Who Is Jesus?

Yesterday was Christmas – the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ.  I joined my wife and one of my daughters to go to St. David’s Catholic Church for the Christmas Mass.  The Reverend Fenly Saint-Jean delivered a very insightful sermon that I found presented a powerful perspective on the nature of Jesus.  He explained that the reason God had come to Earth as a man, born in a manger of all places, was to truly know the plight of mankind through personal experience.   

Humankind would never again be able to complain to God that he didn’t understand.  "How could God know what it was like to be hungry or in physical pain?"  "How could God know the pain of being turned on and betrayed by close friends?"  God knew because through the experience of his son, Jesus, he directly experienced it all.  We can thank Jesus for divine compassion and forgiveness because he lived our lives and experienced our pain and joy.  He was born of the common people because he did not want to live the Rock Star life, he wanted to know our trials and struggles.  His mission was to know us and offer some instruction as to how we could make the best of things regardless of the reality that appeared to be our life.  That is the most compelling explanation of the life of Jesus in religious terms that I have ever heard.  The logic is crisp and clear with no sense of an unknowable mystery that often makes up religious dogma.

I find no conflict with this reasoning but I would add more to define who Jesus is.  Jesus is God (infinite all knowing non-physical Source energy) experiencing a life experience adventure in a human body but so are each of us.   The huge difference and the reason Jesus became so closely identified with God – God’s only begotten Son – was because in terms of consciousness, so little separated them.  The point of consciousness inhabiting the human form of Jesus was evolved to a point that there were only brief moments of separation from the awareness of infinite creative power and awareness.  Let us not forget that Jesus was very clear about the fact that we could do everything he did and more if we had the tiniest  bit of faith in that reality.  This is the heart of the matter – we each have access to the same power and level of knowing but we have yet to close the gap of separation to anywhere near the level of Jesus for more than brief instants of awareness.  We are all on that path though and that was the message of Jesus to us – he came into our realm to let us in on the secret.  The message of Jesus is that we are all on a path to realize his life reality.   

And so, we send Jesus very joyful and grateful thanks for deciding to come live among us and shine a bright light of hope and possibility that has influenced many generations already and will continue to be the catalyst for positively transforming the Reality we experience in this physical world.   

Thank You and Happy Birthday Jesus.

Listen In Silence and Find Yourself

Spirit whispers to us through the gap between our thoughts and the slightest sensation in our body. This is why spending time in the silence is so important. When we think of healing as the return of the memory of wholeness as the body, mind, spirit and environment, we begin to understand why we must learn to quiet our minds.

We can do this through formal meditation or through breathing awareness or just by sitting with our eyes closed, being still, and listening for fifteen or twenty minutes.

The activity of the mind may be difficult to quiet in the beginning, but eventually quiet will come. And into that blessed quietness, insight and knowledge will flow to us.

This is the truth about me: "Divine life does flow through me at all times". In the silence I become attuned to the essence of all that is.

Deepak Chopra and Ras John

Finding Rasjohnmon - Pt 1.

There was a Bob Marley tune and some laughter on the light breeze as I pulled into the parking lot.  I parked the dinged up rental car under a tree in the dirt parking lot, glad to be off the main road.  The car had no air conditioning other than the 360 air of four rolled down windows but the temperature was pleasant.  I took a last hit from the spliff that I had found in rental car's ash tray and turned the key to shut off the engine.  Discovery of the spliff had been a nice surprise upon leaving the Thrifty Car Rental office in MoBay - even though it was Jamaica, I doubted most rental cars came so equipped.  

The spliff was dropped back into the ash tray.  I turned to get out of the car and nearly interrupted the night with a scream.  A huge bird was zooming straight at me.  I thought it was going to smack right into my head but at the last moment it pulled up and landed on the car door knocking me back with a shock and a blast of wind from its jagged wings.  I had a vision of eyes being peeked out in an Alfred Hitchcock film but quickly cancelled that thought - definitely not wanting that to be the next scene.   

The bird looked straight into my eyes with what was hopefully not a hungry look and then delivered another shock by screeching, “Who are you?” with what sounded like a pirate accent.  It was a big greenish grey parrot of some type with an menacing looking beak.  I hoped it was a vegetarian and preferred fruit and seeds to flesh.  The bird screeched again, “Who are You?”  

“JB” I replied trying to sound friendly and not frightened – I thought it wise not to show fear or weakness – confidence always helps keep situations under control.  Hopefully he was a regular here and didn’t generally harm tourists.  

“Who are you?” demanded the bird again in the same nasty tone. 

“JB” I said more forcefully. 

“Who are you?” screeched the bird for a fourth time.  

