Once again in the past few days, our society has succumbed to yet ANOTHER mass shooting. This time in my own state; the town of Virginia Beach. And in its wake left 12 amazing SOULS and what they had to offer this world in one pure instant! So many faces have danced across my television screen from these horrific events the past five years, I have forgotten where they have all occurred. Heartbreaking is not a strong enough word for the totality of human suffering and loss these events have left in their withering wake.
As easy as it may be to become emotionally numb from all this senseless violence, enough is ENOUGH!!! No longer can we stand by and point fingers at others, when the REAL solution to this problem is that person looking at you in the mirror every morning. As the preverbal saying goes, "You are either part of the problem, or part of the solution!" It's truly up to YOU!
My first suggestion would be to get out and VOTE! Do your due diligence and make sure your candidates are in favor of background checks on all gun purchases. This isn't about political partisanship, but rather human decency and loving longevity.
In a commentary in the New England Journal of Medicine, emergency room physician and long-time gun violence researcher Garen Wintemute, MD, PhD, from the University of California at Davis, tries to bring some sanity to these discussions by focusing on just two specific policies that could have a dramatic effect on reducing gun violence. The first policy Wintemute advocates is not new, groundbreaking or even controversial: 88% of Americans support comprehensive background checks. Requiring background checks to purchase firearms is obvious common sense and backed by evidence—yet the political will to enact these policies remains frustratingly, bafflingly inadequate. One in five firearm purchases across the US does not involve a background check, according to a 2017 study. A 2016 study found that school shootings are half as likely to occur in states with background checks—yet only 14 states had such a law in 2013. (If you wish to read more about this article, please click on the word commentary in the first sentence.)
My second suggestion is to begin using the ONE SUPER POWER that we all share. LOVE!!! Re-member that you came here to be a SUPER HERO! And that means "being of loving service" to all! Most of the individuals committing these unfathomable acts of terror filled violence are in severe pain themselves. Many of them feel as though they are disenfranchised. That they no longer matter. And that their voice does not carry any shared values of LOVE and UNDERSTANDING. Others suffer from some form of mental illness and due to the uninformed masses don't reach out for the help they deserve. All because of a STIGMA that nobody with ANY illness deserves!
Please don't misconstrue any of my sympathy as an excuse for their actions. My intention is to help shed some much needed light on a few of the core issues I believe must be attended to in order to help STOP THESE HIDEOUS EVENTS FROM HAPPENING!
So below are a few highlights from a previous post that I feel would be wonderful ways for us to start connecting with our fellow brothers and sisters in a more loving and compassionate manner And not just people who are in our inner circle, but anyone that crosses our daily path:
SUPER HEROES IN TRAINING TAKEAWAYS:
Last time I checked, the great majority of us are NOT mind readers. And if you happen to have this highly coveted ability, please call me. Let's chat! Seriously. LOL
For the rest of us, we must settle on the subtle art of asking our friends, lovers, relatives, and co-workers what they need from us. Unfortunately, most of us miss the mark like a very inexperienced arrow shooter when it comes to this form of communication. And as simple and innocuous as it may seem, it actually can wreak havoc in ALL of our relationships!
In fact, it is a scientific fact that the majority of our deeply held wounds, the type that keep our inner emotions hostage to dysfunctional behaviors are a direct result of us NOT receiving the LOVE in the form of praise, gratitude, APPRECIATION and ACKNOWLEDGEMENT that most of us seek, whether we admit it to ourselves or not.
So here are some tips you may decide to include in your daily communication that I have seen work wonders with my clients and friends once they practice them enough so that they flow from authenticity:
1. Since chances are you are NOT a mindreader, what would it look like to actually ask someone you value in your life HOW THEY WOULD LIKE YOU TO SHOW UP FOR THEM IN THE MOMENT? Earth shattering thought, I know. LOL But I think of all the tips and suggestions I have tried in trying to build stronger relationships in my life, this offering of kindness has been by far met with the most enthusiasm and gratitude. For many people, the first time they hear me ask them this, it is like they are speaking to an alien life form. I don't believe they have ever had the opportunity for someone to completely eradicate THEIR agenda so they can truly concentrate on what is going on in their world. Let's keep it real here. This is about NOT making it all about you! Feel Me? I KNOW you do! And listen, before I throw any stones, I have been guilty of turning someone else's story into what I am going through enough times to build my own glass house. Just sayin and prayin. ;0)
2. There are many of us that have rarely been afforded the self confidence to help assist us in our goals and lively endeavors. It may seem ludicrous to think about, but I have come across enough friends, clients and relatives to KNOW IT TO BE TRUE!! So another powerful suggestion that I implement with my clients is to tell them how much I BELIEVE IN THEM!!! Very often their first retort is usually something to the effect of , “That's easy for you to say, or I wish I could believe what you are saying.” And ya know what? I absolutely LOVE it when they come back at me with such volition! Why? Because it allows me to pull out my verbal magic wand; the one I keep hidden for just such occasions. I simply lower my voice, and look them straight in the eye. Or pretend I am doing so over the phone, and tell them, “No problem. I will hold a space that you are MORE than capable of whatever you put your mind to until YOU can hold that space for yourself! I believe in YOU and I will always and in all ways! I promise, I will stand by your side at all times.” And then I stop before I start to sound too much like a James Taylor song. lol
What would it look like for you to implement a similar paradigm of what I now call "Space Saving" with some of your close friendships? I think you will find it to cause miracles on both sides of the relationship!
