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Editor's note: The following two case studies by Iolanda Sarri were submitted for the FES certification program as administered by the GAIA centre in Barcelona, led by Ricardo Mateos and Begoña Arias. The texts have been edited for web presentation.
Introduction by Iolanda to her general methods of working with clients
VAE: From pessimism and doubt to more self-assurance and confidence
Awareness of fears, living in the present and manifesting intentions
MMR: developing self-esteem, committing to personal growth
Introduction by Iolanda to her general methods of working with clients
Selecting and working with the essences
I do not actually meditate per se with the patients, but since I usually have a reiki session with them or do some reconnective healing with flower essences, most of them enter into an altered state of awareness. At other times, I have them chant mantras related to the main chakras for a short period of time. The vibrations may also help them to attain a state of awareness that may possibly be altered.
The interview with the patient already provides me with considerable information, though at times, during the final reiki sessions, other essences I may not have considered at the start sometimes pop into my mind. In other cases, when I show the patients images of flowers, they help me to clarify the information. After taking into account the specific features of each essence, and the sources described, which may vary from one session to another, I usually confirm the selection using a pendulum.
In general, I prescribe 4 or 5 drops, four or five times a day depending on the patient's response. During the first session, I give some advice on how to use the essences, by means of which I try to create an awareness in the client concerning their dosage as well as other factors that should be taken into consideration, such as trying to have more contact with nature, earth, or looking towards the sky whenever it is possible. When the patient has been acquainted with the essences for some time, I tell him/her to listen to his/her body to know when it needs them.
Prayerful formulation
Preparation of the flower essence blends or skin creams with flower essences is performed by me at home before a "little altar" with a meditative attitude and acting as a reiki channel. I also ask the flower essences to help the client in the global healing process.
My altar is placed in a quiet part of the office which, according to the "bagua map," corresponds to the fame and reputation area, close to the love and marriage area. Geopathic stress and the various types of electromagnetic waves have been corrected in this space, as in the rest of the office and private rooms. The altar, which is placed on a buffet, has various interfaith symbols, as well as some earth elements such as volcanic stones from Iceland, fossils from my native land and quartz crystals. To prepare the bottles for the flower essences, I first "sterilize" the bottle and dropper with some good brandy, away from the altar. Afterwards, I add the water, brandy and drops of the different flower essences selected, in standard proportions, at the altar, with my mind in silence, imploring help from the flower essences so that they work properly for the patient. Sometimes I apply reiki symbols to the bottle which I place in the hands of the Buddha statue on my altar, while I finish talking with the patient.
Using visualization
The visualization exercises I currently recommend more and more often are related to the healing powers of light and the use of key phrases such as, "Light and divine healing for all of the cells in my body and my whole being." At other times, I recommend visualizing the area affected, when there is a specific physical problem, trying to work the cells or tissue that are involved in the affliction, bringing out the emotion, grateful for the information they provide, learning from the message and sending it away "for a holiday."
In the case of VAE (below), she also had seven acupuncture sessions [with my husband, Dr. Ramon Ravella] and sometimes auriculotherapy and homeopathy. I think that basically in her case, reiki and acupuncture were good adjunct therapies. I also used applications of the FES Seasons of the Soul oils (Benediction oil and Saint John's Shield) which helped her very much in the sessions as well as taking Rescue Remedy/Five-Flower Formula from time to time.
I use the Seasons of the Soul oils when they are indicated; I apply them to the main chakras for which their use is recommended or to a specific part of the body if so required during a reiki session. In VAE's case I considered their use to be important because she was predisposed to aromatherapy and because they were very positive to radiesthesia.
In addition, books about personal and spiritual growth have been suggested to her, and her applications to some of the universities (NY, Los Angeles) have been reviewed and improved.
MMR had also about eleven acupuncture sessions and sometimes auriculotherapy. And in this case also, reiki and acupuncture were good complementary therapies. Following my advice, MMR went to a visual therapy clinic for more than half a year, almost weekly, where she carried out some exercises with very satisfactory results. In addition, books about personal growth were suggested to her, her résumé was improved and corrected, and addresses for companies to which she might send it were provided to her.
