Demonstrations Resume as Mayors Call for ‘Peace, Not Patience’ (New York Times 20/05/31)
Some will draft letters to the government, others will create signs for protest demonstrations, I may do so tomorrow though today on this day of pain …
….I elect to write a post to this blog.
“When I despair, I remember that all through history the way of truth and love have always won. There have been tyrants and murderers, and for a time, they can seem invincible, but in the end, they always fall. Think of it–always.”
Today’s SoCS prompt is: “fan.” Use it by itself or find a word that starts or ends with it. Use it any way you’d like. Enjoy!
Fan the flames of peace.
Sing out to bring the dove.
The road might not be straight.
Let me start with my own heart.
Fan the flames of justice.
Not with violence, but with strength.
Be persistent.
We can’t always wait for Karma.
Fan the flames of love.
Speak your heart’s desire.
Love your neighbor as yourself.
Remember we all belong.
What do we want to speak into existence? Our thoughts and our words are powerful! Focusing on what we want, not what we don’t want, brings our heart’s desire. Yet, there are times when we must vent to release and make room for something better. Just don’t linger in the darkness. Don’t let the negativity become toxic.
Imagine the best.
That’s the fifth step in my new book, From Loneliness to Love, Five Steps for Finding a Healthy Relationship.The e-book will be available on Amazon tomorrow! (June 7) I’m still trying to get the cover right for the paperback. It looks good digitally, but the printed proofs….. Oh well.
I will imagine that this book will help people. The principles work not just for finding a healthy relationship, but for many other goals. Here are the steps:
Clarify Your Heart’s Desire
Request Help from the Divine
Love Yourself Well
Focus on Friendship
Imagine the Best
On another note:
Fan blades remind me of flower petals. So I’ve recycled ? upcycled a couple.
Painted with alcohol ink and soon to be a sunflower
This one spins in the wind.
For more Streams of Consciousness, visit our host, Linda G. Hill at
1. Your post must be stream of consciousness writing, meaning no editing (typos can be fixed), and minimal planning on what you’re going to write.
2. Your post can be as long or as short as you want it to be. One sentence – one thousand words. Fact, fiction, poetry – it doesn’t matter. Just let the words carry you along until you’re ready to stop.
3. I will post the prompt here on my blog every Friday, along with a reminder for you to join in. The prompt will be one random thing, but it will not be a subject. For instance, I will not say “Write about dogs”; the prompt will be more like, “Make your first sentence a question,” “Begin with the word ‘The,’” or will simply be a single word to get you started.
4. Ping back! It’s important, so that I and other people can come and read your post! For example, in your post you can write “This post is part of SoCS:” and then copy and paste the URL found in your address bar at the top of this post into yours. Your link will show up in my comments for everyone to see. The most recent pingbacks will be found at the top. NOTE: Pingbacks only work from WordPress sites. If you’re self-hosted or are participating from another host, such as Blogger, please leave a link to your post in the comments below.
5. Read at least one other person’s blog who has linked back their post. Even better, read all of them! If you’re the first person to link back, you can check back later or go to the previous week by following my category, “Stream of Consciousness Saturday,” which you’ll find below the “Like” button on my post.
6. Copy and paste the rules (if you’d like to) in your post. The more people who join in, the more new bloggers you’ll meet and the bigger your community will get!
7. As a suggestion, tag your post “SoCS” and/or “#SoCS” for more exposure and more views.
Today’s prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday:
“…spay/splay/spray.” Use one, use two, use ’em all, it’s up to you. Have fun!
There’s so much I could write about, but I’ll start with the prompt.
Spay or neuter your pet. There are so many homeless dogs and cats, so many killed because they were abandoned…. I’m feeling tense right now and sad because of the news in the US, and now, thinking of abandoned pets being killed in shelters…. I don’t want this to be a downer post, but that’s where the stream of consciousness is going for me right now. Consciousness sometimes means being sad or angry or afraid because of what’s happening….
Going back to spaying and neutering, there aren’t enough homes for them all, so I don’t understand why people would find it acceptable to breed more dogs and cats when you can adopt from a shelter and save a life. If we get another dog, when we get another dog, I’ll be looking for a shepherd mix from a shelter. But who knows who will find me.
