The creation of fire

I have my whole life struggled with illness, or rather the struggle was not with illness but with health. Illness was easy, dis-ease came to me freely and without hindrance, but beyond this unhealth, or beneath it, lay a host of other ghosts; depression, P.T.S.D, emotional ineptitude, increasing intolerance to stress. When I recovered from one set of symptoms, more would appear, or old ones return. As I slowly learnt the vagueries of being healthy, I also discovered the roots of health/disease, the dormant seeds of consequence that were there all along. People in the West view illhealth as offensive almost, as a sign of failure. They won't say this and will nod and simper and tut like the best of them, but at the same time inwardly they are painting a cross on your door, and likewise inwardly I would paint a cross on my door. As the emotional foibles and lifestyle misdemeanours fell by the wayside, I began to sense the invisible self, the part of me that was ignored, not looked at; I became aware of how I was building me, everyday, every layer of thought added a multitude of cells. These cells hung about in groups, some were happy, boisterous groups that reflected my happy, energetic thoughts - but others were singularly unfriendly, bitter cells full of self-loathing pallisades.

My health still fluctuates now, except the previoulsy overlooked beginnings of each episode, surface faster, because I let them. Instead of running for painkillers, and antibiotics, I pick up each sensation as it enters my consciousness and I savour it. Maybe it's a horrible sensation of not being able to breath, or of my skin becoming sore - but instead of lookimg away, I look at it. I feel it fully, I allow it to be, after all it is me. You may wonder what this has to do with positive impact living/wilderness survival. Well, once I let these sensations be and withdrew my judgement of them, I realised I was doing what nature does with us all the time. Nature never judges you, it never paints crosses upon you, it does not keep your misdemeanours piled up in it's head to feed upon at a later unforgiving date. Nature simply is. If you want to learn and understand about life you have only to watch your experience of life, the events as the pass, the seasons as they change. As most of us do, you could attach a label of 'good' or 'bad' - but nature doesn't and if you don't too, something amazing happens.

I'm writing this as a prelude to my lessons about fire, and as I am going to write about the creation of a spark, an ember, a coal - the beginning of fire I wanted to set this piece in a psycho-physical context, a bit like fairy tales with their hidden wisdom. I've been feeling a bit low recently, full of an unremitting darkness, that I haven't really allowed until now. I've been constantly keeping it at bay, but it is an appropriate beginning to write about making fire, because it is darkness that waits for us outside the flames of our own making and it is the darkness that we once held childish fears about. It is the darkness that surrounds our planet in an endless space, and it is the darkness that we have to face when we behold our own minds, the origin of ourselves, our souls, our loves, our desires. It is out of the neutrality of nature that we take, wood and stone and fashion tools, that enable us to witness a blaze of flames that eat and devour, fuel and forge, without distinction .

It is strange that human beings are the only ones to judge, to prefer or avoid, to assign assignations, you are this and you are that. It is strange that we all share the same terminal illness called life, a devil of a disease because it strikes without warning, at any time, to any number of us. It is a disease that renders us equal, yet few of us ever acknowlege it, look at it, consider it. Of course we are all forced to eventually. you might think I'm being very pessimistic, well, not at all - I am being very realistic.

Death makes all of our attempts at life utterly meaningless, laughable, ridiculous almost, yet we continue, most of us with our singularly particular neuroses. Our unusually acceptable manner of thinking that bids us to fill our lives with kinds of fascinating objects that allow us to avoid the subject of our own deaths. Nature has a wonderful perspective on death, one that it is continually sharing all the time, it does not consider it either bad or good. Death just is, death just happens, the same way shit happens. Nature does not personalise it, it is us who take it personally. Nature does not ignore life or avoid it, or desire it. Nature simply is and does. Fire is a magical experience, it creates, it destroys. Fire is life supporting and life thwarting, but it is a dispassionate entity, it requires fuel, oxygen, structure, and heat to exist - the right conditions and so do we. We require the right conditions and they as I understand it, are rare, and precious and hard to come by. When you are in need of a fire, you must fulfil the conditions. The outcome is fire, the results of the energies of fuel, air, a source of heat and a structure. We share a similar number of requirements for our existence; there are always; a place/time that we are in, a lesson to be learned, a teacher to teach, and a student to learn. Those are our human conditions. When these are fulfilled we have fire, it may be a smouldering ember, a spark, or a blazing hearth. When you go out to gather your tinder, to collect your kindling, to chop and store logs for the winter, to cut peat or gather dried dung; share the impassive eye of nature and all these ingredients will be within reach, for though nature does not seem to act in it's own interests - allowing itself to be chopped, exploded, flooded, built upon, tarmac'd etc, it extends from the reach of your fingertips all about you and is no more seperate from you than all that is in contact with you right now. So when you hold the thought that it is tinder you are after, and into your head pop images of tall dry cattail heads, rosebay willow herb fluff, clematis or old mans beard; or bark (birch, western red cedar), scraped and buffed up, or char cloth that you've carefully prepared in a tin - whichever, don't forget to remain aware of who it is that is searching for tinder, of what is observing the hedgerow. Don't forget to question the origins of you, or the lesson that is to be learned in this very moment, the purpose of darkness and the light you search for to fill it. It may be that in the substance that we surround the emptiness of ourselves with, is always burning with the very brightness of our own minds.