VAE: From pessimism and doubt to more self-assurance and confidence
VAE is a dark-haired, slim young twenty-something, sensitive to cold, and, as befits her Aquarian nature, she loves freedom, doesn't seek to take advantage of her femininity and dresses in dull colored, rather worn clothes. She wishes to experience all sorts of realities and is terribly afraid of making mistakes in her choices and shows a tremendous desire to learn, raising her finger to ask questions at every session. She likes to describe the experience as "radical," "brutal" or "ecstatic," expressed in a faint and restrained voice that sounds as though she can hardly get it out of her throat. She not only swallows her voice but also her burps, perhaps to compensate for the heated discussions she has with her father. VAE is a sharp observer who picks reality apart in order to create stories; this leads to fragmentation of her inner and outer worlds. Intelligent, educated, hesitating, with fluctuating humor, dramatic, restless, perfectionist, demanding, with low self-esteem, pessimistic, bad-tempered, misunderstood, quite solitary, sensitive to people and surroundings, full of doubts and fear, she controls even my slightest movements both visually and verbally.
The relationship with the father is quite a bit more clear from the beginning; he is a figure with whom she clashes at nearly every meal, he sets off her feeling of rebelliousness, her intellectualness, her desire for self-sufficiency and she is aware of feeling that she is not being listened to; sometimes she feels mistreated and that drains her. He appears to be a hard man, critical, tactless, loud-voiced, disappointed, disillusioned, resentful and sure of always being right.
She wants more light at home, not only in the family environment that makes her feel hopeless, negative, frustrated and complex, but also in her bedroom. On the other hand, her parents would like her to put on 10 or 12 lbs. because, as her father says, she is "skinny," without realizing that the reason for that is because they have disagreements at every meal although she later confesses to not liking the way her mother cooks.
She has come to see me in part due to her father's intervention and in part voluntarily, as she is in an inner state of great anxiety. All is "black" at home and there is little light, and she is in a frenzy of mental activity, judgmental and obsessive, with little contact with the here and now. Her father, toward whom she has intense feelings of shame and rejection, appears to be worried about her weight.
She remembers experiences that she has had abroad and recalls the magic of the incidents and how easy it was to feel good.
She is at a key moment for redefining her immediate professional future which could lead to radical change in her life, entailing the leaving behind of family, partner, current job and country in order to follow her dreams which, she confesses to me after a year and a half of therapy, she has had since she was very young.
These are the positive changes I noticed since VAE started treatment:
• She learns how to burp.
When she comes to see me, VAE has already ended her studies in Audiovisual Communication. She spent some time in San Francisco about 4 years ago and then in London to practice English. At this time she combines a job in Nespresso, selling coffee, with hectic activity related to the production of several programs that she will try to sell to a television station. In spite of being a bright and well-rounded person, her demands, pessimism and doubts (both hers and her father's) hold her back from seeking the postgraduate degree in Fine Arts in Film Production she wants to undertake in the USA.
VAE comes for therapy after her father has called, somewhat worried because she works too much and doesn't eat enough. According to her, she is "very obsessive" and she needs to get rid of her obsessions. VAE is a very mental person who dissects the reality she perceives and this can confound her when she feels alive, brilliant, creative, very restless, negative, wavering, extremely perfectionist, as she lives very disconnected from the here and now and her inner world and the outside world. Although she cries, it is very difficult for her to connect with emotions.
An overview of the VAE's soul development: The Four R's of Flower Essence Response
Release, Relaxation or Rejuvenation
Instilling more certainty
This first part of the evolution of VAE's soul lasted from mid-February to mid-May (3 cycles). At the physical level, she has had an intermittent UTI, while her relationship with food has been on again, off again. In other aspects she continues to be anxious, questions everything, has a desire for knowledge, is perfectionist, full of doubts, is afraid she's missing something, dithering because she doesn't know what to do, she has trouble understanding, fitting in and going with the flow, is negative, frustrated and feels hopeless and struggles against her father and his declarations that she will be a failure.