Relaxing a bit I replied this time, “Sometimes I don’t know who I am.  Who do you think I am?”   Finally I just said firmly, "go away!" and the bird flew away leaving me wondering how potent that ashtray spliff was and a bit confused at the unusual events.  Was this a bad sign? A good sign or no sign at all?  Who are you was certainly a relevant question considering my current state of mind.  

I think I had come here on a search for enlightenment.  It was all very strange.  In my head I sang "what a long strange trip it's been" - the Grateful Dead song but to a Reggae beat.  I’d been playing one of the “Fire on the Mountain” CD's of Reggafied Dead tunes while I navigated the dark roads alternating from coast road to stretches of overgrown pavement deep in the inland’s lush tropical foliage.  All of these elements combined to create a surreal and uncertain sense of where I was and where I was going.  I felt a little like a puppet moving to an unseen hand.  I deliberately shook that feeling off – I was coming to realize that for better or worse I was the one behind the steering wheel.  Somehow I just needed to learn how to be a better driver and navigator.   

There are said to be many roads to enlightenment and I had given up looking for a map.  I was just going on instinct and possibly clouded perceptions.  A little herb often helped or maybe it hurt.  The important insight it had provided was that reality could totally shift in moments depending on state of mind.  So, if reality was not fixed and was only a matter of perception, then, all kinds of life experiences were available it would seem.  The trouble was that it often felt like you were being tossed around on a sea of uncertainty with no control over what was going on. 

It still seemed better than being one of the masses that were cock sure that their sense of what reality was at a given moment was all there was for anyone and everyone.  Anyone that didn’t see it their way was simply wrong.  That was definitely not the road to enlightenment.  In fact, I was totally certain that anyone who thought they had all the answers was mentally and spiritually deficient.  

I had made a lot of twists and turns on his road and wasn't at all sure of where I was going but I had a lot of questions seeking answers. Jah only knew why I thought I might find some answers way off the mainstream at Club Tropical.  Any of my friends would have felt it was pretty far fetched and that I was just going to chill out and party in the tropics.  Well, if that was all it turned out to be, that would be fine too.  It would just be one more little side trip.  I sat back to collect my thoughts and try to get centered.  I could hear lightly crashing waves in the distance and the rustle of the breeze through the dense tropical foliage.  It was soothing after the bird incident and the long drive from the hotel.   

The car door creaked as I finally opened it sending some other unseen birds and other night creatures scattering in alarm.  In the distance, I heard the opening bars of a song called “Celebrate Life”.  The timing was perfect.  It was a favorite of mine for the music and the message.  I’d been lucky enough to see the song’s creator, Lucky Dube, live several times.  His performances were always a joy to behold.  Lucky was from South Africa and his blend of African riddums with Reggae was infectious.  His message, like Bob Marley’s, was one of hope and the determination to rise above despair and the hardships of life.  Both of them came out of often cruel societies.  The apartheid in South Africa made things even worse for Lucky than Bob growing up in Trench Town, Jamaica.  In Trench Town there was poverty and violence but not the intense racial hatred and separation of South Africa.    

Why are we here?

Why are we here?  For an adventure.  It’s like why you – in this 4D reality - play a video game or get involved in any new adventure… it’s for the fun and excitement (and to play a part in the positive evolution of creation).  This is a challenge.  We are each powerful creators and we are actively building on all the creation that has preceded us, attempting to move it forward… attempting to add new energy and excitement, joy and fun to the collective adventure.  You don’t have to of course; it’s generally just more fun that way.  Not everyone is here to do good – some of us are here to challenge and test the rest of us – the bad guys and bully’s are important to us if we are to build our strength and skill as guardians and builders and caretakers of the Universe. 

                         

So, nice to meet you – we share a great adventure, a heroic quest of vanquishing demons and becoming masters of the magic of deliberate creation.  We are at the leading edge of all creation, right here, right now.  Moment to moment we are creating new realities whether we choose to accept the responsibility or not.  This story is about learning and discovery and hopefully has a happy ending.  It’s our own choice of course.  Now, one important note:  the voice that is constantly talking in your mind is not you – the true YOU is the observer.  That voice in your head is just a bio-computer output that is constantly scanning, labeling, storing impressions, interpretations and opinions it is exposed to.  IT believes it knows all about reality but its limitation is that it believes “reality” happens to it.  IT generally accepts no responsibility for what’s going on and even if it does “intellectually”, it still can have great difficulty getting around appearances.  If a doctor tells you that you have six months to live, that bio-computer “you” that you have created to control your avatar in the story you are creating has a hard time saying and BELIEVING that appearances do not have any real substance – you can reject any outcome and do something else if you can accept it and expect it to become reality. 

