January 5, 2011: Bake Off. Phillip Chard's column of Dec 26: About Happiness

     As often happens at our meeting, we began this Bake Off by reading through a recent column written by Phillip Chard. But for some reason, our discussion this time went quite astray to what did seem to be an interesting topic for most people. As is often the case, there were several physicians in the group. We therefore served as each other's sounding board about our medical training.
Hit Read More to enjoy Phillip Chard's article, and to have a brief summary of what our discussion turned to.

October 6, 2011: The Bake Off

      True to Form for this Group: We did indeed add all the ingredients, stir everything up and we had a Bake Off.
   

Belly laughs and Bach the latest prescriptions for heart disease

DR MUIRIS HOUSTON in Paris
Mon, Aug 29, 2011
WATCHING A comedy film and listening to classical music are set to become the latest prescription for patients with heart disease, doctors at a major medical conference have been told.
Dr Michael Miller, professor of medicine at the University of Maryland School of Medicine, said watching a film or a sitcom that produces laughter has a positive effect on cardiovascular function and may be as beneficial as going for a run. However, the laughter must be intense – “more of a deep belly laugh”, Dr Miller said – and needs to last for about 15 seconds to be effective.
He told a symposium entitled Don’t Worry, Be Happy at the European Society of Cardiology Congress that laughter exerts its benefits through the release of endorphins by the brain which in turn leads to the release of nitric oxide by the lining of blood vessels. Nitric oxide is known to dilate blood vessels, reduce inflammation and help prevent cholesterol being deposited in arteries.
He and his colleagues used ultrasound to measure the diameter of arteries in healthy men and women who, on one day watched clips of comedy films, while on another day viewed stressful sequences from Saving Private Ryan . The results showed that blood flow improved by about 20 per cent in those watching a humorous film but decreased by over a third in those watching a stressful excerpt.
Previously the same researchers compared some 150 patients with heart disease with 150 controls and found that people with heart disease had a 40 per cent reduction in their ability to find humour in different situations.
“The endothelium is the first line in developing atherosclerosis or hardening of the arteries, so it is very possible that laughing on a regular basis may be useful to incorporate as part of an overall healthy lifestyle to prevent heart disease. In other words, eat your veggies, exercise and get a good belly laugh every day,” said Dr Miller.
Meanwhile, a German cardiologist who is also an organist told the same symposium that, in comparison to listening to Bach, heavy metal music has a “potential to be dangerous”.
Dr Hans Joachim Trappe told delegates that listening to classical music has the potential to decrease blood pressure and heart rate. He and his colleagues are undertaking research on healthy volunteers to see if there are differences in blood pressure, respiratory rate and in levels of the stress hormone cortisol when exposed to Bach, a heavy metal group and controlled periods of silence.
“Heavy metal encourages rage, disappointment and aggressive behaviour while causing both heart rate and blood pressure to increase,” he said. Dr Trappe is now planning a study titled “Bach or Beta-Blockers” in which people with high blood pressure will be randomly assigned to treatment with either beta- blocking drugs or classical music.
© 2011 The Irish Times

                                                                          VERSUS

     Hit the Read More key to view our discussion of this and other topics on this date.

August 4, 2011: BAKE OFF

     This was a BAKE OFF!. We had a lot of participation and discussion. I am putting some of the things we read here in this post.

     Here's a piece on worrying. This is an excerpt from Vicki Hitzges' speech. Vicki has worked as a TV journalist in Corpus Christi, and later out of Dallas, TX. After discovering great talents at interviewing, she began to do motivational speaking. Now she is one of the higher paid motivational speakers in the country.

     "I used to worry. A lot. The more I fretted, the more proficient I became at it. Anxiety begets anxiety. I even worried that I worried too much! Ulcers might develop. My health could fail. My finances could deplete to pay the hospital bills.

     "A comedian once said, 'I tried to drown my worries with gin, but my worries are equipped with flotation devices.'  While not a drinker, I certainly could identify! My worries could swim, jump and pole vault!

     "To get some perspective, I visited a well known, Dallas  businessman, Fred Smith. Fred mentored such luminaries as motivationsl whiz Zig Ziglar, business guru Ken Blanchard and leadership expert, John Maxwell. Fred listened as I poured out my concerns and then said, 'Vicki you need to learn to wait to worry.'

     "As the words sank in, I asked Fred if he ever spent time fretting. (I was quite certain he wouldn't admit it if he did. He was pretty full of testosterone -- even at age 90.) To my surprise, he confessed that in years gone by he had been a top-notch worrier!

"I decided that I would wait to worry!" he explained. "I decided that I'd wait until I actually had a reason to worry --something that was happening, not just something that might happen-- before I worried.