As for positive changes we have to note:
• A brighter face with disappearance of the dark circles under her eyes and more relaxed.
During this period many essences related to uncertainty have been administered to her, the most important being the following:
• Scleranthus: This will help her to fit in, to take firm decisions so that her life destiny is not paralyzed by indecision.
Awareness of fears, living in the present and manifesting intentions
Of the numerous positive aspects, I wish to note:
• She passes the test for her driver's license in spite of the feelings of panic it gave her just a year ago.
• During this stage she has many dreams of all of her family, her partner, friends, extraterrestrial aliens, airplanes, career. Her dream world is a reflection of her real world.
In the way of essences I would highlight the use of:
• Scleranthus: As earlier. For her indecision and to balance her masculine and feminine sides.
• Walnut: As before and especially because her father continues to be an important point of reference.
• Wild Oat: Administered for the same purpose as in the previous stage.
• Willow: This will continue to act on her distrust of everything, such as not believing it when she was awarded the scholarship, just like the father.
• Heather: To fill the needy little girl in her and still the inner dialogue, the anxiety, the hint of hypochondria when she is too absorbed in her own problems.
• Rock Rose: This essence will help her to have more inner force and break down the outer shell, giving up controlling everything and dilute the panicky feeling she often suffers from.
• Buttercup: Used for the same purpose as in the previous stage.
• Queen Anne's Lace: A key essence that has provided her with focus and orientation, has improved her physical and emotional vision, and has helped her to get a grounded connection with the physical world.
• Shasta Daisy: Given, as written in the Flower Essence Repertory, for her "over-intellectualization of reality, especially seeing information as bits and pieces rather than parts of a whole." VAE has the ability to perceive but has a hard time fitting things in. This essence will provide harmony to the chaos and disorder of her home. She admits that during this stage in which she has written numerous scripts it has helped her at times to have creative thinking which allows parts to form a meaningful whole.
• Baby Blue Eyes: VAE does not feel supported and loved, especially by male figures (father and brother) with whom she often clashes. And she is not in an ideal situation with her partner. It will help to improve her low self-esteem, her feeling out of place and the fact that in a certain way she looks on women's traditional roles as inferior. Her soul is helped in its healing by learning to recognize goodness in others and in the world, and thus to become more accepting, positive and open in its expressions and actions.
• Mariposa Lily: With Mariposa Lily she will feel the warmth and nurturing quality of her heart. It will help her in developing a nurturing ability in all her relationships and allow her to have a warm and loving acceptance of herself and to improve and understand her mother-daughter relationship. Regarding her physical nourishment, she says that her mother went hungry in her childhood and that since she has original tastes and her mother is on a diet, cooking for her is an ordeal, so she usually prefers either not to eat or to eat out.
• Saint John's Wort: For this long period of stress manifested by short periods of slight insomnia, for her fearful or disturbed dreams and for her psychic and physical vulnerability. This essence will help her to find the light that works within the Self as a spiritual force which can illumine and anchor the consciousness.
• Shooting Star: Although it was only administered once during the Practitioner program, I think that this essence is basic for this young woman. Among other things VAE suffered from a birth trauma and she feels a fascination for out-of-body experiences, or she needs them, and Shooting Star helps her to find her right connection to earthly life and come to understand the meaning of love, which she seems to find so hard to understand.
Reaction, Resistance and Reconciliation, and Renewal and Reconstellation
I think that in VAE's case, neither of these two stages have been attained in a very clear way. Although in some aspects a notable improvement has been observed, greater contact with her emotions and with physical life are still necessary.
