Marjorie R. Barlow, Ph.D.

Paul and I have the luxury of time to study together.  We spend our morning breakfast time with more than granola, berries, and yogurt, which is what we eat.  Our second cup of tea or coffee is accompanied by reading aloud to each other from various books that we like.  Currently, these are our books of interest, in case you want to explore them.  With Internet help, you can find out about any book instantly, so enjoy looking at the reviews and descriptions of these, maybe finding one you want to dig into for yourself.

• Dying Well by Ira Byock, a good book by a wise medical doctor who does hospice care.
• Creating Your Best Life, a new positive psychology book by Mapp and Frisch,
• The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, an old book with much wisdom from the Yogi traditions,
• The Four Spiritual Laws of Prosperity, an entertaining book by Edwene Gaines,
• Veganist, a sobering book that has prompted my change in eating habits, by Kathy Freston,
• The Bond, by Lynn McTaggart, all about how we are connected–not just to each other–but to the cosmos,
• How Long is Now? by Tim Freke, a stand-up philosopher.  Great reading!
• Many Ways to Say I Love You, by Mr. Rodgers.  This is a classic book for all of us, especially parents,
• Like a Tree, by Jean Bolen.  Her newest book and a real inspiration to all women to save the earth,
• A Thousand Names for Joy, by Byron Katie.  Her version of an ancient book of wisdom.  Profound!
• The Shadow Effect, by three of my favorite authors: Deepak Chopra, Debbie Ford, and Marianne Williamson,
• The Biology of Belief, by Bruce Lipton.  We are re-reading this book because we believe it is important.
• To Be and How to Be, by Peggy Rubin.  I love this book.  Peggy is a marvelous, loving, caring teacher.
• Who Have You Come Here to Be? by Bonario, Simmons, and Isola.  A beautiful book with deep meaning.

Our reading is a very special time of the day.  We read a paragraph or more of many of these books.  They are like visits from very good friends and the ideas start our day with good thoughts.

We cherish our mornings here at 686 Clear Springs Hollow, Elm Grove Subdivision, Buda, Texas.  Today, we had broiled grapefruit, an apple, coffee and tea and the weekly bowlfull of vitamins and supplements.  Then we have the luxury of reading to each other as our choice of starting the morning.  Today, we are reading from these books,

• Inspiration: Your Ultimate Calling by Wayne Dyer
• The Third Jesus by Deepak Chopra
• KickAss Creativity by Mary Beth Maziarz
• Dementia Beyond Drugs: Changing the Culture of Care by G. Allen Power, MD
• Reconnecting With Nature: Wellness Through Restoring Your Bond With the Earth by Michael J. Cohen, Ed. D.
• The Fred Factor by Mark Sanborn (thanks to Elaine Mayfield for finding this little jewel)
• Tribes: We Need You to Lead Us by Seth Godin

Someone asked me, “Do you really read all these books?”  Actually, my Daddy asked me that in the 1970′s when he saw the new bookshelves I built in our Kingsville home, and their burgeoning load  of books.  My answer was then and still is that they are like good friends.  Some of them I cultivate, others I get to know lightly, and some I move away from without ever finishing.  So, from my past book collections, I gathered readings on learning theory, brain theories, many forms of psychotherapy, and ultimately have meandered my way toward positive psychology, Strengths Development, Quantum theories, and consciousness.  Out of these readings have come new ways of thinking.  So, as I learned from Joseph Campbell, I accepted my right to “follow my bliss”.  I learn what I am curious about; I pursue interesting theories until I am satiated or reach my own level of competence; and along the way, I have these bookshelves full of great old “friends.”

I used my new I-Pad on our train trip recently, enjoying Pride and Prejudice (free download) and feeling good about not turning on the overhead light as all the other passengers slept and I enjoyed my book.  Not sure that I still don’t want the feel of holding a printed volume but with the Kindle, I-Pad and other digital means, perhaps I won’t need to keep building more bookcases?