3. Be somebody's personal cheerleader! Celebrate small victories for and with them. Nobody can do it alone and all Journey's start having the conviction of taking the very first few steps. Right?! DAMN STRAIGHT! And the difference between those of us who make our dreams come true and those who don't, usually stem from those who are BRAVE enough to take the first few steps. So I urge you to make a GI-normous (well, not too GI-normous) deal about the small victories in your friends lives. They will appreciate it more than you could ever know! Trust me. Send them an actual letter in the mail. Drop by unexpectedly with a bottle of wine or just to give them a big fat juicy hug and tell them how AMAZING they are! Most of us who have decided to take on our own Hero's/Heroine's Journey often feel like we are on an island by ourselves. And it can be pretty scary and sometimes very lonely. So just letting someone know you are thinking about them can sometimes make all the difference in their world!
4. I call this the "JUST BECAUSE." And it is a pretty simple thing to incorporate into your life and the lives of those you treasure. Learn to do things for others JUST BECAUSE. Send someone a vase of wildflowers. Or leave a small note on their car windshield just to tell them you care and see them for who they truly are! Pick up the phone and if they aren't there, leave them a message telling them how much they mean to you. Treat them to lunch and give them a card expressing the Superhero they are in your life. This, I believe my New Age Nerd friends, has the power to CHANGE THIS WORLD!
Re-member, the Universe tagged you it! That's why you are here. You agreed to the challenge that lies in front of us all. That being assisting in expanding the Universe through expressions of LOVE. The whole searching for "the meaning of life" thingy, it's right there in front of your eyes. Just choose to BE LOVE. To EVERYONE! That's it! It's literally that simple. Vulnerable and very deep, but simple. I truly believe with all my heart and soul that it's just NOT as difficult as we are making it out to be. For as Gandalf said in The Hobbit, “I have found it is the small things, random acts of kindness, that keeps the darkness of this world at bay.” Amen to that the Great Grey One.
This poem is forever dedicated to each individual LOVE LIGHT that was extinguished during this week's Virginia Beach shootings.....................
Why is it we all strive for something we weren't meant to BE...
Slaving through work that has no real meaning ...
Yet day after day, we act like obedient slaves...
Hoping one day our slog will reveal what we'd like to see....
So often the Journey seems so tough to navigate......
Not knowing if we are on our True Path....
But are we asking ourselves questions of Consciousness ...
Or are we afraid the answers will fill us with wrath....
Confusion sets in as the clock continues to move...
Time moves oh so fast in this illusion...
Yet we ignore its constant beating....
Afraid testing our mettle will only cause us confusion...
Depression, anxiety, and suffering for some ensues...
As we think of the many days now gone by...
New directions never taken, thus letting our lives not be shaken...
But the yearning deep inside cases our SOUL to cry....
Magnificent beings we came here to BE...
To spread magic upon this world for all to see...
Yet we hide our wings and play oh so small...
In fear of the opinions of others wishing their souls be set free..
We see the world not as it really is....
But rather as Who we truly are deep within....
So unless we carve away our pain...
This experience will appear as only a whimsical sin...
Fractured relationships fill our lives....
When both sides seek only pure LOVE and affection ....
So why do we hide a compassion eye...
And suffer so needlessly rather than spread a loving confection
For our experience here is fleeting at best...
A place to Re-member who we are rather than a test...
And by gently offering the gifts that lie deep inside...
We can reclaim our birth right and give our mind a rest...
The truth of the matter is that we are all enough...
No need to BE something you are truly not..
For Spirit granted you to BE everything at once...
Just be brave enough to give it all a proper shot....
For this illusion of separation DOES NOT exist...
You and I are but FOREVER ONE...
So let competition completely fall away...
Because just by coming we Both have already WON.....
So be afraid not to extend a helping hand...
To your brothers and sisters in need..
Too many lives and not enough time....
So many SOULS who lives we need to feed...
For this world is at a desperate peril...
One that cannot be ignored...
But there is ALWAYS enough time..
For each and every valley to be restored.....
BE SUPER HEROIC!
Nerdmaste,
Jeffrey Louis Martinez
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