November 2006 Connections

18th Annual Membership Meeting
Whole Life Network Release

Your Board of Directors has scheduled our annual membership meeting, the focal point of our year, for Friday evening, November 17th, beginning at 6:00 pm. This year we will see you at the Cimarron Creek Golf Community Club House at 901 65.30 Rd. in Montrose. The meeting will start with a Pot Luck dinner. The main course and beverages will be provided. The clubhouse does not have an oven, so hot dishes should arrive hot. Following our meal, a short business meeting will be conducted and we will elect the new Board for 2007. We will also discuss our vision and suggestions for direction for the Whole Life Network, celebrate the past year’s accomplishments, and enjoy each others company. Our schedule of activities in 2006 is unprecedented in our 17 year history.

Here is a summary:

February 18^th - Whole Life Fair
March 31^st - Harold McCoy, “Power of the focused Mind”
April 19^th - Heng Liang Shr, “A Buddhist Approach to Life”*
May 10^th - Bruce Avenell, “The Eureka Society”
May 23^rd - Maulana Kazmi, “Sufi Healing & Blessing”*
June 14^th - Polly Cady, “ABC’s of Handwriting Analysis”
July 19^th - Catherine Isabel, “Waldorf Education”
August 12^th - Mitchell Silas, “Navajo Sandpainter”*
August 16^th - Darrell Weingard, “Clean Air and Water Revolution”
September 13^th - Jaime Glover, “Feng Shui”
September 16^th, - Wholistic Emergency Preparedness Seminar*
October 25 – Clay Campbell, “”Healing and Personal Growth in Native American Cultures”

*events co-sponsored with The Community for Spiritual Awareness

The mission of Whole Life Network, through the events we sponsor, is to be a stronger connection for the people in our close and in our extended communities. Coming together, we strengthen our community’s voice and we support our extended community’s concerns and actions. To achieve our goals and fulfill our threefold mission, we need more volunteers. Can you serve on the 2007 Board of Directors? Can you donate some time and energy to sustain a network of ” those integrating personal wellness, spiritual awareness, and the sacredness of our environment”? Come to the annual membership meeting. You can call Larry Lemser at 240-0234 for more information.

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The Missing Link - Introduction to EFT
Whole Life Network Release

The Education Series continues in November with the appearance of Dr. Jerry Overton speaking on his favorite subject, Emotional Freedom Technique. The free public presentation begins at 6:00 pm on Wednesday, November 8^th at the Montrose Public Library meeting room.

Dr. Overton is quoted as saying, “ A friend in Dallas introduced me to an amazing peace-giving tool. It's called Emotional Freedom Techniques, and is offered as a universal aid to healing. The thesis is that the cause of all negative emotions is a disruption in the body's energy system. The process involves making use of a series of procedures which include tapping, humming, counting, and rolling of the eyes. It can be used effectively on anything from Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome, physical ailments, chronic pain, to improving ones golf game, and the amazing thing about this process is that it often takes only one or two one-minute routines to resolve the problem, with lasting results."

Think of the possibilities: healing, peace, contentment, happiness, abundance, and better performance in work and life… all accomplished quickly and painlessly, without medication, surgery, or years and years of therapy. So what are you waiting for? Come to hear Dr. Overton and learn more about EFT.

Jerry is a therapist, life coach, director of The Center for Personal and Spiritual Growth, and practitioner of Emotional Freedom Techniques. He can be reached at 970-252-9311 and he welcomes your call!

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Sin Boldly
by Charley Cropley

You know how we all have a weak spot in our diet; that thing we cannot seem to control when the impulse arises. Years ago mine was black licorice. On weekends I’d often buy a box of my favorite and eat the whole thing in one sitting.