Doodle, our Treeing Walker Coonhound, may she rest in peace, was adopted from a shelter or rescue by my husband before we got married. Her big walker feet would splay out when she got excited. It was involuntary. I wish I had a picture of her feet splaying. Here she is sleeping on our bed with her big feet.
Spray. The first thing I thought about with that was pepper spray. I’ve been watching news on the protests in Minneapolis over the murder of George Floyd. When I watched the video of the police officer kneeling on George’s neck for several minutes even after he became unresponsive, I was yelling, “get off him! Just put him in the car!” (He was already handcuffed!) But when I was watching the video George was already dead. Bystanders were yelling for the policeman to, “check his pulse!” and “He’s unresponsive!” Afterward, I cried. I don’t wish I hadn’t watched the video. It was important to see it. So many black men (and women) have been killed by police officers or “vigilantes.” This one was the worst I’ve seen. But they’re all horrible.
I’m usually optimistic, and I still have hope that we can do better. Sometimes things have a way of getting worse before they get better. I believe this is enough. My heart is heavy.
I know there are plenty of (?) some good cops in the world and in the US. I know at least one personally. There must be more. Police suicide in the US is very high. Some big changes need to happen. Police officers and cadets need a lot more training in de-escalation and community relations. That’s an understatement. They need routine screening and supportive counseling.
Here’s my hope and vision for the future of my country where violence and injustice are concerned:
The US stays involved in the United Nations. We have a Department of Peace that gets just as much funding and status as the military. We have offices of peace and peace workers in every city and town that get just as much funding as law enforcement agencies. We organize for peace. We seek it diligently. We nurture peace and each other. It will not be easy. But it is possible.
I haven’t been smiling lately, but here’s some medicine:
Oh, yeah, my husband David just made a peace chair protoype. I’m going to paint some color on it. Painting is my medicine, too.
1. Your post must be stream of consciousness writing, meaning no editing (typos can be fixed), and minimal planning on what you’re going to write.
2. Your post can be as long or as short as you want it to be. One sentence – one thousand words. Fact, fiction, poetry – it doesn’t matter. Just let the words carry you along until you’re ready to stop.
3. I will post the prompt here on my blog every Friday, along with a reminder for you to join in. The prompt will be one random thing, but it will not be a subject. For instance, I will not say “Write about dogs”; the prompt will be more like, “Make your first sentence a question,” “Begin with the word ‘The,’” or will simply be a single word to get you started.
4. Ping back! It’s important, so that I and other people can come and read your post! For example, in your post you can write “This post is part of SoCS:” and then copy and paste the URL found in your address bar at the top of this post into yours. Your link will show up in my comments for everyone to see. The most recent pingbacks will be found at the top. NOTE: Pingbacks only work from WordPress sites. If you’re self-hosted or are participating from another host, such as Blogger, please leave a link to your post in the comments below.
5. Read at least one other person’s blog who has linked back their post. Even better, read all of them! If you’re the first person to link back, you can check back later or go to the previous week by following my category, “Stream of Consciousness Saturday,” which you’ll find below the “Like” button on my post.
6. Copy and paste the rules (if you’d like to) in your post. The more people who join in, the more new bloggers you’ll meet and the bigger your community will get!
7. As a suggestion, tag your post “SoCS” and/or “#SoCS” for more exposure and more views.
For the past nine years, Dr. Kwane Stewart has been visiting homeless shelters, soup kitchens, and walking the streets and alleyways of California to take care of homeless pets for free. He and his vet tech, Genesis, do this work in their spare time. They understand that pets are family. Dr. Stewart has a gofundme page for help with supplies, medication, and pet food.
You can read more about the the street vet in the following story from from the Good News Network:
This post is part of the We Are the World Blogfest, a monthly blogging event created by Damyanti Biswas and Belinda Witzenhausen to showcase stories of hope and light.
On Monday in the US, we honor the life and teachings of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. This quote about peace is one of many gems he gave us. You can find more MLK quotes here.
I strongly believe that we in the US need a well-funded Department of Peace to focus on building communication and understand and to seek compromise rather than violence.