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tags - Fire, making fire, birch, betula pendula, uses of, structure, heat, oxygen, fuel, ancestors, tribes, match, tinders, resins,
http://poitiveimpactliving.blogspot.com Copyright2007 louisembrookes@hotmail.com

Landmines Gone in Five Years

This picture shows white sticks where mines have been removed - Mozambique

I have been wondering about badges and this blog, I didn't want to crowd it with campaigns. So I'm going to be specific and focus on problems that require immediacy, reaction, in order to bring peace. After the Second World War it took only five years to remove all the landmines, millions and millions of them. Of course we do still get the odd few turning up, like the one I bumped into on the beach near the Seven Sisters (where Kevin Costner washed up as Robin Hood). That one was a giant floating one that had freed itself from the clutches of the ocean. Like any toxic/nuclear waste, these things have a life span that extend beyond our own generation and they are there to reduce the lifespan of anything that happens to tread upon them.

Their presence causes Internationally Displaced People or IDP's as they have been lumped together and termed, people that can't go home because the detritus of war is in their front gardens and their living rooms. Often stalwart individuals and families do go home, because they've got to eat, and farm and their kids have to herd goats, and a lot of them step on mines, even the ones that know about mines, that know they are in a mine field, because they weigh starvation and thirst alongside the offchance of losing a limb or their life, and choose to grow food for their families as they have no where else to go and have lost everything they had. The reason the vast number of landmines exists is because even though their removal in trained hands is a safe and simple process, apparently a garedener can do it, a lot of bureaucracy has got in the way, managers managing managers so to speak, when the actual important work finding and removing the mines has got lost.

This same bureacracy is accountable for the lengthy time it takes to process IDP's or internationally displaced people, or people who have lost everything they had because someone else decided to fight a war around them or the sky fell on their heads. For example the US has pledged to take 12000 people from Iraq into it's country. It will take 8months to register and process these people, that's 53 people a day.

I recently went to a festival that had thirteen thousand people attending it. In one week before hand, we put in all the amenities those people would need to live in a field. In three days we registered all those people and tagged them. Then we had a great festival. A week later it was a field again. It was a short term thing. The reality in the world is that issues are reoccuring; war, natural disasters etc but landmines aren't. Once landmines have gone, that's it problem solved. No more amputees, no more dead children, and innocent passersby. If they did it after the Second World War in five years, what's stopping our generation from solving the problem in the same amount of time, or less. We are. We are the problem. An idea is the problem. A 'lack of determination' as Guy Willoughby put it in his article Landmines and Sex. I do not suffer from a lack of determination. So I'm blogging a personal goal. Five years they did it. I can post a badge on here, so can you. We can put an end to landmines, to their production, to the use of Cluster Munitions. Just put the badge on your blog, copy it from here. If this is pasted on blogs all over the internet, and if some or all of us tackle the issue of the bureaucracy, maybe throw some volunteer will power at it. In five years mines and their terrible legacy could be history. The people we have to win over are the manufacturers, I guess we could have a safe disposal of mines in their front gardens, or just ring their factories with mines, or something, until they remember which tribe they're in - the human tribe. The one we all share the one we all belong to.

Maybe some of the profits from weapons manufacture could be used to clear up the mess left behind. Perhaps a law could be passed 'You made the mess - you clear it up'. You know the one we all learnt as children. The one that kids can teach us. I wonder if weapons manufacturers or nuclear energy folks would continue production then. We all share a big front yard, we're all of us in it, we all get our water from one tap, our light and warmth from one light - you figure it out. Oh yeah the other thing we learn as kids 'You have to share'. Or maybe some of us never quite got the message.

Put this badge on your blog permanently until it is free and show your support for the people of Myanmar.
To stop the military junta’s cruelty in Burma take away their financial support by boycotting the companies still doing business with the Burmese government. Companies like Total SA, Chevron, Daewoo and any travel companies operating tours there. The government spends half it’s budget on the military and it gets it’s money from these companies. Stop buying from these companies, they are immoral in their conduct and have a duty to the human rights in the countries they deal with which they do not uphold. Check out:-http://www.burmacampaign.org.uk/dirty_list/dirty_list_details.html for a full list of the companies involved.





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tags - landmines, weapons manufacture, mine clearance, HALO, explosives, Anti-mines, http://poitiveimpactliving.blogspot.com Copyright2007 louisembrookes@hotmail.com

Fire Making

Me teaching about fire '06

When you're out in the natural environment and you need to make a fire. You're often faced with the wall of green - the raw material. You need to have an understanding of the nature of fire; what it eats, how it breathes, what it doesn't like. It usually doesn't take long when you start trying to light one to find out what these qualities are. A big heap of heavy wood and a match just won't have the right conditions. Fire needs to have a structure, it needs air, it needs fuel and it needs heat - to get heat you need heat.

If you are used to using gas to cook, or electric hobs, to using electric for light and maybe candles for ambience, you won't have the daily relationship with fire that many people in the world do, instead it probably belongs in the realm of the memories of your eldest relatives or to your ancestors. To regain this relationship and the versatility and adaptability that comes with using our ingenuity it's necessary to open up. To open your senses, to look with your eyes, and feel with your hands. Fire happens, you only have to think of the recent wildfires raging through Greece to know that sometimes the right conditions for fire exist already in nature.

