Support Global Oneness Day 2012

“The world is in the condition that it’s in

because the world is full of sleepwalkers”

Neale Donald Walsch

 

I received an email from the wonderful Neale Donald Walsch, author of Conversations with God and many other spiritual books, which I would like to share with you as I cannot forward it to everyone:

My Dear Sara,

I have been thinking very deeply about a special day that is coming up soon. On October 24, 2012, we will be celebrating our 3rd Annual Global Oneness Day. Three years and already so many people have joined in, but I continue to wonder how many more people can we get to join us?

I think that what is happening on the earth right now is that we are being inundated with data. The blessing and the miracle of today's technologies has also been in some ways a burden, in that we are constantly being confronted with incoming data. Our attention, therefore, has been directed in a thousand places, almost simultaneously.

In these days the world follows us where we go, not just in terms of telephone calls, but also text messages and all sorts of incoming data. In that kind of environment it is very easy to lose sight of what we have already determined should be important to us, such as the fact of our unity, of our oneness. So setting aside one day each year to just say, "Can we just stop everything for 24 hours and not only remind ourselves of our oneness, but actually enter into a demonstration of it?", feels like a very good idea.

Wouldn't it be nice if one day a year we highlighted and engaged in certain kinds of small mini-projects, gestures, opportunities or programs in order to put the idea of Oneness on the ground in cities, towns and villages around the world?

We can have demonstrations of Oneness be a key to making Global Oneness Day an extraordinary observation every year. It is important that we do those kinds of things, especially when we are so distracted by all that is happening around us, so that one day we can say: "Oh yes, that's right, it is true, we are all one. And here is my demonstration of that; here is what I chose to do on that particular day to notice it, to express it, to demonstrate it, to remind myself and others and, in fact, to become it in a living sense."

What do you think? Can you put Global Oneness Day on your calendar? October 24, 2012.

To help you get ideas for how you can participate, please visit the official website, Global Oneness Day 2012, and you will see the many many opportunities there, big and small, to play a role in something too important to miss.

My heart thanks you.

Love and hugs...

NDW

           

“Humanity’s Team declared 24 October 2010 as the first Global Oneness Day – a day intended to inspire awareness, appreciation and celebration of life’s underlying Oneness, that we believe all of life is connected, in the same way that Earth Day is intended to inspire awareness, appreciation and celebration of the earth’s natural environment. And like Earth Day, Global Oneness Day invites people to bring Oneness into their lives in practical ways, not just conceptually.

Practical demonstrations of Oneness will give people tangible, experiential proof that living in Oneness works. This will, in turn, encourage us all to expand our hopes, beliefs and behaviours so that, a generation from now, humanity will finally realize a dream it has had since time immemorial of a world living in peace, harmony and happiness”.

Please go to the website and sign the Oneness Day Declaration and get involved.  There are amazing people who will be speaking and supporting the movement including:

Archbishop Desmond Tutu - South African activist and Anglican bishop who rose to worldwide fame during the 1980s as an opponent of apartheid.

Ken Wilber - Founder of the Integral Institute: author of such subject matter as mysticism, philosophy, ecology, and developmental psychology.

Gregg Braden - New York Times best-selling author is internationally renowned as a pioneer in bridging science, spirituality, and the real world.

Jack Canfield - Motivational speaker and author. He is best known as the co-creator of the Chicken Soup for the Soul book series.

Bruce Lipton PhD - Internationally recognized author and leader in bridging science and spirit.

Dr. Michael Bernard Beckwith - New Thought minister, author, and founder of the Agape International Spiritual Center in Culver City, California.

You can also go to the website of Humanity’s Team and the links on this page will take you to the Web sites of some key organizations and resources they have identified as active partners. These great authors are included:

Deepak Chopra

Wayne Dyer

Byron Katie

Dalai Lama

Marianne Williamson

Jerry and Esther Hicks  

So if you want to be a part of change for peace in the world, this is an opportunity to get involved.  Do not miss out!

