Judy's Homegrown Blog

Originally posted at Writeindependent.org on December 13, 2011

The soul hungers for beauty the way the body hungers for food.

Much like studying for a test leads to accomplishment in mundane activities, appreciation of beauty must be cultivated and fostered.  Attention to the soul and its needs exercises a person’s mind toward an elevated sense of purpose.

Peak experiences

Losing the ego, merging as one.

Noticing the goodness in people.

When everyone is working together, awesome things can happen.

We are more alike than dissimilar.

When we talk about values, what about the value of life? Can we agree that war, torture and destruction are bad?

And if we can’t agree on this basic premise: that lie is good, that people are basically good, then what are we talking about when we say we’re promoting our values? Isn’t it an empty shell of a promise until we specify which values we hold?

People who have peak experiences report feeling one with the world, that they lose their sense of ego, and that they suddenly know the connectedness of all things. A person like that understands that It is impossible to separate experiences into science and the sacred.

When we talk about “values” since we should not separate our higher sensibilities from the meaning of the word, it becomes easy to notice hypocrisies like war. There is nothing noble in war if I value life.

So when is it okay to kill?

Originally posted at Writeindependent.org on December 11, 2011

I admit it: comedy makes me feel good. And to that end, I seek it out, over other forms of entertainment like sports or NASCAR, or hunting.

I can only wish I had the wit of Tina Fey who seems to be a bottomless pit of comedy, or the ease of somebody like Andy Samberg who makes me giddy just by looking at him.

I admit: I don’t watch much television. And I rarely, if ever, watch the news programs. I just don’t have the time. I’m trying to run a business with a fair amount of employees, and I take care of a special needs daughter, and I have friends who take precedence over television.

Some news is just so sad, I avoid it because it puts me into a negative state of mind. I consistently watch the Daily Show or Colbert Report because then I can handle the “news.” Not that it’s real, mind you. It’s fake, and so I take it with a grain of salt.

But then, I take everything with a grain of salt. I don’t believe anything I read or see on TV until I’ve checked and re-checked the sources, if I even have time. Remember the Serenity Prayer:

God grant me the serenity
to accept the things I cannot change;
courage to change the things I can;
and wisdom to know the difference.

I live by those words. I learned about the tsunami in Japan before almost anyone else in California, because I just happened to be up at 4:00 in the morning and on my computer. I don’t live in the dark. Instead, I choose to be informed about the things that most interest me, and I do serious research when the need arises. I self-educate, and I don’t expect that television news programs could improve on this method.

I don’t pretend to know everything, and when people ask me a question, I would rather tell them “I don’t know” than try to bluff my way through. I know a lot about sustainable practices in gardening, and about my daughter’s ADD, specific to her and her alone. When I need help finding something out, I know how to find the right people.

This is the mark of a resilient person: someone who knows how to ask for help when they need it. No one can do a major thing alone.

Originally posted at Writeindependent.org on December 10, 2011

There is one fact of nature that you absolutely have to embrace:

Nature is plentiful; nature is prolific; nature is abundant.

If we do not get in the way of nature, it will provide all that is necessary. If we create the conditions to nurture our homes and families, and if we cooperate, there is no doubt that we will thrive as a society.

Don’t let people scare you into thinking that there is too little to go around. The problem isn’t the amount; it’s the distribution.

Originally posted at Writeindependent.org on December 9, 2011

One of my favorite people is someone I’ve never met. His name is Derek Sivers and he started a company called CD Baby, which he eventually sold.

Now he gives talks to companies about entrepreneurship and various “soft” topics like this one: how your idea might be good, so go ahead and put it out there. Watch this YouTube video; it’s truly inspirational.

If you or a friend has an idea, but you’re afraid no one will think it’s brilliant, put it out there anyway. You just might be on to something.

Originally posted at Writeindependent.org on December 8, 2011

Without the benefit of my mom being alive today, I am certain that she would be proud of me to see what I am doing.

Before she died in 2002, she saw the twin towers come down, she saw our country head into a fearful time when the government would increase its reach into its citizens’ privacy. She knew there was something foul going on, though she had no idea how to change things. She was under the delusion that writing to your Congressman or Senator might actually make a difference, when in fact, this act has lost much of its power now that the influence in Washington sides with the monied interests.

She knew: there was something rotten.

In my family, there were four of us children. My eldest brother is the most highly educated, my middle brother is the most charismatic, my little sister is the most kind-hearted, and then there is me. I was the one most likely to do something strange and (perhaps) wonderful. I can’t just sit things out, or stay quietly on the sidelines. I have an irrepressible spirit that made my Dad call me the smartest, though I think he said that to each one of us in privacy (I can’t be sure, because children often forget what their parents say.)

Someone close to me said a very smart thing yesterday: she said that we don’t teach children to listen to their joy. In other words, we don’t sit them down and say “pay attention to what makes your heart sing, and don’t be so mindful of what you fear.” In fact, I don’t agree completely with this idea. Fear is a great motivator. But rather than be fearful of other people and their agenda, what scares me the most is not fulfilling my own mandate of what I can achieve in my lifetime. I am afraid of dying before I finish the job I was set here to accomplish.