Picture of beech trees

There are so many fuels that humans have discovered and manufactured, but we shouldn't forget the beginnings of our knowlege, we shouldn't forget how to make a match. Nowadays, many people have to struggle to meet their basic needs - many more people than had to in the past and not simply because there are more people. In the past the prescious knowlege of how to live comfortably within the envoironment we found ourselves in, was carefully passed on from one generation to the next. Now, people across the world are missing that knowlege, tribes that used to live comfortably with their knowlege of fire, have to spend days travelling to get matches, fuel, lighters - the objects that we think of as convenience have enslaved them to a different and difficult way of life simply because they have lost the old ways. The wonder of the modern age is magical, but we shouldn't lose our heads in the face of it. Our freeedom is even more prescious. Once we regain that knowlege, we regain the freedom that comes from real understanding of our true place in an ecosystem. As you will discover...

This picture is of a birch tree. it's a favorite among woodsmen because the bark of a birch tree will burn easily, even if it's been wet, you can dry it off, scrape it and buff it and you'll have a fire lighter. Birch is used for many things and is worth getting to know. It is one of the first trees that grow at the beginning of a woodland, after the scrub, because it's leaves fall and provide nitrogen for the later plants and trees that wouldn't otherwise be able to inhabit a poor soil. It's a sacrificial tree in a way. You can read more about birch at the end of this article. Over the next few days I'll introduce you to:-

The Six ways of making fire

Tinders and Resins
Fuels

The structure of Fire

And hopefully by the end of it we'll be able to safely make a fire whereve we happen to be and whenever we need one.

The uses of Birch (Betula Pendula - Silver Birch specific):-

Edible Uses
Inner bark - cooked or dried and ground into a meal. It can be added as a thickener to soups etc or can be mixed with flour for making bread, biscuits etc. Inner bark is generally only seen as a famine food, used when other forms of starch are not available or are in short supply. Sap - raw or cooked. A sweet flavour. It is harvested in early spring, before the leaves unfurl, by tapping the trunk. It makes a pleasant drink. It is often concentrated into a syrup by boiling off the water. Between 4 and 7 litres can be drawn off a mature tree in a day and this will not kill the tree so long as the tap hole is filled up afterwards. However, prolonged or heavy tapping will kill the tree. The flow is best on sunny days following a frost. The sap can be fermented into a beer. An old English recipe for the beer is as follows:- "To every Gallon of Birch-water put a quart of Honey, well stirr'd together; then boil it almost an hour with a few Cloves, and a little Limon-peel, keeping it well scumm'd. When it is sufficiently boil'd, and become cold, add to it three or four Spoonfuls of good Ale to make it work...and when the Test begins to settle, bottle it up . . . it is gentle, and very harmless in operation within the body, and exceedingly sharpens the Appetite, being drunk ante pastum.Young leaves - raw or cooked. Young catkins. No more details are given. A tea is made from the leaves
Medicinal Uses
Anti-inflammatory, cholagogue, diaphoretic. The bark is diuretic and laxative. An oil obtained from the inner bark is astringent and is used in the treatment of various skin afflictions, especially eczema and psoriasis. The bark is usually obtained from trees that have been felled for timber and can be distilled at any time of the year. The inner bark is bitter and astringent, it is used in treating intermittent fevers. The vernal sap is diuretic. The buds are balsamic. The young shoots and leaves secrete a resinous substance which has acid properties, when combined with alkalis it is a tonic laxative. The leaves are anticholesterolemic and diuretic. They also contain phytosides, which are effective germicides. An infusion of the leaves is used in the treatment of gout, dropsy and rheumatism, and is recommended as a reliable solvent of kidney stones. The young leaves and leaf buds are harvested in the spring and dried for later use. A decoction of the leaves and bark is used for bathing skin eruptions. Moxa is made from the yellow fungous excrescences of the wood, which sometimes swell out of the fissures.

Other Uses
The bark is used to make drinking vessels, canoe skins, roofing tiles etc. It is waterproof, durable, tough and resinous. Only the outer bark is removed, this does not kill the tree. It is most easily removed in late spring to early summer. A pioneer species, it readily invades old fields, cleared or burnt-over land and creates conditions suitable for other woodland trees to become established. Since it is relatively short-lived and intolerant of shade, it is eventually out-competed by these trees. A tar-oil is obtained from the white bark in spring. It has fungicidal properties and is also used as an insect repellent. It makes a good shoe polish. Another report says that an essential oil is obtained from the bark and this, called 'Russian Leather' has been used as a perfume. A decoction of the inner bark is used to preserve cordage, it contains up to 16% tannin. An oil similar to Wintergreen oil (obtained from Gaultheria procumbens) is obtained from the inner bark. It is used medicinally and also makes a refreshing tea. The resin glands (the report does not say where these glands are found) are used to make a hair lotion. A brown dye is obtained from the inner bark A glue is made from the sap. Cordage can be made from the fibres of the inner bark. This inner bark can also be separated into thin layers and used as a substitute for oiled paper. The young branches are very flexible and are used to make whisks, besoms etc.They are also used in thatching and to make wattles.The leaves are a good addition to the compost heap, improving fermentation. Wood - soft, light, durable. It is used for a wide range of purposes including furniture, tool handles, toys and carving. A high quality charcoal is obtained from the bark. It is used by artists, painters etc The wood is also pulped and used for making paper.