“Don’t wait. The time will never be just right”.

Napoleon Hill

September Is National Recovery Month

“Even when we know what is right, too often we fail to act.

More often we grab greedily for the day,

letting tomorrow bring what it will,

putting off the unpleasant and the unpopular”

Bernard M. Baruch

If it wasn’t for the challenge and Google Reader, I would never have known – September is National Drug and Alcohol Recovery Month and National Mental Health Recovery Month in the USA.  I feel it should be a worldwide event but if you live in another country, you can make people aware of it.

From The Detroit News:

Recovery month is a national observance for educating Americans about addiction treatment and mental health services and how these can enable those with mental health and/or substance abuse disorders to live healthy and rewarding lives.   We need to rally together to stop the stigma that follows these diseases and assure people with these problems that they can receive treatment and support needed for recovery and lead their lives with dignity.

Mental illness and substance abuse are equal opportunity diseases impacting people across the racial, ethnic and socio-economic divides. When it hits home, it hurts.  We can all do our part to help family members, friends, colleagues, neighbors and fellow citizens lead full and productive lives— now is as good a time as any to start.  Don't wait for a serious mental illness or substance abuse problem to impact you or someone you love— get involved today and offer to help.  Recovery is at hand when we all do our part.

From The Dispatch:

Drug and alcohol addiction is something that is usually associated with darkness, pain and tragedy. But an upcoming fundraiser in Starkville hopes to, not only diminish some of the social stigmas surrounding addiction, but to do so in a fun-filled, family-friendly environment.  Another aspect is to help change some of the attitudes synonymous with addicts and addiction.

"I hope this will de-mystify addiction in some way," Valentine said. "People have a fear of addiction and they don't understand the addicts. They treat it differently than they do other medical conditions. People who have recovered from addiction are some of the strongest people in the world. I just want to put the word out that there is hope. Addicts aren't bad people, but people that need some behaviors to be changed."

From redOrbit:

National Recovery Month promotes the prevention, treatment and recovery for mental health and substance use disorders. Beginning on September 6, 2012, National Recovery Month celebrates both recovering addicts and the contributions of their treatment providers. According to a study from the Partnership at Drugfree.org and the New York State Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse, nearly 23 million American adults report that they’ve overcome a problem with drugs or alcohol.

According to Dr. Harris Stratyner, Vice President of Caron Treatment Centers and Clinical Director of the New York Region, “For many addicted individuals, recovery represents a life that they never believed they could have – a life that is free of the fear and isolation that they experienced when they were using. Suffering doesn’t have to be a life sentence – recovery is possible and attainable, and treatment is available for those who choose to seek it.”

Other important events in recovery:

Yesterday, September 10^th was also World Suicide Prevention Day.  Our fellow blogger Riki Cleveland wrote a beautiful and inspiring post which I hope you will all take time out to read on her blog “Refreshingly Riki”.

"September 10^th marks the tenth anniversary of World Suicide Prevention Day, celebrating 10 years of research and advancement in the prevention of suicide. On this day I encourage you to do two things. First, take a moment to recognize where you might need some extra care in your own life. We cannot be of any help to others if we are not taking care of ourselves. Be kinder to yourself today and allow yourself to feel feelings that you might otherwise try to repress or ignore. Take some time to bring cheer, self-love, and optimism into your own space. Second, take the extra step to reach out to both friends and strangers in your community who might be struggling. Even the smallest smile or helping hand might be the gesture it takes to turn around the thoughts of someone fraught in life and contemplating suicide".

And today marks the anniversary of 9/11 exactly 11 years ago.  Today, we remember all the victims, families, firemen, the men and women of the emergency services and anyone whose life was affected by this tragedy.  Take time out of your day to pray for the bereaved and let us hope that we can use this event to realize the importance of peace and change in the world – starting now before it is too late.

