Marjorie R. Barlow, Ph.D.

INTERNAL SILOS?
These ideas are forming after studying the book by Patrick Lencioni, “Silos, Politics, and Turf Wars”.

FOUR INTERNAL SILOS THAT OPERATE LIKE EXTERNAL SILOS AND ONE SILO OF HOPE:

I.  The SURVIVAL silo
Reptilian brain
Habit and tradition
Fear and victimization

II.  The BAD FEELINGS silo
Limbic  system
Hurting Heart
Emotion and “Rescuitis” or “Victimization”

III. The CREATIVE THINKING silo
Neo-Cortex
Right Brain Creativity
Up, Up, and Awayyyyyy
Brainstorming
Dreaming
Imagining

IV  The LOGIC and REASONING silo
Left Brain Logic
Scientific proof
Cold, mechanistic, unfeeling
“Business is business”
Persecution, Criticism, and Victimization

Good News–The HOPE silo
Frontal Lobes  (evolutionary human development)
Oneness (We are all in this together)
Altruism (The operational theme in this silo)
Ultimate applied Christianity
Contains positive energy

Just as silos in corporations operate independently and have turf wars, so do we partition off our internal mind-brain system with one section at war with another when the daily frustrations of life are providing obstructions to our quest for happiness and success.

Four examples come to my mind.  These are not real life stories from individual people, but composite stories from many who experience these internal turf wars.

1.  e.g. Wife says, “It is hard for me to get excited about my husband going on a business trip to Hawaii when I am 8 months pregnant”.   She operates in the FEELINGS silo

2. e.g. Husband says, my wife is scheduled for a hysterectomy and I am being sent to South America.  I go because I have dropped the ball before and am in danger of losing my job.  He comes from the LOGIC and REASON silo, which is lodged in the left-side thinking brain.  (The new research says left and right brain models are much too simplistic but we use it here for sake of the argument)  He thinks, maybe I can get my doctor to advise me not to fly, which is the only real excuse acceptable to my company.  This is a leftover from the old factory, church, and public school dictums—you show up unless you are sick.  You don’t stay home just because a family member is sick.

3.  e.g. President of the company (or Nation) says, I set the visionary path and everyone who answers to me has a version of the path—not always in alignment with what I am envisioning.  How do I persuade or inspire them to follow the path?     He is going back and forth from his own frustration (FEELINGS silo) and re-thinking whether his leadership choices are correct (LOGIC silo) with overtones of struggle from his wish to adhere to the vision (CREATIVITY silo).  All the time, many who answer to him are in the SURVIVAL silo, following old, cynical belief patterns and a “ho-hum-here-we-go-again” stoicism.  Or, his followers may be practicing the “law of the minimum” where they do just enough to appear to be on track but, behind the scenes, they are full of talk about their doubts in their leader.

4.  e.g. the “poor me” employee who is certain his boss is prejudiced (FEELINGS silo)…collecting data to support the feelings over in the LOGIC silo.   When playing the victim game of Poor Me, there is a scene where anger and resentment (FEELINGS) are coupled with observation of behavior providing proof for the conclusion that the boss has favorites (LOGIC).  These two silos are not so much at war as they are teaming up to support the fear-based silo (SURVIVAL)

5.  e. g.  middle manager has a difficult project that is not going well.  Internally, her fight is between the SURVIVAL silo, which says she will last on the job only through playing the game right.  Yet when she visits the LOGIC silo, she has enough experience to grasp that the project may fail.  So the outcome, if it fails, is it will fall back on her shoulders and she will be blamed.  There is a war between FEELINGS, and LOGIC, and SURVIVAL.

These internal wars are as vicious as the external turf wars.

How does the wife step up to support her husband in example one—without feeling sorry for herself?

How does the husband whose wife is having surgery justify going on the trip to SA?  She is not too empathetic to the danger of his possible loss of job.  She says something like, “So, you can get another job!”  That takes them into another fierce argument about priorities.

How does the president adhere to the vision while others get the spirit of excitement and forward movement?  What will inspire them?  How do leaders actually stay in front of the curve of public criticism?  Where does he focus his energy?

And, finally, how does the employee who is feeling persecuted find a way to be enthusiastic and supportive of the boss he doesn’t trust?

Internal silos are coping mechanisms.  If our lives have been lived in quiet desperation, with denial of the reality of childhood woundings (and we have all been wounded far more than we can imagine); if our relationships still play psychological games with Rescuer-Persecutor-Victim the only roles available; if we believe that our feelings-thoughts-beliefs-behaviors are stimulated and controlled from the outside, then we will continue the blame and complain games.  And our internal silos will be in conflict.