MMR: developing self-esteem, committing to personal growth and alleviation of physical problems
MMR is a twenty-two-year-old, dark-haired girl with a slight sallow complexion. Introverted, pessimistic, serious, dazzled, responsible, punctual, sensitive, hesitant, controlling, with a little gloomy voice, with a lot of interests and a "philosopher" according to her. She comes to my sessions giving the impression of heaviness…dressed in a slovenly way, generally she does so in dark colors. Her short toenails are painted in black. MMR is a woman of profuse and vivid night dreams and also with a daytime yearning for flying. MMR is the youngest daughter of an immigrant family from a humble background, with a working father who is out all week long, a mother, with serious depressive tendencies, who is basically at home, and an elder sister who is going through a period where she needs to be paid attention to, although she is the one who is receiving more attention from her parents.
During the one-and-a-half year therapeutic process, she has finished her studies in Translation and Interpretation and has worked hard in several jobs so that she could go ahead with her aspirations to improve her foreign language knowledge, and so that she could be treated with a flower essence therapeutic process and visual therapy that could help her improve her visual health.
The most positive changes I observed since MMR started treatment are:
• Important decrease in the frequency and duration of migraines from almost daily to one to three monthly ones.
• Improvement in cervical and lumbar pain.
• Substantial improvement in left eye coordination and control.
• Improvement in her overall self-esteem and particularly in her physical state.
• Commitment and deepening into her process of personal growth.
MMR is the youngest of three sisters; all three were born by caesarean section. She has young parents and a curt, uncommunicative, and offensive mother, who had eight siblings. The parents are both emigrants coming from one of the most deserted provinces in Spain and their cultural and social level is rather low.
Internalized sadness is the key feeling in her family relationship. The word "rage" would be the favorite to define what she feels when talking about her family, a feeling that lessens with the flower essence treatment. The treatment has allowed MMR to analyze the family situation more clearly, in regard to the lack of love, and expression of true emotions. She describes constant arguing and shouting among the family members; there is no communication and listening to each other.
After many therapy sessions, she tells me that her parents would have liked her to be a boy instead of a girl, when she was born. After a year's treatment, she has been able to verbalize that she was the only family member who was present at her mother's suicide attempt with a knife at her throat. Her relationship with her father has improved a little throughout the therapy, although he has always been absent. In his wallet, hers is the only photo that is missing.
When she comes to my office, MMR is a young woman who is in her last courses of her Translation and Interpretation degree, studies that she has paid for entirely by herself by working many different jobs. She is very responsible and is very focused on her studies and work, which causes her physical and psychological strain. Although she is clear about going abroad to improve her Italian and English, about coming back again to Barcelona, she has got constant doubts about how to approach her future.
She suffers from a condition which can sometimes result in a very intense migraine. From what she says, she has been suffering from this disorder almost daily for more than a year now, but medical tests turn out negative.
Specifically, in regard to her biography, I noted the following to be significant:
• She states that during her adolescence, when she did not feel supported at all, she wrote, in her diary, she hated her parents. At sixteen, her jaw is dislocated. This event traumatized her quite a lot, as no one paid attention to her.
• Her departure to Italy, when she was twenty, to study at the University of Rome with an Erasmus scholarship, leads her to discover part of her potential as a person and her ability for pleasure.
• Later, she comes back to an annoying, inexpressive and sad home environment and she is the only witness to her mother's suicide attempt.
Physical symptoms and, in particular, her problems with migraines are her main reasons for consultation. She feels mentally and physically exhausted and she does not know where to go. She is sure that she wants to be happy, finish her degree course, and go abroad. During many sessions she does not cry or laugh. She feels anger and sadness. At a non-verbal level, an important degree of sternness and heaviness is evident when walking. Her introversion, her shyness, her fear of living and other fears, her low self-esteem and her need to be in control make her barely talk in the first sessions, about her visual defect or her relationship problems at home.
In the last session, after a year and a half of therapy, MMR comments she comes to my office because she needed a change, since she was very negative. Surely, this is the perspective she has after these months in which the main treatment has been carried out with Dr. Bach's and FES flower essences.