I get some of my information about plants from The Plants for A Future Database which is an excellent reference

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tags - Fire, making fire, birch, betula pendula, uses of, structure, heat, oxygen, fuel, ancestors, tribes, match, tinders, resins,
http://poitiveimpactliving.blogspot.com Copyright2007 louisembrookes@hotmail.com

Crystal Clear

I was watching some programme about people on crystal meths and how its ruining ther lives and their mouths, but the thing I think about is how unfulfilled you have to be in the first place to feel the need for any drug that short or long term wastes you.

How few of us have ever been as fit as we possibly could be, I mean seriously top athlete fit? Why should it just be athletes that get that joy? Everyone should be that fit in the ideal world. We could by the way we live our lives know how good that feels before we die. A little more encouragement in that direction and a little less boredom and social isolation might help, but we don't live in an ideal world. Still I think that my world, that's the world of my experience, is a lot more ideal than it has been in the past and is for many others. I've got equal rights, equal human rights and a safety net if I fall - but that isn't enough I guess to fulfill us.

People look at the end of the problems when their loved ones have crumbled into addiction; look at the beginning though, look at the moment right now. What makes us want to live well? Think about that, and I do a lot, wonder about motivation and purpose. As humans sometimes we set our goals to low so low they don't make us jump out of bed in the morning.

Everyone of us should feel the value of ourselves. How our purpose is so incredibly necessary to the whole world. Each of us has an individual value that goes way beyond GDP and our wage packet, or what we look like, wear or own. We should explore the meaning of the word 'prescious' everyday and begin to understand our true value. What is our potential? I often think if I could give the gift of value away how drug and alcohol abuse might disappear into whatever memory we have left.

Of course lives are neglected around the world and small children sleep and die on the streets and in the deserts and families struggle everywhere towards an existence, too exhausted to have dreams. Dreams are a rare currency and in them people can live again who have died, and people whose hearts have been broken can find they are whole again, people who have lost their homes or who have never had a home - can come home. I think how I can make myself valuable, how I already am. What it is I do when I don't seem to be doing much? The dogs are barking now so i'm going to take them out for a walk. It's crystal clear outside, not so inside. Others lives are so neglected because of the neglect we experience from ourselves. If I could value myself completely and recognise the treasure I hold within every morning on waking, and how much value I have for others, then there is a currency that can reach those children sleeping under bridges in India.





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tags - crystal meths, addiction, value, Self value, poverty of spirit, purpose, vitality, fulfilment

http://poitiveimpactliving.blogspot.com Copyright2007 louisembrookes@hotmail.com

A soul famine

I've spent a lot of my life surviving, which can be a very selfish activity; but eversince I was five years old watching the Biafra famine in the early eighties and wanting to share what I had - ever since then I wanted to help and I wanted to help in the right way. I thought maybe I could be an Aid Worker - they deserve so much respect and support, but before I could do anything like it my own survival took precedence. So I spent a lot of my time instead learning. I learnt about the connections between things, between people. About how our lives work and don't work. I thought if I could learn the survival techniques of people who live close to the earth like hunter gatherers, that this would give me an insight into knowing what our real needs are,and even some freedom, it would also provide the opportunity for me to not be so reliant on draining the earths resources rather than living in a sustainable and life enriching manner.

Over the years I've learnt about growing food in an efficient and sustainable manner through permaculture design and through Community Shared Agriculture. I've learnt about the sense of living locally, resourcing your needs from your immediate area. I've also learnt about Co-operatives and Social Networks that build community and offer healthy financial solutions that recycle money within a community rather than endlessly draining it's funds outwardly. Lots of things, lots of buzz words, ideas, idealism and realism; lot's of vision and projects and graft.

Now I've reached a point in my life where my own survival is no longer an issue, I seem to be hanging together just fine, eyes, arms n legs, everything functioning pretty good. I've reached this point where I can look back at all I've come through, all I've learned with some passivity, a neutral perspective far removed from the emotional mission I was on in my late teens and early twenties. I've discovered that there's a kind of priority list, some things are definitely more important than others. Some issues take precedence over others.

I've learned that I'm the biggest obstacle to positivity, once I address my thoughts and am responsible for them than I've control of the leg behind the boot and can direct the kick. This is one of the most important things I've learned and it's taken a while. See once your in charge then the rest is easy. You are the only person you have to convince. If you can bring love to yourself it follows you can bring it to others, but you have to fill that void by yourself. No one else can do it for you even if they want to.

The reason I'm writing this is because all my life I've so much wanted to help, to stop the pain and poverty wherever I saw it, whether it was poverty of resources, or poverty of spirit. At first I only noticed the famines and the wars, the homelessness and the social disintegration - only the physical famine. But now I see that in thie world there are two famines going on simultaneously one is the famine of the body, the stricken emaciated men, women and children we see heart rendingly, so often in the news, and whom all of us want to help. I think as a human being it's impossible not to want to do something to help, it's a natural reaction. The other famine that's happening right now, is the famine of the spirit, it is the starvation of a soul, of souls. People are hungry everywhere except it's for different things. Now, you would say the most important issue is to address the hunger, the drought, the war, that's decimating life in so many different countries, and I would agree this is the most important issue. Except for one thing; before people can help other people their hearts have to be open, their hearts have to be full, their souls have to be fed.

