Man Thrives Where Angels Would Die of Ecstasy and Where Pigs Would Die of Disgust.

Kenneth Rexroth. ^

       I've been contemplating a phrase my faith says a lot... "Act, or be acted upon".  I always viewed this in the spiritual nature, but never took into account different perspectives until recently, watching so many people mold to either their actions, or lack thereof.  I'm not sure where specifically to begin addressing my thoughts but I'll try to keep this organized and understandable.
       I'd like to think my thought process worked backwards linking me to my understanding, or rather, expounded understanding of the phrase.  "If you're not growing in God, you're being taken by the devil".  But, not everyone would agree with that.  So I took a step out of religion, "If you're not making progress in something, you're going to go backwards in it".  That seemed a bit more universal of a phrase.  This is where I started applying it to smaller things, like "If I don't practice my guitar, I won't make progress in it", or, "If I don't practice Icelandic", the language I'm learning, "I won't progress and slowly forget it", or at least lose it somewhere in my mind.
       There is so much benefit to practicing the things you learn, and working towards things you want.  I really want to be a good singer, but I don't stick to constant practice and focus, I lose those muscles and muscle memory and I can't make progress.  And if I don't practice long enough, I lost everything I'd gained entirely (in a general sense).  And along with thinking about the singing, I began to focus on the physical sense, "If I don't take care of my body, it will decay", basically.
       This concept isn't one I know how to expound much more on.  In my Cognitive Psychology and Physiological Psychology classes I took this semester at Utah State University, I learned a lot about the brain, its plasticity (the ability for neurons to create new connections and store new memories and such), its role in memory, and the body in general regarding "what happens if...".  It was absolutely amazing to see the molecular level at which acting, and being acted upon effects us, in body, mind, and spirit.
       I have a goal this week, to focus entirely on memories of all sorts, and acting all week.  Avoiding being acted on at all costs, and I hope to have something more to share about it by the end, which I will hopefully add into this.

A WattyX's influence

   Given I'm horrible at keeping things updated and formal, I'm thinking of toning this blog down JUST a bit, so I still be sharing my inspirations while keeping journal like entries to see where and what I'm doing to be receiving the most inspiration! At some point, I will be conducting experiments of my own, towards the areas of study I enjoy, and I'll be recording those here as well!

   Thanks to my good friend Ryan, also known as WattyX, I decided to get back into this and do what I love! In playing music, and all things I enjoy doing. He has a blog, called Baby Alien in a Jar, where he has to post at least one photo a day. And he's never missed a day!

   The reason I've been down and out, is because I just got married! In the Manti LDS Temple, UT. We moved to Logan, UT to get ready to go to school in January 2012, and in the mean time focus on work and saving money. But either way, I'm back, and I hope I can share some inspirations with somebody! And at least, have some good inspirations for me to look back to myself.

You must be at your best, to give your best.

   Please, forgive my absence.  I've been having a very difficult time finding inspirations to write about.  But, after thought, I believe I know the reasons why I've been having such a hard time, and decided to write about that.

    The thing I decided to bring up, is negative thoughts.  Straying from the stress, and water which I've been so obsessed with, why else could negative thoughts be harmful?  And the conclusion I've came to, is it restricts us from living up to our full potentials.  As I thought about it, they're very close to allowing a python to constrict us, and eventually, bite us with a lethal injection.  A pinch at first, but left untreated, deadly.
  

    (Forgive me if this is confusing, this is all realizations I've had just today, so they're a bit unorganized.)

    When you succumb to negative thinking, I believe your focus draws to within yourself, and your defense on the outside goes down.  You know how when you're said, you seem to just give into the things you've been trying to avoid?  Or you lose your temper easier, and things of the sort?  Or you just want to be alone and isolate yourself?  Well... This happens to me.  And if it happens to you, I hope I can help somehow!

