Archive for November 2009
Giving Thanks for the Big Things, Little Things, Old Things, Present Things, and the Things to Come
And we are thankful for the little things that we take for granted but without them we can not live; the air that we breath, the food which sustains us, the health that we enjoy, every smile and every sunshiny day, the ability to get around to walk and run and play. These are just some of the little things that we are so thankful for.
We are also thankful for those who came before us our ancestors even our great grand parents and grand parents who paved the way. We are thankful for their wisdom, traditions, values and practices they handed down to us, like this celebration.
And we are thankful for this present moment in time, as fleeting as it is, for our current situations as you, dear God, are with us as they unfold. We remain confident and hopeful even in uncertain times
Mostly we are thankful for the days yet to come, when those who are stuck in time to be will remember the love and wisdom that we provided for them, through your grace O God. Bless those children of our’s that are yet to come, empower and sustain them through your love.
We are thankful, for the big things and the little things for the past things, and the now things. We are thankful for the love that flows from the heart of God through our hearts today to our friends and family. We are thankful for the love that extends from the beginning of time through these days into the future of our children’s children and the generations yet to come. We are a forever thankful people, Amen!
Here Is A Great 36 Year Love Story. Call It Fun Loving Plus!
Day 9
In celebration of our 36th wedding anniversary I want to share Jennifer and my story with you. This is taken from our book “Fun Loving”
OUR STORY
Let me tell you how our relationship started. Jennifer and I were high school sweethearts. She was fifteen and I was seventeen years old when a family friend suggested that we meet. I discovered that Jennifer was a volunteer at the Kaweah Delta District Hospital in Visalia, California where I worked as a dietary aide, but we had not yet been introduced.
One day I passed by a young girl standing near the elevator. “Are you Bryan?” she asked. I stopped in my tracks, realizing who this must be. “Jennifer?” I responded.
In that moment, fireworks went off like the Fourth of July right there in the middle of the hallway next to the elevators. It was the beginning of our long and great love. I understand there is a plaque there to this day commemorating that great event. Well . . . there should be one.
I was a moody teenager with little direction in life and Jennifer was a bubbly girl for whom there were no gloomy days. She brought light to my life and I quickly fell in love with her. She enjoyed my dark side.
Our infatuation led to a pregnancy that was, as you can imagine, untimely. Getting a girl pregnant throws a boy into a world of confusion, like being caught up in a Kansas tornado but landing in a Brothers Grimm fairy tale.
Initially, I suffered from undying optimism with my wannabe-hippie sub-culture idealism. “It’s all cool. Don’t freak out, man. This has happened before and people make it. You know . . . plenty of families have started under worse circumstances and have done just fine. It’s really no problem, man, everything is cool, man.”
I was certain that Jennifer would be a great mother and that together we would not only survive, we would thrive . . . somehow. But I hadn’t thought about the little things like how I would provide for my new family, how I would pay for the medical expenses, how my parents would respond, how Jennifer’s parents would respond, how our pregnancy would affect my education, what about Jennifer’s education, where would we live?
As I look back now I just shake my head in disbelief about how naïve and idealistic I was. I was brave and “hippy” cool, but ignorant. The reality was not “cool” at all.
Our families immediately went into crisis mode. When Jennifer told her mom about the pregnancy, her mom didn’t speak to her for days. Jennifer was virtually isolated and I was strictly off limits. We had to sneak phone calls.
My parents were against us getting married. They didn’t offer any financial support and my dad threatened to stay away from the wedding. (On the day of the wedding I wasn’t sure he would show up.)
On top of that, I had to appear in court. Jennifer was underage and we needed the permission of her parents and a judge to marry. I had never experienced the solemnity and formality of court before and I was tail-between-my-legs intimidated. I could barely give one word responses to the judge’s questions.
There was no money for us, period. We had no savings, no checking account and we had to scrounge for funds for an apartment. We had to negotiate public assistance for medical coverage. I had to quit college and work full time for meager hourly wages as a Nursing Assistant. (I had to shove my long hair under a short hair wig per hospital regulations rather than submit to the tyranny of the authority.).
It was embarrassing, humbling and Grimm like. I was scared, but more than that I was completely oblivious of the awesome and onerous task of caring for a baby. Reality was setting in faster than Jennifer’s belly grew. If it hadn’t been for the practical faith and help of Jennifer’s parents, I don’t know what we would have done.
