Ho’O What?
Old Hawaiian system of communication and engaging with the universe that actually works to make a better world.
I’ve been meaning to write about this book for a while, and a recent email prompted me to follow through. On one hand, while the cover, and some of the book’s precepts are a bit hokey, such as getting the woman and car you want, I doubt I’d be married to the wonderful woman that’s my wife, had I not actively engaged the universe and actually asked for what I want. I was using this technique during the summer just before we met. I was leading a mountaineering course in Alaska at the time, and while in the mountains, practiced the technique about 30 times per day. This book illustrates a technique that has quite a track record and impressive story behind it. Below is an email from a good friend to whom I recommended the book and technique. As Tolle says, “Are you polluting the world or cleaning up the mess?” This technique helps you do your part to clean up the mess.
Hi Randy,
I really enjoyed our conversation today.
Shortly after our conversation, I Googled some reviews of “Zero Limits” as well as several pages of the book itself in the form of a preview. In it are perhaps the most potentially life changing ideas I have ever encountered. I thank you very much for introducing it to me. I am going to order copies for several friends and myself.
Thanks J.M.
Dear J,
Yes, this technique of simply saying “I love you, I’m sorry, Please forgive me, Thank you”, is still working wonders in my life. It’s time to raise the bar for all of us, isn’t it.
Thanks for the link to Meninger. I’ll check it out.
Looking forward to seeing you. Warmest regards,
Randy
Robert Nagle, Eco-Challenge Multi-Winner: “Teamwork and Communication, Some Major Keys to Wins” By D.R. Richards
I recently met Robert Nagle at a Professional Ski Instructors of America Telemark Spring Rally, and when he mentioned that a particular piece of clothing he was wearing was great for “desert runs”, it got my attention. “Desert runs?” I asked,
“Yeah,” he responded, “I was a professional competitor for a number of years, and did a Sahara Desert Run, where we had to carry everything on our back, except water.”
“What?” I replied. I’d never heard of such a race. He added, “Yes, I also used to compete in the EcoChallenge,” adding humbly, “We won it a number of times.”
Below, Robert shares what was were keys to his team’s success.
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez links capitalism to the current state of global environmental degradation during an address on FORA.TV at the COP15 Climate Conference in Copenhagen.”A ghost is stalking the streets of Copenhagen…it’s capitalism, capitalism is that ghost,” says Chavez. He mentions in his address, a placard that demonstrators were holding up outside the conference building, which stated “Don’t change the climate, change the system”. He also stated, “If climate change were the banks, they would have saved it.”
Unexpected friends come into one’s life, sometimes for a brief time, but leave an indelible mark. Ron Verblauw was one of those people in my life. He and his wife, Carol, moved to Sunapee, New Hampshire, USA from New Jersey because of Ron’s love of the country and skiing. He had served as a director on the National Ski Patrol’s Eastern Division, ran a trucking company in New Jersey for 40 years, served in the U.S. Air Force in the Korean conflict and was a district governor of Rotary International.
I must admit, I was prepared not to be fond of Ron at first, because of his pro-development stance regarding our local Mt. Sunapee Ski Area and his “proactive aire” about getting things done in, what used to be, our little sleepy community, which can often rub the locals the wrong way. I later saw this as a wonderful attribute, and I quickly realized Ron was an amazing person for many reasons. (more…)
“Who brought their own wheelbarrow?” Rob Jones asked the group of 20-somethings gathered on a muddy North Carolina farm on a chilly January Sunday. Hands shot up and wheelbarrows were pulled from pickups sporting Led Zeppelin and biodiesel bumper stickers, then parked next to a mountain of soil. “We need to get that dirt into those beds over there in the greenhouse,” he said, nodding toward a plastic-roofed structure a few hundred feet away. “The rest of you can come with me to move trees and clear brush to make room for more pasture. Watch out for poison ivy.”
