BeVital

https://substack.com//note/c-64695847

Kamala rocks! on Substack Discover and discuss great writing with the world’s smartest readers on Substack.

Oh, and don't forget - Saturday Night at St. James Gate in Belmont - new tunes, rowdy characters ... It's gonna be a fun show!

Pretty funny.

trueloveconquersall.quora.com

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Great quote from this little article on Medium:
"Creating yourself is difficult, and different, from just accepting the self that’s handed to you by your family, education and surroundings."

Leave Home and Surrender To The Voices Gaze into the fire, into the clouds, and as soon as the inner voices begin to speak… surrender to them. Don’t ask first whether it’s…

"... Further, big picture systems theory and other animistic Gaian ways of thinking tend to favour managing the big system over allowing the micro to spontaneously build the macro.

From the perspective of micro-symbiosis, ‘Gaia’ is the net result of trillions of micro-events happening within and between organisms throughout the habitable parts of the planet: it is not the prime mover of those events. The same thinking can be applied to the human being: we are not what we thought we were..."

Worth the read.

Entering the Symbiocene.* The impacts of the late Anthropocene, the age of human dominance over the planet, are now headline news. Visions of a pessimistic future for present and future generations are regularly presented t…

Powerful history lesson, and perceptive commentary on the circumstances we find ourselves in today. There are ways to make things work - better - and we know how to do it. It's hard. It takes patience and intelligence and foresight and insight. May we be blessed with leadership (YOU are part of that leadership) that can see, can act, and can respond with intelligence and kindheartedness.

May 8, 2024 Today, in Racine, Wisconsin, President Joe Biden announced that Microsoft is investing $3.3 billion dollars to build a new data center that will help operate one of the most powerful artificial intelligence systems in the world. It is expected to create 2,300 union construction jobs and employ 2,000...

Took me a long time and many non-relevant words to finally figure out the hint.
Strands #67
“Tap to play”
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The yellow was whack-a-doodle.
Connections
Puzzle #333
🟦🟦🟦🟦
🟩🟩🟩🟩
🟪🟪🟪🟪
🟨🟨🟨🟨

Holy cow. Slugged my way to an improbable par. Wordle 1,055 4/6*

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Who needs an easy-going vacation? (I do! I do!)
Maya Devi and I are heading to the calm waters of San Carlos, Mexico (Gulf of California) for a few days at the end of April. Come join us.

If you'd enjoy a shared vacation - and a lightly-held container for some gentle retreat work - get in touch!

Maya Devi knows the details on the ground in San Carlos. Drive from the Arizona border, or fly in to Hermosillo.

Personally, I'm aiming for deep relaxation and a few scouting missions... and WARM, calm, ocean water...

I just realized why people think of vinyl/analog as warmer. And why the analog-to-digital reproduction methods don’t preserve it.

It’s because analog is different every time you play it.

Weather. Dust. Age. Humidity. It all changes the sound - one could say, “colors the sound”. So it’s like date night. It’s new and flirty at a subconscious level. Familiar, but also charmed with a little pixie dust.

Did you send me these high-tech fold-up sunglasses?

SO much going on - And Paper Thin at Club Fox Tomorrow Night (Saturday July 2) - https://mailchi.mp/1ec24cc49ba8/bevitalnewsletter-july-1-singing-and-more

Fabulous feeling of rain this past week. Come join us for the second of three ceremonies calling to the rain. This time, an Invitation. The experience is light breathwork and guided meditation, for an hour, Monday night, March 7th, at 8:00 PM pacific.

https://momence.com/John-Carosella-Gardner---BeVital.life/Calling-to-the-Rain---Second-Ceremony%3A-Inviting/683704

Nancy Larocca Hedley co-facilitates with John Michael Gardner

Calling to the Rain - Second Ceremony: Inviting Join us for this wonderful experience!

Thank you to all of you who are joining us in this love song to the rain.

If you haven't confirmed, you can do so here: https://momence.com/u/johngardner

Just a few thoughts and details for your consideration:

Timing: This event is via Zoom; come join us starting at around 7:45 so we can all get settled, debug our mics and speakers, and generally find our comfort as we begin to create the ceremony setting.

Tech prep: If you have comfortable headphones or earbuds that you can use (I like using my wireless earbuds), try them out. I find that using earbuds helps make the music and meditation guidance more alive and intimate. In general, use best quality audio you have available.

Physical prep: We will be in gentle conversation and meditation. I'll be sitting; I encourage you to either sit or recline, comfortably, so you can relax into the meditation. You can use an exercise mat, a bolster, pillow, and blanket to set yourself up.