Before we could be married, premarital counseling was required by the church. To their credit, the church had a counseling center staffed by a licensed psychologist. After a grueling afternoon of compatibility testing, the psychologist sat us down and delivered some bad new. We were not compatible.
Our temperament analysis revealed that Jennifer was too assertive and I was too passive. He recommended that we not marry.
Actually you did not have to be a rocket scientist to figure out that we had little going for us. We were both teenagers; we had next to no financial resources; our families were less than supportive; we were pregnant; and now the psychologist said we were incompatible.
The odds were against us; in fact, I would say that our situation was a prescription for a disaster!
And that is how it all began. Now, all these years later, Jennifer and I are a statistical oddity; we are still married. But our longevity is not the main point here.
No, lots of couples have been married a long time, but miserably. We actually have deep love for each other. . . and we are best friends.
So we write this book as a testimony to what is possible in what seems like an impossible relationship. This book is a story of hope and some good strategies too. We hope that you may be encouraged and inspired by our “practically perfect” relationship.
Again, this was taken from our book “Fun Loving.” Join us in celebrating our anniversary and the power of love in life.
I love you – Bryan Martin
Birth, Reproduction, Productivity… Then What? Think You Know?
Day 8
It could be said that we get better all the time. But I think a better way to say it is that our capability is growing. This is due to a combination of many things: our brains capacity to process more, the massive amount of information to work with, the improvements we are making in our world and so on.
Our development is not longer limited to the old birth, reproduce and die cycle; it is even more than the relatively new birth, reproduce, productivity and die cycle. Now there is a huge post productive stage that must be considered.
That is what “retirement” was supposed to be. You know the old adage that people generally die within four or five years of retirement. But it is not uncommon now for people to have two or even three consecutive careers.
My point is that there is a lot of living to do… what shall we do with it?
My answer is that we were made to help the next generations.
But this is not just a biological generation to generation thing, as if we only care for those who share our DNA. We, of course, feel loyalty and duty to our own biological families.
But, we are all one Michael Jackson kind of family… you know… it smacks of that syrupy “we are all in this together…let’s love each other” mentality. Or to put it like I learned in Sunday School “Red, and yellow, black and white…we are precious in His sight…Jesus loves the children of the world.” Regardless of how is sounds, it is, what my wife calls, a truism.
I tweeted a boast about my grand children recent and got a reply from a childless grandmother age friend. She reminded me about how blessed I was recalling how I use to long for grandkids. Truth is we are all so blessed, I think a better word is “gifted” to have the opportunity to impart every good thing we have into the hearts and minds of young people, both in the current generations and future generations. It is an incredible gift, a gift like no previous generation enjoyed and it is a gift that carries a heavy responsibility. That saying, “your life is not your own” ring truer now than ever before.
Let’s talk about some of the ways that we can begin to impact generations now and in the future so that they can use the best resources to deal with the massive and complex situations they will face. This is the task of every adult person in every stage of life, reproductive, productive, and impartation. What else are you going to do? Watch TV?
Here is your spiritual exercise for today. Which non DNA related children in your life do you feel responsible for. What are three ways that you can enrich their lives? How can you impact them so that it will positively affect them all their lives and even spill over into the following generations?
I love you – Bryan Martin
What If We Take Away The Doomsday Factor? Does That Make A Difference?
Day 7
If the Earth is terminal then we know what we must do; help coming generations get off the planet to a new extrasolar home. I still need to address how, and I will address that (Here is a major hint: it has something to do with love). But the point that is so important is this… we have a driving meaningful important if not urgent purpose that is beyond ourselves; we must help save future generations!
Now let’s play a new game. What if we take away the doomsday factor? What if we say that the Earth is safe, at least for next 3 or so billion years? What then is our driving purpose?
When presented with this new scenario we will inevitably discover that our driving purpose is exactly the same. But first let me tell you what our driving purpose is not. It is not merely individual gain. It is not nationalistic survival or global dominance. It is not just the perpetuation of our clan, religion, culture or species.
Whether the Earth is in imminent danger or if it is relatively safe for the next billion years or so the most important thing that we can do is to insure the wellbeing of future generation! When I say this I do not mean just to perpetuate the human species. I believe that humans have move beyond evolution.
