and God already knows, yet public prayer and babling is pushed in churches all over the world. I've always felt I conversate with God all the time. People tell me I shouldn't talk to myself it's not healthy, but how can I be talking to myself if God is always with us? Why would he not be listening to me?

Stages of Faith

I found this article awhile back and thought it was interesting and worth sharing. Faith is an important phenomenon throughout history and how we approach it has shapped our world. Personally I find myself on stage 6, but I see many people around me content at stage 5 and some even get angry with me about my acceptance of other Faith's.

           Stages of faith
         By James W. Fowler

1. Intuitive-Projective: a stage of confusion and of high impressionability through stories and rituals. (Pre-school period)

2. Mythic-Literal: a stage where provided information is accepted in order to conform with social norms. (School-going period)

3. Synthetic-Conventional: In this stage the faith acquired is concreted in the belief system with the forgoing of personification and replacement with authority in individuals or groups that represent one's beliefs. (Early-late adolescence)

4. Individuative-Reflective: In this stage the individual critically analyzes adopted and accepted faith with existing systems of faith. Disillusion or strengthening of faith happens in this stage. Based on needs, experiences and paradoxes. (Early adulthood)

5. Conjunctive faith: In this stage people realize the limits of logic and, facing the paradoxes or transcendence of life, accept the "mystery of life" and often return to the sacred stories and symbols of the pre-acquired or re-adopted faith system. This stage is called negotiated settling in life. (Mid-life)

6. Universalizing faith: This is the "enlightenment" stage where the individual comes out of all the existing systems of faith and lives life with universal principles of compassion and love and in service to others for upliftment, without worries and doubt. (Middle - late adulthood (45-65yrs and plus)

     There is no hard-and-fast rule that requires individuals pursuing faith to go through all six stages. There is a high probability for individuals to be content and fixed in a particular stage for a lifetime; stages from 2-5 are such stages. Stage 6 is the summit of faith development. This state is often considered as "not fully" attainable.