Speaking of Spirit

In many traditions around the world, we are taught to be in the moment, to "be" now.  However, as history has shown us (and is still showing us) if we fail to remember the past, the future is doomed to repeat old patterns. Only by remembering what was can we find the secret door to a stronger, healthier, safer and more abundant tomorrow.  But, how can we do that, while being in the moment? A conundrum for sure! To start, we need a different perspective. Time is not linear as most people imagine, nor is it circular.  Rather, time is spiraling. By changing that perspective, we no longer see ourselves wandering along a long, straight, infinite road to and from nowhere.  Alternately, we no long see ourselves traveling in circles that never end - chasing our tails like the Ouroboros. Instead, we realize that we are traveling a spiral that can take us higher or lower depending on our perspective.  Therefore, the perspective we want to take is one of awareness of the moment

Talk to the Hand (c) 2019 Linda M. Rhinehart Neas Did you know that holding grudges can make you sick? In a New York Times article, Tim Herrera talks about how people keep grudges and how this can cause them serious illness.  The opposite of a grudge is forgiveness. Forgiveness is the gift you give yourself. There are very good reasons why I say this.  Dr. Frederic Luskin, founder of the Stanford Forgiveness Project said,  "Holding onto a grudge really is an ineffective strategy for dealing with a life situation that you haven’t been able to master. That’s the reality of it. Whenever you can’t grieve and assimilate what has happened, you hold it in a certain way.  “If it’s bitterness, you hold it with anger. If it’s hopeless, you hold it with despair. But both of those are psycho-physiological responses to an inability to cope, and they both do mental and physical damage.  “The hopelessness shuts down and dampens immune response, leads to some aspects of depres

(c) 2019 Linda M. Rhinehart Neas According to studies gathered by the Center for Disease Control (CDC) in 2016, 20.4% of Americans suffered from Chronic Pain.  That means one in every five people has chronic pain from one source or another. Chronic pain is caused from various conditions - disease, trauma, environment. Living with it is hell. Most people with Chronic Pain look healthy. Many of them appear to go through their day happy and content. Usually, if you ask, they will tell you they are fine. They tell the medical community that they "have a high pain tolerance." This means that they have learned to live with Chronic Pain; therefore, until the pain reaches unbearable, they just keep moving forward.  People who live with this condition begin and end every day in pain. Their days look something like this: Upon waking, they can't loll around in bed. The weight of the sheets and blankets hurts. Their joints are on fire. The attempt to stand up