     "When I'm tempted to get alarmed," he confided, "I tell myself. 'Fred, you've got to wait to worry! Until you know differently, don't worry.' And I don't. Waiting to worry helps me develop the habit of not worrying and that helps me not be tempted to worry."

     Fred possessed a quick mind and a gift for gab. As such, he became a captivating public speaker. "I frequently ask audiences what they were worried about this time last year. I get a lot of laughs," he said, "because most people can't remember. Then I ask if they have a current worry -- you see nods from everybody. Then I remind them that the average worrier is 92 percent inefficeient --only eight percent of what we worry about ever comes true."

     Charles Spurgeon said it best, "Anxiety does not empty tomorrow of its sorrow, but only empties today of its strength."

      Another piece brought forward and read was by Will Allen Dromgoole (October 26, 1860-September 1, 1934)  who was an author and poet born in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. She wrote over 7,500 poems; 5,000 essays; and published thirteen books. She was renowned beyond the South; her poem "The Bridge Builder" was often reprinted. Will Allen Dromgoole was the last of several children born to Rebecca Mildred (Blanche) and John Easter Dromgoole in Murfreesboro, Tennessee.[1] Her paternal grandparents were Rev. Thomas and Mary Dromgoole. Her great-grandparents were Edward Dromgoole, a Scots-Irish trader from Sligo, Ireland, and his Cherokee wife Rebecca Walton. He married her after immigrating to the North American colonies.

     Dromgoole was ahead of her time. Her parents sent her to the Clarksville Female Academy from which she graduated n 1876. Her father taught her law, but she was not allowed to become a lawyer. However she did work for the state legislature. She worked as a journalist for the Nashville American, a newspaper, and became a prolifid writer of prose and poetry. She taught school on two different occasions, then founded the Waco Women's Press Club. She even served as a warrant officer in the US Naval Reserve during WWI.

     Here is her most famous poem:

      The Bridge Builder by Will Allen Drumgoole

          An old man, going a lone highway,

          Came , at the evening, cold and gray,

          To a chasm, vast, and deep, and wide,

          Through which was flowing a sullen tide.

          The old man crossed in the twilight dim;

          The sullen stream had no fears for him;

          But he turned, when safe on the other side,

          And built a bridge to span the tide.

          "Old man," said a fellow pilgrim, near,

          "You are wasting strength with building here;

           Your journey will end with the ending day;

           You never again must pass this way;

           You have crossed the chasm, deep and wide -

           Why build you a bridge at the eventide?"

           The builder lifted his old gray head:

           "Good friend, in the path I have come, he said,

           "There followeth after me today,

            A youth, whose feet must pass this way.

            This chasm, that has been naught to me,

            To that fair-haired youth may a pitfall be.

            He, too, must cross in the twilight dim;

            Good friend, I am building the bridge for him."

   

An anonymous piece entitled Symptoms of Inner Peace

A tendency to think and act spontaneously rather than from fear based on past experiences

An unmistakable ability to enjoy each moment

A loss of interest in judging other people

A loss of interest in interpreting the actions of others

A loss of the ability to worry

Frequent atacks of smiling

Frequent overwhelming episodes of appreciation

A contented feeling of connectedness with others and nature

An increased tendency to let things happen rather than to make things happen

An increased susceptibility to the love extended by others as well as an uncontrollable urge to extend love in return

     If you have all or even most of the above symptoms, please be advised that your condition of Inner Peace may be so far advanced as to not be curable!

     Irwin Compston said: "The human mind is not contained in the human skull." Worry may be useful, but we are so much more than that. We are so vast. Instead, handle worry by saying, "Let go, Let God."

   

     During the discussion, someone presented some quotes from My Stroke of Insight, a Brain Scientist's Personal Journey by Jill Bolte Tayler PhD. She is a neuroanatomist who experienced a massive hemorrhagic stroke in 1996 at age 37. After recovering her speech, she has been very vocal in describing her experience. The book describes the whole process very succinctly. She has since appeared on the Oprah show and other TV shows to tell her story and to promote her book which has been translated into dozens of other languages.

    Here are some quotes from her book and what she felt: "Could I rejoin the rat race without becoming a rat?"     "I was a being of light."    "I was a liquid, not solid. Finally after 8 years my body became solid again." If these quotes intrigue you, her book is readily available.

      Also the book on NDE, by Jeffrey Long MD which I reviewed and has a summary here in these posted notes.   December 13, 2010.

     Dave presented the book Vision Stories: True Accounts of Visions, Angels, and Healing Miracles, edited by John E. Sunwalt. There are apparently very moving stories here that were brought together by a local minister.

Another quote, from the Ojibwe:

     Sometimes I go about pitying myself

And all the while I am being carried across the sky

By beautiful clouds.