All other animals engage in the frantic evolutionary task of perpetuation of the species (the cycle of birth, reproduction, and death) and survival of the fittest. But for humans there is something more. I alluded to this when I asked why a woman lives a full third of her life postmenopausal. Clearly she has finished her evolutionary task…what more could there be? But she doesn’t die when she is done with reproduction. She lives a full third of her life after her childbearing years! Why? She no longer conforms to the evolutionary pattern.
Another indicator that humans have moved beyond evolution is the development of the human mind. How is it that we have such far ranging future thoughts and are able to plan and develop such ambitious goals? Our brains and its functioning have developed way beyond merely perpetuating the species. Human have moved into a post evolutionary phase.
There is more to life than just surviving; we have future plans to make. This ability that we have is divine in nature and gives us the driving purpose that is beyond ourselves. It is a thrilling, dynamic way of being. Let us explore this idea together more.
You spiritual exercise for today is to count the number of people you come in contact today. How many of them are tapped into the idea that future is worth living for? Give one example of someone you meet today who is excited about the future.
I love you – Bryan
The Answer To That Question Is That She Is An Example of Post Evolutionary Being
Day 6
Incredible things have been done when humanity pools it talent and resources, things that boggle the human imagination. World War II and the race to the moon are two.
Think about the resources committed to space race. From 1962 when President Kennedy issued the challenge until the landing and moon walk of Neil Armstrong in July of 1969 the U.S. was intensely focused.
The landing of Apollo 11 was the culmination of a herculean effort of the most talented and skilled collaboration of engineers, scientists, and researchers ever.
But more impressive was the brut skill, national effort and leadership of WWII. Never before, nor since then, has the entire nation (even the whole world!) been so focused together for the common good and common goal. As teenage boys went to two different fronts to fight pitch hand to hand battles, moms and grandfather worked in factories and ship yards making sure our boys had the supplies they needed. Those few years, from 1941 to 1945, changed the nation and proved what people could do when they had to.
These two events are unprecedented for the devotion, sacrifice, courage, persistence, determination, focus and purpose they provided.
Similar efforts are being waged today. There is a world wide battle to overcome extreme poverty, to cure AIDs, malaria and bring health care to sick people world wide, to end the oppression and abuse of women and girls and foster education for the world’s children, and to manage our climate and resources. Brave souls are giving everything they have to make the world better.
When we are not focused on our survival… when our attention is not distracted by excessive consumption… when we as a people, all the people of the Earth, sense the need and see the opportunity to help we respond with compassion and undying determination.
Some will say, I know, that history is pocked with ugly displays of murderous religious and nationalistic destruction and evil violence; proof that this rosy picture is the overactive imagination of a glass half full unrealist. It is true and beyond dispute, perhaps it is even the nature of human kind.
Nevertheless, there is a spark of light, indeed it is a burning fire of passion for the well-being and, dare I say it… the salvation of humankind, especially children. It lives in the hearts of countless faceless nameless people who are ruled by love. What’s more is that even when they are killed off a thousand more rise up to take their place. There is no other explanation for all the good that has been achieved.
These are the very same ones who wake up and realize that saving our future children is the most important endeavor that we could ever engage it. It is a cause that is greater than going to the moon. In its scope it is bigger than winning WWII. At it core it is a divine cause, not just for the perpetuation of the species, as I will show, but because we were created for such a time as this.
Your spiritual exercise for today is to answer this question. Of what good is a post menopausal woman in the world? Why is it that a woman lives a full third of her life after her child bearing years? What is her purpose?
I love you – Bryan Martin
It Just Might Take A Few Hundred Years To Conceive, Engineer, and Follow Through On That Idea
In the movie 2012 the world’s governments decide to keep the impending doom a secret from the people. They reason that if they tell “the people” then anarchy will breakout. They believe that with the limited time they have that they can only save approximately 400,000 people. So they hand pick those who will make a significant contribution in the new world. The rest of humanity is subject to the cataclysmic doomsday events. In our world that would mean that over six billion people would be doomed.
So… what would happen if the world embraced the idea that global disaster was near? If you knew that the world was going to end in 1000 years would it make a difference to you today? There are only two answers.
You might be tempted to think that 1000 years is a long time and in that much time our descendents will certainly figure something out. So let me ask the question another way to demonstrate the difficulty of the problem, the scope of the solution, and the resources needed to solve the problem.
What would it take to move six to eight billion people off this dying planet to the relative safety of a new extrasolar home? Assume that we leave no one behind… all six billion go.
