OIL CHANGE AND A MANICURE

An all-female oil change business in Philadelphia allows you to have your hair and nails done while you wait for the oil in your car to be changed. What a fun idea!

I LOVED MY GRANDMOTHER. BUT SHE WAS A NAZI.

A thought-provoking article from the New York Times. 

CO-CREATING HEAVEN ON EARTH

"At present, we know how to create Hell on Earth. What would it be like to create the opposite — Heaven on Earth? What do we need to do right now to start?" 

Read more about co-creating Heaven on Earth from Martin Rutte, the founder of Heaven on Earth.

URBAN FARMS AS PRESCHOOLS?

Here's some dirt to wiggle your toes in: 

At the Architecture Workshop in Rome (AWR International Ideas Competition), a group of architects from Italy and the Netherlands took first place with their proposal for a preschool on an urban farm. The challenge centered around designing a nursery school model for London. This CityLab includes farm animals such as cows and chickens as well as greenhouses and ground-planted rows of vegetables. 

(A hat tip to Geoff Lawton and the Permaculture Research Institute for the heads-up on this article.)

MUSLIMS RAISE FUNDS TO HELP REPAIR JEWISH CEMETERIES

After a Jewish cemetery was desecrated, two Muslim groups started a fundraising campaign to make repairs. Their goal of $20,000 was met in just three hours, and now stands at over $160,000. The organizers said additional monies would go to repair other Jewish cemeteries that have been vandalized.

In a similar touching gesture, when copies of the Qur'an were damaged at the Islamic Center Tucson, Jewish friends raised the funds to replace the damaged copies.

(A hat tip to Geoff Lawton and the Permaculture Research Institute for the heads-up on this article.)

FROM "VICTORY" TO COOPERATION

I recently received an email from Sen. Merkley of Oregon celebrating the withdrawal of a bill that would repeal the Affordable Care Act, and urging citizens to continue the resistance to such actions. I don't have permission to reprint his email, so I won't post that here. However, I am sharing my response to that email expressing my hope that we move from an adversarial position to one that truly works to benefit all citizens.  ***** My response to Sen. Merkley: I understand the elation with a "victory" after months of lies and cruel actions that seem to rip at the fabric of compassion and caring that has provided the foundation for America. While I appreciate so many people think the ACA is great, it simply does not work for me. Considering the opposition to this Act and the number of people who still have not signed up for health insurance, I would guess it doesn't work for a lot of people for varying reasons.

Your email says the ACA carries the "promise of affordable, accessible health care for all." FOR ALL.

Well, now is an excellent time to make good on that promise. Not just for the people who support the ACA, but perhaps most especially for those who don't. 

Why doesn't everyone support the ACA? Doesn't everyone want to be healthy? And truly LISTEN to what detractors of the ACA have to say. 

I recently saw a post on social media that expressed a lot of my thinking on this topic. I'll paraphrase here because I don't remember the exact wording.

Just because I'm pro-choice, doesn't mean abortion would be my choice. Just because I support LGBT rights, doesn't mean I'm lesbian, gay, bi-sexual or transgender. Just because I value freedom of religion doesn't mean I'm Muslim, Buddhist, or atheist. 

The same goes for health care. I've found my own way to be healthy that does not involve paying insurance companies hundreds of dollars each month nor does it involve the U.S. medical system.

I SUPPORT THE RIGHT OF PEOPLE TO MAKE THEIR OWN CHOICES, not to have someone else's choices forced on them. Although the intent of the ACA may have been good, what it became is trying to force someone else's choices on everyone and, to make matters worse, to make everyone pay for choices that are not theirs. 

I think the true victory in the Trumpcare bill being pulled is to show that involved citizens and courageous leaders can indeed make a difference. 

However, to use a somewhat graphic medical analogy, the wound of divisiveness will continue to fester unless we get to the root cause. Can we clean out the infection of anger, resentment and desperation reflected in the attitudes and actions of Trump and his supporters so the wounds of our country can heal?

Can we extend the compassion and caring we want for ourselves to those with whom we disagree? Can we move beyond a "we won, you lost" attitude and find ways that benefit everyone? That could be the true measure of making America even greater.

Thank you for listening to the voices of all and for your continued leadership in helping make those messages heard.

IDEAL WORLD

I've spent a lot of time over the last few months in anxiety and worry about events in the United States, and I've felt the effects in my physical body. Definitely a message this is not healthy. 

However, it's also obvious my head-in-the-sand approach to politics of hoping elected officials will make right, moral, and ethical choices according to my standards is ludicrous.

So I'm forging a way to become more vocal and involved in political issues in what I hope is a thoughtful way, yet allow plenty of time to tend to the other pieces of my life. 

I've also begun forming an image of an ideal world where I spend some thoughtful time each day. A world where wise, visionary leaders blend past traditions and new technology to shape a culture that constantly evolves. A world where people are respectful of Nature and live abundantly in health and creativity. Where we are interconnected with plants, animals and other people in ways that nurture all beings physically, emotionally, and spiritually. Where new inventions amaze us and inspire us to explore areas we never thought possible. 

As I look for examples of people building such a world--like a community of Earthships in New Mexico or permaculture farms growing around the world--this ideal world becomes more and more real, bringing a flow of positive energy, strength and hope, which then radiates through everything else I do.