Let's Help JAPAN!!!!!!

JPRI Japan Relief Fund w/ Give2Asia

JPRI (Japan Policy Research Institute) in collaboration with Give2Asia (a highly respected organization that works DIRECTLY with locally-based NGOs) has created a fund which will go directly to locally-based aid efforts on the ground in Japan.

Unlike many other aid organizations, one of the awesome criteria of Give2Asia is that relief supplies must be bought in the LOCAL COMMUNITY. that's right--->supporting retailers, groceries, doctors, hospitals, etc. who are in the effected disaster zone. by utilizing this approach, not only are immediate needs being met, but the local economy is strengthen, providing for the future.

spiritual grounding?

i'm not sure if "irony" is the correct word to use, however, i am noting here and now i find it "ironic" that --while my main lecture class is based in philsophy/religion of asia, i personally have not attended a church service since early november. having grown up in a very spiritually active family, i find the lack of a spiritual anchor unsettling. that being said, i simply can not find a church home/tradition where i feel i am growing/being nurtured spiritually.

my family background is middle-ground-to-conservative protestant. i left the denomination i grew up in for a more liberal/open minded one (i.e. ordains women, acknowledges other religious truths, welcomes persons of ALL backgrounds- not just the ones they are comfortable with). i feel great affinity to judaism. i enjoy buddhism. i am madly in love with the moon and wish fervently for open acknowledgment of the goddess.

so i haven't been to church.

today--for those of you familiar with the Christian liturgical year-- is ash wednesday, the beginning of the lenten season. lent has always been special for me. it's quite honestly my favorite part of the church year ( some blame my upbringing and their penchant for embracing guilt/sorrow/misery/mourning). i ached to find an ash wednesday service i could attend between my volunteering and class. apparently lent's not a huge deal around these parts unless you're catholic.

finally i found an episcopal cathedral open to the public for prayer/contemplation, etc. i walked their labyrinth. i lit a candle to st. mary magdalene and prayed for the women in my life. i sat in the pew, gazed at the magnificence and read the ash wednesday liturgy to myself.

i walked away a little bit more grounded.

twentyten

here's to a prosperous new year to all!


i have never been one for making resolutions. but this year/this decade feels auspiciously perfect for new beginnings. so, while i would hesitate to call the below "resolutions", i will think of them as steps/guidelines for living abundantly in this new year.

1. nurture my creative spirit (even if it's only on the small scale): i managed  to score a copy of "the artists way" for $1 at the creative reuse depot. while i can't guarantee that i will follow it religiously, i think using it as a tool may be helpful. the part about artist dates in particular. i have no "goal" of finishing it in the 12-week manner it proponents but i will be working my way through it.

2. make better choices in taking care of myself: this one will require lots of baby steps and covers a range of issues. from making sure that i eat when i feel hungry (and not just ignore it) to staying properly hydrated. also things like following through on regular or semi-regular acupuncture, learning to like/accept myself/ compliment myself/ get my mojo back, consuming less (in the consumerism sense) and consuming less of things that are bad for me.

3. re-find my faith. in myself. in g_d. in humanity. in the greater good. in optimism. this on is also a tall order. it helps that, when the semester begins, my main class will be on asian philosophy and religion. what a great place to start! as for the others, with all the other work i'll be doing, i can only hope they will fall into place---but i'm not expecting miracles. it's hard to have any amount of faith in humanity as a whole--the minute something amazing and awe inspiring happens, giving me hope that people *don't* suck, i get reminded of the fact that people close to me believe any of the following: that sarah palin would make a great vicepresidential candidate; that our current president is a secret muslim terrorist because he won't 'support' the national day of prayer; that there is NO SUCH THING as global warming, etc. etc. etc.

here is to new beginnings!

tell me all your thoughts on god....

while walking through the downtown area yesterday i had one of those moments that, for whatever reason, embeds itself in your brain. a punk-ass little preteen was goofing around with his friends when he got hurt (i guess) and exclaimed "jesus christ that hurt!" not too abnormal. besides being taken aback due to how young he was--and then remembering my old bus commute where kids even younger swore so much it made *MY* ears hurt--i began to wonder...


does the power of the words lose power if the symbolic meanings attached to them aren't there??? the area (and culture) i live in is not known for its judeo-christian background or for housing a plethora of religious institutions of the judeo-christian variety. do phrases like "jesus christ", "god damn" or even "go to hell" cease to hold as much symbolic power if the person uttering them is an atheist? a buddhist? a hindu? a pagan?

are there atheist/buddhist/hindu/pagan equivalents to judeo-christian blasphemy? do people use these terms because they learned them from television? does it mean anything to them *personally* beyond being seen as "swear words lite"?

10 words i think are pretty

(for my dear friend and her epic battle with spideroids of DOOM)

1. juxtaposition

2. cacophonous

3. melancholy

4. betwixt

5. archaeopteryx

6. grace

7. melodious

8. odoriferous

9. dystopian

10. tanoshikatta (it was enjoyable/ i enjoyed it)