Questioning The Status Quo

I've noticed a new trend among many of my friends. They are beginning to ask more questions about inconsistencies they see in the world around them. There is a shift in awareness that what we have been told about how the world operates is not true. Questioning has begun.

I have noticed exciting changes in my more conservative South Carolina friends. Since the racially motivated church shootings in Charleston, they have begun to notice how politicians and events are used to create conflict among people in order to promote agendas. South Carolinians have witnessed outsiders showing up and demonstrating, trying to engage the natives in fights. So far they are resisting the violence and showing solidarity in love and compassion instead. The powers that be are failing to meet their goals in big ways because the people of the state can see through the lies.

I've seen other friends remark on lies in the news. One of my friends posted this meme on social media:

I've seen conversations where people are beginning to question many of the stories they see in the mainstream media. I remember a time when everyone believed everything reported on the nightly news was the honest truth. To even question this bastion of information shows there are cracks in society's foundation.

People are beginning to question their political programming. I see them seriously considering candidates the mainstream media tries to paint as not viable while bashing candidates the media promotes. It used to be that people would say things like, "You can't win if you're not on the Democratic or Republican tickets", but more and more people are looking outside the box for politicians who suggest new solutions.

The bottom line is, people are beginning to wake up to the deceptions in record numbers! They are questioning the status quo and because they question they are beginning to see new information. When your mind expands, you are more likely to follow new courses of action. Change results.

I have hope for the future because people are asking the questions that allow them to discover truth!!! It truly is an interesting and wonderful time to be alive!!!

~CSE

Laughter Is Good For the Soul!!!

A tribute for July 4th, Independence Day!!!

Don't forget to SMILE!!!

What BEing Love Can Do

My brother-in-law Frank is affectionately known as "the Hugger" by many of the people he encounters. He is a typical Southern-raised guy, friendly to a fault. He knows no strangers, and he would literally give the shirt off his back if someone really needed it. He is not a rich man, but he has given away at least two cars he owned to people who needed the transportation. Best of all, he is a great respecter of persons. He sees the worth of each soul and treats each one as if they are the most valuable being on the planet. Some of the most profound lessons I've learned came from watching Frank's example.

I remember being in California for the funeral of his beautiful little daughter, Brianna, who had died from the chemotherapy she had received for her leukemia. Even though we were there to support Frank and my sister Jan, he felt the need to entertain us while we were there. He took us to one of the local beaches, where I had an experience that changed my life.

Frank took us to a part of Newport Beach where the sandy beach is overlooked by rocky cliffs. Stairs had been built along the side of the cliff so people could access the beach below. I found myself on the stairs directly behind Frank. As we made our way down, I noticed crevices in the rocks that could be accessed from the stairs. Homeless people were camped out in some of the larger ones.

Partway down, one of the homeless men approached the stairs in an effort to use them. He waited patiently for us to descend so he could continue on his way. He had a dead sort of look in his eyes--no joy, no hope, nothing to live for. It was obvious to me he was used to being ignored, invisible to those in the "normal" world around him. What he didn't count on was Frank.

Frank, being Frank, did the only thing he knew how to do. He gave his usual Southern greeting of, "Hey!" That's all. Nothing flashy. Just a brief acknowledgement of one human to another.

But in that instant, the homeless man changed! He was no longer insignificant! He was no longer unworthy! He had once again been acknowledged by someone who lived in the "normal" world, and that acknowledgement made him come alive with hope!!! The transformation in this simple man was one of the most awe inspiring things I have ever witnessed.

Simply put, Frank IS love. His thoughts, his actions, his life all carry the message that love is important and that all beings are deserving of love. That is just who he is, and it has the power to change all those he comes into contact with for the better.

Love acknowledges. Love heals. Love hopes. Love transforms. Love gives us the power to change our world for the better. That's what BEing love can do!!!

~CSE

Laughter Is Good For the Soul!!!

Nothing like the love of a good dog!!!

Don't forget to SMILE!!!

Experiencing Oneness

It was a clear, crisp fall day when my family and I arrived at the site of our church retreat. We arrived late as we had a few unexpected delays after work, but we were there! I had been looking forward to getting together with this particular group of friends for quite some time. I knew them to be a people who were actively seeking relationship with the Divine, and there was great power when they got together. 