My soul was hungry for so long; I was lonely, I was self hating, I was full of darkness and confusion that made me dishonest to both myself and others. How could I explain to others about myself, when I didn't even know. I had to learn how to look after myself; simple things - giving myself a break, giving other people a break, eating right, this sort of thing.

Now, here I am at this juncture, pretty full, I mean my souls O.K it's not holey anymore, it's not leaking. And all those problems like Biafra, they're still happening, still waiting. I haven't done nearly enough to make a difference and the weirdest thing is, that I've learnt that to really get better, to solve one famine, you just have to address the other one. When we see the results of our kindness and our ability to help people who are without their basic needs to survive and thrive; our loneliness and self destuction will be history. It's like if you're a parent, you don't have time to think about yourself or your own needs, at least not very often. Parents gain a kind of grace because of children, there's an opportunity to become selfless, you have to put aside your own desires and this is the very description of a spiritual path. Of course not all parents take the opportunity, nevertheless, it is there.

Every one of us can be parents, and I don't only mean in the literal sense. If you're in anyway unhappy or unfulfilled, there is a chance for you to nourish your soul, to feed your spirit and open your heart. Choose your children; they are all there waiting, millions of them, some of them are already grown up, but they're still your children. Some of them might not speak your language, they might not know your culture or religious persuasion. It doesn't matter. This is what I mean by a list of priorities. See people spend a lot of time discussing people's persuasions, too much sometimes.

I think it's important to be able to be honest about who you are without being unfairly judged for it, whether you're a particular religion, race, whether your gay or straight, whether you have access to freedom and rights to vote - these things are important freedoms to have won and to maintain. But I'm quite bored really, maybe it's my generation. I'm accepting of pretty much everything that doesn't harm anything else. I don't care if you're white, coloured, whether you worship God or Madonna, that's your choice. But in my mind there's this startlingly obvious issue staring everyone in the face, which is the suffering of fellow human beings; that this should be attended to doesn't require any sort of discussion. That people will choose to discuss things that are so pointless and superficial - does require some discussion, if only to point it out; to show how superficial it is. I have put up with superficial stuff since I was a kid, I've lived with it, I've shut my mouth, I've tried to be 'normal' and finally, I've realised I really don't want to be normal. If endlessly talking about celebrities lifestyles is what you want to spend your time doing, fine go ahead, but don't mind me if I choose to completely ignore you. There are more important matters than scrutinising the inane details of someone else's life or what mansion someone's moved into, or the latest fad on TV or in the newspapers.

I'm so bored of attending to things that are 'normal' when they're people who I could help, just with a little bit of my income on a regular basis, or by writing this. Like women who are getting stoned to death because they want to convert their religion or kids who are being trafficked, or people being blown up, or having their villages burned for what reason? There is no reason, there's no acceptable reason. People's hearts must be so poor, their souls so starving that they don't have anything to reason with except violence and aggression and it's just pure sad.

I find it irritating that I'm supposed to create this me'concentric' lifestyle, that my society is built around me making money for me, to put a roof over my head, to bring me everything I desire. It's like you're ignorantly destined to be unhappy that way, all of us believing in this idea that my money = my happiness. It is such a lonely and isolating way to live.
It's taken me exactly this amount of time to consider another way, to choose 'not normal' and to be happy with this. I haven't got it all figured out yet. But I think I might finally have my priorities right; right in my eyes at least. Those beings suffering terribly over there, on the other side of that screen, on the other side of that ocean; those brothers and sisters, they're more important than whether or not I have a new sports car, or a higher salary, or a million dollar home. Know why? Because that cars going to do nothing for my soul or my joy, not until I see the news one day and nobody has been murdered. That's going to be a special day that is, the day I turn on the TV and there's been no fighting in the world, no famine has killed anyone, no violence has threatened anybody's peace, no human rights have been abused, no animal cruelty has taken place. That's going to be the day we really get to hear the birds sing, that's my priority, then I'll be able to enjoy the car, and the mansion and the rest - still think I'll be ignoring the celeb' gossip though.

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Find your way out of Trauma:- The Survivor Warrior Workbook

This powerful workbook is used as a teaching tool with therapists, support groups and community education programs. It was inspired by Angela's Removing the Sword of Trauma events. It is for survivors, warriors, advocates, loved ones and supporters ready to move past pain and suffering and reclaim joy and happiness. You can use the workbook in a group, on your own or with your therapist.

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'Prepare to be Raw' by Matthew Warner

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Please check out and have an amazing life. Thanks.

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Copyright 2010 Louise Brookes

'The Shaolin Workout'

My brother came to stay recently with his wife and three children, (one six month baby) so I moved out into the garden and built a bender that could stand up to the torrential downpours and crazy wind we've been having. So I cut the hazel poles, made some pegs, and using any bits of cordage I could find proceeded to wrestle with tarps for the afternoon, until I had my new house! There's nothing like building your own home in a day, and then moving in. I'm just in the process of making a video of it, but here's some photos in the meantime.