Another offering:  by Rabindranath Tagore.
     Greatest writer in modern Indian literature, Bengali poet, novelist, educator, who won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1913. Tagore was awarded the knighthood in 1915, but he surrendered it in 1919 as a protest against the Massacre of Amritsar, where British troops killed some 400 Indian demonstrators protesting colonial laws. Tagore's reputation in the West as a mystic has perhaps mislead his Western readers to ignore his role as a reformer and critic of colonialism.

Here is his poem, The Eternal Dream.

It's born on the wings of ageless Light.
that rends the veil of the vague
and goes across time
wearing ceaseless patterns of Being.

The mystery remains dumb,
the meaning of this pilgrimage
the endless adventure of existence
whoese rush along the sky
flames up into innumberalbe rings of paths
'til at last knowledge gleams out from the dusk
in the infinity of human spirits,
and in that dim lighted dawn
she speechlessly gazes throught the break in the mist.
at the vision of Life and of Love
emerging from the tumult of profound pain and joy.

     Great job! Group. This is the best Bake Off for participation that I recall here at SpiritMindBody. Thanks everyone. 

June 2, 2011: Bake Off

     Sharleen brought the following: Courtesy is treating others with kindness and tact. We take the time to speak and act graciously, showing people that we value and respect them. We make requests, not demands. We remember our manners, greet others warmly, and listen closely when they speak. Courtesy is a way to honor others, showing them how much they matter to us by how we treat them. Those closest to us need our courtesy most of all. Courtesy is the mirror of their value.

     "See ye not, Courtesy is the true Alchemy, turning to gold all it touches and tries?"  George Meredith "The Song of Courtesy"

     The Practice of Courtesy:
I remember my manners.
I show others that I value and respect them.
I treat others graciously.
I make requests, not demands.
I listen attentively.
I treat my intimates with special care.

     "I am thankful for the gift of Courtesy. It sweetens my relationships."

     A discussion of courtesy and its lack in today's cultural world. One attendee said, "Courtesy is lovingkindness in work clothes."

     Several felt that fear is an issue in the current lack of coutesy. Fear is responsible for aggression. If we meet fire with fire, instead of courtesy, the aggression escalates. It is also felt that there is a fragmentation in our day to day living due to the Internet and a reduction in face to face contact. There is less nationalism, less courtesy, and etiquette is not taught to the young anymore. We do not use honorifics to address people anymore, which perhaps allows more familiarity and less respect, and then more rudeness. What is taught in the home also has a great influence on this. Dave and Judy told how their neighborhood has developed close contacts, regular social picnics and occasions, safe Trick or Treating, and the elimination of crime and drug houses. There has been a move to develop gardens in each lot. They have named their local The Garden District.
    
     One attendee made an interesting observation: Perhaps it is the "naming" that makes a difference, "to concretize social entities and the improvement of society." The naming of that neighborhood "The Garden District" and using honorifics may contribute more than we think to these positive changes.

     In last Sunday's paper, there was an article about Marco who has a large space where he has gathered and displayed many vignettes of collectible and perhaps also non collectible objects in a very artistic way. He is now about to lose that space due to inability to pay rent. There have been many photos taken of this space and these things. Some discussion followed about what could be done to save such a collection. This particular collector is notable for his individual uniqueness. Here is a link to several dozen photos of Marco's unique gallery: http://gallery.me.com/elkon#101020
      I also told the short story of Dubi Ayalon, an X Israeli Defense Force soldier, and high school principal who has moved with his wife and 8 year old son to a farm in Plain, WI and is, of all things, raising water buffalo for their milk. His story has several morals. Find the newspaper article online in Jewish Chronicle and in Journal Sentinel. Or check out my personal blog where I am  soon posting the story and some photos. http://renraeretire.blogspot.com/.

     Next week: Retreat at home of Ann Selzer, 10522 N. Circle Rd, Mequon, WI. Phone: 262 241 5747.

Sept 2, 2010 Bake Off

     Again Bake Off for our spiritual group showed that we definitely have a need for this type of free-for-all session periodically. Spirit Mind Body without a BakeOff is like trees without the wind, flowers without the sun, or soil without the fertilizer. However this photo certainly expresses the friendly discussions that we have at our BakeOffs. It should be noted that these impala disagreements in Africa never really hurt either of the two ungulates.

     Law of the Garbage Truck

One day I hopped in a taxi and we took off for the airport
We were driving in the right lane when suddenly a black car jumped out of a parking space right in front of us.
My taxi driver slammed on his brakes, skidded, and missed the other car by just inches!
The driver of the other car whipped his head around and started yelling at us.
My taxi driver just smiled and waved at the guy.
And I mean, he was really friendly.
So I asked, 'Why did you must do that?
This guy almost ruined your car and sent us to the hospital!'
This is when my taxi driver taught me what I now call,

The Law of the Garbage Truck

He explained that many people are like garbage trucks.
They run around full of garbage, full of frustration, full of anger, and full of disappointment.
As their garbage piles up, they need a place to dump it and sometimes they'll dump it on you.
Don't take it personally.