Merely thinking seriously about overeating licorice would trigger a kind of pre indulgence tension and anxiety. You know that feeling when you get the first inkling to do something that you know is not really great for you? I also found that during the actual eating, which was quite pleasurable in itself, there would be that same background anxiety and it would grow worse the more I ate. I’d become increasingly uncomfortable emotionally and the voice of guilt and shame would grow louder and louder. By the time I’d finished the box my anxiety would shift into hoping I would not ever do this again or at least I’d only eat half a box. Throughout the entire process from first urge to last bite anxiety and guilt gnawed away my peace.

Then one evening I decided to run an experiment. I decided I would eat, overeat actually, an entire box of licorice and while indulging I would maintain a quality of self-talk that was highly respectful, even admiring and self-congratulatory. While I knew I would harm myself to some small degree physiologically I vowed to protect, yes, even enhance my self-esteem.

Late one Saturday night I found myself sitting at the table munching one piece of licorice after another, at times 3, 4 or 5 pieces at once. I could feel my body contracting and my mind generating such thoughts as: “ I don’t understand why you are doing this. You know what this does to you. This is stupid. You are going to regret this.” Etc. etc.

I continued to chew and swallow licorice noticing how much my body enjoyed the flavor and texture. I deliberately relaxed myself, sat with a posture of relaxed dignity, smiled inwardly and began speaking kindly to myself “Charley Cropley, I love you. You are a fine man. I admire the way you give yourself to the path of right action. You have overcome scores of habits far more difficult than this one and I am fully confident you will succeed with this. In fact you are succeeding in this very moment.”

“While in this moment I am eating licorice, I will not swallow one ounce of guilt or other negativity. In fact I intend to grow healthier and happier through this very activity. I intend to break free of this craving precisely by loving myself so strongly that I am impelled to leave licorice for something better.”

I continued like this speaking to myself anything I could that would make me feel good. Often I would talk to myself out loud to keep my thoughts from drifting back into old patterns. At one point I unexpectedly found that I no longer had the desire to eat any more licorice. The urge had left me. I was actually eager to put the box away but it occurred to me to not. I wanted to continue eating not because I could not resist the yearning but because I was being so nourished by the quality of my own inner voice in circumstances where it was normally inaudible to me. I had not anticipated this.

So here I was deliberately choosing to do something “bad” for me when I didn’t even feel drawn to do it. My inner critic was perplexed. “Whaaat? I don’t get it.” He said. “You really are stupid; This is even stupider than you usually are. You are flat out deliberately doing exactly what you know is bad for you. I’m scared. Why don’t you quit while you can? Why needlessly feed this compulsion? It will grow and you’ll regret it.” Blah, blah, blah.

As I noticed these thoughts and persisted in choosing words of self-admiration I found that my anxiety and guilt had completely vanished. Somehow I had broken an fang or claw of this monster so that it could no longer hold me and force me to do its bidding.

Previously I knew of no way to stop. I felt out of control, compelled by irresistible urges that scared me… badly. However in this moment, for the first time I felt a genuine confidence that was actually surprising to me. I was in control and I knew it. I knew I could and would win this battle and any like it.It didn’t matter what the substance was.I was more powerful.

What joy this brings me! I could have never predicted that this relatively simple act of attention and compassion would carry such healing. That it could liberate me from so much suffering.

This experience and others like it have have inspired me to want to learn how to treat myself with greater intelligence and kindness, not just in times of crisis but at all times. I am daily thrilled and amazed that there actually exists this sweet Power, capable of freeing us from the demons that drag us into a living hell of sickness and anxiety. I have fallen deeply in love with this new voice that I recognize to be none other than my own.

Dr. Charley Cropley, N.D. is a practicing Naturopathic Physician, teacher and author now living in Paonia. He has trained hundreds of doctors, taught at medical colleges and universities, produced DVDs, books and many courses in nutrition and self-healing. He uses no medicines. He teaches people to Heal all types of Health problems through the power of wholesome nutrition, strengthening exercise, positive thinking and honest, caring relationships. For Personal Appts, DVDs, books or courses call 970-527-7008 or charleycropley@tds.net.