It is a difficult situation.  You have created this persona and put it at the controls.  You do need it to operate in this virtual reality world we inhabit.  The problem is that all of us start to believe everything it says and since the basic program we have to work with is designed to protect us from threats – it would rather hide in a cave to be safe than to boldly go where no one has gone before – we are more likely to expect the worst rather than the best and that then becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy.   

And so, here we are with this particular life story – not that unlike yours although the events were things I dreamed up – we may have only slightly affected each other or some of us may have been prominent characters interacting in this play. 

Unfolding the Story

This is the story of a Life Adventure that is unfolding as I write these words – you are in the midst of creating your own story as you read this and new chapters are being written each day by both of us.  Whether you recognize it or not, you are writing a unique story right now and this story and yours are intertwined in an elaborate tapestry of creativity.  It is hard to always be clear on why we are here and it is very easy to get off course.  There are no accidents... nothing actually happens by chance.  You are doing it all... we are connected in the real reality and we are out here on the cutting edge of creation trying to become really good players at this game we have chosen to play. 

Following along if you like and we will create a new adventure together... please use the comment area to add your parts to the story...

 

What's to be thankful for?

 

We need to get on with the story.  It’s a couple of days after Thanksgiving and for the last couple of weeks I have been touting the value of counting your blessings to all who chose to listen.  We have the ZestFest Spicy Food bog and eblast where we expressed thanks to all of the companies and people that come together in that celebration of big flavors.  Then we have my Transforming Reality blog where you are probably reading this and the several facebook pages I have for different alter egos.  All in all, my “give thanks” messages had “interaction” with a few thousand people.  The question is did it make anyone’s life better?   

That is the point after all.  I really feel like I have been on a mission or a long time to find ways to be a fountain of happiness and wellbeing in the World.  As I have said in other places, my biggest satisfaction with my Rastafarian alter ego, Rasjohn (now more often known as Rasjohnmon), owner of the very popular website, REGGAE.com, was having a platform to speak to a very large and diverse cultural and ethnic audience.  Few knew whether I was black of white although the hints implied that I was probably a Jamaican Rastamon living somewhere in the Blue Mountains of JA with a good internet connection - smokin herb all day while listening to the best new and old Roots Reggae one drop tunes and pontificating online about the Oneness of all humanity.  It was the message that made Bob Marley a cultural icon – his music covered every emotion from anger to love but woven throughout was an unwavering message of hope and self determination.  “Don’t let the system bring you down”.  With my words and song selections reaching people in the farthest reaches of the planet, I echoed that message. 

When I sold the site, it was time, past the time of its prime as an influencer.  I was still getting millions of hits a week but that was from often more casual music fans rather than people who felt part of a “culture” – a belief structure about how the world could be.  As recounted in my book “Magic at the Edge of Creation”, I went through a rough period from the time I left being very much a part of the music and media scene in New York City and headed to what I thought would be laidback tropical shores in Florida.  I have much to be thankful for as always in those years of my adventure.  Reggae.com gave me direct access to the thriving Reggae Music community in South Florida where there are more transplanted Jamaicans than most anywhere else in the World.  I got much satisfaction out of the acceptance I was given by often very tightly knit groups of Rasta’s and others heavily involved in their culture, always with the specter of slavery and colonialism at the back of their minds.  I believe it is because even though I must admit to occasional lapses in my determined feelings of Unity or better said Inity, my energy was filled with the love of the music and message and thus my whiteness became disassociated with the perceived transgressions of my race.  I can’t deny that the sense of them and me is unusual when one is one of a particular color skin amidst a few thousand of a different color.  For me it was a validation though and that gave me great satisfaction – there I was, an anomaly but more a curiosity than something distasteful or unwanted.  A world in which “the color of a man’s skin is of no more importance than the color to their eyes” is possible. 

The “news” is filled with stories telling of a much more unpleasant and unjust world.  Do we want to believe in that reality or do we choose to believe in the “ideal”?  Unfortunately many people do not believe there is a choice.  They accept the media vision of reality as canon.  Many believe that the way to fix things is to protest and make sure no one is allowed to forget the wrongs of the past.  I happen to believe in the opposite – I see remembering and memorializing as affirmations of those wrongs.  One gentleman I had several interactions with on facebook felt to turn a blind eye on a history of racism would prevent its eradication.  It is exactly the opposite.  As long as we keep stirring up the resentments and angers of the past, we will have trouble moving on.  We MUST forgive and forget and allow a new vision to take root. 