A Review of the book, “The Spontaneous Healing of Belief” by Greg Braden

These are the laws Braden gives in his book. He says on page 30, “Every day we offer the literal input of our belief-commands to the consciousness of the universe, which translates our personal and collective instructions into the reality of our health, the quality of our relationships, and the peace of the world.”

I say that every thought reflects our beliefs, which amounts to a constant stream of intention, like prayers, which are answered according to the way they are given. If you believed that every thought was a prayer, then you might be willing to change your thoughts to be more in line with what you do want—not so much with what you don’t want. Beliefs are just thoughts we think a lot.

Beliefs are a powerful language, expressing our certainties. They come from our personal experience and express how we create our everyday reality. The anatomy of a belief is that it, first must be expressed through the medium of our bodies and it, second, must have the power to do something in our physical world. Beliefs lead to the way we think. Thoughts create what we feel. And, feelings motivate us to behave in certain ways, which reinforce our beliefs. So, it is important that you know what you believe. You can get a clear picture of that if you watch how you behave (words you speak, tone of voice, facial expression, body posture-gestures-movements). If I want to know what I truly believe, I must be aware of what I do, moment by moment.

I like the way these laws or codes from Braden’s book connect to our new computer age world. I hope you will get interested in reading his book. I would like to discuss these ideas with you, dear reader! Until you read the book, here is a summary of the codes.

Here they are:

Belief Code I

The focus of our attention, experiments show, can change reality itself and suggest that we live in an interactive universe.

II. We live our lives based on what we believe about our world, ourselves, our capabilities, and our limits.

III. Science is a language—one of many that describe us, the universe, our bodies, and how things work.

IV. If the particles that we are made of can be in instantaneous communication with one another, be in 2 places at once, and even change the past through choices made in the present, then we can as well.

V. Our beliefs have the power to change the flow of events in the universe—literally to interrupt and redirect time, matter, and space, and the events that occur within them.

VI. Just as we can run a simulated program that looks and feels real, studies suggest that the universe itself may be the output of a huge and ancient simulation—a computer program—that began long ago. If so, then to know the program’s code if to know the rules of reality itself.

VII. When we think of the universe as a program, atoms represent “bits” of information that work just the way familiar computer bits do. They are either “on” as physical matter or “off”, as invisible wave.

What is the universe computing? Itself.

VIII. Nature uses a few simple, self-similar, and repeating patterns—fractiles—to build atoms into familiar patterns of everything from elements and molecules to rocks, trees, and us.

XI. If the universe is made of repeating patterns, then to understand something on a small scale provides a powerful window into similar forms on a grand scale.

Atoms=bits

Reality=output

Consciousness=OS

Beliefs=programs

X. Belief is the “program” that creates patterns in reality.

XI. What we believe to be true in life, may be more powerful than what others accept as true.

XII. We must accept the power of belief to tap it in our lives.

XIII. Belief is defined as the certainty that comes from what we think is true, coupled with what we feel is true in our hearts.

XIV. Belief is expressed in the heart, where our experiences are translated into the electrical and magnetic waves that interact with the physical world.

XV. Beliefs, and the feelings that we have about them, are the language that “speaks” to the quantum stuff that makes our reality.

XVI. The subconscious mind is larger and faster than the conscious mind, and can account for as much as 90% of our activity each day. E.g. breathing, digestion

XVII. Many of our most deeply held beliefs are subconscious and begin when our brain state allows us to absorb the ideas of others (before the age of 7).

XVIII. In our greatest challenges of life, we often find that our deeply hidden beliefs are exposed and available for healing.

XIX. Our beliefs about unresolved hurt can create physical effects with the power to damage or even kill us.

XX. When our soul hurts, our pain is transmitted into the body as the spiritual quality of the life that we feed into each child.

XXI. The same principles that allow us to hurt ourselves into death also work in reverse, allowing us to heal ourselves into life.

XXII. Our belief in one force for everything that happens in the world, or our belief in two opposite and opposing forces (good vs. evil) plays out in our experience of life, health, relationships, and abundance.

XXIII. To heal the ancient battle between darkness and light, we may find that it is less about defeating one or the other, and more about choosing our relationship to both.

