For Blog Sakes

I am a Nichiren Daishonin chanting, pseudo-vegetarian, and blinged out granola woman.

I shop almost exclusively at Sprouts, Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s and Fresh and Easy.  Its not as expensive as some people think and when I'm older, I'd prefer to spend my money on travel and not medication, so I make the sacrifice. My family drinks soy, almond and coconut milk and no, we’re not lactose intolerant (well maybe my husband is) we’re just trying to avoid too much dairy. My family eats meat, for the most part, but consumes more fish and poultry than beef or pork. I am a pseudo-Vegetarian, pseudo, because while I do not eat poultry or beef, I do (now) eat fish and shellfish. For years I consumed no fish because at the time I just wasn’t savvy enough to choose the right protein sources. After a few nutrition classes, I’m a lot better now but find that I just love grilled salmon and my skin needs the Omegas, so I’m kewl with that. My MD says that I could sell my blood tests results on Ebay, so I must be doing something right.

I love the idea of believing in something mystical and yet it must have a grain of intellectualism sprinkled in for me to totally embrace it. My family is predominently Catholic and I spent 12 fun years (no, really) in Parochial school, but for the last 17 years I’ve been chanting and practicing Buddhism. Of which the last 6 years have been more heavy on the practicing. I was previously a person who got up at 5:00 Am to chant for one hour daily, hosted weekly meetings every Wednesday and felt my Karma really change. I had a crisis of faith about 8 years ago and although I never completely stopped chanting, I lost a bit of my Mojo---love that word, its also the name of a documentary that I wrote and produced, back in the day. So now I am recouping my spiritual stock options and regrouping and working on some serious balance and trying to make sense of my life.

I love the ideas behind natural, goodness and just plain old great PC prinicples but I don’t wear Birkenstocks and my granola tag stops at my clothing. I love great shoes--not because their featured in In Style but how they make me feel. I think that shoes should be like a great lover that makes you feel super special, and adds a bit of sexy to your strut. I’m wild about vintage Louis Vuitton and although my husband says that they look the same as the fake ones, I know the difference. I view purses as a fabulous accessory and love all the new fun Coach bags and recently begin buying Brahmin for the texture and brilliant new colors.

I love discussing politics and will go to-toe-toe about current issues. I loathe sound bytes and prefer to read and study for myself important issues.

My husband calls me “The Word Master,” because if you say it, I won’t forget it and I will call you on it. I love great grammar, my biggest pet peeves are poor grammar choices: “where you at?” is one of my biggest ear-cringers along with “for reals,” “anyways,” “those ones” and “I could care less.”

Despite those little ear twingers, I am all for freedom of speech, even if I don’t like what I’m hearing, you should stilll have the right to say it. Not everything does need to be said, but that’s what I have a remote control, and off/on button for.

I hope that you like my blog I will talk about some spiritual things as well as the mundane things that we all go through. My hope is that it shows that there is no perfection in human revolution, we’re all flawed, but perhaps we can grow and change together.

Tolerance V Diversity in Schools

Despite the best of intentions, the word diversity conjures up a wide range of emotions and opinions that are not always positive. What does diversity mean anyway? Aren't we all diverse, are you exactly like your neighbor even if you are the same complexion?
Diversity reminds us that there are differences but tolerance instills overall acceptance of differences. When you look at the shocking number of teen suicides due to bullying, wouldn't teaching tolerance in school make sense for all children?
Embracing tolerance should not be a replacement for common sense when it comes to academics and acceptable societal behaviors, but it shouldn't be cause for upset either.
Whatever the parental beliefs may be in regard to cultural, racial, orientations and religious differences, the reality is that we all live, work and play in diverse world and that will not change.
Learning tolerance gives our children a head start on their future as functional adults coexisting in a world that includes all types of people.

The Bumpy Spiritual Road

On our road to enlightenment, one of the most important steps to take is self-responsibility for every aspect of our lives. It can be challenging to accept our part when bad things happen or when the best-laid plans go wrong, feelings of frustration and resentment can create negativity that is hard to shake. When we learn to view these situations as opportunities to learn a lesson, we really do grow, especially when we can look in the mirror and accept the person looking back, but is this enough to lead us toward peace and balance?

Acceptance of our human frailties does not mean that we will now breeze through life, because that is only a part of the journey, we must apply the same compassion and acceptance that we have developed for ourselves to others as well. Sometimes we become so caught up in our self-reflection that we develop a spiritual ego that promotes judgment of others, leading us to plateau and possibly lose spiritual ground.

Judging others leads to confusion, stress and disharmony. It can be hard to stop judging others especially if we are diligently working on ourselves, expecting those around us to be doing the same. Growing spiritually means that while we accept judgment as part of our human condition, it is a choice and something that we can control. Practiced observation allows us to move through life with grace and ease; alleviating the unnecessary responsibility that judgment creates, so that when we do look in the mirror we really can appreciate the person that looks back at us.