If we get real and comprehend that there is another internal silo, where we honestly know that we are part of all life and that there is only ONE universal silo—then we will pursue the learning it takes to participate in that oneness.  We will get it that what is inside gets out-pictured in the so-called “real” world.  Each of us is creating the reality we experience.  The truth may be that the universe in its vastness is our parent body and we are all various individual cells in that body.

David Whyte’s new book and seminars based on the book, “The Three Marriages” is speaking to the Oneness.  He says that we have a personal marriage, a job marriage, and a marriage of self to Self.  If all three marriages can be reconciled into One Marriage, then we might reach a new age in human evolution.

My old concept of Self-Others-Society, SOS, fits here.  When we grasp the reality that we affect one another with the thoughts we think, the beliefs we espouse, the feelings, and the actions we initiate, then we can get to a place of real power.  Not power over but power with one another.  When we marry all three selves, we can empower our true essence of soul to come forward on the playing field of life on this planet and we will join together to move toward a world of Oneness, Harmony, Peace—both within and without.  That means we might just learn to love one another.  We might join our minds in pursuit of the highest calling we can find—true charity—true altruism—real LOVE—the final silo.

What if in example #1, the wife is a real grownup and she is interested in taking the path of love rather than fear.  She might say to her husband, “I want you to be with me in this last month of waiting for our baby, and if you decide to go ahead with the business trip, I will not take it personally.  I will trust your decision to be made from your best and highest thinking.”  The husband might or might not decide to stay home and take the risk of the consequences.  But, neither one of them will blame the other for their unhappy feelings and neither one of them will be “brought down” by the action of the other.  Actions are what we do and they reflect what we believe.  Thoughts and feelings are congruent to beliefs.  Moral lesson:  “Who am I really?  How do I want to be?  Will I choose the road of fear or the road of love?”

In example #2, a grown-up dialogue between husband and wife might bring them to understand their real core values.  Why is he working so hard?  Is it to buy things she wants?  What do they believe about illness?  Is illness ever used as manipulation?  What is important to us in our maturity?  Moral lesson:  “We are the heirs of our own choice-making.”

In example #3, this President (of a corporation or a nation) is elected or appointed or endowed with the position of leadership.  It is the leader who holds the vision.  The vision might have been collectively imagined from the whole company or country.  The leader may have his position because he captured that collective imagination.  Now, it is his role and duty to take that vision forward.  He must convince those who execute daily operations to adhere to the vision and interpret every action in accord with the vision.
How?  Through constant dialogue; through knowledge and awareness; through information gathered at all levels of the operation; through management by wondering around; through inspiring speeches and public appearances; through his own alignment with the vision at all levels of his life; and through the integrated oneness of his own code of ethics, values, and credo.  Such is the stuff of leadership.  The moral lesson: “Leaders are, by design, out front and lonely”

Example #4, this employee can open his mind and heart to possibilities for helping his boss to succeed.  His belief that the boss is out to get him will fade when he recognizes his boss as having worth and begins to support instead of criticize.  If, after 3 or 4 weeks of supportive action, he still sees evidence of his boss playing favorites, he might want to ask for a transfer.  Amazing how stopping criticism (even inside the mind), faultfinding, complaining, and resentment can open the door to possibilities of a different relationship.  So, his first task is to start a list of good qualities and positive behavior from his boss.  The list needs to grow longer than the complaint list.  The moral lesson:  “What you pay attention to will expand.”

Example #5:  It is true; responsibility falls on the backs of those who take responsibility!  Too much responsibility-taking can foster self-pity.  Sacrifice and martyrdom are akin to one another.  Every human being is a martyr to some cause—even if the cause is the care-taking of one’s own body.  Martyrs don’t necessarily have to be victims.  But self-pitying martyrs don’t make very good bedfellows.  As Harry Truman said, “If you can’t take the heat, get out of the kitchen.”  I say, you have the right to choose which kitchen you cook in.

Interpretation is everything.  This manager can look for alternate interpretations.  And, often the doomsday predictions are the product of leftover beliefs formed in childhood when we really were victims.  Deciding to be Rescuers was one way of escaping Victimization, but at the personal level, most Rescuers end up being Victimized.  So it is a no win game….and, yes, everybody dies.  UNLESS, you change beliefs and get the concepts of metaphysics with the vast array of possibilities—including Ascension instead of death!!!