XXIV. A miracle that is possible for anyone is possible for everyone.

XXV. In a participatory reality, we are creating our experience as well as experiencing what we have created.

XXVI. In 1998, scientists discovered that photons are experienced just by being watched and discovered. They further discovered, that the more intense the watching, the greater the watchers influence on how the particles behaved.

XXVII. The prime rule of reality is that we must become, in our lives, what we choose to experience in the world.

XXVIII. We tend to experience in life what we identify with in our beliefs.

XXIX. For different reasons that reflect the variations in the way we learn, both logic and miracles give us the way into the deepest recesses of our beliefs.

XXX. To change our beliefs through the logic of our minds, we must convince ourselves of a new possibility through inarguable facts that lead to an inescapable conclusion.

XXXI. The power of a miracle is that we don’t have to understand why it works. We must, however, be willing to accept what it brings to our lives. The spontaneous healing of belief: love fearlessly and share unselfishly. Miracles can happen. We are the seeds of miracles.

Our job is to look into the world for reasons for new beliefs. Our work is to discover our world and then, with all our heart, give ourselves to it.

Love with all our heart, soul, and mind. Love fearlessly. Share unselfishly. Transformation happens through the power of our beliefs.

I am a fan of Don Miguel Ruiz.  We have followed the philosophy in his “Four Agreements” for many years.  Today as a new year begins, it seems fitting to recommend his next book, The Fifth Agreement.  The concept, according to Ruiz and his son Jose, is that everything we do is based on agreements we have made — agreements with ourselves, with other people, with God, and with life. But the most important agreements are the ones we make with ourselves. With these agreements we tell ourselves who we are, how to behave, what is possible, what is impossible.  His idea of agreements corresponds to my notion of beliefs.  Now he is adding an agreement that is dear to my heart.  As an advocate of deep listening, this fifth agreement is right down my alley of beliefs.   I am copying words written in the advertising promotion, which is a quick and easy way to review all five:

First,
BE IMPECCABLE WITH YOUR WORD
Speak with integrity. Say only what you mean. Avoid using the word to speak against yourself or to gossip about others. Use the power of your word in the direction of truth and love.

Second,
DON’T TAKE ANYTHING PERSONALLY
Nothing others do is because of you. What others say and do is a projection of their own reality, their own dream. When you are immune to the opinions and actions of others, you won’t be the victim of needless suffering.

Third,
DON’T MAKE ASSUMPTIONS
Find the courage to ask questions and to express what you really want. Communicate with others as clearly as you can to avoid misunderstandings, sadness, and drama. With just this one agreement, you can completely transform your life.

Fourth,
ALWAYS DO YOUR BEST
Your best is going to change from moment to moment; it will be different when you are tired as opposed to well rested. Under any circumstance, simply do your best, and you will avoid self-judgment, self-abuse, and regret.

Fifth,
BE SKEPTICAL, BUT LEARN TO LISTEN
Don’t believe yourself or anybody else. Use the power of doubt to question everything you hear: Is it really the truth? Listen to the intent behind the words, and you will understand the real message.
The Four Agreements slowly helps you to recover your authentic Self, and the real you starts to awaken. With The Fifth Agreement comes the complete acceptance of yourself just the way you are, and the complete acceptance of everybody else just the way they are. The reward is your eternal happiness. The Fifth Agreement is made with words, of course, but its meaning and intent is beyond the words. The Fifth Agreement is ultimately about seeing your whole reality with the eyes of truth, without words.

Make the Five Agreements your way of life — love yourself, enjoy life, and make your personal world a dream of heaven. And, by changing your world, you are changing the world.

As don Miguel says, “By practicing the Five Agreements, what you are really doing is respecting everything in creation. You are respecting your dream; you are respecting everybody else’s dream. If you use these tools, your effort is really for everyone, because your joy, your happiness, your peace, and your heaven are contagious. When you are happy, the people around you are happy too, and it inspires them to change their own world.”

This way of life is entirely possible, and it’s in your hands. The change begins with you. Why not start now?