Sensory-Friendly Santa for Kids with Special Needs
A mall in Lexington, Kentucky open early to create a safe and comfortable environment for kids with special needs. Dimmed lights, less noise, engaging activities, and wheel chair accessibility make it easier to include more kids in the Santa experience. Here’s the story with a video.
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Green Light Could Relieve Migraine Pain
There’s something about green. The following article explores research using green light for migraine and other kinds of pain. The main study has people sit in a dark room with a green light for an hour a day with reduction in symptoms over time. Of course quiet time in a dark room might also be a factor. I can’t help but wonder if being in a room full of green plants would also help. Here’s the article from the Good News Network
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Nurses Turn Surgical Wrap into Sleeping Bags for the Homeless
2000 large sterile wraps were being thrown away every day. But nurses at Tampa General Hospital had a different idea. Imagine if every hospital did this?
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One Love
This is not new, but it came across my bow wanting to be shared again. In 2018, a thousand strangers, Christians, Jews, and Muslims, got together and sang Bob Marley’s “One Love.” Here’s how it turned out.
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Rain Dance
It’s been raining in Australia! Some fires might still be burning, but we celebrate the joy of rain where it falls. This video shows a group of firefighters with one breaking out in dance. If you can’t see it, go to the YouTube link. There’s one more below.
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Got good news?
Please share in the comments!
Wishing you comfort, peace, and joy through the holidays.
Your Friday prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “ght.” Find a word that contains the letters “ght” in that order, and use it any way you’d like. Bonus points if you use three or more different words containing those letters. Have fun! (From Linda G. Hill)
The Stream:
Fight or flight. I’m Sooooooo glad I’m not in that mode much anymore. It can be addicting and distracting from what we really need to focus on. But sometimes, it is warranted, a matter of survival.
In 1898 in the city I live in, the only successful coup d’état in US history took place. People had to run for their lives because of the color of their skin. Yesterday, I attended a ceremony to unveil a historical marker to to remember what took place.
It was surprisingly cold yesterday at the ceremony. But there was a good crowd. Ten names were read of the people who were known to be murdered in the coup. But we will never know how many people were killed.
Why is it important that we remember this coup, sometimes called a massacre? We need to know it happened to understand the history of our city, to understand the pain passed on through generations, and work to not let it happen again.
In 1898, Wilmington was a model city of restoration. African American owned businesses flourished as did diversity in government and the press. I imagine a city, a country, a world, where we work together and cooperatively in diversity and peace.
I thought I was going to write about my own move toward peace. I guess that’s where it starts. At least we need to work toward inner peace as we work toward peace with others. We can do both. It’s not always smooth, in reality, it can be hard work, but peace is possible.
You can read more about yesterday’s ceremony and the history here.
There is also an excellent novel, Cape Fear Rising, including the history which I read a few years ago.
I just want to add, getting back to “fight or flight,” that the African Americans involved in the 1898 massacre did not fight, they did not riot, they mostly fled for their lives. Now, there are different ways of fighting racism and injustice so that we can move forward together in peace and diversity.
1. Your post must be stream of consciousness writing, meaning no editing (typos can be fixed), and minimal planning on what you’re going to write.
2. Your post can be as long or as short as you want it to be. One sentence – one thousand words. Fact, fiction, poetry – it doesn’t matter. Just let the words carry you along until you’re ready to stop.
3. I will post the prompt here on my blog every Friday, along with a reminder for you to join in. The prompt will be one random thing, but it will not be a subject. For instance, I will not say “Write about dogs”; the prompt will be more like, “Make your first sentence a question,” “Begin with the word ‘The,’” or will simply be a single word to get you started.
4. Ping back! It’s important, so that I and other people can come and read your post! For example, in your post you can write “This post is part of SoCS:” and then copy and paste the URL found in your address bar at the top of this post into yours. Your link will show up in my comments for everyone to see. The most recent pingbacks will be found at the top. NOTE: Pingbacks only work from WordPress sites. If you’re self-hosted or are participating from another host, such as Blogger, please leave a link to your post in the comments below.
5. Read at least one other person’s blog who has linked back their post. Even better, read all of them! If you’re the first person to link back, you can check back later or go to the previous week by following my category, “Stream of Consciousness Saturday,” which you’ll find below the “Like” button on my post.
