Reflect ... Smile And Give :) Posted by Deven P-Shah, May 18 2019 The conversation between our Awakin Call guest Jeremy Lent, our moderator Terry, and anchoring host Pavi showed me a very simple and yet profound way to interpret and relate to the world that I live in. I got so many nurturing vibes in the paradigm of striking harmony with all that is around me. I feel so energized by simple ideas I can implement today to be the change that seem so nurturing, healing and deeply meaningful. Here are ripples from the call as they resonated with me. When Preeta emailed me introduction for Jeremy, the theme of "Patterning Instinct" intrigued me. Patterns we identify from the history give meaning to our lives, to our very existence; these patterns drive our values dictating what we accept and adopt as cultural norms. The insight that left an impression on me is about the shift in pattern that started about 500 or so years ago. What was ... Read Full Story

Magic Mirror At Our School :) Posted by Daniela Gunther, May 18 2019 Last June, Anne shared the stunning short film, Magic Mirror of Betty Peck, at an educators gathering where two teachers from our school participated. Inspiration was in the air. We knew we had to share that spirit with our students. Last Fall, Anne visited our school to brainstorm possibilities. We invited our Middle School students to construct a Magic Mirror for our school garden (as a surprise for the rest of the school :)) -- and they were in! Many other community members weighed in with many forms of support. They spent over half the year working on it! Yesterday was the grand unveiling. :) Here's a slideshow of the journey: It's incredible to witness how seeds of compassion, sown by one kindergarten teacher over half a century ago, continues to multiply into so many blooms of possibility today. So much gratitude to this ecosystem and the way we mirror life's abundant opportunities to each other. :)

21 Day Kindness Challenge At Maher! Posted by Christine Lendorfer, May 18 2019 Inspired by KindSpring, I introduced the 21 Day Kindness Challenge to the children of Maher, a home for neglected children, street-children and orphans in India. 150 children and their house mothers participated in this. The first week was dedicated to create a sense of awareness of acts of kindness we do anyway... kindness towards myself, kindness towards other people, our environment, kindness towards animals and nature in general. Every house (20 children) got one book and was asked to write down acts of kindness they did themselves or they observed others to do. They could also comment on writings of their peers. At the assembly of all houses at the end of the week they shared their writings and thoughts about this challenge. Also shy children were encouraged to speak in front of a big audience and their empowerment was almost touchable. The second and third week the children were asked ... Read Full Story

Community Capital In The Capital Of Diamonds Posted by Rohit Rajgarhia, May 16 2019 For the last year and a half, I have been soaking in and receiving in multiple ways from this priceless community. Below is an attempt to introduce myself to you online, through this extra-long post, and the context of this sharing is the circles which Parag bhai triggered, during my short visit to Surat to meet my sister. So my sister and jeeju were totally confused. The object of confusion is that their brother came to meet them on a short 3 days trip, but now is scheduled to hold 4 ‘talks’, different places in the city. Where are you talking, what are you talking, and most importantly, how did you get the audience? Some questions in their head, and mine as much. :-D My sister accompanied me for the first talk and in the concluding sharing circle she says that she has never heard me say many of these things, maybe ... Read Full Story

Conversations: Work Of The Heart Posted by Richard Whittaker, May 16 2019 This month's 'Conversations' newsletter is themed Work Of The Heart. Each of our four offerings tell of a life of meaning. Each tell of deep relationship. How else could the heart be engaged? And there are so many ways. In "The Secret of Bayou Teche," poet Ron Hobbs tells of childhood experience. "That morning cormorants lazed around in the sky; two old pelicans stood sleeping on a rock, and the trees were full with flocks of chattering passerines. ‘Watch the birds, chere they gonna tole you lots of things.’"

Love For Pancho From A 9 Year Old Posted by Kozo Hattori, May 16 2019 Yesterday, 9 year old Fox asked, "Dad, when are we going to get hugged by that Indian woman again?" "Oh, Amma, we can go this summer," I replied. "How old is she, Dad?" Fox asked. "She must be 78 or 80," I said. "Whose going to hug everyone when she dies?" asked Fox. This made me think about our dear friend Pancho who is on his pilgrimage for one earth family. Our dear undocumented love warrior is walking towards what some have designated as the border to show support for all who seek refuge. When I told a friend about Pancho's pilgrimage, he asked, "Isn't that dangerous to walk toward the border if you are undocumented?" Pondering the absence of Amma, I began to worry about "whose going to do Pancho if Pancho isn't around?" Then I realized that my fears were ego-based. Pancho will always do Pancho wherever the road takes him. I just ... Read Full Story

Life Is Beautiful Posted by Ashima Goyal, May 16 2019 Life is beautiful and we are blessed to be part of such a loving community! We arrived in Houston last Sunday and since then almost everyday is a day full of gratitude. A day when someone or other reached beyond to embrace us in the warmth of human connection. Yesterday, we hosted our first Awakin Houston circle. It was just me and Sikander and an empty cushion for the invisible :-) We hope to re-start the circles from next week but we wanted to host one for ourselves before or rather host ourselves to ground us in the spirit of these circles before we are worthy of hosting others. For at least a month our home will just be a mattress and these few cushions until our stuff arrives from Romania. I was getting a bit conscious of starting Awakins without having any cushions for people to sit on but after yesterday we felt we should just send out the invitation and see how the universe responds. The space organizes itself so beautifully that we will be fine :-) Thank you for all your good vibes!

The Illusion About Money That Is Destroying Society And Posted by Bill Miller, May 15 2019 Despite the range and complexity of the challenges facing the modern world, a fundamental illusion exists in the currency of society (in both the literal and figurative sense) that magnifies many if not most social and ecological problems. It lies in the universal medium of exchange known as “money”. Specifically, essential as money has been to the evolution of society, the nature and function of money itself has quietly evolved over the centuries, yet our conceptions of it have remained unconsciously, even superstitiously, stuck in the past. In brief, money originated as a claim-ticket for items of physical value. Many commercial items were difficult to bring to market (land, cattle) while others were dangerous to carry around (precious metals and gems), so it was useful to create a token medium to exchange in their stead. Over the decades and centuries, by a process of Pavlovian conditioning, money itself began to take on ... Read Full Story