A fellow blogger Kellee Conrad wrote an honest post on how she felt last year of the impact of the twin tower disaster in her blog “My Llife With Monkeys.”  I am not a US citizen but her words in “A citizen’s speech” express the importance of making change:

“Patriotism comes from inside. It rests on your shoulders; you carry the burden on your back to make this change. It is what we choose as citizens to do differently today that will determine if we can stand united tomorrow. Will you put racism and judgment aside? Will you get off your soapbox of righteousness and be humbled? Will you reach out to your neighbor and help raise the barn? Will you put the anger aside long enough to make your voice of encouragement heard? Will you stop believing the hype and trust in your heart? Will you love your country? Do not ignore the opportunity. When we all make the step together, it is louder than any bomb. And only then when we begin to care enough and find compassion again will we turn this story around, honor to the sacrifices made on that fateful day and give it the grande finale it deserves”.

“Be the change you wish to see in the world”

Mahatma Gandhi

Interview With A Fellow Blogger - Who Is It?

“Not the maker of plans and promises,

but rather the one who offers faithful service in small matters.

This is the person who is likely to achieve what is good and lasting.”

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

I chose to interview Retha Groenewald, not only because she is one of my blogging buddies, but she shows determination throughout the challenge by never failing to ask questions and asking for help. 

Although Retha is not in the same niche that I am in, although I am a very spiritual person, she believes strongly in her topics and in her own way is also trying to make the world a better place.

Let us see what she had to say …………….

1.         Your first comment on my blog was on the elevator pitch and you said you enjoyed the words “Recovery is all about change”.  Can you explain why?

Those 5 words are so profound. You can write a book on those words. Recovery to me means that a person has been in a situation (physical, emotional, spiritual), that needs to change. Most of the times we recover from something bad. Something that will kill, steal, destroy us or someone that is precious to us. To get out of that situation we need to make a choice, which begins the domino effect of change. It reminds me of when we repent, it is a change of direction, and we move in the opposite direction.

I said I enjoyed those words because they bring hope. One tiny change like going left instead of right,  a thought or decision can bring total recovery and restoration.

2.         We are the only two bloggers in the challenge that come from South Africa. 

Yes, awesome and both from the sea            

(a)        Have you always lived here?

Yes, except when I was 10 we lived in USA for a year. That was wonderful.

(b)       What do you love about our country?

Everything, we are truly a rainbow country, we have different seasons, nature differs from area to area, different cultures, we have everything. I live in Cape Town where you can have all four seasons in one day. I really don’t know how to answer this except to say I think our country is the most beautiful country in the world. I love SA.

(c)        What don’t you like about it?

Nothing.

 3.         You have two blogs in the challenge – can you tell us:

(a)        Where we can find your blogs?

Discover Bible Treasures and

Bible Fascination

(b)       Why did you decided to blog on the relevant subjects?

I am passionate about the Word of God. I decided to go with multiple blogs, each with its own niche, instead of one blog with different niches. My reason is that although the target market could be the same in both sites, the niches do differ. Discover Bible Treasures is a site where the heroes and heroines go on Biblical journeys, with quizzes and puzzles for them to solve. Bible Fascination is a site where we do Bible study to get to know the Bible better and to apply it in our lives. Both sites are about getting to know the Bible better but in different ways. Discover Bible Treasures is for the child in you that likes games and puzzles and adventure. Bible Fascination is a more serious approach. Here you find Bible Study / Devotional, for example, of the Gospels in chronological order.

The purpose of both sites are to awaken the love for the Word of God and having a closer relationship with God.

(c)        What was the most difficult assignment in the challenge so far and why?

Leaving my computer to go on a field trip, no just kidding. Finding a forum to take part in is the most difficult. There are many forums out there, but because I am new to the blogging world (started blogging in June this year), and I am not sure what my niche is exactly (whether it is Bible Study, devotional, Christian living, personal growth quiz, puzzle, etc), I am not sure where to look. (Thought of starting a forum on my DBT blog, but not sure how)

4.           What do you think are the differences between Religion and Spirituality?

Wow, difficult question. I believe Jesus hated religion, because the religious spirit defined holiness with works whereas we know without our Saviour we are nothing and we cannot be saved with our works or how good we are. Jesus is the only way that we can be saved. Therefore I believe in a personal relationship with my Lord and Saviour. (sounds like I am preaching).         