Just smile, wave, wish them well, and move on.
Don't take their garbage and spread it to other people at work, at home, or on the streets.

The bottom line is that successful people do not let garbage trucks take over their day.
Life's too short to wake up in the morning with regrets, so ... Love the people who treat you right.
Pray for the ones who don't.

Life is ten percent what you make it and ninety percent how you take it!

Have a garbage free day.

The group liked this little piece. We spoke of ways to express this same goal. Members presented various anecdotes :
One person witnessed the frustration of a couple standing in a grocery check out line: The woman turned to the man and said: "I am not going to let this woman steal my joy."

"I am not going to let this person live in my head rentfree" ie with all the resentments that such a person might build up in us.

   Now came the fireworks. One attendee brought up that there are not really any differences between man and woman, but rather just social styles that are prominent. An author she had read introduced this idea and thought this would level out gender differences and disagreements. The group had a lot to say about this idea. Many thought that there really is a hard wiring in the brain that determines differences between men and women. Indeed this has been shown scientifically. But could even these so-called hard wired personality characteristics be altered by social style and environment? There are certain gender rituals that become ingrained in our behavior and that is socially OK but one should not expect another to follow those rituals. In general in conflicts once the conflicting parties agree on what the disagreement is about, there can be harmony ie agreement to disagree. The group balanced their discussion by talking of ethnic and nationalistic effects on social style. To demonstrate how the gender difference discussion proceeded during this BakeOff, at one point we not only discussed but actually took a poll on which way the toilet paper should be mounted in the bathroom -- under or over. No agreement was reached and we agreed to disagree. Hard wired gender differences are well represented in the following photo. Enough said!

Impromptu BakeOff, June 10, 2010

     I learned when I came to this meeting, the first for me in 6 weeks, that I was supposed to be presenting my antique toys. Unfortunately I did not know about this change on the schedule. I had thought I was doing that June 24.

     But we decided to have an impromptu Bake Off today which turned out very open and very laid back. Following are some of the ideas discussed. We also sort of made up a new schedule because of this unplanned change today.  There was an interest to come to the author's home to view the antique toys; we will do that on July 8. Please see the planned schedule in the next posting.

Bake Off on May 6, 2010

Your blog author is back on duty again, following a 3.5 week trip to Eastern Europe and then surgery to remove a malignant melanoma from my arm. I am doing fine now and am most likely cured as evidenced by the depth of the lesion and negative sentinel node biopsy. But what a scare! Am still examining exactly what is to be gained spiritually and emotionally by this experience. I haven't decided yet, but will keep you posted.
     I am trying to catch up with the blog to the extent that I can, having not been at 5 meetings myself.
Regarding the Bake Off discussion of May 6, Sharleen Leonard sent me and several others a website which contains introductory audio messages by Jerry and Esther Hicks about the Abraham tapes. These are introductory messages mostly narrated by Jerry Hicks about his spiritual searching and some experiences he had in his searches. I have just started to listen to these messages. Apparently they have been circulating on the Internet since about 1986. Abraham is the word used to symbolize or represent messages that have come to various individuals during their spiritual searchings. The word Abraham in this context has come to represent a feeling of transcendence or enlightenment, or knowledge that seems to come over one from outside or seemingly from another dimension. In the beginning the audios sound a little like channeling but I plan to listen to them all and see what is there. If anyone is interested, the website is http://www.abraham-hicks.com/. You can listen to as many of the separate audios as you want.
      Does anyone recall anything else that as discussed at that Bake Off. If so enter your additions into the comments.

Bake Off, April 1, 2010

 Today Todd and Paul led the group in the annual spiritual practice of Sloof Lirpa.Todd announced that he had received a transmission from the Kjöxprz (Jolly) Lama that he wants the r put back in Lipa so that it is truely Lirpa. Last year the problem was with the f in Sloof, but this year the r must be put back in Lirpa. After this announcement, we all placed ourselves in the proper frame of mind, emotions controlled (sort of ). Timed to the sound of the Meditation bell manned by Paul, we chanted Awa Tagoo Siam, Awa Tagoo Siam, repetitively, the pitch going higher and the intensity building. Many members of the group were moved to tears, myself included, (mostly from clenching the jaws to keep from laughing). At the end of the practice, we all felt expanded in consciousness knowing that we were now thoroughly protected for one year from any threats or encounters with yeti.