It just might take a few hundred years to conceive, engineer, and follow through on that idea.
In former years we could not even begin to ask such a question. Prior the twentieth century such a possibility was just the figment of some odd person’s imagination, the stuff of science fiction. The only response to the crises I have described was to accept doomsday, the destruction of the Earth as the final chapter in human life. In deed that is the opinion of some even today. In the movie 2012 we see vignettes of families tenderly embracing each other in the face of doom, they were fated to end that way.
But not so now. Literally developing before our eyes today is the possibility, though it be remote at this time, nevertheless there exist the possibility of traveling beyond our own solar system to relative safety. Further more, given time, we can conceive of the possibility that every person, indeed all six billion of us, can participate in this project together. What a phenomenal idea! How transforming would that be?
If you knew that there was a chance, even a remote chance of providing safety for your children’s children would you help?
Of course you would!
But… how could YOU help NOW? The proper response is not “how?” but “we must!” Feel the urgency, it is real!
More next time. Until then… here is your daily spiritual exercise. You are spectator at a soccer game cheering our team on. Our team is behind, but there is still time and we could win. What will you do, from the sidelines, to help our team win? Part two: How can you help people around you win, today, in the game of life? Answer these questions and send me your response.
I love you – Bryan Martin
Terminator Returns To Wreak Havoc And I’m Okay With That
First is a disease pandemic. The Black Plague killed one third of the population of Europe. The flu of 1918 killed 59 million people. The threat of a drug resistant strain is a real possibility. Billions of lives are at risk. These days it seems like the flu is in the news everyday!
Second is a cosmic impact. When you look at the full Moon you can see what has happened to the Earth. The impact of an asteroid or comet could whip out life on Earth.
Next is the possibility of a world wide nuclear conflict. Currently the world is trying to cope with Iran and North Korea and their nuclear aspirations. A volatile regional nuclear war could wreak havoc on the whole planet.
Fourth is global warming and climate change.
Fifth, as we already alluded to, is the Sun exhausting its fuel. Scientists believe we have about 3.5 billion years before we are affected by this event, 5 billion until final destruction.
Next we need to consider genetic engineering or bioterrorism. The anthrax scare of recent years reveals just how bad bioterrorism could be. There is something called “computronium” which is a hypothetical programmable material which could go bad and wipe out human life. Remember Terminator? Humm.
Seventh is the possibility of cosmic irradiation. Our atmosphere is fragile and could, under certain circumstance, fail and allow deadly cosmic rays to reach the earth. It would be devastating.
There is more, and I am not going to mention an alien invasion even though it is a popular concept in the science fiction… Have you seen “V”?
Just for the sake of discussion, let’s assume human kind only has 1000 years left on the earth. Wow… that’s not so far off!
If you knew that life on Earth would end in 1000 years would that make a difference to you? I think there are two ways to answer that question. More about that next time.
Here is today’s spiritual exercise. Pretend that aspects of your personality and life could be preserved like DNA in a vial and implanted in future beings. What aspects of your being (besides “love” ) would you want passed on to future generations. What aspects do you think have been passed up to you from your great great grand parents?
I love you – Bryan Martin
If Stephen Hawking Is Right Then What Is The Difference? I Think You Already Know.
It wasn’t until later in the movie that Max confronted the Wild Things with the bad news. The reaction was denial and ridicule. That was the craziest thing that anybody could ever think of. And off they went to continue with their normal Wild Thing activities.
That the end of world is at hand is the topic of popular folk lore for as long as I can remember. In the 1970’s “The Late Great Planet Earth” with its apocalyptic predictions consumed many. More recently the Mayan prediction of the end of the world in 2012 is the topic of many tabloids and websites.
But we have been on the Eve of Destruction since Nostradamus and Jesus, even before.
Growing up in California I new nothing of these things. I always assumed that all these good things would last forever and be in inexhaustible supply. I got my first taste of world mortality during the Cold War and those famous nuclear war drills where everyone would drop, get under the desk and hold your knees. I’m sure my feelings were similar to Max’s in his class room experience.
But now science, not science fiction, religion, urban legend or even popular movies, informs us that our beautiful planet will not endure forever.
