Traveling Can Open Many Doors

Traveling can open many doors.  Pack your bags and go somewhere new!   Many people never get to travel or they choose to stay "safe" at home.  They find comfort in their everyday repetitive world.  

 Our world has become smaller and smaller. Traveling hundreds or thousands of miles in one day gives us opportunities to experience different parts of the world past generations only dreamed of.  Throughout history, thousands of families have perished on long treks, over dangerous mountains, through life threatening deserts, and large bodies of water, to arrive in new lands.  Today, we get on line and within minutes we are booked to a far away place.  

We travel for many reasons.  While we are traveling we meet new friends with different lifestyles, behaviors and beliefs.   Eating different foods, hiking new trails, swimming in different waters, shopping in different communities, all adds to the richness of the journey. 

Is it better to keep things the same, like we have been taught? or change?

When we choose to travel we open up to new possibilities and new experiences which change us forever.  When we seek to change ourselves we change the world and better our life.

Eating Well

Eating well is an issue for everyone. Every day, several times a day, one must make multiple decisions regarding food.  These decisions are inescapable, and relevant to every other decison we make.  What you choose to eat becomes the foundation for your physical, mental, and emotional well being.
Animals are born with an innate sense of what they should eat.  Instinctual recognition of food in their enviornment is a survival mehanism.  There are still cultures of people who use their instincts to survive, but for most of us, this is not a factor. 
Going to the market to purchase food is a surreal experience. Everything is packaged to attract, distract, and convince us that we must have it.  Even if you go with a pre planned list of items, you will undoutedly buy several more.
How do we survive the food mecca, and all the products, many of which we could live without?
Do we live to eat or eat to live?  Don't misunderstand, I love to eat.  But is there a line between eating healthy and  eating unhealthy?  When have we overeaten, and why did we eat something we absolutely knew we shouldn't have?  Does it even matter and why are we taking drugs to "kill" the pain of indigestion?
There really is no excuse for eating unhealthy when we have so many healthy choices.
Eating unhealthy is self destructive.  Like smoking cigarettes.  Many young people understand the effect of smoke on their lungs and organs at an early age due to proper education in our schools.  They get to make an informed decision. How does a young person today get proper information on eating healthy?
For most, we eat what our parents or "culture" dictates.  Children grow up eating the same foods everyday until they become teenagers and have some freedom and opportunity to begin making personal choices.
Most families do not support menu choices that deviate from their standard family fare.
Not until a person moves out of the home do most of the new choices take place.
Parents choices are also dictated by enviornmental factors.  If you live in a remote area, a city, a university town, another country, or your home town, influences on your dietary habits will change.
College life can present new opportunites to make choices and be influenced by others with different habits, but generally speaking, there is no formal opportunity to learn about food and its affects on your life.
My own case is interesting.  I went to college in Vermont with Julie, a long time high school best friend.
The support of a friend can be a wonderful thing.  We roomed together in the dorm and ate at the cafeteria with friends.  Two months into the first semester, I noticed I had gained almost 10 pounds.
We both agreed the starchy, fried fare was not what we were used to, so we purchased a hot plate and a small refrigerator.  Now we were in charge of buying and preparing our own meals.  This was new territory for both of us, but fun and challanging.  Cooking in a dorm room, on the sly, is no easy task.
The following year we moved into an apartment in town and cooked the most wonderful meals and were never short of dinner guests, as college students love to eat. We moved again, into a house with another student.  Michael was a healthy vegetarian.  I had grown up to believe that vegetarians were pale, sickly, desperate people.  Needless to say, vegetarianism was fun, easy and felt healthy.  Many of my quirky digestive issues as a child, began to subside and eventually disappear. Being a vegetarian for the past 40 years has been the best choice for my dietary needs.  I have learned to pay attention to my body's responses to food, digestion, energy, and my minds crazy desires to overturn the wisdom of self discipline and sordid need to self destruct.  Everyone has eaten something they wish they hadn't.  That's the self destructive demon that chooses short term pleasure over long term well being.
Staying healthy is quite the job in this world. And extremely important.  Not only is getting sick miserable, it is expensive and you have to rely on doctors, nurses, aides, tests, friends, family, co workers, etc. who have to take control over your health and your life while you are down.  No one really chooses to be sick, but when we make poor choices for ourselves, that's were we are headed.  Do you want what you want or do you want what works??  If you chose what works, you end up on a road that takes you, ultimately to what you want...health.
Karen