Bobby Tucker, the 28-year-old co-owner of Okfuskee Farm in rural Silk Hope, looked eagerly at the 50-plus volunteers bundled in all manner of flannel and hand-knits. In five hours, these pop-up farmers would do more on his fledgling farm than he and his three interns could accomplish in months. “It’s immeasurable,” he said of the gift of same-day infrastructure. It’s the beauty of being Crop Mobbed. Read the rest of this story
IMAGE: The Crop Mob gathers mulch and finishes the greenhouse – just two of the day’s tasks at Okfuskee Farm in Silk Hope, N.C. IMAGE CREDIT:David La Spina for The New York Times
By D.R. Richards, Learning to live with an Open Heart, Part I
Martha and Don Rosenthal
I first met Don and Martha Rosenthal about 10 years ago when I enrolled in a monthly meeting of “Awakening Together” sessions here in New Hampshire, where couples meet to witness, listen, talk and learn vital life skills in relating to one’s partner. The group was started 18 years ago and a few of the original couples are still continuing today. Other couples have naturally come and gone. Indeed, the gathering is more about becoming a more fully realized human being, about living in the present, than how to only relate better to one’s partner. It’s about learning to love unconditionally with all who come across one’s path. At least this has been my experience of the meetings and the work.
Amanda and I just completed the Rosenthal’s Awakening Together couples retreat” at their country farmhouse in central Vermont, as a proactive approach to building a good foundation for our marriage. We’re so glad we committed to going to the Rosenthal’s for the weekend. We are also enrolled in the once monthly group mentioned above, but the weekend was a “full on” laboratory for personal disarmament.
The Rosenthal's "Learning to Love"
Six couples of various ages and socio-economic backgrounds attended the weekend retreat. Amanda and I were blown away not only with the wonderful format and top quality information covered, but with how both Don and Martha walk their talk, not to mention their well versed articulation and perceptions of participant’s situations. In fact, if you haven’t heard of Don Rosenthal, I expect you will as his reputation will most likely grow . His book and his way of being in the world is direct and heart felt. In short, he walks his talk.
We suggest this as one of the best, if not the best, couples workshops a couple can attend. It is mostly advertised by word of mouth, so I thought I’d post this today. I will write more about our weekend in Part II.
From their website:
Don and Martha began their 31-year journey together in Alaska, where they lived in a remote cabin and explored the quiet life together. Emerging after some years, they moved to the coast of California where they began what has now been more than two decades of counseling couples and individuals. Don received training in psychotherapy and began a career as a counselor. Martha studied mind/body/spirit connection with various teachers and developed a private healing practice. They have a son, now grown, whom they home-schooled.
Don's Second Book
In 1989 Don and Martha moved to rural northern Vermont, and shortly thereafter began offering weekend workshops for couples. Through word-of-mouth these soon expanded to a wide circle, becoming the core of their work. In addition, Martha leads meditation retreats for women and works with couples and individuals privately; Don offers consulting to individuals and couples, fundamentally as a form of spiritual guidance. Don and Martha view their own relationship, with all its trials and wonders, as the testing ground and measure of their teaching. They are co-authors of Learning to Love: From Conflict to Lasting Harmony.
For more information on their work, or the weekend workshops see their website. Editor’s Note: Another book “The Unquiet Journey” is a book of reflections, written by Rosenthal that provides the philosophical and spiritual context for his later publications. Many readers have found it valuable. To Be Continued in Part II
Keeping Land Developers in Their Box By D.R. Richards,
I remember that particular afternoon, when a friend and I talked about trying to do something to help save Mount Sunapee from the dread of slope-side condo development. Sullivan county, New Hampshire had no history* of activism, none, zero, zip. Being a native, of a conventional, conservative county, I had to really watch my thoughts of not wanting to make waves in my home town. I didn’t want to stand out. Besides, people I talked to said there was “nothing that could be done”, “it was already a done deal”, or they were “going to develop the mountain and what could anyone do anyway”. That particular afternoon, the friend and I decided to call a few people, and set up a meeting at the Abbott Library in Sunapee to see what could be done. That first meeting eventually led to the formation of Friends of Mount Sunapee. (*Current FOMS Vice President Linda Dennis was a founding member of a previous Mt. Sunapee land protection group, but at the time we convened, it was not active).
