~ April 2006 Supplemental Page~
Circle of Life
Continued . . . Mrs. Silliman
lived in Sunnyvale for 30 years before moving to Carmel 17 years ago. She
was a member of the Carmel Valley Women’s Club. A very loving, generous
person, she enjoyed spending time with her family and her friends at Curves
in Carmel Valley. Mrs. Silliman is survived by her son Peter Douglas
Silliman of Plainfield, Indiana; daughter Jules Hart of Carmel;
daughter-in-law Michelle Silliman; and her grandchildren, Rachel and Daniel
Silliman. Her husband, C.H. “Hank” Silliman, preceded her in death in 1998.
A Celebration of Maxine’s Life was held at the Community Church of the
Monterey Peninsula on Friday, March 24 at 11:30 a.m. Following cremation, a
private inurnment took place at San Carlos Cemetery in Monterey.
The Reluctant Goddess; Kleopatra and the Stolen Throne
Continued . . . As Kleopatra
escapes from hiding place to hiding place, her sister’s army searching for
her, she develops her skills and is blessed by the Gods and Goddesses with
talents and powers beyond her imagining. With Timoxenos ever by her side,
she faces daimons, evils and days of war. As an initiate in Hermetic Magic,
Kleopatra learns that the great evil in Egypt is not just her sister but
also the Lord of Chaos, Seth-Typhon. Will the great Phoenix, Hermes, and
Wedjoyet be able to help her? Even they realize that only the Goddess of Ten
Thousand Names can save Egypt.
In an epic tale of Gods and Goddesses, Kings and Princesses, author Dharma
Windham has created a novel of excitement, romance, magic, and morals. It is
an in-depth look at Egypt and royalty wrapped up in an entrancing story of
heroism, justice and bravery. The characters come to life complete with
natural urges, rude behaviors, human flaws and deep
desires. The plot twists and expands like an ever-changing force of war.
Not your usual work of fiction in these days and I was truly satisfied
reading the tale of the “Reluctant Goddess.”
All Aboard! Rosie’s Family
Cruise
Continued . . . Yes, it
definitely moved me but more than that, it made me think. I thought about
the way the media so singularly portrays gay and lesbian people, reducing an
entire segment of society to drag queens and guys cruising Sunset strip. And
because these images are so “not-family” they are easily reduced in
mainstream America’s mind as “deviant” behavior and applied across the board
to all lesbian and gay people. Isn’t it just so much easier to disregard a
whole group of people when you only see one narrow spectrum of who they are?
You know the image I’m talking about–the typical story portrayed on local TV
stations when the news is light and they send a crew off to cover the
occasional gay-themed event. Rosie’s Family Cruise takes us beyond those
stereotypes and allows us a glimpse into the intimate lives of these
families who are no different from my family. Or your family.
Oh sure you hear the occasional story about gay and lesbian couples wanting
to adopt, wanting families, blah, blah, blah, but on Rosie’s Family Cruise I
saw the faces of those couples. I saw those families. I heard the stories of
the children who grew up with two dads or two moms. I saw the bright,
beautiful six-year old shyly hiding in his poppy’s arms–a “crack-baby” who
no one wanted except his two dads who cared for him through his newborn
addiction. I heard the pain in the woman’s voice when she and her partner
found out the artificial insemination didn’t work. . .again. (The state they
live in only allows frozen sperm. Nothing fresh for these women!) I saw two
white moms being inundated with love by their adopted black children. But
what I saw on All Aboard! were families–whether black or white, young or
old, parents or grandparents–with kids who were wanted, loved, and adored. I
saw babies and children of all ages who were happy and thriving. Isn’t that
what family is supposed to be about? Isn’t that what we want for all
humanity?
No doubt most reviewers will say this documentary is too idyllic, the
families too happy and perfect. But hey, I’ve seen the media’s other
version. . .countless times. I NEEDED to see this “picture” of gay and
lesbian families. I needed to see these faces and hear these stories. I
needed my consciousness shifted. And I am a better person for having watched
this movie.
The following is a synopsis of All Aboard! Rosie’s Family Cruise from the
Sundance Film Festival.
Five hundred families from across the nation are on board a ship chartered
by Rosie and Kelli O'Donnell for the first-ever cruise for gay and lesbian
families. This historic event, a kind of nautical utopia, offers a world
without prejudice, where love, compassion, and true family values prevail.
But when the families disembark in Nassau after a week of fun and adventure,
angry protesters accost them, hurling hatred in the name of Christ. For many
of the younger children, still untainted by the scars of human bigotry,
these protests are a confusing and frightening initiation, while the parents
and teenagers are left with a piercing reminder of their struggle for
acceptance. Nimbly directed by Shari Cookson, All Aboard! Rosie's Family
Cruise provides a compelling example of what film does better than any other
medium. Ever conscious that a picture paints a thousand words, Cookson
interweaves multiple stories with simple visual images. The smiles on the
faces of the children aboard the ship become a political statement unto
themselves. This exquisitely layered, powerfully moving film forces us to
examine our conscience as a nation and challenges us to imagine the
possibility of a better world. -- © Sundance Film Festival
Ritual As Worship: What is
ritual and why we do ritual?
