Winter AGAIN! Ahhhh!

So what to say except winter is back, or maybe it just got here! At this point I really can't say for sure but the photo above is what it looked like yesterday morning when we got up. Surprisingly it didn't seem that cold unless you caught a huge gust of wind that happened to be fully loaded with the dry powdery snow that was making interesting drifts right across my path to the horses.

This winter I'm feeding round bales for a few weeks and of course I've got about 75 squares in the barn. Testing the waters so to speak as we never fed the big round bales in BC and so I wasn't sure how long a big one would last for Ambra and Sierra. As a result, rather than bringing the girls in each night, I've left them out in their shelter with continuous food. The one drawback to this is that I have to bring water out to them at least three times a day. Not bad when the sun is shining but really the pits if you just got out of bed and you'd rather curl up with your book and a coffee. But, they have to drink and so out I go....

Are You a Bleeding Heart?

I used to frequent various forums and get involved in the discussions there. I liked them because it was possible to share ideas or dispute the ideas of others but in a format where I felt less vulnerable. If the other party was getting too aggressive, it was easy to just step back from the whole thing until I could come up with an answer for them. Or to take a break until I could simmer down. I remember one that was for people interested in horses, the disciplines, training methods, care of and all that sort of thing. It was about that time that I became aware of the brutalities of rodeos and after spending some time investigating and learning about this "traditional" entertainment, I began discussing the pros and cons on the horse forum. And at the same time, discussing the pending legislation in the States regarding closing down the horse slaughterhouses. As you may have already guessed, I am not in favor of rodeos and I was in favor of closing down those slaughterhouses. But these are not the points of this blog, not today. And in case you are disappointed, a discussion of these particular issues will come on another day.

No, today I want to talk about something that came up in the course of those prior conversations, the label that was thrown at me, "bleeding heart". As I read the reply to one of my statements, the poster was accusing me of being a bleeding heart. Strangely enough, in that first moment, I felt greatly offended. And therein lies the beauty of these forums because rather than just flying off the handle and reacting out of my moral indignation, I had the time to consider my reply, to weigh my words and to examine the label. As I pondered what my reply should be, I realised that being called a bleeding heart is a compliment of the purest kind, even if it is not intended that way. It implies a heart so tender that the suffering of others is as your own and engenders a desire to help relieve that suffering. From insult to blessing in an instant. And if I recall correctly, my reply was pretty simple and I said "at least it shows that I have one".

Feelings? Should we dismiss them as we make our decisions, or should we look to them to see what truth might be cradled in the midst of them? When we are aware of a tremendous aversion to something rising up within our hearts, is it wise to push them aside and take that critical step that lies before us, or are they a warning that maybe we need to rethink our next move? And how does God communicate with us? Very few of us have gotten a UPS delivery, signed for at the door, with a return address of "Heaven", and upon opening it, see the words, "Dear Henry, You've been trying to decide what to do in your life, and as your Creator, I would like to point you in this direction....". And no emails from on high! Ahh, but we have our feelings. The feelings and awareness and ability to think and know..... feelings that are a gift because they give flavor to our lives and even help us decide what to do next. Could these feelings be the means for a Universe, a Creator, a Source Of All That Is, an Alpha and Omega, to speak to us?

A willingness to accept that impulses and emotional states (feelings) could be an actual communication might be tempered with a fear that one is making a decision based on an irrational reaction to a given situation. But there is a test. Simple and to the point. Ask the question, "What would Love do?" And if you are standing in the presence of suffering, and you struggle with what your next action should be, and if the answer to that question is lend a hand and pick up the fallen, then you know that your feelings are the conduit of communication that we all seek. And if you are confronted with an event that the status quo (whoever your "status quo" is) condemns, and there is an element of joy there, ask what Love would do and if you are moved to smile in that moment, then you know and can feel safe in sharing in the joy.

The best thing in the world that you can be is a bleeding heart. It's like a direct line to Hope.

Have a lovely day folks, because somewhere in the world, the sun is shining.

Peace and love,
Debby

Do you think they really care?

H1N1, vaccinations, pandemic, we're gonna die, we're gonna die!!! 2009 will be remembered for many things and the threat of global death by disease is one of them. It will also be remembered by many as a pivotal moment in the level of trust that they held for their governments and for world health organizations that up til now, they've believed really cared about us, about our children, our children's children....

A few weeks ago, I chatted with Aunt Sarah and while it started out as a talk about homegrown potatoes versus store bought, we soon moved to discussion about flu vaccinations, H1N1 in particular. Uncle David and Aunt Sarah, and Don and I, had, quite seperately, made the decision that we would not take the chance on being vaccinated. And night after night, on the news we all listened to reports about the lineups, the urgency of being innoculated and reports on government supplies of the vaccines.

What we didn't hear, was about the ties that the World Health Organization had to big pharmaceutical companies. We didn't hear about the millions of dollars changing hands between individuals on the WHO board and the drug companies, or the urging of the corporations to get the WHO to pressure the governments of the world to cave to a false fear of world pandemic. The fact that the Health Committee of European Union Parliament has in the past month, unanimously passed a resolution calling for an inquiry into the influence by Big Pharma's on the WHO lends credence to the notion that your health is very often the furthest thing from the minds of those in charge.

Just in case you are interested in reading a little more on the issue of WHO and Big Pharma scandals, here are two sites that can give you some more info:

http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=16667
http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2009/07/23/Journalist-Accuses-WHO-of-Plan-to-Commit-Mass-Murder.aspx

I used to roll my eyes when Don would talk conspiracy theories and then I would leave the room. But honestly, in the last couple years, I've shifted over to the other side. I now believe that governments around the world are interested in one thing only and that is staying in power, and they will do whatever it takes to stay there, (does the phrase "squeaky wheel gets the grease" ring any bells?). The only way that our modern culture differs from the fuedal days of medieval Europe is that we've changed from wearing velvets and laces and puffy pants and shirts, to "power" suits and ties. But there is still the same buying and selling of favours, marrying daughters (or promises) off to supporters, and protection of those in power so that they will in turn protect you should their fortunes and yours change. Officials are looking the other way and holding out their hands at the same time.

But my friends, it is what it is and your losing sleep at night because the status quo is impossible to fight, will serve no purpose. Within the given parameters of this reality, we are all able to make the decisions that will guide the course of our lives. To make those choices with a true awareness of what is and where you wish to go is the only requirement. Your life is yours to create, just do so with understanding and knowledge. Have a very nice day!