I've also begun to practise Sifu Sin Yang Ming's 28 day workout using 'The Shaolin Workout' an introduction to shaolin kung fu/chan buddhism and I have to say it's having a really positive affect; the simplicity of it, and the progression of stretches as well as straightforward meditations is fantastic. I've already completed the first part, and my shoulder which was injured recently is actually healing up doing them. My niece (6yrs) and nephew (4yrs) also enjoyed them. You also get a very pure foundation in Kung Fu, more on that later but see Sifu's film under my Health and Fitness Videos, to find out a bit about him, his reasons for moving to the West and the New York Temple.

I think it's important to try new things, get out of any ruts you find yourself in. To convince yourself you can reach your fullest potential sometimes you need some cool and convincing props - the more realistic the better.

Anyhow, I've added a bigger tarp (3mx5m) over the top so that I can work outside in bad weather and have a fire, and so far it's proven extremely stable and totally waterproof and wind proof. I also get to listen to the silence and look at the stillness of night and there's nothing better than a fire, outside. The simple things of life - I think the tarps cost about £15 or 25$ spread over at least a five year period which is as long as i've had them. So that would put this under the bracket of cheap and affordable housing I think.

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• Your Optimum Diet
• Be your healthiest you
• Progress Report 1 - SAS Fit!
• Progress is Process
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• The 8 ways of living long and strong


Find your way out of Trauma:- The Survivor Warrior Workbook

This powerful workbook is used as a teaching tool with therapists, support groups and community education programs. It was inspired by Angela's Removing the Sword of Trauma events. It is for survivors, warriors, advocates, loved ones and supporters ready to move past pain and suffering and reclaim joy and happiness. You can use the workbook in a group, on your own or with your therapist.

This workbook is 117 pages long and is a DOWNLOAD. Thank you for your commitment to healing BUY NOW $9.99

'Prepare to be Raw' by Matthew Warner

Click here to view more details

Please check out and have an amazing life. Thanks.

Copyright 2010 Louise Brookes

Free Newsletter - The P.I.L.L.S Pages

I have just published the first edition of the Positive Impact Living Life Skills Pages and included in this, as well as updates, were two articles. 'One is titled Live Long and Prosper' and is a detailed article on the subject of Longevity, who lived the longest and what they did, what they ate etc; that worked so well. The other article is called 'Creating Passive Income' and is a small incentive to do just that. So if you want to keep up to date with what's happening on this site and get special articles unique to the P.I.L.L.S pages - sign up in the box below.

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Hopi Elder's Message regarding this Millenium

Bronze Age (5oooyears old) maze carving, Rocky Valley, Cornwall, UK

Hopi maze carving, Montezuma's Castle,US

When I was seventeen, I was living and working in Cornwall as an adventure sports instructor. One weekend I decided on a whim to find this ancient maze carving I'd seen on a postcard, in Rocky Valley near Tintagel. I dragged my then reluctant partner, the twelve km hike along the river looking for this maze and it really was like a maze within a maze. The path was pretty overgrown and we approached the ruin of Trewethett an 18th century mill still as yet having seen no sign of this labyrinth. Then I saw a strange overhanging rock face behind the mill, all it's cracks were stuffed with coins, ribbons and other offerings and there was the maze I'd been searching for. It's grooves were just wide enough to run your finger along them and I knew somewhere that it represented a healing journey. It was like finding a treasure, not marred by any overly protective National Trust like ticket buying and landscaping. We'd just stumbled across it. I think it was protected though and looked after. Afterwards we followed the stream to where it gushed out over the edge of the black cliffs in a fairly dramatic and noisy fashion. I looked out over the Atlantic and said silently to myself that by the end of the month I would be on the other side and funnily enough that's exactly what happened.

Stranger though was that upon my arrival in Canada I was greeted by my friend, who had returned from a trek in Hopi country. While there she had met this fellow and told him about my visit and he promptly bought this book (The Book of the Hopi, by Frank Waters) and asked her to give it to me. I didn't know him and he didn't know me and my friend Susan didn't know anything about Rocky Valley. When the book was in my hands I opened it onto a picture of the exact same maze I had seen in Rocky Valley, except this was another equally ancient, like the one above from Montezuma's Castle in the U.S.

Inwardly I had wanted this journey to be a spiritual to journey, and this it proved to be and then some. The book with the maze was just the beginning; speaking to me of a time when we were one tribe, a tribe that chose to split up and go it's seperate ways. The Hopi word for sun is the Tibetan word for moon and the Hopi word for moon is the Tibetan word for sun. Two very different yet similar worlds that I had such an affinity with came together for me very quickly. There are many more stories to tell from this journey and really it has never ended, but at the beginning there were so many signs, so many symbols, visions, dreams and questions without answers. But this isn't about that journey, this is about an email I received today from a friend forwarding this message attributed to Hopi Elder. Whether it was written by them or by a creative hippie in Portland, doesn't really matter - the message it contained was beautiful and very valid I think for those of us a little weary of all the bad news we're bombarded with on top of our own doubts and fears. So here it is:-

A Hopi Elder Speaks regading the Millenium:-

"You have been telling the people that this is the Eleventh Hour, now you must go back and tell thepeople that this is the Hour. And there are things to be considered . . . Where are you living? What are you doing? What are your relationships? Are you in right relation? Where is your water? Know your garden. It is time to speak your Truth. Create your community. Be good to each other. And do not look outside yourself for the leader." Then he clasped his hands together, smiled, and said, "This could be a good time!" "There is a river flowing now very fast. It is so great and swift that there are those who will be afraid. They will try to hold on to the shore. They will feel they are torn apart and will suffer greatly. "Know the river has its destination. The elders say we must let go of the shore, push off into the middle of the river, keep our eyes open, and our heads above water. And I say, see who is in there with you and celebrate. At this time in history, we are to take nothing personally, Least of all ourselves. For the moment that we do, our spiritual growth and journey comes to a halt. "The time for the lone wolf is over. Gather yourselves! Banish the word struggle from you attitude and your vocabulary. All that we do now must be done in a sacred manner and in celebration. "We are the ones we've been waiting for."