So endeth today’s diatribe.  I have a feeling that I don’t want to show it to anyone, because…………

They might not like it.

They might reject me.

They might abandon me.

I might die!!!!!!!!

What the heck?

I might just Ascend and not die!!

Written on July 7, 2009

I am so excited!  This morning, I got our Civic Hybrid up to 40.1 mpg.  And, I did it with my right foot.  Just easing up on the gas pedal has brought us up from 38.0 mpg to 40.1.  That’s right!  The right foot is the culprit and the hero.  Both Paul and I have been deliberately driving slightly below the speed limit, not accelerating on hills or when the light turns green.  Just easy does it and we made a 2 mpg improvement.  Turns out to be a lot of fun, watching the display that shows when we are getting 100 mpg or less, watching it change as we guide the gas pedal.  I drove 55 mph this morning and felt very good about it.  The car ahead of me, also driving 55, was a Prius.  We were being passed by pickups and suburbans, but I just drove on and enjoyed the ride.  Turns out to be a beautiful day.

Maybe there is a connection between driving slower and the book I am reading, recommended by Sheri Shumacher.  The book is “In Praise of Slowness” and it is full of common sense ideas for relief from the stress of our multi-tracking high speed life.  The author is evocative as a philosopher.  I became aware that even though we are now 80 years old and counting, we can stress ourselves just as we did years ago when life was really, really crowded.

More about Sheri:  She is a wonderful woman, a professor at Auburn University, a designer and artist.  She and her husband are on twin sabbaticals from Auburn and they chose Austin for their time away to replenish their creative storehouses.  I am so glad she has come this way, for we have become good friends and are enjoying places like the Ladybird Johnson Wildflower Center.  She has been delightful!!

Back to going green.  We are moving into our greenbuilt cottage soon.  Yes, we have a tankless water heater, all energy saving appliances, wired for solar (later), xerascaped yard, and have a great wine cask barrel to catch the rain, if it ever rains again here in Austin.  I am pleased and happy that we chose this area and we are working hard going through all our “stuff” with a new goal of living simply and lightly.  Paul and I tell people that we will be here 10 years and then we will move to “the Home” where they will cook for us.  Meanwhile, I am looking for the right clothesline and finding sustainable ways to fight the fire ants who think they have “eminent domain” rights.  Our Neighbors are young and helpful, with great ideas to share.  So, 2009 promises to be a great new beginning here in Elm Grove, on Clear Springs Hollow, in Buda, TX.  We will be completely moved by our 45th wedding anniversary, June 8.

One more year has gone by.  Today, I am thinking ahead to this same date next year.  What will I be reviewing on January 9, 2010?  What did I accoomplish in 2009?  What was awesome and amazing?  Did I follow my muse?  Was I guided by my intuition?  What are on the lists of experiences?  The three main categories of lists are HAVING; DOING;  BEING.  As I look back in imagination over this year, 2009, what tangible items did I accumulate (HAVING); what did I accomplish (DOING); and what was my identity (BEING).

These are dreams, wishes, desires.  They are not resolutions or goals.  I am stating them in past tense, as if the desire was met.  This is my best method for manifesting what I want.  Try it, you may like it or some version of seeing what you want in virtual reality before it comes in actual reality.  Funny how I look back over my long life and see this in operation at all times.  What I think about does really come about.  It works with negative thought as well as positive.  Therefore, I am painting the most positive picture of 2009 as my mind will dream up.

The imagined dream:  I write on January 9, 2010:

In 2009, we successfully moved to 686 Clear Springs Hollow in Buda, TX, creating a new life of simplicity and environmental sustainability.  The house has great insulation, a rain barrel, a clothesline, a compost heap,  flower and vegetable plots, and a dry creekbed in the back yard with xerascaped grounds front and back.  It backs up to a greenbelt where we have planted acorns, chinaberry seeds, and any other tree that will grow in our climate.

I continued my work as a Strengths Coach and telephone counselor.  I listened and I reflected and I believed in the maximum development of each person I touched.  My own personal strengths were reviewed every morning with intentions to apply them to all my contacts.  I rehearsed before getting out of bed, the best version of myself that I could dream up every day.

My relationships evolved toward being more loving, kind, and caring.  They were as real and true as I could make them.  My beliefs, my thoughts, my feelings, and my behavior were in my awareness at all times.  I took responsibility for my creation of the spirit of all my relationships.

