Gratitude

July 12, 2006.

Today I feel good. I am pleased with the changes taking place in my life.

I am ecstatic about the things that are moving into and out of my thoughts.

I am eternally grateful for so many thing, not the least of which is the breath that moves me each moment of my earthly existence.

I am grateful for my daughters. They are so amazing and unique...complete unto themselves. I am inspired amd awed by them. I am so privileged to share my life with these two wonderful spirits. My love for them is boundless.

I am grateful for the support and encouragement of my Mom and of Woody. Because of them, I have possibilities opening up in my life. Because of their generosity, I will move forward.

I am grateful that David is so in love with Ruby. I am grateful that she is his sun and moon. I am grateful for all of the hard work he puts in to keep things rolling smoothly here.

I am grateful for my wonderful pets. They are unconditional in their love for me and they help me find joy so much easier.

I am grateful that I recognize and avoid situations that contribute to suffering.

I am grateful that I have my vision to carry me throughout life.

An odd combination

I've attempted four different blogs now.

The first one was supposed to be an unschooling blog, meant for documentation of what my girls do all day. I think I posted once.

The second blog was my Raw Foodist perspective, and was intended to be an ongoing journal of my eating habits.

The third blog that I started was my Liberty League blog. It was originally intended to be an advertising venue, mainly. I was hoping to link to it and have this amazing business story to tell.

As I write this, my fourth attempt at blogging, I've pretty much given up on separating anything.

So, instead of compartmentalizing all of my interests and activities, this is it. This is my blog.

It is here that you will find all of the events of my life, at least the ones that I choose to post about. I'll try to be diligent.

July 11, 2006

Today is a slow day. I've been using a meditation program called Holosync. I've heard a lot about it from succesful people that I respect. I'm on my 4th week. Some serious upheaval is going on in my brain as a result. I'm rethinking long held ideas and beliefs about who I am, where my life is going, and what I want for myself.

I find that going through this program is allowing me to release some seriously outdated beliefs about what I can and cannot achieve. As a result, a lot of what is going on in my life seems to be falling away. It's uncomfortable. It feels dangerous, as if I am about to leave behind, once again, all that I thought that I loved.

In addition, I am gaining clarity and focus. My intentions are clear, my determination is increasing. What I realize is that I truly can go anywhere at this point. The fear that once held me back seems to be an illusion. I thought I needed all of this stuff to keep me safe. But instead of safe, I've become stuck, or at least I thought I had, until recently.

I feel sad at times. I know that there will be some people who don't understand or agree with me. I have had a tendency, my entire life, to live so as not to aquire criticism from those I feel are closest to me. I've been an ostrich. I've ignored, selectively heard what I wanted to hear, refused to acknowledge and flat out denied my true feelings and the feelings of others. I just didn't want to make waves. The consequences seemed to me to be unbearable. I don't want to hurt anyone.

I want to be at peace.

I want my home life to be peaceful. I want my dietary and lifestyle choices to reflect that love of life and compassion. And they do.

How proud I am of Zena, who has truly blossomed into a uniquly kind and compassionate soul. I never could have imagined where her life would take her. She is inspiration to me. On the one hand, she has a firm and healthy grasp on what it means to be healthy. She has taken Raw food to a level that I never would have imagined. And she has inspired me to take those actions as well.

She came at her cruelty-free and physically superior views all on her own. I may have provided the base by raising her as a vegetarian, but I never would have imagined that she would take it so far and reap such amazing rewards. All this from a girl who would throw up it she even licked a green bean.

Her recipes are incredible. I'm so lucky that I have her to un-cook such tasty meals! Her self esteem is soaring as she watches her body change, and her vision of the future is truly inspiring to me. She is destined for greatness!

The pain of knowing

This is my "blog-of-all-things". My meanderings, my musings, my silent but powerful realizations...all will be given a voice here.


Let's start now.


My thoughts are moving at the speed of light. Much is being created in my life right now.

I have been watching some of the most disheartening, malicious, cruel suffering and total disregard for animal life I've ever seen. In the wake of that, I have been shaken to a sobbing and heartbroken core.

These images will haunt my mind forever.