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Remembering Aztlán
A Column of Poetry, Culture & Spirit by Art Goodtimes

RUTH ZAPORAH LIVE IN SANTA FE … Action Theater is the name of the book that Ruth wrote (ZAP Performance Projects, P.O. Box 23002, Santa Fe, NM 87502, Tel: 505 988 2676, e-mail: zap@actiontheater.com). And she is the living example of its best practice -- actress, mime, dancer, poet and performance artist who incorporates bodies of work and theory into a gripping existential one-act, transmuting each separate discipline into a dazzling improvisational whole … I’d met Ruth several months ago through Santa Fe artist friend Ana MacArthur, who rents a bungalow from her. As a fellow Bay Area émigré who’s brought her performance skills to the Southwest, I was intrigued. And after visiting in her riverside rancho, I committed to coming down for her show at the Center for Contemporary Art in the City of Holy Faith mid-September … It turned out her performance was even more stunning than I imagined -- high art, low art, captivating, culturally postmodern and downright entertaining. Easily one of the more compelling theatrical tours-de-force that I’ve seen in a dozen years… More than mere shtick, it’s a lifelong passion, this combining of theatrical genres and Ruth’s trained a corps of action theater devotees, who use many of the techniques in her book to infuse the unscripted moment with power, meaning and humor. Using pathos. Deep image. Tropes. Hers is a quantum performance with as many points of light as the observer is willing to isolate … And Action Theater has become a movement. Ruth teaches students all over the world as well as at her dance yurt on the banks of the Rio de Santa Fe … Here’s what some other folks have said about Zaporah … "Ruth Zaporah is a movement artist who has internalized a kinetic vocabulary to such an extent that she can listen to it and follow it wherever it takes her at any moment." -Rita Felciano, SF Bay Guardian … "Zaporah is a woman of many voices and many guises. The charming entertainer can metamorphose into the schizophrenic in subtle and surprising ways ... The root of her persona seems always to be a modern woman on the edge, inhabiting the body of some archetypal clown ... Whether she's engaging in rancid dialogues or telling stories, whether she's being loud and tough, or feeling put upon, we know her for a woman under siege..." -Deborah Jowitt, Voice … "Watching Ruth Zaporah in one of her performance pieces is like an exercise in surreal meditation ... With the power of a gifted actress, she gives the words and phrases and tales she tells a symphonic scope, stretching them to elusive purpose ... Her command of verbal and body language is extraordinary ... The changes were mercurial, characters flowing into on another imperceptibly ... In Zaporah's performance pieces, the language of the body and that of the voice merge identities. The body movement has a literal, narrative quality, whereas the voice is an extension of the body's moving arts." -Marilyn Tucker, SF Chronicle … For more info, check out her website: www.actiontheater.com.

POETRY & SOME HISTORY … Del Norte hosted its second Festival of the Imagination last month. It was ironic for any Tellurider to visit Del Norte. Back when the San Juans were still (technically) off-limits to non-Indians, and even after the San Juan Cession when Chief Ouray gave up a big chunk of the Utes’ “Shining Mountains” to keep the peace (and got his homestead acreage outside Montrose -- today’s Ute Museum), Del Norte was the last wagon supply point before the trail up Stony Pass to Baker’s Diggin’s (Silverton) and the Ophir/San Miguel/Rico mining camps. Most of the earliest families that homesteaded San Miguel Park outfitted in Del Norte … But fellow poet and EAR-mate Elle Metrick and I weren’t looking to get outfitted. We were searching for poetry. And we found it. In spades. In the four venues organizer Stewart Warren used to pull off a weekend of performances (Gary “Mex” Glazner of Santa Fe got a standing ovation for his hilarious and entertaining Saturday Night show), open mikes (there were several), writing workshops to get stuck writers juiced up, and lots of drums and dancing at the Wildwood Sounds Equinox Party plus lots of shared stories at the Poet’s Bunkhouse potluck party … Carnero Creek Kate opened her house to Elle (two nights) and me (one night), as well as the ubiquitous poetry organizer Dale Harris of Albuquerque, who edits the litmag Central Avenue, and Big Nurse Ingrid, who works front lines in a New Mexico psych ward and turns Ken Kesey on his head by dishing out as much love as pills and charming her patients with flute music she plays on flutes she makes herself (a most amazing woman) … Lots of our statewide poetry community came – a Denver contingent with the dean of open mikes Seth and his Human Earth Groove Band, the incomparable Kit Muldoon, yogi/poet Roseanna Frechette, photographer/poet Kit Hedman and a New Mexico contingent with Debbi Brody, Gary Brewer and Therese Bisceglia. And lots of wonderful others.