Money flowed freely and in great abundance.  We bought the new refrigerator, lawn mower, weed eater, water softener, mixer, coffee maker, seating, and office furniture for Paul.  We recycled old furniture and culled out unnecessary items, donating them to someone who needed them.  We studiously attempted to use what we had, give what we didn’t use, and protect the planetary resources in every day actions.  We purchased another car with careful attention to its environmental impact.  That car sits beside our Honda Civic Hybrid, which functioned nicely all year, getting 40 miles to the gallon or more.

My body responded well to healthy eating and good exercise.  I was aware and awake all year in my mind-my body-my spirit.  Paul and I practiced Qi Gong, Quantum Touch, Tama-Do exercises with sound-color-movement, and toning as learned from Don Campbell’s new book by that name.  Our chimes and massage table were used often all year.  We got to know our neighbors on our village walks and through our hospitality.

I joined a creative writing group and learned the real “how-to” of creating something interesting for people to read.  The flow of creative writing and speaking was awe-inspiring and easy.

We took trips to Tucson, a cruise to Alaska, and other pleasure journeys.  We kept all things running–house, cars, bodies, relationships.

Happiness was the norm in 2009.  I followed my lifelong compass of Joy, letting my emotional guidance system function to the maximum.  The 8 directions of this compass of joy meant that I was a loving, caring, playful, working, creative, evolving, and presencing human being.  I was full of gratitude, quick to express sorrow for wrong doings, and able to ask forgiveness as needed.

I learned this past year that I smile when I see my loved ones, when I am helped by anyone (clerks in stores), when I was contacted by my friends who allowed me to coach them, when I saw a beautiful sunset or sunrise, clear skies, stars, moon, and works of art made by humans.  Music brought joy and health.

I was amazed at the Life of People, Plants, Animals, Minerals, and all Atoms of expression of Being on this Planet in this Universe.  My awe has expanded.  My horizons into music, healing, self expression, and sacred knowledge is amazing and satisfying on my journey through this life, especially in this 80th year of my existence here.

I was inspired, amazed, and awed by the talents and beauty of our five children.  A new great grandchild entered our life this year (in June, 2009) joining our other precious great granddaughter.  All our children have grown and thrived throughout the year.  Their creativity continues to be phenomenol.  Our conversations were special as well as stimulating.  The transparency of beliefs-thoughts-feelings-behavior has evolved into these individuals.  They have taken responsibility for their lives and we have been included in their special events.  They have shared with us, trusted us, and loved us.

Altogether, looking back through the lens of future imagination, 2009 was one of our very best years here on Earth.  I am one woman living one life at one with all life.  My work with the Women’s Wisdom group was very meaningful and rewarding this year.  I returned to understanding the archetypal Goddesses in EveryWoman, first introduced to me by Jean Bolen.  As I continue into those juicy Crone years, I thought of my destiny in feminine form. As Madeleine Allbright said, “I like being a woman”.

So, I close this review of 2009 with reflection on my journey as a woman.  This past year, I did my best to expand and enjoy these roles I lived as a female.  My eight direction compass of Joy included these joyful and colorful goddess areas:

Persephone (girl child with new life and enthusiasm)                  SE-Red-Exist-”She Showed Up!”

Demeter (the mother part of me who listens & nurtures)             NW-Orange-Care-”She Listened Up.”
Artemus (the independent  woman who takes aim)                        SW-Yellow-Create-”She Opened Up.”
Aphrodite (loves and relates from the heart)                             NE-Green-Evolve-”She Continued to Grow Up”
Hera (the mate who had fun)                                                        W-Blue-Play-”She Stretched and She Lightened Up”
Athena ( follows her curiosity)                                               E-Indigo-Learn-”She Continued to Wise Up.”
Hestia (grasps the true meaning of connectedness)                   N-Violet-Love-”She Enjoyed Linking Up,”
Thosanustra (individual-holistic true purpose in life)                  S-Magenta-Work-”She Offered Up.”

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

THE SPIRAL OF CONSCIOUSNESS

(Summary notes)
By Marjorie R. Barlow, 2008
These are my notes from a longer version of our growth toward consciousness. I have observed these turnings in thousands of clients over the past 40 years. Most of the people I have met in counseling were in a state of being asleep. By that, I mean their consciousness was still in the stage of belief that all that happened was being caused from the outside. There was little recognition that reality is generated from the inside. So, I invited them to come to some form of awakening through heightened awareness. The spiral moves in ever widening, higher turns. From Asleep all the way to Authenticity, growth was happening and consciousness expanding. I was honored to participate in that process. It was awesome and inspiring to witness.
ASLEEP: A state of ego protection. Persecutor-rescuer-victim roles. Defense mechanisms. Aloneness. Separation. FEAR (dark, negative forboding). Problems solved through control, comply, quit. Need to be right. Belief: Life is created from outside forces. Life is serious. Emotions responding to others behavior. (usually negative like mad or sad or powerless). The “pain body” is real (see Eckart Tolle’s books).