    What I noticed, is the level of happiness I get when I'm helping someone else, in some way.  I actually tend to have extremely depressive thoughts 90% of the day, but I am able to counteract them because of my love for my friends and family.  If I allow myself to be sad, I can't think clearly enough to help someone else.  I get very selfish in thought, and one thought just leads to the next.  I'm the kind of person that people just can't talk sense into.  I don't know why I don't listen, but I just can't hear anything else except my own problem.  But with my love for my friends and family, I'm so glad to say I can disregard myself, at least long enough for my mind to become healthy enough again for me to think clearly enough to solve the problem.  The more I learn, and grow, and the closer I get to God, the better of a father I can
be for my future family and wife.  They are everything I care about, and everything I live for.  When I think about it all, I can't help but think of my kids whom I haven't met yet, and I love them so much.  I want to be a father that can raise them up with the best life possible, teaching them how to be happy and on the right path in their own lives, and I want to be able to help my wife with anything and everything too.  And to do that, I need to be at my best.  Mentally, physically, and as a priesthood father, I need to be able to provide only the best for them.
    Also, my family that I do have here already.  I want to always be in a position that I can help them, be their best friend, and best son, and brother anyone could have.  Even not living at home, everything I do effects them.  They are whom I am closest to, and if I started making destructive choices, it would hurt them so much.  If I would make good choices, they would be so happy for me.  And I want to make them happy.  Because if they're happier, they can be closer to their best, so we can be a family at our best, to go and give our best to the world.

    Leaving that for a moment, second to me is my friends, and everyone I meet.  I could never fully elaborate with words the extent a decision one makes effects the world.  Just a simple smile could travel to someone who has been down in the dumps.  That smile was just enough to pull them out, to be thinking clearly enough to help another, who helps another, and so forth.  And it all started, with that someone who smiled at you earlier that day.

    "Our lives are made possible by the movement of an unseen energy.  Therefore, I would hope that we'll always be aware of this and pay attention to those around us and the things going on around us.  This is something that is very important.  This is because the act of looking at something has an effect on it.  Everyone seems to be aware of this, but we don't put it into practice.  In the home, parents need to pay attention to their children.  It's the same thing."

Dr. Sheldrake

    I truly believe we underestimate how far our actions travel.  I also believe it is healthy practice, to meditate on this often.  Pick any situation, and just think of something you could do to someone, positive or negative.  Now, imagine how that person was effected by what you did, and how they're going to react to the people they meet, and think on this as long as you can.  Now, if it was positive, halt that progression with an angry person, or someone negative.  Likewise with a negative repercussion, imagine a happy person stopping that.  

    I learned in a Sociology course over one Summer of a fantastic comparison of people.  Life is like an organism.  And we all have our part, and spot, like the organs of the body.  Imagine now, one rebellious boy, deciding to avoid his responsibilities whatever they may be.  Everyone near now needs to pitch in to compensate for that disfunctioning piece, and for what those pitching in lost, others need to pitch in too.  Eventually, a huge repercussion happens all to make up for that rebellious person.  

    Just like in our bodies, when something isn't working, it does what it can to compensate for whatever is going wrong.  The problem with this, is the tissue or organ deciding or being halted at it's function, drops it's percent, let's say, to 50%.  Now, everything else needs to raise to above 100% to make up for that, causing stress.  And stress, as Robert Sapolsky has dedicated his life to making known, is potentially fatal.  

    So in short, the closer you are to being at your best, the better you give, and the better you give, the better everyone else is too.

A great friend of  mine, Caren Becker.

    When you're feeling down, hard on yourself, or angry, but you don't function at 100% (I plan to research the actual mechanics).  And literally every second you spend in that, it gets harder and harder to get out, digging you deeper and deeper, tighter and tighter.  There's a sensitivity we need to approach ourselves, and others in this situation.  

   (This metaphor was presented in parable given by an authority leader in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, but I forgot whom it was, and when, so I'll do my best and hope not to butcher it).  Like a 'stubborn' horse.  There is not much success coming out when you drag the horse as hard as you can, calling it stupid, and forcing it to come with you.  The most you'll achieve, is the horse locking his legs tighter, or even dropping to the ground completely.  

    But if you give the horse sincere concern and love, and walk next to and with the horse as a friend, with gratitude for the horse's trust in you, and you will much more likely achieve the horse to come.  

    In this type, we too must help and lead those fallen to the snare and lies and stubborness that arises from those poisonous and negative thoughts.  I'd like to end by begging anyone who reads this, to NEVER underestimate the power you have to change this world with love and gratitude.  Love and gratitude are not only emotion, but more principally, action.  I believe they are verbs, and I believe that they are the key and answer to 99% of the problems that arise in this world.  Sure I'm not a scientist or a doctor, or anything professional or credible in this world.  But, from my experience in life, from what I've learned and read, it's true.  And I truly believe it. 

    I have to apologize... I understand the thoughts in this are quite scattered, so if you have any questions of any sort, feel free to ask and I'd love to discuss this!

  

And so long as man and woman agreed, they were a single unit.