6. Copy and paste the rules (if you’d like to) in your post. The more people who join in, the more new bloggers you’ll meet and the bigger your community will get!
7. As a suggestion, tag your post “SoCS” and/or “#SoCS” for more exposure and more views.
Welcome back to our SoCS host, Linda, and thanks again to Dan for filling in last week.
Here’s today’s prompt: Your Friday prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “-tast-.” Find a word that contains “tast” and use it in your post. Enjoy!
The first word I thought about was “fantastic.” But I haven’t been feeling all that fantastic lately. Not awful, nothing serious. But why am I so tired sometimes for no apparent reason? I can rally to get the basics done, but sometimes I feel drained.
Sue Dreamwalker writes about how our energy is affected by what’s going on in the world, and sometimes we need more rest to cope. Maybe that’s it. I generally don’t watch much news. I’m picky. But lately, I’ve been getting sucked into the news about the impeachment inquiry. Then on Wednesday, I took my car in for maintenance, and though I had my computer and worked on yesterday’s post, the TV in the car dealer’s waiting room was on Fox News. It got toxic after awhile. Other people were there on their phones or with books and didn’t seem to mind. I kept thinking Fox News would move on to some other topic, but no, it went on and on with clips of 45 that one political issue.
It turned out I need to go back for two tires they had to order. The staff person asked it I wanted to wait on Monday or drop off the car. I asked her,
“Do you always have Fox News on your TV?”
“No, we usually have it on HGTV.”
“That would be better. I can tolerate the news for a little while but after awhile it gets…..” I shook my head indicating crazy.
“I understand. There’s a remote there for anyone to use. If you decide to wait Monday, I’ll make sure it’s on something else.”
My plan is to have my husband take me to lunch while they put tires on the car. AND not to watch the news. I need to go back to being more choosy. Using the internet allows me to check the headlines, and I have to resist the urge to watch certain clips and also seek the balance of good news.
But back to fantastic. It’s related to the word fantasy. We can all use a little healthy fantasy, especially when the fantasy is about something we want to happen, and it’s realistic, or at least possible, which everything ultimately is. I fantasized about a soul mate who would be a good fit, and eventually, that’s what I got.
What if we fantasize about world leaders who have intelligence and compassion, who care about the environment and realize that it’s crucial to take care of the planet. A Department of Peace, imagine that. Imagine/fantasize/dream about a world that puts more energy and resources into peace than war. Imagine all adults acting like grownups.
I’m expecting fantastic weather this weekend. We’ll be going from the upper 90s to the 70s for a high. I bet that will give me some energy. And not watching any news this weekend. That’s my plan.
…
For more information on SoCS, visit Linda Hill’s blog:
1. Your post must be stream of consciousness writing, meaning no editing (typos can be fixed), and minimal planning on what you’re going to write.
2. Your post can be as long or as short as you want it to be. One sentence – one thousand words. Fact, fiction, poetry – it doesn’t matter. Just let the words carry you along until you’re ready to stop.
3. I will post the prompt here on my blog every Friday, along with a reminder for you to join in. The prompt will be one random thing, but it will not be a subject. For instance, I will not say “Write about dogs”; the prompt will be more like, “Make your first sentence a question,” “Begin with the word ‘The,’” or will simply be a single word to get you started.
4. Ping back! It’s important, so that I and other people can come and read your post! For example, in your post you can write “This post is part of SoCS:” and then copy and paste the URL found in your address bar at the top of this post into yours. Your link will show up in my comments for everyone to see. The most recent pingbacks will be found at the top. NOTE: Pingbacks only work from WordPress sites. If you’re self-hosted or are participating from another host, such as Blogger, please leave a link to your post in the comments below.
5. Read at least one other person’s blog who has linked back their post. Even better, read all of them! If you’re the first person to link back, you can check back later or go to the previous week by following my category, “Stream of Consciousness Saturday,” which you’ll find below the “Like” button on my post.
6. Copy and paste the rules (if you’d like to) in your post. The more people who join in, the more new bloggers you’ll meet and the bigger your community will get!