ECOLOGICAL OVERDRAFT … Humanity slid into the red last month [Oct. 9^th] and began racking up an ecological overdraft driven by unsustainable exploitation of the world's resources, according to a report by the sustainable development organization Global Footprint Network (as reported in London’s Guardian). In little more than nine months, humans have used up all that nature can replenish in one year, and for the rest of 2006 are destined to eat into the planet's ecological capital, the study claims … The Network calculated the day the global economy started to operate on an ecological deficit by comparing world demand for resources with the rate at which ecosystems can replenish them. The study drew on surveys from bodies such as the U.N. Food and Agricultural Organization … Humanity first went into global ecological debt in 1987, when the year's resources were spent by December 19. Since then, the date has leapt forward year by year to November 21 by 1995 and October 11 last year. The trend reveals the alarming effect of unsustainable lifestyles which are increasingly using up world reserves … The Global Footprint Network study suggests that nations and communities like ours need to change our lifestyles and reduce our consumption of water, energy and natural resources, as well as our waste streams, to move towards a sustainable world future … "Humanity is living off its ecological credit card," said Mathis Wackernagel of the Global Footprint Network. As you’d expect, the worst offenders are in developed countries: for North Americans the "ecological footprint" -- the land and water a person needs to sustain their lifestyle -- is 23.7 acres. For the typical African it is 3.5 acres … If every country lived frugally, only half the planet's resources would be needed to meet demand. But if the world adopted a U.S. lifestyle, four extra planets would be needed.

THE TALKING GOURD

David Feela
Cortez

© 2006 Art Goodtimes

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Rock Soup - LP and the Silver Lining
by Dea Jacobson

As I write, the third snowstorm of the season is approaching, wind whirling and spitting snow. This lasts only a few minutes, followed by intense sunlight, then more snow. Over and over today, the unstable autumn weather contributes to my already distracted mind. Earlier in the week, a few sandhill cranes were heard heading south for the winter, soon to be followed by many of the local retirees packing up and moving to their warm winter refuges. The first storm brought several inches of snow on the last day of summer! We have been anticipating a hard winter for a while. Old timers here have mentioned how many sets of twin deer fawns they’ve sighted this year as a sign that this will be a tough one. How the deer know that they need to increase their birthrate for survival a year ahead of time is one of the many mysteries of nature we get to ponder.

Less than ten miles up the road, it is winter already, and the hunters dig out of camp each day battling the elements to fill their tags. Cattle, mooing and bawling, are coming down this afternoon from higher up, slowly clomping along Highway 65. Thirty feet behind our house, two cowboys and a wily cow dog work them off the shoulders of the two-lane road to the pick up point down the hill. It’s only October 20, but here it comes.