I stumbled upon this that I really liked in Sapolsky's "Why Zebras Don't Get Ulcers".

    "Independent replication of results is essential in science.  Years into a chase, a scientist triumphs and publishes the structure of a new hormone or brain chemical.  Two weeks later the other guy comes forward.  He has every incentive on earth to probe that the first guy was wrong.  Instead, he is forced to say, "I hate that son of a [gun], but I have to admit he's right.  We get the identical structure."

And while reading in my Book of Mormon, I found these congruent verses.

"Wherefore murmur ye, because that ye shall receive more of my word?

Know ye not that the testimony of two nations is a witness unto you that I am God,

that I remember one nation like unto another?

Wherefore, I speak the same words unto one nation like unto another.

And when the two nations shall run together the testimony of the two nations shall run together also."

2 Nephi 29:8

Another scripture to illustrate my thought process from the Bible.

"...prove me now herewith, saith the LORD of hosts,

if I will not open you the windows of heaven,

and pour you out a blessing

that there shall not be room enough to receive it."

Malachi 3:10

    This principle, is huge in the growth of human beings.  We grow from each other, thinking, trying, being reinforced by other's similar efforts.  So many people don't understand for example, testimony meeting in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, but it is built on this principle.  The independent replication of results provides us truths.  So don't be shy! Talk to people.  Share your ideas.  Because if you share what you believe to be true, others may be intrigued and venture to see what it is you're so happy or passionate about, and see what you see.  But please, PLEASE I beg of anyone who reads this, share the good, positive, and worth sharing things.  Don't pass on evil, or vile, poisonous things.  

Eat your breakfast kids, and you too mom and dad!

This is not based on fact, it just seemed to make sense to me, so I did enough research to explain it, and generally justify my educated guess.




    When we are sleeping, we may be at rest, but our bodies kick it into overdrive to repair, manage and set our bodies back to a state of homeostasis, or in other words, balance.  A day's worth of experience is enough to exhaust a body to the point of sleep being a necessity to come back together.  I've always thought by the end of a hard day that I've used all myself up, my energy was depleted and now I need to build it up again.  But as I was reading Sapolsky's "Why Zebras Don't Get Ulcers", I came across a section where he discussed the hormones Epinephrine (Adrenalin), Norepinephrine (noradrenalin, "the messengers"), and Glucocorticoids.  These are of the primary hormones of the body that regulate our autonomic nervous system, the epinephrine playing the sympathetic system, and glucocorticoids with the parasympathetic system.  These are very heavy on the body, and I recommend reading this book if you want to understand the significant health risks they can give us.  But for now, I find it sufficient to to quote an analogy he gives in his book.


    "It is with prolonged stress that one enters the third stage, which [is acceptably] termed "exhaustion", where stress-related diseases emerge.  [It was once] believed that one becomes sick at that point because stores of the hormones secreted during the stress response are depleted.  Like an army that runs out of bullets, suddenly we have no defenses left against the threatening stressor.
    It is very rare, however, as we will see, that any of the crucial hormones are actually depleted during even the most sustained of stressors.  The army does not run out of bullets.  Instead, spending so much on the bullets causes the rest of the body's economy to collapse.  It is not so much that the stress-response runs out; rather, with sufficient activation, the stress-response itself can become damaging.  This is a critical concept, because it underlies the emergence of much stress-related disease."

    As we understand from this, rest becomes a crucial factor in returning the body to it's homeostatic state.    Especially in today's world, where stress levels are shooting through the roof.  So we sleep.  Ah, the peace and rest.  But little do you know (or you do know), that as your mind goes, your body kicks into gear.  Your heart rate, and breathing slow down, but your immune system goes on a vigilant night watch, you kidney and liver sift detrimental molecules, and your digestive system goes into overdrive absorbing every beneficial bit of your last meal to power the whole thing.  It's a lot of work, enough to cause a 160 pound person to lose about 500-600 calories, all through your body alone.
    So you wake up after a healthy 7-8 hours of sleep and you're hungry (or not), but you don't have time to eat, because you're late for school, or for work, or you have just got better things to do.  So you don't eat for a few, maybe several hours.  Where is your energy coming from?!  Reserve.  Which is alright, considering that's what it is there for.  But to your body, it reacts as if it is an emergency.  The process of taking your reserves is there specifically for survival purposes, and after enough late nights, and no breakfasts, your body loses it's capability to provide bullets to your army, and you get all sorts of diseases and problems all coming because you never found it important to have a bowl of Kelloggs for breakfast.
    I understand it may seem I'm being a bit radical, but in reality I'm not.  The point I'm trying to make, is that we need our bodies to be running at optimum level so that we can stock the reserves to handle those little emergencies we come across daily.  If not, there are countless health risks being taken I believe we take for granted given the health statistics of our country.  We need to make a stronger effort to live healthier, eat healthier, think healthier, and act healthier.