Continued . . . Ritual
is a vital part of human health, but we have reduced this aspect of our
vitality to a few, scattered traditional ceremonies such as birthdays,
graduations, weddings, and christenings–ceremonies that unfortunately, have
lost much of their meaning. It’s no wonder the human condition is as it is
today. We are bereft of the healing power of ritual and myth. As a result we
seek to fill our spiritual emptiness with drugs of all kinds–from crack to
consumerism to cookies–none of which endows us with the important,
meaningful support needed to enhance our lives and support our personal
evolution.
Eminent mythologist Joseph Campbell points out in The Power of Myth that ”if
you want to find out what it means to have a society without rituals . . .
read the news of the day . . . [you’ll find] destructive and violent acts by
young people who don’t know how to behave in a civilized society.”1
The proliferation of gangs in the past few decades is evidence of a culture
lacking in mythology and the appropriate rites of passage for young people.
A closer look at the structure of gangs reveals many of the elements
associated with the human imperative known as ritual. For instance, they
have ritual clothing and colors, music, language, symbols–repetitive signs
and hand gestures–and connection to community or family. Because nature
abhors a vacuum of any kind, these youths have fulfilled an important human
need by creating rituals based on a mythology that, unfortunately, clearly
reflects American society today–a mythology of death, dominance, and
destruction.
Ritual is the formula, the recipe, for cellular alchemy. It provides a
psychic pathway for transmutation to take place. Ritual done to its fullest
involves the whole person–the physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual
bodies. It encompasses the totality of the human expression, and the layers
of meaningful action amplify the experience, thereby creating the potential
for a deeper, cellular transformation than could ever be accomplished from,
say, simply repeating an affirmation alone. Author and medical
anthropologist Dr. Alberto Villoldo, in discussing this phenomenon, explains
that the part of the human brain known as the limbic system, which houses
all of the mechanisms that regulate physiology, self-healing, and
regeneration, does not have direct and conscious dialoguing capabilities,
and therefore cannot be influenced by speech and language alone.2
The limbic brain (from Latin limbus, meaning “border”) is an incredible
switchboard where signals travel back and forth on neural pathways between
the “lower” parts of the brain (governing instincts, drives, and automatic
regulation of body processes) and the cerebral cortex, the “higher” brain
(controlling advanced reasoning and planning). According to the ABC’s of the
Human Mind, “In this strategic spot, a kind of crossroads where visceral
feelings, cognition, and memory meet, the limbic system helps shape the
basic motivations and emotions of our lives.”3
The physical enactment of a ritual that has been endowed with highly charged
emotions, based on intellectual, well-thought-out goals, and contained
within our highest spiritual aspirations has the potential to discharge old
neurological circuits and then reprogram, or make new neurological
connections.
Ritual can be a great resource for individuals by reinforcing the personal
growth accomplished through therapy and other transformative techniques,
such as prayer, meditation, dance, astrology, yoga, and dreaming, to name a
few. Ritual, in essence, marks the changes in our lives and supports the
subtle shifts in our interior landscape as we adjust to those changes.
Ritual assists the transformative process, whether it is used to acquire
guidance about a needed change, to initiate some desired change, or to
celebrate and embrace a completed change.
Humans often use ritual to demarcate beginnings and endings. Rituals create
paths to guide us from one stage of being to another; these are commonly
called rites of passage. Rituals also connect us with community. Joining
with others in ceremony fulfills our human need to belong. It also affirms
the timeless commonalities of the human experience. And when a ritual is
brought to the most personal level, it becomes a tool for spiritual,
emotional, and psychological development. Rituals accelerate personal growth
and enable us to connect with the innermost parts of ourselves.
Rituals can be part of a therapeutic process. They contain the framework for
personal transformation, rites of passage, healing, empowerment, and
manifestation. Rituals can restore us to balance and wholeness, and allow us
to make the necessary inner changes when our outer reality has been altered,
whether in expected or unexpected ways. They bring clarity and resolution to
personal choices and new life directions. They open us to insight,
inspiration, and new possibilities. Rituals help us shed what we've outgrown
and release whatever no longer affirms our personal evolution.
Ultimately, and most important, ritual brings the sacred into our lives.
Rituals require thought and intent, which force us to step away from the
accelerated pace that most of us live by and move into a space of
timelessness. No matter what your religious beliefs, rituals can enhance the
moments of your life by giving focus and attention to those things you have
designated as important. They bring a sense of the divine into our lives,
and they affirm and enhance our connection to the sacred, however we choose
to define it. Campbell explains this connection with the divine in The Power
of Myth: ”A ritual can be defined as an enactment of a myth. By
participating in a ritual, you are actually experiencing a mythological
life. And it’s out of that participation that one can learn to live
spiritually.”4
Rituals are a collective way of relating to the divine energies and
celebrating them. In the process of celebrating these life-affirming
energies, we have the opportunity to practice a form of the ancient art
known as alchemy–to change our lives for the better, to create our lives the
way we want them to be.
1.
Joseph Campbell, The Power of Myth with Bill Moyers
(New York: Doubleday, 1988), p. 8.
2. Alberto Villoldo, Shamanism and
Spiritual Healing (Palm Beach, Fla.: The Four Winds Society, n.d.) tape
2, six-tape audio cassette program.
3. Reader's Digest, ABC's of the Human Mind,
edited by Alma E. Guinness (New York: The Reader's Digest Association,
1990), p. 84.
4. Campbell, The Power of Myth with Bill
Moyers, p. 182.
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