And so, back to thanksgiving.  The reason it is so important is that it helps keep our attention and focus on the “wanted” instead of the “unwanted”.  We need to be thankful that with each day that passes, the world can be a little better place if we are determined to add our positive energy to the mix.  I know that is the reason I was inspired to write my book – to help people realize they have choice, free will.  You have the chance and the ability to shape the destiny of the planet.  Everyone has it but most are using their energy to maintain the status quo by believing in the world described by the news media.  There will be less gun violence if there is less talk of guns and killing. It’s not putting your head in the sand, it is decreasing the validation of that world reality.   

An unarmed kid gets gunned down by a cop and it becomes just another TV drama.  Anger is fueled.  Resentment increases.  The hopelessness of a failed society prevails.  It becomes a self-fulfilling philosophy generating similar incidents to validate the anger as though it takes the anger to fix the problem.  It is the anger and the fear it generates that is the problem.  Do not think by any means that we are saying the anger is unjustified – that’s not the case.  The point is staying with the anger will only fan the flames of the problem.  We are not slipping into chaos or a nightmare world as long as that is not the world we envision.  For every tragedy and setback be thankful for the millions of people that are living their lives with love and hope.  That’s what you don’t want to forget.  Put your energy there.  Be one of the ones not living in fear or anger who believes each day things are getting just a little better.  Be the person who will never give up their hope or stop looking for more to be thankful for because you realize that you are totally justified in this viewpoint because you are help positively shape the World… you are a wielder of the Magic at the edge of Creation!

www.TransformingReality.com

Thanksgiving Puts You On The Road to Success

My favorite holiday is Thanksgiving!   We should celebrate it everyday.  It's a holiday for everyone - one that excludes no one and has universal power to benefit everyone that joins in on the celebration.  Energizing your appreciation for all that is going well in the adventure you are having is the best way to bring more of everything you want to your experience.  Assessing all of the things you have to be grateful for- is the most powerful way to build your confidence and optimism and success.

Most of you have probably realized by now that if you focus most of your time on things that are not going as you want them to in your life, it only makes you feel worse - it is very depressing. If you allow yourself to get depressed, that will sap all of your energy - particularly your creative energy. Depression breeds deeper depression - it is a self fulfilling prophecy. Pretty soon things can descend to the point that you start thinking you are a victim and that you have no control over the lousy hand of cards life has dealt you. That of course just brings you more of the same and things will continue to get worse or seem worse even if they are not.

So, how do you get out of this spiral of not having a good time? You need a change of Mind! That's where THANKSGIVING comes in. It's about changing your attitude and breaking a non-productive cycle. If you take the time to focus on things you are thankful for it will chip away at any feeling of depression or hopelessness. The more you focus on the things you are thankful for the better you will feel.

Everyone can find a smile creeping to their face as they take a moment to be thankful for a sunny day, a good friend, a good meal - take some time to find a bunch of things you can be thankful for.  It is a great and exceedingly productive process to start each of your days counting your blessings - feeling good about all the things you should be celebrating. As you are working on projects or handling your daily responsibilities, take the time to be thankful for each success along the way.

Here's the thing (CLiCK HERE) - the more you can stay focused on "feeling good" instead of "feeling bad" the more energy you will have to keep things going the way you want them to go. There is a great song by Bob Marley called "Three Little Birds" - it has a great message: "Rise up this mornin', Smiled with the risin' sun, Three little birds pitch by my doorstep Singin' sweet songs of melodies pure and true, Singin': "Don't worry 'bout a thing, 'Cause every little thing gonna be all right!" Listen to the song. Just singing it to yourself can help you get that "thanksgiving" feeling going.

If you want to get the most out of life and "Be Happy" (another very useful song by Bobby McFerrin) catch yourself every time you start feeling sorry for yourself and find some things you are thankful for to think about. Taking time to pay attention to every little success or good thing in your day will propel you to days filled with positive accomplishments and joy.

Happy Thanksgiving!  Make thanksgiving a daily event and you will be guaranteed a better life in every way!  I thank you for every PositiVibe you radiate out to the world - each one makes the world a better place for everyone!  
Together we can transform the world into a better and better place if we are willing to use our power.  We can wield Magic at the Edge of Creation!
 

Star or Spectator... it's your choice.

 

One of the most famous lines written by playwright William Shakespeare is “All the world is a stage and all of the men and women are merely players”.  Think about it.  The idea that we are all actors and actresses playing roles in a grand adventure on a world stage is an analogy that most people would not think absurd.  Each day you and I are waking up and going forth to play our parts in an exceedingly complex interactive drama or possibly a divine comedy.   Some people love drama and that is certainly easy to create but I think most of us, if asked, would say that we preferred to have fun.  But what is it all about?  What is the meaning of life?  The circumstances and events that give each person meaning may be very different but those individual “meanings” or achievements are all discovered in the same way – by pursuing your Joy – having fun. 

