Yesterday we received our first Christmas card, from
Glenda Norris. Glenda goes all out, shopping, decorating, and celebrating life.
The image on the card is a very lovely owl, and the quotation by William
Shakespeare is equally lovely: One touch of nature makes the whole world kin.
The card is from the Arbor Day Foundation, and the inscription reads, "In
your name, a tree is being planted in one of our National Forests." What a
beautiful, thoughtful, insightful gift.
I was pondering this relationship humans have with nature
when I read some excerpts from Listening to Your Inner Voice, by Douglas Bloch. Bloch writes about a young minister
complimenting a farmer, saying that God had blessed him with an incredible
piece of land. The farmer is said to have replied, "Yes, but you should
have seen the mess it was when God had it to Himself!"
It appears to be quite obvious that life
works best when we work with the divine.
This past summer I spent four weekends in an
experiential workshop on how you can activate and maintain higher states of consciousness.
Why is this significant for all? We are partners in the vision and creation of
our world.
Last weekend while we were enjoying the
Thanksgiving holiday with our family in Tennessee, my older grandson, Brad,
stopped by his mom's. On TV was a "reality show" about extreme
couponing. I had never seen such a thing, and was appalled at the garage full
of stuff, wondering why one would want 30 years supply of toothpaste. An extra
tube, yes, but hundreds?
In about ten minutes of watching, Brad had an
inspiration to fill food pantries with staples and stock home shelters with
toiletries—with absolutely no cash outlay! He could form a not-for-profit
program that trained volunteers how to use the process, and suddenly extreme
couponing moved from excessive hording to a practical service to humanity.
As I was working on this blog, Joel sent a
link for one of the most popular TEDTalks of all time, Simon Sinek
speaking about great leadership. Using Apple™ and Martin Luther King, Jr. as examples of great leaders, Simon describes
the common threads of the most inspired and inspiring individuals or organizations.
He says, "People don't by what you do, they buy why you do it."
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| The image on the card is a very lovely owl, and the quotation by William Shakespeare is equally lovely: | . |
I may not ever know for sure exactly why Glenda invested her
money to plant a tree in a National Forest in our name, but as Simon Sinek says, "The goal is not to do
business with everybody who needs what you have, the goal is to do business
with people who believe what you believe."
Obviously, Glenda and I believe what William believes...
Obviously, Glenda and I believe what William believes...