Karen Carlsson: Excuses

Karen Carlsson: Excuses

Excuses

How many excuses have you made today?  For most of us, that can be a very difficult question to answer.
I suspect that you don't even know when you have made one, as it happens so quickly.
For instance, I woke up this morning and the first thing on my mind was "Today I will get on the treadmill and finally start my exercise program." Less than a minute later I had my exercise clothes on ready to go.
Wow, it felt great to be back on track again.  I brushed my teeth and headed towards the machine.  Suddenly, I was warmly greeted by our lab Angel who nudged me into the kitchen for breakfast. And then it happened.  I fed Angel, did the dishes, swept the floor, and started the laundry.  After all, I really didn't have time to do most of these chores during the week and it is the weekend.   Then my husband said it's time for us to leave and meet his appointment and  head for the hot springs.  It's all good right? Spontaneity makes life flow, right?  I guess so, but something is missing. Even after a wonderful morning, I am left knowing that I have made another excuse for not doing what is important to me.  So what does it take to keep true to one's personal goals without excuses?  Where is our self discipline?  How do we create a supportive environment? Let's not forget time management!  (Probably good subjects for a later discussion).

Then there are those other types of excuses.  The ones we tell  because we don't want to disappoint others or honestly say "no" and confront our short comings.  Once you get in the habit of making excuses for your actions or lack thereof, it becomes a disease.  At least it does in the minds of those that get tired of hearing them.
Instead of agreeing to do something for someone and then make an excuse for not getting it done, isn't better to just not set that perception in the first place?  Better to say, 'I will give you a call later and let you know if I can do that for you."  It's selfish to disappoint someone when you know they are counting on you, and undoubtedly you will count on your "book of excuses" at the end of the day.  Throw away the old thing and treat each person and event with the same respect.  Be honest, even if you think the other person will be disappointed.  At least you will have the opportunity to gain their respect and work on a plan that will not end in conflict.
Children tell their parent's stories or excuses because they are afraid to tell the truth and get into trouble.
It's time to grow up, we are not 3 feet tall anymore....
Karen

Loving Oneself is a Tricky Thing

Loving oneself is a tricky thing. I believe it's best to start with all the little ways to love oneself and build on them. For example, if you are confused or worried or anxious about the future, it's best to just focus on today, day by day, and let the future unfold. The little things we do for ourselves every day make us stronger and prepare us for the unexpected. For example, if you develop good daily habits, such as eating healthy, getting a good night sleep, keeping your space orderly, hang out with like minded friends, read books that benefit you, keep close to the ones you love, schedule your homework in time to get it done without stressing out, then you are grounded in the moment, in the day and eventually, in the future. Once you become grounded, you feel secure in yourself, no matter what happens around you. Loving yourself is being yourself. Being yourself is the toughie. Friends and family can appear to bring a lot of stress into the equation of "your self". When you want to change your ways, or your direction in life, most everyone you know will question you, doubt you, or even be disappointed with your decisions. It's not easy, sometimes you lose friendships along the path. The question is whose path are you on? Your path, or their path? When you chose your path, people who love you will respect you. Others will feel betrayed, even left behind. That is their choice. Remember everyone has expectations...everyone is going to be disappointed when those expectations are not met. We all have to grow beyond what we expect, work hard/smart for what we want and what we believe in. We must allow our expectations to disperse into new possibilities, creating a future that is unknown and undetermined.

Karen

Teachers are naturally held to the higher standards of their teachings.

We naturally expect our teachers to embody what they teach us.
What good is a teacher who has only "read" and "discussed" the subject before us?
If this was enough to be "the teacher", then sixth graders should be qualified to teach third graders.
What qualifies an individual to be a teacher?
We learn from each other in all our interactions, everyday.  In essence, we are all "teachers"
Someone could teach you something that will change you and your life, with their eyes, an acknowledgment, a smile, a passionate glance.
A spiritual connection can penetrate and awaken your heart and you will never be the same.