   As my wise mother would always tell me,

"You don't do it because you want to, you do it because you have to." 

                                                Sleep 7-8 hours, exercise, eat, learn things, meditate, release stress, eat, be happy and positive, don't allow your thoughts to stress you to death, eat, live in gratitude, avoiding poisons like lust, grudges and pride, and finally EAT.  

   I do understand that there are also health factors that have to be taken into account, but don't let that stop you from doing everything that you can.  Things may seem inconvenient or pointless now, but down the road when your body starts shutting down too early in this world of no mercy, all your body can do is tell you "I told you so".

  

Spiritual food for thought.

Today, I just have a thought I've been dwelling on for the past 24 hours. 


    It is a difficult chain of thought to pinpoint a start, but I'll start with the infamous words, 

"Why me?"

     Let me counter those words with, Why not you? Let me begin by explaining my stance on this.  I used to be a very depressed, angry and confused teenager, as many of us are.  But, I still am so thankful for this to this day, I found a train of thought that brought me to who I am today.  Not angry, nor confused, and I am no longer drawn deeply into depressions.  The thought is, that I love inner conflict.  Is there something wrong with me?  Have I finally gone off the deep end?  No.  

    The fact that there was conflict inside of me brought me to realize, I am alive.  And the emotions attached to the conflict brought me to realize, I have worth (The facetious image of the angel on one shoulder, and the devil on the other popped into my head).  I really enjoyed the temptations to do things I know I shouldn't, and the yearning to do things I know I should.  I consider this my spiritual conception; the seed in my heart has cracked and begun to grow.

   Avoiding my whole conversion process, I know God wants me to come home.  What Father wouldn't?  And I know the devil wants more then anything, to pull me down to hell with him.  But that I have the opportunity to choose is so magnificent!  

 "...the trial of your faith, being much more precious then of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ..." (1 Peter 1:7).

    He doesn't physically appear, but what I believe this scripture is saying, is that our trials are the more precious things we have, because our trials, no matter how difficult, 'might be found unto praise and glory' when we receive our witness at the end of it.  And by that I mean, when we see the good and that bad that comes from it, where we can judge for ourselves whether we feel the peace of Christ in our lives, or we know we made a wrong choice.  Even Jesus Christ himself said this when we explained to the Brother of Jared, that "...ye receive no witness until after the trial of your faith," (Ether 12:6).  And we know that we will know this, because "13...that which is of God inviteth and enticeth to do good continually; wherefore, everything which inviteth and enticeth to do good, and to love God, and to serve him, is inspired of God." and "16 ...the Spirit of Christ is given to every man, that he may know good from evil; wherefore, I show unto you the way to judge; for every thing which inviteth to do good, and to persuade to believe in Christ, is sent forth by the power and gift of Christ; wherefore ye may know with a perfect knowledge it is of God.  17 But whatsoever thing persuadeth men to do evil, and believe not in Christ, and deny him, and serve not God, then ye may know with a perfect knowledge it is of the devil; for after this manner doth the devil work, for he persuadeth no man to do good, no, not one; neither do his angels; neither do they who subject themselves unto him" (Moroni 7:13, 16-17)

   But of course, Moroni who taught us this perfect statement, also warned us "...that ye do not judge that which is evil to be of God, or that which good and of God to be of the devil" (Moroni 7:14), where he agreed with Isaiah of the Old Testament when he wrote "Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter" (Isaiah 5:20).

   My point being, the conflicts that arise within me persuade me to believe in God, because as often as heeded to God's inspirations, direction or Spirit, I've received a witness that I had chosen the right choice, and my life's blessings because of it were made known to me.  

       

    Now some of you may be saying, Michael! What're you talking about?  I don't have problems making decisions, I was saying why me, because I don't get why would God allow this to happen to me!  Let me quote a beautiful verse from the Qur'an.

  "And with Him are the keys of the unseen; none knows them except Him. And He knows what is on the land and in the sea. Not a leaf falls but that He knows it. And no grain is there within the darknesses of the earth and no moist or dry [thing] but that it is [written] in a clear record." 