We walked in to the middle of the opening service. The group was sitting in meditative silence, listening to soft, worshipful music when we arrived. I could feel the power as soon as I walked in the door. I knew they would be sitting this way for quite some time, so I immediately sat down allowed myself to be drawn into meditation.

I had been learning a new technique to get inside my heart and expand my being so I could better experience the energies around me. As I sat in this silent state with people around me all seeking the same thing, I allowed the power of the group to assist my personal journey.

I calmed myself, focused on my breathing and my heartbeat, and pictured my spirit totally centered in my heart. I then allowed my spirit to expand itself to the confines of the room...the retreat center...the county I was in...the state of Georgia...the United States...the continent...the hemisphere...the whole earth...and then I allowed my being to expand infinitely in all directions without limit.

The place I arrived at was totally unexpected, but infinitely profound. It's a place I have since begun to call Oneness because everything was present. I found myself exploring the world in very intimate ways. Absolutely everything I had ever known about in this lifetime, and everything I never knew existed, lived in this place. I explored the Mona Lisa and the Taj Mahal. I became one tiny blade of grass, and I enjoyed the happiness it felt at its contribution to the earth. I felt the energies of people and animals and emotions. It surprised me to discover that all emotions--even the ones we consider negative like hate and sadness--were present here. The truly odd thing was that those emotions we consider negative were not negative in this place of Oneness. The overall feeling was one of happiness and joy. 

Perhaps the most profound experience for me in this place of Oneness was my experience with money. In this life, I have felt very separate from money. Consequently, I have not had very much of it. In the place of Oneness, I understood that I am one with everything, and money is part of everything. I am not separate from money! I felt the frequency of money so powerfully I could feel it communicating with me. I could feel its sadness at my perception that I was separate from it. I felt that it loved me and wanted to be part of my life but we had been kept apart because I my perception of separateness. Yes, these are rather strange thoughts to be thinking, but the rules of Oneness are vastly different from the rules we believe to exist here on planet Earth.

In the years since, I have gone back to this place as frequently as I could, although never as powerfully as I did that profound weekend. My initial experience was definitely assisted by the power of the group of people I was with, who had all come together for the single purpose of relationship. 

I believe each one of us can tap into that same power, although the more of us that come together in united purpose, the greater our ability to change the course of the planet for the better. This is exactly why I begin my monthly online radio shows with a meditation. It is my goal to not only go to this place of Oneness myself, but I also desire to help others attain this as well. There is so much information, wisdom and truth we can access from Oneness!!! For me, it is a much better and more profound way to live.

In the chaos that surrounds us, I encourage you to seek out this place of Oneness for yourself. Not only will it change your life, but the lives of all those you come into contact with will be infinitely changed is you learn to express your most beautiful, divine self!!!

~CSE

Laughter Is Good For the Soul!!!

Just a little summertime fun...compliments of America's Funniest Videos!!!

Don't forget to SMILE!!!

Unplugging From the Matrix

I'm a big fan of the movie "The Matrix". In it, the main character Neo (played by Keanu Reeves) comes to the understanding where he knows he is trapped, but he doesn't know exactly how or in what way. Still, he questions until he finds people that help him discover the answer. The truth he learns is that the life he thought was real is actually illusion, totally played out within the confines of his mind through the use of an elaborate computer system known as the matrix.

In many ways, this movie parallels life on planet Earth. We have been fed a series of illusions--lies so big and elaborate it is difficult to believe they could be real. We, like Neo, sense that something is not right. We struggle to make sense of our world--the senseless violence, the tremendous poverty of many and greed of the few, the disease which gets more prevalent instead of less common. Most days it feels as though we are spiraling out of control without much hope.

We are on the verge of a breakthrough! Like Neo, we are asking and seeking like never before! It is asking the question that allows us to come to new understandings. By looking at things we ignored in the past we are able to identifying our own chains. It is all about waking up.

The movie clip I posted is scary. Neo wakes up to find he is not in his apartment but in some fluid filled tank surrounded by thousands of other fluid filled tanks, each containing another human. It's akin to waking up and finding yourself in hell.

Although waking up is not a pleasant experience, it is a necessary one. We cannot change the constructs we fail to recognize. As long as we think inside the matrix, we cannot free ourselves from the illusions created by others to feed on our energies. Our lives are not our own.

Creating a better world involves detaching ourselves from the illusion and building something new from the ground up. Believe it can be much better than the ugliness that surrounds us. Freedom is ours when we unplug ourselves from the matrix.

~CSE