There are a lot of us playing this massive interactive adventure game with new players starting the game every day and others exiting the playing field all of the time.  Some people claim to think that there is really no order at all and that evolution and any concept of divine Creation is nonsense.    They think that instead, it is all just happening by chance and is ultimately totally random and ultimately meaningless.  Well, that is just fine for them and if that’s what they want for the premise of their story, they can still do fine.  Regardless, can we agree that having a good time and enjoying the ride is better than being miserable and just hoping it will all end soon?  I am quite confident that everyone reading this would like to be having an ever more enjoyable life on a day to day basis.

 

This brings us to a fork in the road.  As the popular philosopher, Yogi Berra said, “when you come to a fork in the road, take it.”  When it comes to this life adventure, any choice is better than no choice at all.  If you pay attention to your instincts – how do you “feel” about each of the options?  Going with “your gut” or letting your heart be your guide will never take you down the wrong road.  We’ll get into a bit more about how all of that works in a bit but here is your first choice.  Do you want to Create your Reality or spend your life just reacting to what goes on around you? 

If you have realized the Reality of the matter, then next you need to hopefully decide that you are going to be a star and not just a spectator. (either is OK... it's a no-fault universe but if you are reading this, you have it in you to be a PLAYER - and a really GOOD one!) www.TransformingReality.com

Thank You!

Thank YOU for the Joy and Love you are always contributing to our World. That contribution is vital to the positive evolution of life on this planet. That sounds like a BIG deal and it is! My hope is that we can get more people to realize they are playing an active role in creating the future quality of life for all of us. It is urgent that we reach people with a message that they are responsible - they can control the design of their life experience by how they think and act. If we want the world to change we must create a compelling vision for that world. Our combined creative positive visualization will gradually cause a shift in the status quo. Each person that begins to share in that vision will add energy to the ongoing positive transforming of reality. The best part of this concept is that it all begins with you. The best way you can serve all of Creation is by filling your own life with fun, love and prosperity. It is often said that the best way to teach is by example. Your example will not only provide a model for others but the energy you send out to the Universe will actively attract more PositiVibes to the world around us. We each contain a spark of divine consciousness linking us to each other and all of Creation. You are an immortal Spirit inhabiting a physical form to have an adventure and contribute to the evolution of consciousness and physical manifestation. You can do whatever you want but you came with great expectations. The book, Magic at the Edge of Creation - Transforming Reality is a guidebook of sorts about your story and mine that will hopefully be very helpful in providing a framework allowing you to maximize your potential. The book is available at http://goo.gl/vtyCqn. I am hopeful that you will get a copy of the book and share the ideas with others. Please post a review with your thoughts as well. Have a wonderful Holiday Season and a Spectacular year ahead. Love and Thanks to You always for your efforts in Positively Transforming the World!

The Promise

The promise of this book, “Magic at the Edge of Creation – Transforming Reality”, is that by adopting the perspective that you are an adventurer in a Creation game, you can learn to write your own script – design the adventure that you want to live. 

 

This does not mean that you will have no struggles or obstacles to deal with – they are crucial for your growth and creative skill development.  The value in adopting this view of reality is that you will know you have the ability to positively affect not only your own life but all of Creation.  You will also know that you don’t have to do anything special if you don’t want to but you will probably discover things that you hoped to accomplish before your spark of consciousness jumped into this physical world.  You are the bridge between infinite non-physical essence and the reality of physical manifestation.  Each of us is a speck of stardust giving consciousness to our avatar, your name here, that is seeing and feeling and most importantly shaping this 3-D physical world.  The “Magic at the Edge of Creation” stems from your choice to deliberately use your creative power. 

In this book you will learn that there are really three of “you”.  First is your higher self that is infinite and one with God or Source or The Force – the Universal energy field that is the fabric of all Creation.  Then there is the lower “ego-self” you that is the “you” most of us primarily identify with.  Ego you has examined and cataloged absolutely everything you have ever seen, experienced or been told and formed its world view of reality based on all of this information - just as you would expect from the powerful bio-computer that it is.  But like any computer, the information that comes out is only as good as what goes in.  Your ego self also does not want to accept that there is any other “you”.  Ego you is the basic operating system you came with and can only store and analyze data – it cannot create anything new and in fact distrusts anything it does not “know” to be true from experience.  Finally, there is the point of consciousness “you” that is like a single computer linked to a cloud network of infinite dimension (the network connection is always there but we often erect a near impenetrable firewall).  That is the part of you that has access to potentially unlimited creative power - the force that can shape and manipulate the material world for better or worse.   