Space prep: I'll have an altar. I encourage you to make one, too. Be creative. You can't go wrong. I'll have a candle for each Element (Air, Fire, Water, and Earth), and a little something that evokes each Element (examples: a feather for Air, something red and sparkly for Fire, a seashell for Water, and a rock for Earth. One Celtic tradition has these colors for each: yellow for Air, red for Fire, blue for Water, and green for Earth.) I'll also have a candle for the overall intention of the ceremony.
Also, if your space can be quiet and undisturbed for an hour or so, that would be beneficial.

What to expect: My dear friend and colleague Nancy Larocca and I will be co-facilitating. Some of the experience will be "eyes open" and interactive, and some will be "eyes closed" in meditation. I hope it will be informative, soothing, fun -- and a bit of an adventure. I'll be inviting you to shift your awareness, to come into a kind of "communion" with the elements and processes that bring rain. If you haven't done this kind of inner "shape-shifting" before, you're in for a treat. And it's a great exercise in empathy that can serve you well out in ordinary life.

That's all for now. If you have questions, please reach out. I'm available at [email protected], [email protected], and through the MOMENCE platform.
Enjoy your weekend, and we'll see you Monday night (7:45 so we can settle in...)

Calling to the Rain - A Love Song in Three Ceremonies. Starting 2/28. - https://mailchi.mp/11be8b0bc8ab/bevitalnewsletter-feb-24-love-song-14167844

A Love Song to the Rain - in Three Ceremonies

Love ALWAYS matters...

I'm excited and honored that you might participate in these ceremonies dedicated to the rain. As I've been preparing, I've had some questions about what to expect and what our intention is in doing these ceremonies.

Some of you science-minded folks are skeptical that we could actually influence the patterns of the rain.

Some of you are (rightfully) concerned about whether we should be trying to influence the patterns of the rain.

Some of you are wondering if that's the purpose, explicit or implicit, in the ceremony work.

These are great inquiries. And I've been thinking about how to express my perspective on all of it. Yesterday, a clear and simple explanation popped into my head:

We're gathering to sing a love song.

To the rain, to the processes that create it, and to everything that is nurtured by it.

Very simple.

And in doing so, we can express our longing for more rain. We can express our delight in how it forms. We can invite and encourage it, the way we would encourage anyone we love, to spend more time with us.

Do I have an agenda? Yes. I would love more rain.
Am I willing to coerce to get it, even if I could? No. I'm not.

I AM willing to invite it, though.

If you feel called to participate, please sign up here, at my new MOMENCE page: https://momence.com/u/johngardner (Momence is the platform that I'm using now for classes and events - it's still a work in progress). You can also email me at [email protected] (or, if you still have [email protected], that will also work); post a comment here or send me a contact form on the BeVital.Life website. If you have my number, you can text me.

You can read more at www.BeVital.Life/blog

Three Ceremonies Calling to the Rain

In California, we - the people, the animals, the vegetation, the soil - would all benefit from more rain before the dry season starts.

I feel called to do ceremony in this regard. I'll have more to share, but for the moment, I would simply like to invite you to join me.

Starting February 28th - NEXT Monday, at 8:00 PM Pacific Time, I will be hosting ceremony on three consecutive Mondays (2/28, 3/7, and 3/14), each at 8:00 PM. Ceremony will be via Zoom, and will last for about an hour, with time for questions and reflection at the end.

The ceremonies will create an opportunity for us to resonate with the beauty and abundance that comes with "just the right amount" of rain. Perhaps we will have an influence on the energies that bring the rain. Perhaps we'll simply have the opportunity to drop deeply into the gift that is the rain, and the beauty it brings.

You can find invitations to these events on my new Momence page, here:
https://momence.com/u/johngardner

(Find out more at www.BeVital.Life/blog)

If you love the rain, and feel called to participate, please come. We're going to have a beautiful time.

Calling in the Rain - A Ceremony Series Starting Monday 2-28 - https://mailchi.mp/38bc2fbc38d1/bevitalnewsletter-feb-21-calling-the-rain

Paper Thin Band at the Pioneer - https://mailchi.mp/9b99da1ae4a1/paperthingband-pioneersaloon-211119

Biking accident. Yup. I got lucky. - https://mailchi.mp/5cd533cd12e4/bevitalnewsletter-nov15-biking-the-white-line

Oh My! Many changes. Some fun news. And Paper Thin is live at the Pioneer on Friday, Nov 19! - https://mailchi.mp/c826d62dabb4/bevitalnewsletter-nov12-sabbatical-ending