Mt. Sunapee has Friends
Never underestimate what the efforts of a few committed people can do in the face of deep pockets and driven land developers. Thanks to many, (too many to mention here) the word spread about the threat to our State Park, and eventually it spread to the candidate for New Hampshire governor, John Lynch. Lynch has been the most popular Governor New Hampshire has seen, and because of his courageous stance to defend the state lands of Mount Sunapee, the developers decided to sue him, and the state of NH, because their imaginary back-door deal wasn’t honored. Now I read the owners are threatening to sue again. This time they’re stomping their feet at the U.S. Forest Service in Colorado, for again, not getting their desires met to expand their ski area. (For more info click here)
Overdevelopment is not pretty, Okemo, VT
It makes one wonder how some can be so incredibly out of touch with reality, out of touch with the wishes of the locals and the natural environment. I just watched the movie Avatar, (I still have a headache from the Imax 3-D version three days later) and the Muellers’ insatiable appetite for land and profit remind me of the miners in Avatar and their lust for the precious “unobtainium” mineral at all costs.
My dad was a developer. He built one of the first “funnel developments” on Lake Sunapee called Fisher’s Bay. (more…)
Howard Zinn, historian, author, and activist passed away last week at the age of 87. Perhaps best known for his highly influential book A People’s History of the United States, Zinn was a fierce advocate for civil rights. In his memory, the Media Education Foundation has posted a never before seen video, done it 2005. You can see it here.
Learn what one retired high school teacher is doing to spread the word about international understanding in local New England schools.
By Randall Richards
When Frank Hammond, of New London New Hampshire, USA, becomes passionate about something, he gets involved with no reservations. A long-time contributor to various community projects, a popular and effective high school teacher, and former Executive Director of the Lake Sunapee Protective Association, Hammond recently read the New York Times Bestseller Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson, and was motivated to get the book in front school children in the region. One of the strategies, he mentions “is to teach kids empathy skills, i.e., listening to others and building healthy relationships both at home and abroad with foreign cultures.” Learn more by watching the interview below…
Editor’s Note: Frank Hammond was my 8th grade home-schoolroom teacher in Sunapee, NH. He was a great teacher, and left a big impression on my me, and I’m sure on my fellow classmates as well. If his Facebook “friends count” is any gauge, he’s still just as popular as ever with alumni. Thanks for the interview Frank!
R. Richards
I found myself at a store called Eastern Mountain Sports the other day here on the east coast, of the U.S., and at the front door, the following letter was predominantly posted on a display board at the stores entrance for all customers to see. It was written by the chain’s president and shows that this corporation has the intention of not only making a profit but also to remind its customers what’s really important in the end.
The Gift of Time Well Spent The holiday season always involves a tremendous amount of planning, coordination, and giving of one’s time and effort. With so much to do and so little time to do it, it’s easy to get stressed out.
My wish for you and your family is that after all the parties are over and all the presents are unwrapped, you take some time to unplug from the madness and enjoy each other’s company. Get outside, take in the new season, and appreciate the greatest gift of all – a healthy life:
Crash through a pile of dry leaves on your mountain bike.
Breath deeply on the first day below [-5 Celsius].
Feel the burn of a cold-weather trail run.
Watch the first ice form on the banks of a fast-moving stream.
Grab a handful of snow with your gloves off.
Watch the first winter sunrise from the top of a mountain.
Most important[ly], appreciate the outdoors and take good care of it.
From all of us at EMS – Happy Holidays!
Sincerely, Will Manzer,
President & CEO
Eastern Mountain Sports
Kudos goes to E.M.S. I bought my first 60/40 mountaineering jacket there for our Proctor Academy winter mountaineering course. It must have been in 1975. For a while the store struggled but these days, not only is its president’s writing good letters like the one above, but the store seems to be on track environmentally as well as with its education and customer service focus. Well done E.M.S. – keep it up. Editor’s note: This letter was given to me by one of the employees at EMS when I explained I’d like to reprint it on our blog. Edits are in brackets.
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