5.           You have just written an ebook.  Can you tell us more about it?

(a)        What inspired you to write a book?

I believe it is part of my calling and the road God has set me upon.

(b)       What is it about?

The eBook is called “Teach the Word” and it is about teaching the Word of God. It is short and to the point, a guideline.  The eBook tells us about some of the teachers in the Old Testament, Jesus the Teacher and the Holy Spirit that teaches us. The teaching methods Jesus used are also mentioned. It also touches on the responsibilities of the learner.

(c)        Where can we download a copy?

You can download it from Amazon or Smashwords.   

The book is a Kindle Edition, but you can download it even if you do not have a Kindle. There is a free Kindle reader you can download from the Kindle site for all gadgets.

(d)       What difficulties did you encounter with the writing or publishing process?

The whole process was new to me,  and some of the things I am still wondering about. My greatest difficulty was the formatting for Kindle and getting the images right (due to lack of knowledge). Oh yes and the cover. But the easy part is when you have overcome these difficulties and press publish.

(e)        What advice can you give to others who are thinking of writing an ebook?

Write it, if you are thinking about it, you have a message that the readers want to hear.

6.         Do you see blogging and/or writing as a future career?

Absolutely, blogging was the door that opened the first step on this new adventure.

So show some support by visiting Retha’s website and checking out her ebook – you never know how much you may learn.  Thank you Retha for answering my questions and keep on writing. Here is one of my favourite prayers to share with you, our 11^th Step prayer in AA:

Prayer of St. Francis

Lord, make me a channel of thy peace - that where there is hatred, I may bring love - that where there is wrong, I may bring the spirit of forgiveness - that where there is discord, I may bring harmony - that where there is error, I may bring truth - that where there is doubt, I may bring faith - that where there is despair, I may bring hope - that where there are shadows, I may bring light - that where there is sadness, I may bring joy. O, Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled, as to console; to be understood as to understand; to be loved, as to love; for it is in the giving that we receive; it is in the pardoning that we are pardoned, and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life. Amen.

Criticism - positive or negative?

Run your fingers through my soul.

For once, just once, feel exactly what I feel,

believe what I believe, perceive as I perceive,

look, experience, examine, and for once;

just once, understand.

Those words may seem controversial to you.  We all have our own problems so why should we take the time to care about others?  That is all and well but is negative criticism of others necessary if you haven’t taken the time to understand?  I have learned that before I can judge another, I need to walk a mile in their shoes.

I read a blog post the other day where the writer was slandering a woman, who has an alcohol problem, for drinking and driving with teenagers in the car.  It started me thinking on how many times I had to take my own children to functions or school and the only way I could get out of the house and do this was to have a drink to calm the tremors.  I was fortunate, by the Grace of God, that nothing terrible happened and I never got a dui either.  When I look back on those terrifying years, it was the only way I could cope with a disease that had consumed my mind, body and soul. 

Yes, alcoholism has been medically classified as a disease.  Like Aids, people tend to shy away from alcoholics and deem them to be the dregs of the earth, the unsavoury.  When we take the example of drinking and driving – I agree that it is totally irresponsible – but there are normal people that drink too much at a party and get behind the wheel of a car.  What about those who are driving while texting on their cell phones or the mental health sufferers who are under the influence of large doses of Valium or other heavy drugs? 

An alcoholic has to choose recovery on their own desperate terms.  In the long term, forceful rehabilitation actions will not help them but there are a couple of things you can do to make yourself a little less resentful: 

1.  Drinking and driving – tell your children and their friends not to get into any car where you suspect the person has been drinking - drive them yourself.

2.  Resentments – show a little more tolerance for the person involved by encouraging them not to drive with others or at all when under the influence.