Attributed to an unnamed Hopi elder, Hopi Nation, Oraibi, Arizona

Tracing of Hopi Maze and close up photo of Rocky Valley maze

Related Articles:- Becoming a Human Animal, Be Your Healthiest You,An Attitude of Fierce Resolve


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tags - hopi maze montezumas castle labyrinthe labyrinth rocky valley tintagel cornwall tibetan word sun hopi word moon
http://poitiveimpactliving.blogspot.com Copyright2007 louisembrookes@hotmail.com

Amma

She says ‘The broken ones are my darlings’Amma

When I first heard of her through besotted friends I was sceptical of course, but once I saw her and what wonderful things she's doing and creating in the world I was bowled over. She is the single most impactful active person on the planet at this time working entirely for the benefit of others. If you need help of any kind or if you know anyone who needs help, just go and see her. It doesn't cost anything except perhaps your doubt or disbelief. The story of her life is miraculous both in detail and deed. I recommend reading about it on her website.

Amma's Desire "Everyone in the world should be able to sleep without fear, at least for one night. Everyone should be able to eat to his fill, at least for one day. There should be at least one day when hospitals see no one admitted due to violence.By doing selfless service for at least one day, everyone should help the poor and needy.It is Amma's prayer that at least this small dream be realised."

You can donate to Amma's projects here:- Donate and you can write Amma your prayers, worries, joys, offerings here:- Write to Amma

Amma sings about her realisation experience in the mystical song Ananda Veethi ‘The Path of Bliss’

Ananda Veethi
Once upon a time, my soul was singing
In delight through the path of bliss.
At that time, all the inner foes,
Such as attraction and aversion ran away,
Hiding themselves in the innermost recesses of my mind,
The Divine Mother, with bright gentle hands
Caressed my head,
I told Mother that my life was dedicated to Her
Smiling, She became a Divine Effulgence
And merged in Me. My mind blossomed,
Bathed in the many-hued light of divinity.
The events of millions of years gone by
Rose up within me. Thenceforth,
Seeing nothing as apart from my own Self,
A single unity, and merging in the Divine Mother
I renounced all sense of enjoyment
Mother told me to ask the people
To fulfil their human birth. Therefore,
I proclaim to the whole world
The sublime truth that she uttered,
“Oh Man, merge in your Self!”
Thousands and thousands of yogis
Have taken birth in India, and
Lived the principles visualised by the
Great Sages of the unknown past.
To remove the sorrow of humanity,
How many naked truths are there!
Today I tremble with bliss,
Recollecting Mother’s words,
“Oh my darling, come to Me
Leaving all other works.
You are always mine.”
O Pure Consciousness, O Embodiment of truth,
I will heed Your words.
O Mother why are you late in coming?
Why did you give this birth?
I know nothing, O Mother,
Please forgive my mistakes.

It was the moment of eternal bliss (Ananda) ; the moment of her realisation of the Universal Mother. From that moment onwards Sudhamani became ‘Amritanandamayi’ (one who is full, filled with eternal bliss). When She was Sudhamani (Amma‘s previous name), She was full of ecstasy. She was lost in Herself. But when She had the realisation of the Divine Mother, She became ‘Amrita’, the divine nectar that bestows eternity. She began to flow out of Herself for the benefit of mankind, in the form of love and compassion.

To find out more about Amma go to http://amritapuri.org/ She tours all around the world giving darshan (blessing).



If you have enjoyed reading this article please give a donation to one of Amma's organisations 'Amritapuri' Amma's Ashram's Main page

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tags - amma, ammachi, amritanandamayi, mata amritanandamayi, ananda veethi, miracle, mother, help, amritapuri, ashram, meditation, esoterism, yogis, miracles, positivity, help, positive, course, medicine, healing, inspiration, relief, spiritual, spirituality, conciousness raising, new age, icons, modern saints,

Essiac or Caisse Tea the Cancer Cure

burdock thistle heads
and burdock root

This tea was a native american herbal medicine used to treat breast cancer and was brought to light by the Canadian Palliative Care Nurse Rene Caisse. It has had amazing results not only in breast cancer,but other forms of cancer and illnesses. Rene Caisse herbal tea became known world wide under the name Essiac, which is Rene’s surname spelt backwards. Almost 400 people were ready to testify at a cancer commission hearing in Toronto, Canada, in 1939 that Rene Caisse had helped them alleviate their symptoms or restored them to health. Rene used a specific formula of herbs given to her by an Ojibwa Indian in her native Canada. She experimented for many years to refine the dosage.