AWARE: The doorway to awakening is awareness. Through the senses (sight, sound, smell, taste, touch), we take in stimulus from our world, adding meaning based on past experience and learning.
Grasp of the clock of awareness (beliefs to thoughts to feelings to behavior). Awareness of the witness self. Participant-Observer expansion.

AWAKE: Presence. Now. Sensory and vibrational. Energy in motion.
Ability to leave the past and depression. Ability to give up worry about the future and its anxiety. Stillness. Reflection. Meditation.

ALIVE: A change in the meaning we give to outside events, places, people, and things. Growing sense of soul and purpose. Physical-emotional-mental-spiritual self ownership. Recognition that relationships are guides to aliveness. Transparent. Non-defensive. Non-controlling.

ATTRACTING: The power of intention. Thoughts, practiced again and again become beliefs. Belief: We magnetize to us what we think about, negative or positive. Taking charge of the journey. Joining the Triple A. Author, actor, and audience of one’s own life story. Creating the drama according to highest possibility, most magnanimous creating, and espousing abundance instead of scarcity.

ACCEPTING: The great peace. It’s all an “inside” job. Acceptance of what is. Letting go of control. Letting go of being controlled (compliance). Approaching the true meaning of love. Love is the warm acceptance of self, others, and the world just as it exists. Ownership of oneself, including 100% responsibility for beliefs-thoughts-feelings-behavior. Recognition that what comes from outside has been created from inside. Embracing voluntary simplicity.

AUTHENTIC: Soul incarnes into body. True self. Essence of Being. Unique and significant. One of a kind. One with all. One with Life. The many and the one. Values are life centered. Kyrotic time instead of Chronos.

ALL IN ALL: The Life Force of which we are all a part. Evolving the Universe.

I remember the day I added Music to my list of health principles. My husband Paul and I were driving to a meeting. Neither one of us were in a mood to attend this event. My body was exhausted, my mind was tired and burnt out. Paul had had a stressful week and he also was less than enthusiastic. My head burned, my eyes were dull, my conversation had degenerated to grunts and groans. My throat was getting scratchy, and my body was sending me flu-like symptoms. True to our habit of being dependable, we pressed on, taking our bodies for granted without much awareness or regard. In an attempt to help, I searched for a tape to play on the car stereo system. I chose Don Campbell’s audio cassette tape entitled, “Heal Yourself With Your Own Voice”. We began to listen and to follow Don’s instructions for toning. He told us to use our voice to “tone” the vowels. Paul joined me in a loving act of support for my caterwauling. There we were, driving down the highway at 70 miles an hour, howling “AAAAAAAA-EEEEEEE-IIIIIIII-OOOOOO-UUUUUUUU”, and we began to laugh. We continued through the entire tape, following instructions to the letter. Fifty miles down the road, to my amazement, my energy returned full strength. Paul reported the same effect. Our mood had shifted toward positive, but more than that, a mysterious shift had taken place in my physical feelings. My throat didn’t feel sore, my flu symptoms were gone, my head had cleared, and my body felt great. We were both transformed into the prime of good, healthy body and mind and spirit. We were into a special new kind of intimacy. We had changed in a profound way. The results were that we actually enjoyed the meeting. We drove home in a nice, mellowed out state. In addition, the power of the effect lasted several days.

This event is one of many illustrations of the true power of music. Music changes our mood. There is growing evidence that music provides healing. Don Campbell has compiled an anthology of these possibilities in his book, Music: Physician for Times to Come. I first met Don Campbell when he was serving as accompanist for Jean Houston in her seminars. Jean’s work is in the nature of participatory theater which is life changing and stretches her students into becoming all that they can be. Don’s music supplied background support and stimulation. At that time, Don was also using many of Jean’s exercises and methods for his own life development. I heard him say to Dr. Houston, “This stuff works!” The stuff he referred to included her ingenious exercise on paradoxical walking. (See the note for directions to this). Don told me later that he did this exercise while he wrote his book, “The Musical Brain”. The writing flowed and he finished the book in a very short time. My relationship to Don Campbell has continued and I am fascinated at the way in which he has proven, time and again, the power of music.