3.  Presence – it is your responsibility, if you care enough, to take the car keys away from someone under the influence – friends do not let friends drink and drive.

4.  Concern – if you are sincerely worried about whether a person is an alcoholic, tell them your concerns and let their friends and family know.

5.  Educate – read and learn about alcoholism – you might change your perspective.

6.  Practice what you preach – don’t drink under the influence of any mind altering substances either.

7.  Judge not, less you be judged. 

You know the saying – when a dog is down, kick it.  Well I have known how it feels to be there.  Alcoholics are generally beautiful people with emotional defects that have risen out of their pasts.  Don’t pick on the hopeless.  This world is in a mess with war, economic instability, hunger and poverty which has all been influenced by the greatest addictions of all:  Power, Greed and Corruption. 

I am sure you all have some thoughts of your own on this subject, so please voice your opinions.  We need to strive to make the world a better place for all.

“To love means loving the unlovable.

To forgive means pardoning the unpardonable.

Faith means believing the unbelievable.

Hope means hoping when everything seems hopeless.”

G. K. Chesterton

31 Day Blog Challenge Progress

Procrastination is the bad habit of putting off until the day after tomorrow

                     what should have been done the day before yesterday.

                                                     Napoleon Hill

Due to family commitments, I have been away for over a week, so I have been trying to catch up for the last two days as well as trying to read other blog posts to see how my fellow bloggers are doing.  So, bearing that in mind, I am still a little behind!

Day 5:

List posts

My last blog post covered a list to do on day 4.  I have also posted various other list posts before so for now I am going to accept this as done. 

Day 6:

Social Media channels

I have accounts on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.  I use Facebook the most as my recovery friends from around the world share on there.  I have also joined a few recovery groups on Facebook so it is nice to read posts and motivate others by sharing.  Twitter I have not found helps in this topic but I do follow other tweeters for motivation, quotes and internet marketing ideas.  LinkedIn I have not followed too closely – it is more business orientated which is not really the topic of my blog but did help when looking for work.

When it comes to a subject like addiction or depression, I have to be careful what I share on my main Facebook page as it could affect me personally when applying for a job or getting involved in work related activities such as my accounting business.  I have learned to accept the fact that people have a negative approach to addicts or alcoholics whether you are in recovery or not.  Sad but true!

There are another couple of social media channels that I would like to join in the near future:

Pinterest – I have been invited just need to find the time to set up my pins and link backs.

Google+ - I need to make an effort to join this as I have a button on my blog for starters!

Day 7:

Forums

I searched Google for  “addiction forums” and came up with the following:
Addictions Forum - Uncommon Knowledge
This is a psychology forum which covers all the topics I write about from addictions, depression and anxiety to relationships and self- help – I have registered.

When I searched Google for “recovery forums” it came up with various options from car towing to computer problems!  I did find a forum including topics I blog on and areas where you can also post poetry and articles:
Recover You Life
It also looks like a busy little site and interesting so I have signed up.

I had previously signed up to a recovery forum on Yahoo groups and as I follow a few Facebook groups which are really discussion forums, I think that is enough for now.

Day 8:

Set up alerts

I managed easily to set up Google and Technorati alerts but I could not find the RSS feed button on my Twitter page.  Can anyone suggest something here?

Day 9:

Write an opinion post on your blog

I still need to do this – brainstorming at the moment!

Day 10:

Update a key page on your blog

This was a rather daunting task as my blog only has one page besides the blog posts!

What I did do was add categories to my articles so people can choose what they want to read about.  Another thing I need to do is add a RSS feed button to my blog but not too sure how to do that – again suggestions will be welcome.

Day 11:

Write an elevator pitch for your blog

I had already done this and I am quite happy with it but any feedback is welcome:

“Recovery is all about change. If you are suffering from addiction, depression, anxiety or just finding life overwhelming, I hope to make a difference in your world. To be yourself is to become yourself”.

Day 12:

Make your blog mobile-friendly

I will have to ask my son to check on his mobile phone to see if all is okay.  Everything is fine on my tablet.