For our preparations for the season, we have a new rat-proof woodshed, and a new airtight wood stove for our earthship, for those times when the sun doesn’t shine for a few days. It replaces a salvaged old beater we’d used for the last two winters. Our new stove has a glass door so we can watch the fire at night, which we prefer to TV most of the time. While shopping for the stove, we found out about a program funded by a fine collected from LP (Louisiana Pacific, a timber company that had plant in Olathe back in the late ‘80’s to the late ‘90’s). LP, famous for its plume of noxious smoke that stunk up the valley for years as it processed aspen into wafer board, was eventually found liable for violating air pollution standards. The money generated from their fine funded a statewide program to further reduce pollution, but this time it was from older household wood stoves. Money provided helps one purchase a new efficient wood or gas stove if it replaces an older, inefficient one. To qualify, I took a photo of the old clunker, and then Roy took it to a metal recycler who gave him a receipt to prove we’d gotten rid of it. The new stove was purchased, installed, inspected and photographed by a local building inspector. Having submitted the proper forms, we await our rebate. When it comes to reducing our carbon footprint, every little bit counts. The program, we have heard, is out of money for the year, but has helped quite a number of folks be safer and warmer this winter, as well as improving the fragile mountain valley’s air quality.

Now for some perspective. Back when LP came to Olathe, Delta County’s economy had been shaken by the closure of some North Fork coal mines and the Coors beer barley processing facility near Delta. It was a case of jobs and tax dollars versus trees and clean air.The company convinced local community leaders that they were the answer to their prayers. In the heyday of its operation, I found it an odd sight to see the piles of aspen trees stacked around the plant for processing, while the plant itself was located in a scrubby desert area, surrounded by corn and onion fields, with not a tree in sight. The Forest Plan called for nearby aspen stands to be thinned and began putting tracts up for LP and local timber companies who sold to them to bid on. Forest Service officials got caught between plant managers and local environmental groups, who worked tirelessly to maintain proper oversight of timber sales on the GMUG Forest, especially on the Uncompahgre Plateau and in areas close to regional mountain towns. The part of the forest plan addressing timber sales was challenged and took many months to be revised.

As a local congressional aide, I kept an eye on this process and eventually we were able to get two of the potentially endangered areas set aside and protected by the Colorado Wilderness bill of 1993, the Roubideau Area and the Tabeguache Area. While not given full wilderness status due to perceived upstream water rights conflicts, mining, logging and motorized travel are now restricted in those areas.

The Roubideau Area lies 15 miles west of Montrose. The creek, for which the area is named (and Antoine Roubidoux, a French fur trapper), cuts through the red cliffs of the Windgate Formation, in stark contrast to the usual high mountain terrain of most of Colorado’s wilderness areas. The Tabeguache Area is located 6 miles north of Nucla. To quote Mark Pearson, who, with photographer John Fielder wrote The Complete Guide to Colorado’s Wilderness, “...its protection marks the first time Congress has ignored arbitrary administrative boundaries (‘lines on a map’), to encompass a larger watershed spanning two federal agencies. The Forest Service manages the upper half of the area, while the Bureau of Management oversees the lower arid reaches of the canyon. Is this an example of ecosystem management in action? I certainly hope so.” The Tabeguache Area has everything from glorious aspen forests, now spared from the chainsaw, to huge ponderosa pines deep in the canyon, a thousand feet below the scruffy pinyon-juniper forests. This reversal of the normal succession of life zones is due to cool mountain air flowing down the canyon, carrying with it the biological characteristics of the uplands, according to Pearson. Most worthy of protection!

As an aside, Mark Pearson was actively involved with the Sierra Cub back then, and provided much of the research and the language for the part of the wilderness bill that protects the areas. To learn more, I highly recommend Pearson and Fielder’s book, both for the descriptions and history of the areas and for the photographs and maps of trail hikes for all our spectacular wilderness areas.

LP’s plant is being dismantled and moved elsewhere. Although its pollution took its toll over the years on the lungs of the residents of this area, that dirty cloud had a silver lining. Now we can all look forward to hiking the protected trails of the Roubideau and Tabeguache in the coming years. See you there!

Dea Jacobson, owner of Blue Heron Yoga, is a registered yoga teacher and therapist registered with the Yoga Alliance, as well as a Religious Science Practitioner. She can be reached at www.blueheronyoga.com, at Box 95 on Cedaredge, CO, 81413 or at 970 856 4905.