Creating new Realities is not easy because your ego-self will defend the existing world view with a determination and persistence that can be very difficult to get past.  The “default” setting for your avatar’s bio-computer is that the ego’s view IS reality.  “The Magic at the Edge of Creation” is intended to help each of us remember our true identity as infinite and powerful creative beings.   This guidebook provides the ego self with a new perspective on what reality is that respects its role but opens it up to the possibility that new realities are possible and that it can play a part in shaping them.  While you, (your name here), can never be separated from your infinite Soul-self, most of us only have fleeting moments of direct contact – many sadly may feel lost and alone with no conscious contact at all with their “real” self.  The wonder-filled message of “Magic at the Edge of Creation” is that this is an ability that can be learned and that with belief, practice and determination there is no limit to your Creative power.

The Premise...

Is it an interesting science fiction story or a very useful perspective on who we each really are?

PREMISE

The “you” who you think you are can appropriately be called an “avatar”.  What’s an avatar?  In the digital technology of the game world an avatar is a graphical image that represents a person.  In Hindu Mythology an avatar is the incarnation of a God in physical form.  Both of those concepts fit our analogy.  By the time the avatar becomes an adult, most of us are convinced we are totally on our own.   We may have no recollection of what we got into the game to accomplish (or even that it was a game).  The closest we may come to the truth of the matter might be a belief in “God” or some supreme being that is controlling the world.  We have to just hope we can figure out how to do things as this “God” wants us to or we are certain to be punished either during or after a short and probably meaningless lifetime finishes.

 

It’s actually an adventure game you are a part of whether you realize it or not.  When the “you” that is in this game is born, a memory of the greater part of You – we’ll call it Soul You - and the many games you have already played slowly fades as you focus on learning how to function in the game you have landed in.  The key purpose of the game is to provide Soul-You with experience and adventure through the evolution of physical Creation.  The game is where ALL the action is.  The bigger you is pure energy – an individualized Soul inseparable from the infinite non-physical realm that might commonly be called God.  Each of us is a player with an important part to play - as points of Divine consciousness, we are “the hands of God” in action.

 

For the “life” model for which this hopefully will serve as a very useful guide book, we are using an analogy for your life that it is an adventure game... an immensely complex interactive virtual reality adventure game.  It’s an adventure game where the entire World is our stage.  The greater Soul-Self part of us cast us in this role in the game before we were born - we may very well have forgotten at this point but we are always trying to accomplish the objectives of that part.  We have the ability to direct our character any way that we desire.  Not everyone wants to be the hero – some people may choose to play the villain and there are always plenty of people expecting that a villain is going to come along to get them.  We will spend more time on the distinctions and evaluations of the parts people play in the book but I want to note that the “villains” are not “bad” people on a cosmic level – we need them for the various plot lines that are unfolding - they are simply fulfilling the expectations of other players in the game and are thus vital to the game.  What kind of adventure could you have if there weren’t any potential dangers and obstacles to overcome or avoid?   

Here we are on game world Earth.  We are each playing a part and interacting with all the other players.  Consensus of opinion has created the dominant elements of our current reality along with many viewpoints on what equates to “success”.  Because it is a role playing game, “success” is going to be very different for different players.  Some will be heroes and some will be villains.  A murderer, at this stage in our conscious social evolution is an essential part of the game because we have people who fear/expect to be victims as well as others who want to have the chance to catch “bad” guys.  Now, if you are following along with this scenario, it points to a concept that may be hard to accept by many:  “good” and “bad” are non-existent in the way we normally think about them.  They are unavoidable elements in the game – for now anyway.  While it would seem highly desirable to live in a world without killing, crime and disease, at our present stage of conscious evolution, those elements are still very much a part of the “reality” of the game.  In some areas of the planet, it is still deemed acceptable to wipe out entire groups of people.  Do the people doing the raping, pillaging and killing think it is wrong?  No – and many of them may be really enjoying their role – they might be quite happy about it.  If you don’t realize that it is all just a game where no one can ever really be hurt, then the horror of some of the events on our planet can be overwhelming.  The biggest problem is that if you get caught up in the “horror”, you are just adding fuel to the fire.  As we will discuss, if you focus your energy on the negative elements, you are only going to empower them and attract more of the same into the game.  The way to positively transform the reality of the game is to create images of things as you would like them to be and generate a belief in a new and improved reality.