Setting out to be a teacher or teach can lead to a variety of experiences.  The reality is, if you choose to go to college, pass your classes, even with below average grades, you can get a dipolma to "teach". Then, this individual has the ability to have a as much of an affect, and in some cases more of an affect, than you have on your children.

What do you really know about your childs teacher?
It's time for a parent teacher revolution.


The public should have access to every teachers:
1.   Education and college records.
2.   Organizations
3.   Community service records
4.   Volunteer records
5.   Personal mission statement
6.   Future aspirations
7.   Most important people in their lives
8.   Who they most admire
9.   Their philosophy of teaching
10. Why they chose to be a teacher
11. Why they chose this town, school, grade, to teach.
12. Letters of recommendation by past students and parents

Such information can provide parents with an understanding of the teacher's background and personal philosophies.
Most importantly parents who become or feel connected to their childrens teacher develop a trust in the teacher and the school.
Students have a higher level of success if the foundation at home and at school is strong, positive and foward moving.
The student must know that everyone is working together for them.  The student must be empowered.
To empower a student we must provide positive role models.
Teachers who embody the passion for learning encourage students to grow as creative individuals.
Unfortunately, too many schools today are saddled with the same dilemas in the classroom, school politics, and lack of student expression, that generations of students before them have been unhappy about.
Schools are poorly run businesses.  Many would be out of business if they were not publicly funded.
How many families would chose to pay for the education their child now receives?? 
The schools would have to put the students first.
The parents would require their concerns be addressed, or they would go elsewhere.
The effectiveness and citizenship of the teacher would be accurately judged as worthy or not to meet parent and student requirements.
WOW.
Have you ever met a teacher that has the excellence of mind and the passion for their subject matter?  A teacher who is dedicated to the material on an experiential level?  A teacher who embodies and exudes the energy necessary to share and affect others-to open minds and hearts, to awaken, to stir, to encourage, to challange, provoke, to learn?  These teachers are infectious, loved, revered, respected, sought after, never forgotten and impart timeless teachings to their students.
They are role models.  Their love and passion for teaching is obvious.
Teachers who are passionate about their subject and their students have a strong connection to both.
They naturally shine and their students are blessed.  The exchanges that happen in this classroom are magical.  New ideas are shared, new possibilites are created.
Sometimes students lose their way, judge themselves too harshly, feel they are incapable of success.
Wise teachers lift their students above their past conditioning and accept them as they are growing.
These teachers keep their students focused. A teacher's continuous belief in their student can empower them to overcome their personal setbacks.
Each students success is unique and individualized.  A true teacher is delighted with the small as well as the larger successes they make.
A students success is often defined by their teacher.  It is a "power" a teacher has over their student.
If a teacher judges the students attempts as failures, the student can internalize this as rejection and withdraw.
It would probably be easier for a student to recover from a fist-fight with a teacher then the sword of rejection...leading to the hollow sound of apathy, surrender to the students worst fears and ultimately the repression of their talents.
Our teachers must also be able to recognize each student as a unique and creative individual.
We must teach our children to choose their teachers wisely.
Karen
Dedicated to German and Valentina Zamuel

Blogger Idiocy

This is the beginning and ending of me.  I decided to take the plunge into the  blogger-sphere of life.  I may regret this, or,  I may be free of all the fears that bind me from actually "doing it" and "getting on with it" in my life.

I suppose I am not alone and maybe even one step ahead of someone who may just "be thinking about it".

We each lay down a stone on the path and the path becomes more defined.  We each add a little texture and color and I suppose a bit of earthiness to it all.  Yea,  for those who lead the way and for those of us who pick up the scent and take new risks.

Can you imagine being the very first one...that seems unreal. That someone had an original thought and the guts to put it out there.  I always suspected that most of the time we are busy manipulating thoughts we read and hear and are taught and then break them down and switch them around until we believe we have created something...new.

I am not sure if I can come up with something entirely new.

Karen