Day 13:

Hunt for dead links

Thanks to my blogging buddy Jan Coghan, she had posted about brokenlinkcheck.com for blogger.  It is an online application which I ran and it came up with the following result:

#	Broken link (you can scroll this field left-right)	Page where found	Server response
1		url src	404
2		url src	404

 It appears to be a problem with my personal profile – but when I click on it everything seems fine.  I have no idea what to do to change the html coding so any feedback from others would be appreciated here.

Conclusion:

Outstanding issues:

Day 8 - Set up Twitter alert

Day 9 – Write an opinion post

Day 12 – Check the mobility on a cell phone

Day 13 – Check the profile links again

A New Blog Challenge

I have decided to do the 31 Day Blog Challenge.  I have been thinking of changing from Blogger to Wordpress but I have no idea what the differences are.  Hopefully, as this challenge is to improve your blogging results, I will be able to make a decision during the 31 days or after. Here is my overview of the first four days of the challenge.

Day 1:

Setting up Google Analytics

I downloaded various instructions on how to install Google Analytics on Blogger.  Well they all said I must go the end of my HTML page and find certain words where I would paste my code – they were not there!  Then one site suggested going to the beginning of the page and find the word <head>.  That was there!  So I posted the code and my Adwords said it was receiving information but there was no data!  This bothered me for the next couple of days and on Day 3 I decided to tackle it one more time.  Well lo and behold, I found a spot where it said <html> without the <body> before it, but it did mention something there about Google Adwords.  So I cut and pasted the same code and voila it worked.  I am presuming that the results only start from the day that this was installed as I have nothing for July.  Sad looking stats but that should improve – I mean that is the purpose of this challenge right?

Day 2:

Finding your Blog Buddy

I spent most of the day clicking on blogs and looking for someone who wrote on a similar subject to mine – nada!  Then one little lady commented that she liked my blog very much and after rethinking the purpose of the challenge – find someone who you can be accountable to – I asked her to be my buddy.  A fellow South African in the challenge also wanted to partner up as buddies – she also had her own buddy – so we ended up in a group of four.  These are my three wonderful yet so different buddies:

Retha Groenewald: http://www.discoverbibletreasures.com/

Jan Coghan: http://myjourneyandpassions.blogspot.com/

Sara Duggan: http://saraduggan.blogspot.com/

Day 3:

Planning your blog posts

I have not written a blog post since I finished the Ultimate Blog Challenge two weeks ago.  It just goes to show that if you are not motivated to actually do it, you will find all kind of excuses not too!  While planning my blog posts, I looked back at the last challenge, and was always falling behind due to work commitments.  So during this challenge I am going to obligate myself to two posts a week.  If I do more, then that is great.  I have also taken up a 31 day book writing challenge at the same time which I guess will keep me busy as well.  My plan is to try and stick to the lessons each day and post whenever I can.  The objective here is to learn how to blog better – I am sure there is plenty of daily tasks to make that happen!

Day 4:

Brainstorming 10 new blog post ideas

Before I started the challenge, I was going to start a new blog and keep Recovery Corner just for personal use.  The idea was to expand my writing into a new challenge of changing oneself and ultimately contributing to the new movement going on around us of making the world a better place.  But then recovery is all about change.  So I am sticking to the same site.  What I really need to do is set up categories and link my posts accordingly – another techie challenge to conquer!  

Here are 10 ideas I would like to cover:

Depression / Anxiety

Resentments and fear

Letting go

Spirituality

Thinking from the heart

Relationships

Inspiration and passion

Meditation

Transformation strategies

Soul mate series

Conclusion

This challenge is all about learning.  At the same time whatever I write will be ideas for a book I will one day put together.  Thanks so much to Michelle Schaeffer and Lisbeth Tanz for putting this together.  I am most grateful for the opportunity to broaden my knowledge base – especially the technical side!

“The results you achieve will be in direct proportion to the effort you apply”

Denis Waitley