 

The objective of this guidebook is to wake more people up to a realization of their true identity and the fact that they are not here to suffer; we are supposed to be having a good time.  You hopefully are willing to accept the responsibility that you are the Creator of your own personal reality - many people get caught in the trap of playing the victim.  A victim just reacts to things that happen in the adventure game and thus will tend to expect the worst.  It is easy to fall prey to the victim trap because it is kind of a default setting for each of us.  Being a creator consistently, takes discipline and the purpose of this book is to provide some processes and ways of looking at things that will be useful to you in exercising more control.  What’s the meaning of life, why are we here?  The main purpose we should adopt in this magnificent outpost here on planet Earth is to be a force to add beauty, joy and love to Creation.  If you are enjoying your life most of the time, you are on the right track.  The central purpose of this book is to provide you with ideas and strategies to help make sure you continuously strengthen your control of your creative powers to better manifest the things you want to do and have in your reality.

 

 

My Dad

October 18, 2014

 

Yesterday my Dad left the stage.  He picked a very nice exit performance.  Sick with what he thought was a stomach virus for a couple of days.  And then lying in his own bed next to his high school sweetheart of over 70 years, he simply slipped away in his sleep.  About half way through his 95^th year of a wonderful adventure story it was time to move on.  The physical body his Spirit occupied will be reduced to ashes today and those ashes will be held in waiting for those of his bride when she decides it is her time to go.  Then, with their Spirits always with us, the family they nurtured and loved will probably take those last physical remains of Bill and Fran and sprinkle them into the ocean from one of the mighty ships they loved to sail upon.  The only hard part now is for my wonderful mother who has lost the physical presence of her dearest friend and lover.  I know she will be fine but you can’t avoid the sadness for a time.   

I think Dad probably would have left sooner except that he didn’t want to leave his sweetheart alone.  Their love held him here even when the age of his body had made doing many things difficult.  That had to have been hard for him because he had always been very independent, liking to do things for himself.  I think he had accomplished and done more than he probably ever thought he would have if you had asked him back when Mom was still in high school and he went by her house to play ping pong with some of his friends.   

Frances, my wonderful Mom, grew up in the house I would be born into some years later.  She had a nice life like me in the well to do town of South Orange, New Jersey.    The Montrose neighborhood that Frances grew up in was a prosperous area of large Victorian homes in the northeast quadrant of the town.  The Ashmead home was a three story house – actually four if you counted the big basement.  A long gravel driveway ran along the side of the house to a two car garage occupying one corner of the half acre lot.  The garage actually had a gasoline pump so you could fill the car with fuel right at home – a big underground tank fed the pump.  The house was set back from Montrose Avenue with a large front yard dominated by two majestic maple trees.  The back yard was even bigger and had several tall pine trees and another tall maple between 100 and 200 feet tall.  Most of the comings and goings of the family though were through the kitchen door at the back of the house.  Three wooden steps took you up to the door – on the top step was an insulated metal box which was where the Becker’s Farm milk man would deliver fresh milk and cream every couple of days early in the morning.  I can remember going out to get the icy cold glass bottles with the top quarter of the bottle thick cream that had risen above the regular milk in the other three quarters of each bottle.   

This was the house where Frances would meet the love of her life, William Henry Brodie.  They would meet by chance when a couple of mutual friends invited Bill to come with them to Frannie’s house to play ping-pong and listen to records.  Bill and Fran hit it off right away.  Frances had just gotten home after a cruise back from England on the recently launched Queen Mary, one of the elegant Cunard Ocean Liners.  On the trip she had won a red suede vest.  When she was showing the vest and some other things she had brought back from the trip, Bill apparently indicated he really liked the vest and even though she had just met Bill, she gave him the vest before he left from that first visit.  Bill’s Mom was a little concerned about Bill accepting this rather expensive gift from a girl he had just met.  Wondering a bit about it himself, Bill decided to stop by Fran’s again the next day.  Bill was supposed to be going to church but instead, he dropped his sisters off at Sunday School and went back to Fran’s under the pretense of apologizing for taking the vest.  Fran told him he didn’t need to apologize – she was very glad for him to have the vest – while she didn’t say it to him, she was also glad he had come up with a reason to come to see her again so soon.  

Bill was four years older than Fran and World War II would interrupt the smooth sailing of their relationship for a few years.  Bill had refused to get married before being shipped to Europe to fight Germans – he didn’t want to leave Fran a widow before they even had much time to live together.   While he was off at war, she finished college at Hood and went on to graduate school at Columbia University in NYC where she studied Occupational Therapy.  Luckily Bill would make it home without the need for any therapy other than her love. 