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The Ancient Lore on Stones
by Susan Palmer

Amber is not a stone, though valued by stone collectors for its beauty and qualities. The fossilized resin of extinct trees, amber is waterproof and alcohol proof, but softens in linseed oil and dissolves in nitric acid. It will burn in air with a flame, but releases harmful gasses. Rubbed with silk or wool, it becomes strongly electrocharged, and in ancient times was given the names Electron and Electrum for this quality. We think of amber as being yellow to orange in color, but fossil amber that has been exposed to sunlight for ten years can be a deep red and some brown, blue and green amber have been mined in the past.

Amber is often cloudy, having formed full of frothy air bubbles, and much amber that is opaque is not actually fossil amber, but something younger and softer. The younger stuff will turn white in sunlight, unable to resist deterioration. Thanks to public demand, it is common practice today to melt down a quantity of amber, clarify it, pour it, and create clear golden amber pieces for use as jewelry components. Bits of this and that and even insects are allowed to drop into the mix, making it "more valuable." Much of this kind of amber is allowed to cool too quickly and you can find mini fanned disks floating inside, a very beautiful inclusion. Still....it is amber and will have the qualities of amber.

Ancient Greeks believed amber was formed of solid bits of the sunbeams that were broken off when the sun set into the ocean. They only found amber on the beach, and also called it sea stone, for it floated on top of the waves.

They wore it and ground it up to treat headaches, bleeding, toothache, rheumatism, jaundice, enlarged goiter, and to prevent miscarriages. Today we consider it to be an astringent, so they must have had success with it in many of those old uses.

Today's "healing" uses of amber include endocrine system, lungs, spleen, and heart. Belonging to the first chakra, it is assigned to Mercury when yellow. Red is assigned to Saturn and Pluto. It is assumed that the more opaque amber is, the better it affects the physical body.

Amber is happiest set in gold, but does well in silver too. A necklace of amber chips or beads should help the lungs and ease a sore throat or cough. There is a subtle flavor to amber, more sensed than any of the other stones I have presented so far. Let the aura of amber mix into your aura this winter, and enjoy better health.

Susan Palmer is the author of several volumes of poetry and a research text The Gemstone Healing Amulet, Making One That Works For You. She offers private and public sessions for groking stones. 240-3605.

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Peaceful Contributions for the Soul
by Kathy Gates

As we move into the month of November we come to the wonderful day of Thanksgiving. A time to give thanks, to have a deep gratitude, to be aware of all that we are, the beauty of each individual and their gift to life. To be aware of all that we have, for the earth and all she provides, for each sacred breath we take, for the cleansing waters, for our bodies, minds, and spirits. It is also a great time to go within, to be still and thank our Creator for this life.

Our earth is changing, slowing down, and becoming still as winter is on its way. We can fallow the perfect universe and keep our eyes on its phases. Notice the intelligence at every level. Every season has a purpose, every time of day has its own purpose or night, the perfect stars shine with the moon in the darkness. There is Great Intelligence in everything, including each of us as human beings.

To reach our true nature we must become still and listen for our own inner wisdom. Let go of our daily chatter, stop our busy routines and still our minds and be still.

Sometimes this can be difficult to do. There are several ways to help us along in becoming still. Here are a few ways that I have tried when my mind was busy thinking to hard, or I had to much work to do, or I just couldn't seem to get focused to meditate in stillness. First I remind myself that I ant to be with my Spiritual Center. In this place I know I will find the peace I need once I reach It.

Try focusing on the breath, listen to it as it comes in and out. Take deep breaths down to the belly, hold it and then release, as you release let go of whatever you need to. Continue to do this until you start to feel calm and at ease. Become relaxed, and then continue to focus on your breath until you are still. With no thought, nor thing in the silence. This could take a while so be gentle with yourself. No hurry

Or you can try this, its very beautiful way to become still.