Yes, I knew what went on behind closed doors. I've known it for 20 years. That knowledge spurred me into vegetarianism way back then. But being a vegetarian is not enough, even if it has been a 20 year journey. Being a vegetarian doesn't even scratch the surface.

Seeing the torment and the torture, seeing beautiful foxes skinned ALIVE and writhing there...it was so horrific.

It happens all day long, every day...Millions and MILLIONS of times a day.

The shock is overwhelming. The task seems insurmountable.

How can I help change their sad existence? I've been wracking my brain for the last two days, trying to figure out where I fit into this equation. I've been searching myself for ways to make a difference...for ways to ease the suffering of these creatures.

How can I help quell their fear and stop their pain? I guess what it boils down to is education. I am making it my life's calling to educate people on the truth behind the scenes of all of the animal based industries. It is becoming a mission now.

For 20 years I have been a vegetarian example. And though I have argued my point many times, I don't feel as if I have truly educated anyone. That is going to change. Education starts here at home. Education and funding of PETA and other organizations that are doing what they can to promote peace and stop the bloodshed.

We MUST change the laws. We need a compassionate senator or president. People MUST realize that what they put on their plates, what they put on their bodies, is death, pain, torture and the immeasurable suffering on a living, feeling sentient creature.

We need those slaughterhouse doors to be opened. We need those fur farms to have glass walls.

So where am I going? I’ve got a business I’m trying to get off the ground. Where does Liberty League International fit into all of this? Easy.

Education starts with personal development. Personal development is what LLI is all about. The name is Liberty League. Is Liberty reserved strictly for humans? I think not. Anyone interested in working from home, opening your mind and heart to success and creating the life of your dreams? www.YourLifeAbundant.com

Coming at this awakening from a personal development mindset will assist people in making the decision to halt their consumption of animal products from a moral and ethical point of view.

The average Joe Blow on the street doesn't give a shit...they don't WANT to know...it might spoil their dinner.

But a compassionate soul...someone who is actively striving to be a better person, may take the information to heart more readily. They are more apt to comprehend the urgency of the situation.

Believe me...Everyone on my sales register will be nudged in the direction of compassion.

I am part of the solution, not the problem.

My brain is on overload.

I sent reiki to the hurt, terrified factory farm animals twice yesterday. I sent it to the animals in the labs, on the fur farms, oppressed in circuses and in zoos. I sent it to the animal mills. I intend to send reiki to the animals each and every day while I meditate.

Anything I can do to make one tiny iota of a difference...I will do.

I know one thing for sure. For the rest of my life I will be a vegan. There is no taste for blood and pain left in my mind and body.

While I wanted to believe all of these years that being vegetarian was oh, so noble and that I was earning ‘brownie points’ with the universe, so to speak, and that eating a little cheese, or cakes made with eggs, or ice cream wasn’t ‘too bad’, I now know the truth, and I know it to my core.

There is no denying...Dairy is pain. Dairy is death. Dairy is torture and maiming. Dairy is no longer a part of my diet...ever.

Even if I go off of the Raw lifestyle, my food choices will remain strictly vegan. I can’t even imagine eating cheese or ice cream. All I can see are those haunting images of the pain in the innocent’s eyes. The sores, the unjust cruelty.

Go to www.meat.org and watch. It isn’t very long, though you may have to force yourself to get through it.

Before your tears have dried, visit
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=3251419433163515470
and watch this full length documentary called “Earthlings” , narrated by Joaquin Phoenix. It runs the entire spectrum of animal based industries. It goes beyond diet to include all forms of animal exploitation.

Even if you don’t have the stomach for this, you need to see it.

As a being of compassion , you need to see this.

As an intelligent person, you owe it to yourself to see how you have been duped into believing that it really isn’t that bad.

If you turn away now, you are in denial and our entire planet suffers along with the animals.

If you turn away and pretend it isn’t going on, our children and grandchildren will suffer the consequences as well.

Once you have viewed these videos, your life will have been altered. Your eyes will have been opened and you will want to make a change. Don’t worry....change is good. We may not think we like it, because we seem to be creatures of habit, but getting out of your comfort zone and stepping up is a rewarding and exciting experience.

Please watch. Please understand the need for urgency. The screams speak volumes, even if they have no human voice. We need to be that voice for them, the powerless, the oppressed, the innocent.