It is not my intention to scare you… quite the opposite! I want to use this information to push us to understand our divine purpose in life in the face of such a cataclysmic event. But I do want to underscore that the threat is real. Consider this highly controversial comment by world famous physicist Stephen Hawking. You know him from seeing him in his wheel chair in numerous media appearance and from his books. He states:
“I don’t think the human race will survive the next thousand years…”
It is his belief that the extinction of the Sun destroying the earth is the least of our worries.
I want to say more about why this is important in my next blog. Well… it seems obvious doesn’t it? But here in lies a major clue about our divine purpose in life.
Until next time… Here is your spiritual exercise for today. What would you do if you knew that you only had a limited time to live? How would it change your attitude and thinking or would it? Who would you want to talk with?
I love you – Bryan Martin
“Ground Control to Major Tom,” Why Outer Space Is So Close to Home
Are we alone in the universe? That has been a question asked for centuries and the main topic of science fiction. The word “Extrasolar” refers not to science fiction, however, but to the science of exploring and discovering planets in solar systems beyond our own.
As of November 10, 2009 404 (!) extrasolar planets have been registers with the Extrasolar Planets Encyclopedia (established in 1995 by Jean Schneider of the Paris Observatory). Seth Borenstein, science writer for the Associated Press, quoted Astronomer Stephane Udry of the University of Geneva in an October 19, 2009 news report saying, “I’m pretty confident that there are Earth-like planets everywhere. Nature doesn’t like a vacuum. If there is space to put a planet there, there will be a planet there.”
In the same article Alan Boss, an astronomer at the Carnegie Institution of Washington, said “The universe must indeed be crowded with habitable worlds.”
My point for drawing this to your attention is not just the fact that habitable Earth like planets exist in the Universe. My point is that OUR THINKING about our situation is limited to the bounds of this world, but that a whole Universe of possibility exists. Virtually every system of thinking and organization is Earth bound.
Love is one of those elements of thinking that has been bound or limited our experience of being on one planet. But there is good reason, indeed, it is imperative for our existence as a species, to think and to love bigger and beyond this world.
Amorvia Extrasolar is the way of love that goes beyond the bounds of this earth.
Tomorrow I will show you why Amorvia is so important, indeed, it is essential for the salvation of humankind and all living things on this planet.
Until then, here is your daily spiritual exercise. How large and encompassing can your love be? How does your love go beyond the bounds of your home? How does your love extend beyond your family and friends? How does your love reach to people who are different than you; different race, religion, social status, lifestyles? How can your love reach beyond boarders? Can you be, just for one day, a person whose love has no boundaries? How far would you go for love? Who, in the world, will you love today?
I love you – Bryan Martin
Would It Make A Difference In Your Life If You Could Tap Into The Passion Of Love?
Amorvia is a compound word I invented that represents the goal of my live. Amor is easily recognized as a Latin derivative for the word love and Via is from the word that means way. Love is the Way for everything that is meaningful in the world.
I use to think that this view of love was merely a romantic or idealistic view. Now after years of listening and learning there is no doubt that the passion and drive of love is the force that makes everything beautiful in the world, even technology and science. Not only that but I have discovered that virtually every great and noble act is powered by the energy and drive of love.
As powerful and meaningful as love is, and its history so well documented, it is surprising to me that more people have not tapped in to it. Would it be too much to say that 90% of the world is not fully motivated by love? Malaise and depression, being without meaning, feeling little or no significance, have no purpose and direction are all symptoms which are so widely felt and experienced and evidence that love, with its passion and zest for life is missing.
I’ve been there. Like most I have looked for love and all that it offers, in all the wrong places. I thought I’d find in religion, money, career, relationships, family, fun, leisure and travel. Ironically love was there and I occasionally felt it, but at the end of the day I still felt empty.
My dear friend told me recently that she was having a crisis of faith. She was no longer sure that God was real to her. Man… I understand that one. That is why I want to write this book. There in more information available to us now than at any other time in history AND that knowledge base and information is growing expeditiously and exponentially. All of this knowledge is at the service of love. But what is more interesting to me is that love is driving the discovery.
Take the worldwide pandemic of AIDs, for instance. Love is a primary motivating factor driving the philanthropy and the research to find a cure.
Love is the way.
This kind of love, love that uses information gathered today has roots to the lovers of old but is reaching out to the future.
Tomorrow I will tell you about Extrasolar.
In the meantime let love rule in your life for just today. Wonder with me what your life would be like if love were truly the main driving force and passion of your life.
I love you – Bryan Martin
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