7. As a suggestion, tag your post “SoCS” and/or “#SoCS” for more exposure and more views.
Today’s prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “wrap/rap.” Linda says to “use one, use both (for bonus points), use ’em any way you’d like. Enjoy!”
I wish I could think of a clever way to write about wrap. And maybe I will before this is over. You never know. Rap is a genre of music I don’t much care for. But there are exceptions. Didn’t Eminem do something good a while back? Let me see…. Something about recovery and getting clean?
“I’m not afraid (I’m not afraid) to take a stand (to take a stand)
Everybody (Everybody) come take my hand (come take my hand)
We’ll walk this road together
Through the storm
Whatever weather
Cold or warm
Letting you know you’re not alone
Holler if you feel like you’ve been down the same road.”
Eminem
I typed that listening to this YouTube video which seems to have a lot of F words in it, so I just shared the chorus which is less rappy. But it just goes to show you that there’s good stuff in any genre. Everything bad has something good in it, and everything good has some bad in it. Cept for Jesus. I don’t know, that’s just what my stream of consciousness says.
Back to rap. It’s kinda funny that my YouTube debut, and only performance on that venue so far, is where I’m doing rap. It’s about adopting pets that are homeless instead of buying from a “puppy shop.” We auditioned and everything, and I was chosen to be one of the rappers, but didn’t know I’d be in the role of Mom until the day I showed up and some other people didn’t show. So it’s about the family going to pick out a dog at the pound, aka, animal control, which is now part of our county sheriff’s department. Anyway, it was fun. I’ll find the video in a minute.
I’m signed up to volunteer at the Humane Society. I did that many years ago and since I only have one dog left who’s 17, I went to donate some dog food and ended up signing up to volunteer which I had been thinking about. While there, the staff person and I discussed the “no kill,” label. She said there really is no such thing since all shelters have to euthanize or transfer some animals who are very sick or not adoptable. To be “no kill” a shelter has to not euthanize more than a certain percentage of the animals they take in.
This is depressing, but sometimes we need to face reality and see how we can do something to make it a little better. Like the climate strike and not using plastic straws and writing to congress. Every little bit helps create ripples. Which reminds me that today is the International Day of Peace. I feel strongly, believe strongly, that we need to have a Department of Peace in the US. It should get just as much funding as the Department of War, or defense, or whatever it’s called. I could look for a rap song about peace. But I don’t want to, because maybe we need some diversity in this post.
Where do we go from here? Maybe we can go on the Peace Train!
And if you want to see me as a rappin’ mom, it’s in this video which was made 8 years ago when I had a different last name. (My friend, Paul is wearing the goofy hat. He’s one of the nicest people I’ve ever met.)
Happy Peace Day!
To join in the Saturday Stream of Consciousness, or read more streams, visit:
1. Your post must be stream of consciousness writing, meaning no editing (typos can be fixed), and minimal planning on what you’re going to write.
2. Your post can be as long or as short as you want it to be. One sentence – one thousand words. Fact, fiction, poetry – it doesn’t matter. Just let the words carry you along until you’re ready to stop.
3. I will post the prompt here on my blog every Friday, along with a reminder for you to join in. The prompt will be one random thing, but it will not be a subject. For instance, I will not say “Write about dogs”; the prompt will be more like, “Make your first sentence a question,” “Begin with the word ‘The,’” or will simply be a single word to get you started.
4. Ping back! It’s important, so that I and other people can come and read your post! For example, in your post you can write “This post is part of SoCS:” and then copy and paste the URL found in your address bar at the top of this post into yours. Your link will show up in my comments for everyone to see. The most recent pingbacks will be found at the top. NOTE: Pingbacks only work from WordPress sites. If you’re self-hosted or are participating from another host, such as Blogger, please leave a link to your post in the comments below.
5. Read at least one other person’s blog who has linked back their post. Even better, read all of them! If you’re the first person to link back, you can check back later or go to the previous week by following my category, “Stream of Consciousness Saturday,” which you’ll find below the “Like” button on my post.
6. Copy and paste the rules (if you’d like to) in your post. The more people who join in, the more new bloggers you’ll meet and the bigger your community will get!
7. As a suggestion, tag your post “SoCS” and/or “#SoCS” for more exposure and more views.