My hope is that your 2010 will be the best ever and that you will make good use of anything that promotes your spiral of growth, including this new book, The Five Agreements.

Some thoughts about the Condor, the Eagle, Pachacuti and three new books

The cycles of time as described in myths from South America are called Pachacuti, and each covers approximately 500 years. Columbus discovered the Americas in 1492, which could be seen as a pivotal beginning. The next “pachacuti” would be 1992, and might be thought to be the beginning of the new age where the condor will be invited to fly with the eagle. The condor represents the deep and warm spirituality of the southern hemisphere and the eagle is thought to be a symbol for the materialism of the northern hemisphere. We are ready for some reconciliation between spirituality and materialism.  (The number 5 is important here.  There is another idea formed in Japan recently regarding powerpoint presentations.  They call it “pacha kucha” and it means 20 slides, each 20 seconds long –a six minutes, forty seconds ppt. !!)

My recent visit to South America was deeply rewarding and satisfying. My hosts were warm and welcoming and I felt that warmth and experienced the welcome with heart-felt meaning. Their understanding and compassion came forth in the smiles and physical touch offered by each one individually. I was included and I was honored. The whole trip was gratifying and helpful to me as a human being who is still “incomplete”. I am so glad that I was privileged to experience these feelings. My “bucket” was filled to overflowing.  I am so grateful to all my Interface Flor friends in Argentina and Brazil.  Thank you, each one!

Perhaps our evolutionary movement as a species called “human” is progressing toward more balance between matter and spirit. In our western world in the northern hemisphere of our planet, we are materialists with addictions to things. We procure more “stuff” as if that will bring some sort of spiritual satisfaction. We eat more, gain more weight; and then we spend lots of money trying to lose that weight. I watch at the supermarket and am astounded by the people crowding the aisles with overflowing carts filled with chips, soft drinks, and high fat-empty calorie foods. Our addiction to the white stuff of refined sugar and grains is there to be seen in our fat bodies and our sedentary life styles. Our children prefer computer games to outdoor play. We sit when we could walk or run. On and on, the evidence mounts that we have reached some sort of saturation point.

We build more closet space, buy bigger houses, and rent storage space to hold all our “stuff”. We have “overdosed” on materialism. Swami Beyondananda (Steve Bhauerman) says we are the targets of “weapons of mass distraction”.  So, the eagle has flown very high. Now is the time to join the condor, blending our materialistic society with the society of the indigenous natives who are close to the earth and fly with the condor. Change is ahead, for sure.

I am not yet sure how that would translate here in our household. I just know that eating vegetables and fruits is increasingly more satisfying. I also know that the acquisition of yet more stuff is probably not the route to real joy. We are deliberately “down-sizing” and enjoying the simpler life.

I think about the wisdom of our native American forebears and the philosophy they brought to the settlers of the new world that became our United States of America. Studying these tribes and the Andean tribes of South America is like seeing history through new eyes. History is subjective and has been skewed to fit the prevailing zeitgeist of the times. There is a transformation in the future as we re-view and re-state our concepts of earlier times.

Dan Brown’s new book, “The Lost Symbol”, reveals how our founders were thinking as they declared their independence from an outmoded way of governing. I enjoy Dan Brown’s writing and have found this latest book to be a “page-turner” that I devoured in a short time.

Another book we are studying now is also along those same historical revisioning lines. Bruce Lipton and Steve Bhaerman have written an evocative book entitled, “Spontaneous Evolution”. They are presenting leading-edge possibilities and a mind-expanding way of looking at our existence.

Most of my friends know that I am a “book-a-holic”. I make no apology since learning is one of my strengths. Today, I am deep into a little book by Mike Morrison, “The Other Side of the Card”. He is saying that we can find meaning in life and work.  His “me-we” philosophy is easy to grasp and makes lots of sense. This is a quick read and I recommend it for anyone who is in a leadership role (or aspiring to become a leader).

We are incomplete.  We can learn.  We can expand.  We can evolve.

written December 1, 2009 at 6:00 p.m.  here in Buda, TX.