Get yourself a beautiful flower, get two if you like. Or you can choose a sacred object, something sacred to you. Stare at it for a period of time. Keep your focus on it until you become calm. Like a daze. You will feel yourself becoming still, relax and be still with it. When you are finished you could give someone you love the other flower or both flowers, it will make you feel good.

Another great way to become still I learned from a friend. Start out by saying these words. Be still and know that I am God then take a pause. Begin again by saying the words but drop one word off of the end of the phrase take a pause and fill in the blank. Then pause, repeat it until you get to the last word. Be.

The more I practice being still the easier it becomes. This is one thing I want to continue to improve on in my own life, one day I would like to be able to be still anywhere or anytime. It's been well worth my time, because when I am still and I don't have any expectations from It, I am at peace and that is truly worth it, to be calm and at peace with myself, and all life around me. It is most beautiful.

Just like the earth is cleansed by the rain, snow, wind ect. We are cleansed by the Spirit within us.

Blessings to each and everyone and Happy Thanksgiving to all!

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Stress Free
© Anne Calzada Herbalist

Life is busy, and with the holidays coming up things can get a little harried. Daily activities or life changing events can bring on stress Things like moving, marriage or finding a new job can create tension and anxiety. This is the time when we need nourishment of body, mind and soul. So often do people react destructively when dealing with stress, overeating, drinking, smoking or even shutting down. I know that I have,and when I get to that point, I try to remember to put everything into perspective and rely on the pharmacy of plants for extra support. Making sure that you are getting adequate nutrition is the first step, as stress can deplete your reserve of vitamins and minerals. The B Vitamin group is essential. Choose a good B Complex that contains all of the B's as they work together synergistically. Eggs, nutritional yeast, nuts, seeds and grains are some good sources for B vitamins.

Iron is helpful for keeping energy levels up, especially for women. Choose from beets, greens, grains, meats or formulas that contain yellow dock such as "floradix".

Calcium and magnesium are the "calming" minerals. These two help to soothe and support the nervous system. Oats are a great source of these two minerals. Any seaweed, greens and grains are good. Yogurt and kefir are nourishing foods rich in calcium.

Herbal infusions are most helpful in obtaining mineral complexes. Choose from nettles, oatstraw, red clover, alfalfa, raspberry or dandelion leaves. Use 1 cup of herb per 1 quart of water and let sit at least 4 hrs to extract minerals, strain and drink!

Other herbs that are useful during stressful times are:

Chamomile (Matricaria recutita) Rich in calcium, it is a calming nervine.

Lemon Balm (Melissa officinalis) An uplifting plant with antispasmodic and nervine properties.

Skullcap (Scutellaria laterfolia) Helping to rebuild the myelin sheath of the nerves, it is antispasmodic, calming and supportive of the nervous system.

Oatstraw (Aveena sativa) Rich in calcium and magnesium, it nourishes and feeds the nervous system.

Catnip (Nepeta cataria) Calming and soothing, it relaxes people and makes cats happy.

Passionflower (Passiflora incarnata) Antispasmodic, it is calming and discourages insomnia.

Valarian (Valariana officinalis) Antispasmodic and anodyne properties encourage calm and induce sleep.

Hops (Humulus lupulus) Sedative in action, reducing tension and for insomnia

Flower essences can help with psychic and emotional pressure. Taking an aromatherapy bath does wonders for the soul. Remember to add 2 cups of Epsom salt, as magnesium sulfate is calming. Add lavender, rose geranium, chamomile or rosemary essential oils to the water.Light candles, burn your favorite incense, play soothing music. Burn sage or other herbs and smudge yourself and your house. Treating yourself to a massage, facial or pedicure is both beneficial and relaxing. Share foot rubs with your beloved, or just spend time over tea talking with someone that you can trust and depend on to listen. Attend church or another spiritual group or function where your soul is fed and regenerated. Walking or exercise is a great stress reducer, and you can get outside and see Nature while you are doing it! Most of all remember to say your prayers, count your blessings and give thanks for all of the beauty that is in your life!