Toning, chanting, speaking, singing, screaming, humming, grunting are a few of the ways in which we make music with our own voices. Campbell’s story of healing his life threatening blood clot in his own brain is a miracle of the power of one’s own voice and the use of humming. His story of healing is told in detail in his best selling book, The Mozart Effect.

Whether we play music in some band, make our own music, or simply listen to music, there is an effect on our mental, emotional, spiritual and physical health. At the foundation for good health is the concept of belonging. In Trinidad, the native children play their music on old steel drums made from oil barrels. Each person anticipates “Panorama”, which is the great festival on the island where all the steel bands ride on floats and play their music for several days. It is their way to belong. It creates a sense of family.
In my mother’s family, music was our best style of communing. Each of the six Kiker children played an instrument. Grandma Kiker would wash the dishes after their meals and her instructions to her children were, “Now you know what you must do.” This meant that they were to entertain her while she worked by playing music for her. And so it was that when we attended family reunions, each grandchild was expected to perform. We didn’t sit around and visit verbally. We made music and our communication was melodic, rhythmic, and very loving. It was our way of belonging. To this day, I feel good when I go to a home and see a piano there. That home seems impoverished to me if musical instruments are absent. Music is in my very bones, my DNA, my life, and is vital to my health. While it seems a mystery, I can personally attest to the power of music to balance in life.

My principles of health were formed in the years I was serving my clients as a professional therapist. I taught stress management classes, worked with local health organizations, providing hypnosis, guided imagery, and relaxation training. I had seen many real life examples of the connections between the mind and the body. The six principles of health which were the basis for my series of lessons all start with the letter M. Mouth, Meditation, Movement, Mission, Mentors, and Mirth. Today, the seventh of these is Music.
These health principles became my standard lecture. The idea that 1) the mouth had something to do with the way we stay healthy or get sick. What we eat, drink, take, smoke, or SAY has a lot to do with our physical and mental health. 2) Meditation in any form will allow our minds to be at ease. A mind at peace sets the stage for the body to return to healthy balance. 3) Mission means we have something to live for. Good evidence exists that when people retire with nothing to do, no contribution to make, they tend to get sick and die. 4) Mentors are important to our health. Life long learning is associated with life long health. An open, active mind prevents the atrophy of our brain cells. A mentor is someone who provides information, encouragement, counselling, and relationship. 5) Movement of mind and body is necessary. The old saying, “Move it or lose it” applies to mind as well as body. 6) Mirth, laughter, merriment, a positive attitude correlates with good health. Norman Cousins’ books speak to this principle. Positive mental attitude is positively correlated with good health.

Then came that drive where Paul and I toned the vowels. I knew I must add music to the list of health principles. Our bodies, according to quantum theory, are vibrational instruments. The heavy matter of our physical bodies vibrates at a certain frequency. Our emotional and mental “bodies” are vibratory, also. We are energy in motion. Our very existence is based on this prinicple. So, since we are vibrational beings, health principle number seven, Music, was the last on my list of the M’s of Health. I have witnessed the power of music to restore balance in our flow of energy; the power of music to establish moods; the power of music to change our moods; and the power of our own voices to create vibrational healing.

We continue to learn about the power of music. Currently, a group of my friends and I are hosting Don Campbell in Corpus Christi, Texas. We have created a year-long program featuring Don in his work with therapeutic sound. Information about our program, Corpus Christi Therapeutic Sound School, can be found by contacting us through our web site, CC Sound School.

Another program involving music and healing has been created by Fabien Maman of Boulder, Colorado. In this program, we went to LeCourmette, France for training in healing through sound, color, and movement. My husband and I practice daily the Chi Gong (Tao Yin Fa) method of movement as Fabien teaches it in his Tama Do Academy. We have also learned how to do acupuncture using tuning forks instead of needles. We have a set of chimes which are suspended over our massage table . We play the chimes in conjunction with touching body on certain acupressure points, while bathing the body in colored lights corresponding to the seven chakra energy centers. We have experienced miraculous transformations in mind, body, and spirit from these treatments. I am more convinced now than ever that music is a source of great power. Through the experience of music in its many forms, we can restore balance to the flow of energy in our bodies. Further power releases us to travel the spiral of expanded, evolving potential of the human body and mind, working together toward a vibrational new stage. Perhaps we are touching the edges of the real Aquarian age, where we will become our true essential selves in new and vibrant form.