He had been blessed with an easy time in the military compared to most people.  Even though he had been advised not to volunteer for anything, early on a Sergeant approached his platoon asking for a volunteer that was a good driver and without thinking much about it Bill’s hand shot up.  For that decision, he landed the cushy job of a driver for the Officer’s motor pool.  Later on he would drive a mail delivery vehicle which was still a great job for a soldier even thought it did put him into a bit more danger - he had to regularly go close to the front lines of the battles being fought with incoming mail and to pick up letters being sent out by the troops.  Love letters between him and Fran back in the States regularly went back and forth across the Atlantic Ocean that separated them with all the other letters and parcels he transported. 

By the end of 1945 the War was over and Bill was home.  It was time to get a job and plan a wedding.  Bill’s passion for cars drove him to seek a job with Studebaker after being discharged from the U.S. Army.  Studebaker entered the automotive business in 1902 with electric vehicles and in 1904 with gasoline vehicles, all sold under the name "Studebaker Automobile Company".   By the late 40’s, Studebaker was past its prime with Ford in particular eating away Studebaker sales but Bill would start in the Parts Department picking parts to fill orders to dealers around the country.  He had the good fortune of never really having any reason to worry about money since he and Frances would move in with mother-in-law Rachel after getting married.  Bill never got to go to college but his work ethic and love of cars brought him success through the years with Studebaker and by the time Mercedes came in to take over most of the Studebaker dealer network, Bill had risen to a management position and Mercedes kept him on the team. 

The long delayed wedding finally took place in 1946 four years before I would be born.  When Bill and Frances got married, besides starting a family (they wanted to have two boys and a girl for children), their dream was to have a boat they could sleep on, to do a lot of traveling around the world and to spend winters in Florida.  Every one of those dreams came true and I doubt either of them ever questioned that this would be the case.   

Several years after the purchase of the first boat they could sleep on – “Cherish”.   A 28’ Pacemaker Cabin Cruiser would be the first of four boats of progressively bigger size that they would sleep on and vacation on and eventually live on in Florida during the winters after he retired from Mercedes.  So, they realized their dreams and had the three kids they wanted - me first and then at nicely planned four year intervals Peter and Lynn.  They provided us with a pretty near perfect childhood and I always felt we were lucky to have such great parents.  We took regular vacations as a family but each year Fran and Bill would go somewhere by themselves.  The best part of having them as parents was that it was so obvious how much they loved each other and how much fun they had together.  They were always very social and outgoing with lots of good friends.   

Most of those friends are gone now but they still had each other – until yesterday.  The loss of the two of them together is the sad part.  I can’t think of any better love story than theirs.  I know my mother will be fine because that’s just who she is.  The gratitude she has that he didn’t spend his final days in a hospital and that they were at home where everything would be as easy as possible to deal with will push back her sadness.  Her Mom, Rachel Ashmead had outlived her husband J. Edward Ashmead by a few decades and Fran and Bill had lived with Rachel.   The Brodie / Ashmead home was where we lived for all of those years, blessed with the best Grandma you could have.  I don’t’ think anyone could have created a wonderful adventure to live.  Now Mom has her daughter and husband living with her so she has plenty of company and a familiar setting.  Mom will bask in all the love and joy filled memories knowing, I believe, that her Bill has only left her in body, not in Spirit.  I don’t think this was the first life adventure they have shared and I am pretty certain it will not be the last.   

And so as another day here on this particular stage winds down, I want to thank you William Henry Brodie III for bringing me into your adventure story.  You lived a great life and added to the joy and happiness of many people.   I am counting on you to send me helpful inspirations any time you know I could use your help.  In a way, I feel you closer now than when your body was around.  I know your Spirit will be right there with Mom comforting her and letting her know you are right there and that you will never really be separated – you will always be together. 

And so, again, thank you and just keep having fun.  We will probably also meet again in another adventure.  If it turns out that I get to play the part of Dad, I will try to be as good a Dad as you.

Guidebook is ready for you...

TRANSFORMING REALITY: Magic at the Edge of Creation

We are evolving, creative beings and it is in our nature to live based on expansion, just like the Universe as a whole. All of Creation is continually expanding and that is part of your make-up as well. That’s why new wonders and creations are continuously becoming part of our shared reality. Plants and animals pretty much just live moment to moment in a preprogrammed way only changing their patterns as they adapt to new conditions on the playing field of their life adventures. Us, on the other hand, we are born to be Creators. We have very active minds eager for enjoyment and growth. From the moment we are born we are cataloging and exploring and seeking things and experiences that bring us satisfaction and fun. This is a guidebook to help you excel in your adventure.

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ISBN #: 978-1-312-55820-5
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Content ID: 15328376
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Book Title: Transforming Reality - Magic At the Edge of Creation