Soothe Me Tea

1 part Chamomile
1 part Lemon Balm
1 part Oatstraw
Use 1 heaping tsp. to 1 cup of water.

Calming Bath Tea

2 part Oats
1 part Chamomile
1 part Lavender
1 part Rose

Put into a sock or muslin cloth. Throw into the bath and enjoy!

Anne Calzada is a Certified Herbalist and founder of Healing Heart Herbs. For consultations please call 626 5663 or email her at annecalzada@aol.com.

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Smart Politics
by Dr. Jerry Overton

I know—I can hear your chuckles now—an oxymoron for sure, using “smart” and “politics” together. And, from my perspective, one look at the present administration would confirm those chuckles—an “oxy-moron” in the flesh.

And yet, on the more serious side, if what we’re seeing in the present administration doesn’t look too smart, in terms of best serving the American people and enabling peace throughout the world, then we must remember just who put them there—a majority of the American voting public—many of whom were our friends, neighbors, colleagues, and perhaps even a few spouses thrown in for good measure. And maybe even some of you.

And for those of us who didn’t cast our vote that way, it would be easy to pass the buck, and say “Well, you can’t blame me; I surely didn’t vote for any of them.” And perhaps you didn’t, and yet, how hard did you work to make sure that all those others whom you know didn’t either? How hard did you work to educate yourself and them on the real issues that face us as a people, a nation, and a world? Just how smart and industrious were you in making sure we would have smart politics governing our land and that would impact an entire planet?

Now, I’m not saying those in power are dumb. For to be sure, they’re smart enough (likes foxes in the hen house) to secure billions for themselves and their constituency through wars-for-profit, huge tax breaks for those same wealthy ones, and numerous laws that allow for yet more corporate greed. They’re smart enough to convince most of the American public that it’s all in our best interests. And they’re smart enough to propagate enough fear that most all of us are terrified to question their actions or challenge their authority, much less make other political choices.

So, the question becomes, just how smart are we to continue to let them get by with all that raping and pillaging of our land, our people, and our world?

“Well”………..(as a former actor in the White House used to say), I must confess that I haven’t been very smart, for I’ve done little beyond my own vote to insure smart politics. So, how can I now complain?

And yet, what I can do now is to seize this next opportunity coming on November 7^th and make smarter choices, and help those I love and care for to do the same. I can educate myself, get smart about the issues, share what I know with them, and do the very best I can to insure that smart politics (those that consider the best for all people) is what we get from now on. For not only does our country, but our very planet, depend on it.

And if you think that’s an overstatement and don’t believe it’s true, then you haven’t seen the film An Inconvenient Truth. I saw it two days ago, and am now more convinced than ever that one of the smart things we have to do is to act to stop global warming within the next ten years, or it may be too late.

And that’s where smart politics come in. For even though you and I can do much on our own to limit the carbon dioxide emissions we cause, the impact of our individual efforts won’t likely be sufficient. We must have a President and a Congress who are willing to recognize the problem of global warming, the effects it is having on our world, and set and enforce standards sufficient to significantly address the problem. And since the US is the biggest contributor to the problem, we have to be the best source of solving it. And having smart politicians in the White House and Congress, ones who are willing to believe the truth and put that truth before corporate profits and political capital, is one smart way to make sure our planet survives.

It’s up to you and me. Will we be smart this election—smart enough to realize that we can elect smart politicians who will believe the truth and be courageous enough to stand firm against corruption and corporate greed, and make decisions that can benefit all people? Will we reach out to those we love and help them make smart choices, too?

I pray we will!

Copyright    Dr. Jerry Overton

Jerry is a practitioner of the Emotional Freedom Technique, a powerful tool for healing depression, addictions, and emotional and physical illnesses of all kinds. He can be reached at 970-252-9311.

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