And yet, the message of joy is not lost on me. Little things like having my daughter read to me, or tasting an excellent concoction I whipped up, or picking a homegrown broccoli head with NO aphids on it, or opening up my new checkbook for writeindependent feed my life. Things that haven’t happened yet, but I wish for like witnessing people who “get” this website, or overcoming my fear of being in the public eye, or being on the Colbert Report (!), these things make my heart leap in anticipation! It does wonders to the soul to have imaginary little fantasies because they keep me in a positive “it’s possible!” frame of mind.

I think it is my willful fantasy life that makes me the oddball, go-get-’em type that my Mom would be proud of today. I kept my idealism going, no matter how many years and disappointments I’ve been through. This one is for you, Mom.

Originally posted at Writeindependent.org on December 7, 2011

Have we forgotten who started this nation? Our ancestors were the bravest, most hard-working people. They left their families, their countries of origin, because they believed they could create a better life. They were the strongest: they survived long voyages, harsh conditions, they had to learn a new language, start from scratch, leave almost everything they had behind.

In short, we are built from scrappy people. So not only is America filled with the most courageous ancestors, they were also tried and tested.

The spirit of this country comes from these people. All we have to do is look back at our heritage to realize that what made this country great is the industriousness of people who had it hard at one time or another.

We have the genetic material of these people; we can stay great by applying the same indomitable spirit again.

My grandfather built a business out of nothing. He grew up during the depression; he went from house to house offering to mend suits (he came from a family of tailors) to eke out enough money to buy the most basic necessities. He slowly built by borrowing money from his wife’s brother (my great uncle) to establish businesses first in formal wear and then later in costumes.

If he had not leveraged the skills he learned as a child, he would not have been able to purchase real estate in Pennsylvania and build himself a small fortune before he passed away.

Nothing happens overnight, but people in this country have managed to pull themselves up out of poverty by consistent and persevering effort.

Originally posted at Writeindependent.org on December 6, 2011

murmuration – synchronicity – politics – promises

Before you read this blog post, you have to refer to the entry I made on November 13, 2011. If you do, you’ll be able to spot a synchronicity in this John Stossel report: http://abcnews.go.com/video/playerindex?id=6062018

I don’t always like John’s segments, usually when he doesn’t know enough about the topic to do it justice. For example, he once slammed organic produce without having enough information to weigh in correctly.

What I like about synchronicities is that they show me I’m on the right track. I am referring to the kind of synchronicity that Jung “discovered” and defined in his lifetime.

The Occupy movement, or movements like them are an organic outcome of the world trying to “right” itself. When nature is completely out of balance, it will do what is necessary to find homeostasis. There are several examples of this type of behavior in John’s report, so it bears watching. At the same time, it is important to watch Sunday Driver, my blog post of November 13^th, because it is a metaphor for what we are seeing all over the world today. Amazing!

If you stick with me throughout this entire election cycle, you will see and read about more synchronicities and therefore more proof that a power greater than us is involved in our lives.

Originally posted at Writeindependent.org on December 5, 2011

My women friends say I should write from my heart, and my men friends say I should keep my personal s**t out of my blog.

My women friends say that if I write from personal experience, other people will relate to me and understand (trust) me. My men friends say I will lose my credibility.

My women friends say that my power lies in overcoming my fears and everyone’s objections through getting out there and really showing myself. My men friends think it’s “unprofessional.”

My women friends say that the problem with politics is that it isn’t real anymore; it’s all lies and criticisms. And my men friends say that this isn’t going to work: who’s going to vote for who they really want? People only vote for one party to keep the other from winning.

I have to say it: men are going to keep things the same, and it’s up to us women to fix the mess the men have made. So I’m going to have to side with the women this time. They really do know what’s best for this country, so listen up guys!

Originally posted at Writeindependent.org on December 4, 2011

When I was in 8th grade, I read Sylvia Plath’s The Belljar. It was the most depressing piece of literature I’d ever read; I can’t even remember if I picked it up because it was assigned, or because someone liked it and recommended it.

That book put me in a MOOD. I went to school the next day, pissed as hell about how nobody talks about what’s really bothering them. And when I sat down at the cafeteria table with my quasi friends and said to them that nobody ever talks about what’s really going on, or cops to what we’re all really feeling, my pseudo-friend Audrey said vehemently “Of course we don’t all say what’s on our minds. Nobody goes around telling people what they really think, because you can’t just DO that! Nobody does that. So get used to it!”

I cried that day, because she was right. People don’t say what’s really bugging them, or how things didn’t work out the way they hoped, and how disappointing business or life, or plenty of things can be.

Audrey went on to Penn State and got knocked up in her freshman year and quit school because she needed to have the baby and marry the guy who was a young naive ROTC, maybe like a fling to her.

Funny how karma got her back for shouting at me that way. I hope she learned how to say what was bothering her.