Civil war and slugs

Earlier I suggested that President Obama was a reincarnation of President Lincoln. This was not to suggest that the current president of the USA will come to a similar end but the fact that he is of mixed race surely would seem to be significant. Lincoln, in his day (or rather his nights) received dream guidance, especially before the different battles during the civil war. During the civil war, although republican, he was central in leading the fight for the emancipation of the slaves. Since the assassination of "I have a dream" Dr. Martin Luther King, the downgrading of the black communities has been somewhat alleviated, helped I would suggest by the global reputation and good will of the ex-president of South Africa, Nelson Mandela. Back to Obama; if karma works in reverse it's interesting to suggest that this time round he's not a Republican. Further, in terms of his spiritual mission now will he not help to build benign bridges between the possible warring factions of religious fundamentalists, be they Christian or Muslim. Indeed, if another civil war is pending on that continent because of say, people enslaved by poverty or the opium of some belief system, which section of society might endanger the prevailing power system the more? Will it be helped or hindered by the constitutional invitation to bear arms?

Back to slugs, and I don't mean bullets! Can anyone tell me why in my kitchen there is a breeding family of slugs? Their slime trails appear overnight and it's only in the darkness that one can capture them and thereby despatch same back to their maker. What I'm asking is, given my kitchen door is so near to green stuff (they demolished my spinach) why are they coming indoors and for what food? I'm told it's fun to get them drunk on beer but for a teetotaller that's surely not good advice! Should I drown them in a happy woozy state of bliss? After all, if they're going to the slug heaven already full of bliss, shouldn't they really feel more at there than in my kitchen? Slug lovers, please respond!

Poynton, Cheshire 19th April

If you live in the Cheshire (Wilmslow, Stockport), North Derbyshire or Greater Manchester area you may be interested to know that Christopher will be giving a talk entitled "Singing Up The Chakras" at Rosemary Douglas' Mind Body and Spirit Fair at Poynton, Cheshire on the afternoon of Sunday 19th April, sometime between 2.30 and 4.30pm. Regretfully, on this occasion, Christopher will not be exhibiting at the fair but the talk will be for one full hour!

Poynton Civic Hall is located just off Park Lane in Poynton, Cheshire - map here - which is south of Stockport. The fair runs across the whole weekend, tickets £3 & £4 on the door or £2 & £3 in advance (see website for details). Arrive early and visit the wide range of exhibits, have a reading or take in another talk. There are refreshments available locally and plenty of free parking. Poynton is situated in a lovely area with plenty of other local attractions

Hope to see you there!

Gardening

When I was a teacher I felt it was like gardening people. Many of them were in bud, many bruised and a few blooming awful. Joking aside, some were coming into bloom well before others. Now that I'm retired and gardening with plants rather than with people it seems to me there are similarities worth exploring. Slugs! Do you know how amazing they are? Their sense of smell is far better than a police sniffer dog. They can catch the scent of a favourite food 20 feet away. Maybe some of you have found slugs and sometimes snails halfway up a high wall and wondered what on earth they are doing there, not on earth. My friend, Richard, typing this, suggests feeling high, it's time to mate. Any comments on that?

This puts me in mind of Eleanor Roosevelt. She once had a garden rose named after her. On reading the catalogue, she was far from feeling flattered. The words read, "No good in a bed, but fine up against a wall." Sex education in schools, unlike the birds and bees in gardens, is considered a controversial topic, except to kids. Do you think teenagers throbbing away at their desks should be introduced to an anecdote, in the name of history, the like of which relating to Mrs Roosevelt is given above? Also controversially, if there are "slugs" and "weeds" in a classroom who refuse to be fertilised by the wisdom of the teachers, as in the Garden of Eden, should they be expelled. Please spot the anomoly in my logic as demonstrated above! (I used to love teachers who could admit error, when the were in the wrong. Trouble is, I can't remember any). YOU?

On Tour!

If you live in the North-West of England you may wish to know that Christopher will be exhibiting and speaking at two Mind, Body and Spirit Fairs this coming weekend, 7th and 8th March 2009.

On Saturday 7th March between 10am and 5.00pm he will be at the excellent Mind Body and Spirit Fair held by MBS Fairs at Aintree Racecourse, Liverpool, L9 5AS. He will be giving a talk at 13.30 entitled "Religions, Robots and Rabbits". Aintree is quite easy to find, but directions are here and the fair is held in the Exhibition Centre which is straight ahead of you as you enter the course. Look for Merlin! There is usually ample parking on site and refreshments are also available. Entrance is £4 adult, £3 concessions. Accompanied children under 16 are free.

On Sunday 8th March between 10am and 6.00pm Christopher will be at the Nantwich Mind Body and Spirit Fair organised by Rosemary Douglas and held at Nantwich Civic Hall, Beam Street, Nantwich, Cheshire CW5 5DG He will be giving a talk at 14.30 on "Sacred Secrets, Healing Sounds". Nantwich is on the A500, J16 from the M6, about 3 miles west of Crewe and again, there is ample parking very close by the Civic Hall. View a map here. Refreshments should be available on site but the beautiful town of Nantwich is well served with alternative refreshment venues. Entrance on the day £4, concessions £3. Advance tickets and weekend passes are available, see website.

Christopher will have a range of material available for sale on both days and is always ready to discuss any aspect of his work - look forward to seeing you there!

Classy Dog Training?

35,000 kids miss school every day. Do we blame them or blame the parent(s)? Or the system? 7 parents already jailed for truanting children now more likely to become feral. How wise is this?

Education should be an open-hearted invitation rather than a closed-minded imperative.

Discuss?

Welcome

Christopher Gilmore here, welcome to my new blog!



As an educator, writer, teacher and learner I'm inviting connections. I believe we have at least two families: the first is our present genetic inheritence; the second, made up of the kinship of consciousness. As the cliché has it, "what goes around, comes around". So folks, Karma come home time!

For you as well? For us, unfinished business?

The night of the presidential inauguration in Washington, I broadcast on Blogtalkradio on the theme of "Atlanteans Live Again - Mostly in America" You can hear the broadcast here (you may need to turn your speakers up a little). It lasts two hours and includes references to Shakespeare, Lemuria, Plato, UFOs, dolphins, crop circles and North American Indians.


Barack Obama - A reincarnation of President Abraham Lincoln.

DISCUSS?

Thought: The Abrahamic religions include Judaism, Christianity and Islam. The sound baraka in an ancient tongue means a blessing. So is the new president, Barack Hussein Obama, going to be a blessing for all of us?


Blessings,
Christopher