I began making it some years ago to help with problems from M.E or Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and when my friends complained of headaches/stomachaches I would serve them a cup of Caisse Tea. Eventually I had a small growing business on my hands making the tea, which I was in no way equipt to handle at the time. It is a simple affair to make it and takes very little time, but it is necessary to make it in a state of concentration or prayer, with your intention directed at all times toward the healing and relief of illness. the reason it works so well I think is because of the synergistic relationship between the mix of four powerful herbs, each of which work extraordinary results by themselves. These are herbs that would have been in much more common use in times past. They are Burdock root (arctium lappa), powdered Sheep Sorrel (rumex acetosella), powdered Slippery Elm bark (ulmus rubra/fulva) and powdered Turkey Rhubarb root (rheum palmatum). Slippery Elm is an American Plant but all the rest grow in Europe and are quite common. Sheep sorrel is full of vitamins, Burdock is a powerful blood purifier, Turkey Rhubarb and Slippery Elm both work wonders upon the digestive tract. You can buy the herbs here 1lb for $21 which is an excellent price, I find ordering from the US is often the most value for money, or here from the UK

To make Caisse Tea it is necessary to use utensils made with near to natural materials over plastic, so wood, glass, stainless steel, clay are best. You buy the four herbs and use pure water (not tap water if possible) and follow the recipe below which was the original recipe as handed on by rene Caisse to Mary McPherson (The only person she trusted to make the formula for the cancer patients):-

_____________________________________________________________________________________

Caisse Tea or Esssiac Original Recipe

6 ½ cups of burdock root (cut)

1 pound of sheep sorrel herb powdered

1/4 pound of slippery elm bark powdered

1 ounce of Turkish rhubarb root powdered

Mix these ingredients thoroughly and store in glass jar in dark dry cupboard.

Take a measuring cup, use 1 ounce of herb mixture to 32 ounces of water depending on the amount you want to make.

I (Mary McPherson) use 1 cup of mixture to 8 x 32 = 256 ounces of water. Boil hard for 10 minutes (covered) then turn off heat but leave sitting on warm plate over night (covered). I have made it with good results just leaving it in the pan

In the morning heat steaming hot and let settle a few minutes, then strain through fine strainer into hot sterilized bottles and sit to cool. Store in dark cool cupboard. Must be refrigerated when opened. When near the last when it's thick pour in a large jar and sit in frigdge overnight then pour off all you can without sediment.

This recipe must be followed exactly as written.

I (mary McPherson) use a granite preserving kettle (10 – 12 qts), 8 ounce measuring cup, small funnel and fine strainer to fill bottles.

_____________________________________________________________________________________

The smell of the mixture alone has a wonderful earthy smell that makes you feel better even before drinking it. I also made this using 1oz of the mixed herbs to 4pints of water, to simplify.

sheep sorrel

Dosage
The dosage is simply to pour 4tablespoons of the tea and mix with 4tablespoons of boiling water and drink this 1 to 3 times per day, without exceeding this dose. I found two cups a day great initially and then brought it down to one daily maintenance dose which later became weekly, but I wasn't dangerously ill when three doses per day is recommended.

I was able to order one kilogram of the mixed herbs for £35 a few years ago, or £4 for 4oz more recently, and as 1oz makes about 8 small bottles which last for 5-8days depending on dosage, you shouldn't have to pay an arm and a leg for it which is what I have seen being sold on the internet. Caisse Tea is something that you should really make yourself if you can or have made for you by someone you know because this seems to make it more potent, in the same way homecooked food always tastes better. Indian/turkey rhubarb

Indian and Turkey Rhubarb are as far as I'm aware two names for the same thing.
To get more information on the history and types of illnesses it has helped this is the best site I have come across (http://essiacshop.com) if you know of others please let me know and I'll update. Also see the film about Essiac in my Health and Fitness Videos section, which shows Rene Caisse's story as she tells it as well as some of the many people she helped.

I know of one case where a women was being treated for cancer who also had diabetes. She recovered from both illnesses.

So I hope this serves you well. I know that Caisse Tea has helped myself and many friends get rid of persistent headaches, digestive troubles, sinusitis and skin conditions etc. Please let me know if it is of help to you or anyone you know. It is the most powerful herbal medicine I have yet come across for the range and severity of illnesses it helps.

slippery elm

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Related Posts
• 'The Benefits of Hiking and Climbing - Becoming a Human Animal
• An Attitude of Fierce Resolve
• Depression, an unnecesessary ailment?
• What to do about sore muscles!
• Your Optimum Diet
• Be your healthiest you
• Progress Report 1 - SAS Fit!
• Progress is Process
• Ultimate Fitness
• The 8 ways of living long and strong

• How to live to be 100+ Dan Buettner

Find your way out of Trauma:- The Survivor Warrior Workbook

This powerful workbook is used as a teaching tool with therapists, support groups and community education programs. It was inspired by Angela's Removing the Sword of Trauma events. It is for survivors, warriors, advocates, loved ones and supporters ready to move past pain and suffering and reclaim joy and happiness. You can use the workbook in a group, on your own or with your therapist.

This workbook is 117 pages long and is a DOWNLOAD. Thank you for your commitment to healing BUY NOW $9.99

'Prepare to be Raw' by Matthew Warner

Click here to view more details

Please check out and have an amazing life. Thanks.

Copyright 2010 Louise Brookes