Surat Al-'An`am (6:59-71)

    It is not a punishment, or a misfortune, at some point in time, it will be for your benefit.  Some things, we can't even comprehend anything beneficial coming from it.  But where has God ever let us astray before?  Any against Christianity could argue this, but their arguments would be based on the imperfections of individuals claiming to act in the name of God.  But this is not God.  God's laws are perfect.  This earth, is perfect, but it is men that have corrupted it.  But this is where I tie back into the beginning, the corruption, leaves room for the uncorrupted.  

    We can seek for the pure, the truths, and the peace that still lies within us, humanity and this earth, because we know and see everyday the other side.  The hate, the malice, and anger, and everything but peace.  It was not God's choice, that corruption would exist.  It was man's decision to choose corruption. Whether or not the devil was sent to this Earth, we would have had to overcome the challenges and master our bodies, so that we may become like our Father in Heaven.  For we believe that there are "...worlds without number..." (Moses 1:33), that God has created, and that Jesus Christ suffered the Atonement for our world as well as all of those.  But we also believe the devil to be present in this world, which is why I believe this world to be as corrupted as it is, because the devil is here and works directly upon us with his 1/3 of the God's children he deceived in Heaven.

   But these struggles we will have here, are not in any way in vain.  Here are some more scriptures that really helped me from the Bible and Book of Mormon.

"17 Although the fig tree shall not blossom, neither shall fruit be in the vines; 

the labour of the olive shall fail, and the fields shall yield no mean;

 the flock shall be cut off from the fold, and there shall be no heard in the stalls; 

18 Yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will joy in the God of my salvation.

19 The Lord God is my strength, and he will make my feet like hinds' feet,

and he will make me to walk upon mine high places.

To the chief singer on my stringed instruments"

Habakkuk 3:17-19

"...in thy childhood thou hast suffered afflictions and much sorrow,

because of the rudeness of they brethren.

2 Nevertheless...thou knowest the greatness of God;

and he shall consecrate thine afflictions for thy gain.

2 Nephi 2:2

"And if men come unto me I will show unto them their weakness. 

I give unto men weakness that they may be humble; 

and my grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before me; 

for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, 

then will I make weak things become strong unto them."

Ether 12:27

    

    

To Begin! pt.2: Raising Awareness

 [P.S. I will be taking my own pictures for SIZ, 

but I am waiting for a USB xD transfer card to come

 so I can upload the pictures I take to my computer.]

    Hello again!  As I was listening to the interview with Dr. Masaru Emoto, I decided to share a piece right in the end.  When I first began reading The Hidden Messages in Water, I was confused as to why such an important scientific discovery was written the way it was.  It seemed to me almost like a children's book.  But reading through, I felt very filled with new ideas, inspiration and knowledge.  In the interview, Dr. Emoto's interpreter mentions a child growing up with this book for around 10 years, and it being easy to understand to for all ages, would significantly raise that child's awareness to love and gratitude.  In comparison, exposing them to things such as the studies Retallack had done on plants, and the effects stress has on your body, would help children grow up with an awareness to what we do, and how we do it, which all three, Retallack, Sapolsky and Emoto, and hundreds of other doctors and scientists agreeing, would significantly decrease so many health ailments such as cancers, cardiovascular problems, immunity problems, even things like diarrhea and depression.

      We all need to remember to keep positive, avoid obvious poisons, and make sure to take the time for yourself and at least a few times a day to use as outlets of stress.  Thinking is good, but you can think yourself to death.  Take some time to do what you want to do, what makes you happy, what brings you peace.  For me, that is playing music, photography, going on long explorational hikes, sharing and talking with someone, writing lyrics and poems, meditating, and getting closer to my Father in Heaven and Jesus Christ.  I know that for me, when I began doing this things, my whole life changed in to a significantly more happy, positive and productive life. 

    Let's change the world!  If love and gratitude can completely change the chemical make up of water to  heal people, like the healing waters of lourdes france, where one woman said such a pure prayer to the water, and it healed her, causing a tradition of the people there to pray to the water often, should we not be filled with love and gratitude towards others and ourselves constantly?  Being a soothing and positive song to those around us, as Retallack's plants, significantly decreasing stress to others and ourselves, incidentally increasing our immune systems as well as those around us?  E=mc^2, right?  But altered a little, Energy = the mass's consciousness.  So long as we're all aware, and we put our energies together, we can do it.

    Who said one person can't change the world?