Right from the beginning, I tried to tackle as medium-term goals: improvement in her physical condition, principally her problem with migraines and her skeletal problems; think about how to correct her divergent strabismus; and help her connect more with herself to know the origins of her emotions and more powerful conflicts (sadness, pessimism, anger, fear, hypersensitivity). Other goals to take into account in the future would be to help her improve her feminine expression, and guide her in her professional future (hesitation, low self-esteem). In my opinion, the fact that she is beginning to integrate parts of herself, initiating changes, and connecting with herself, will help her find her place and purpose in life.
An overview of the MMR's soul development: The Four R's of Flower Essence Response
Release, Relaxation or Rejuvenation
Recovering health, energy and positivity
From mid-March until mid-August, the most important changes I observed were:
• Significant improvement of migraines, from nearly daily to 2-4 monthly.
• Improvement in cervical pain.
• A more shiny and relaxed face.
• She feels more positive.
• She begins to be more attentive to her life (people and things).
• She does not think over things so much.
• She feels more energy in her solar plexus.
• The number of dreams increases, except for two nightmares. The majority are
• She quits a job and an unsatisfying relationship with a close friend.
Among the essences administered, those which played a more important role were:
• Lilac: Used to put straight and unblock not only the spine, the head and the energy that circulates through them, but also to align one´s spirit and nourish it with positive thoughts removing grief, oppression and fright that comes from long ago, perhaps from childhood. A feeling of dis-ease, lack of safety, or a sense of holding back the true self often shows up as rigidity or pain in the spine. The Lilac corresponding behavior pattern is that of someone who is constantly scanning the surroundings in case of danger.
• Lavender: This young woman has consciousness and a special sensitivity which makes her physical ailments worse. Probably she takes up far more energy than can actually be processed through the body. Like other people who suffer from headaches or vision problems, and neck and shoulder tension, Lavender has helped her ameliorate them. Furthermore, her irritability, stress and fatigue levels, have diminished. On the other hand, her interest in and practice of meditation materialized at the end of this treatment. Her soul has learned to use its highly sensitive capacities in balance with the physical needs of her body.
• White Chestnut: Essence indicated for her mental agitation, leading to headache. Her thinking life is highly compulsive and obsessive. Her life energy is drained through excessive worry and anxiety, which is not directed outward toward others, but is kept inside through a constant churning of the mind. It redirects the extreme congestion of energy in the mental field, helping the individual to gain more awareness in the feeling life, especially in the solar plexus and in the heart.
• Impatiens: At the present life of this rather lonely young woman, there is some impatience, annoyance, anger or sadness when things don't work out as she expects. To a certain extent, she would like to have her degree course finished, perhaps to have gone back abroad and to change other aspects of her personal situation. MMR finds it difficult to be within the flow of time; her tendency is to rush ahead of experience. In doing so, she denies her full immersion in life, even though she may appear very busy and engaged. She needs her inner Self to become more receptive to the unfolding moment.
• Holly: Due to the rage MMR feels at home, her eldest sister's jealousy, her girl friends, and the rage at life in general, it is necessary to internalize and find the cause of this problem. A rage which, on the other hand, shakes the root of her security. This remedy brings the light of love into the darkness of her negativity. When we feel separated from others, we can take no joy or compassionate interest in their affairs (at home her parents tell her she couldn't care less about her sister or about things), instead our isolation is composed of negative states of jealousy, envy, suspicion or anger. Holly essence nourishes the heart (almost after a year of her therapeutic process and she begins to feel the need of speaking to her heart), helping the individual to make and sustain the shift, from a limited and narrow conception of the Self, to one which is expansive and inclusive of others. In this way, the soul experiences wholeness or "holiness," for it feels permeated with divine and real love.
• Scleranthus: It is used as a key remedy for MMR´s uncertainty, which drains her soul of much vitality and energy and which permeates even into her physical body causing her numerous illnesses that are especially characterized by a continual shifting of physical states and symptoms.
• Clematis: She is a dreamer for whom "dreaming is living another life." Someone who needs to be with people, but who is content to be left alone, too. Clematis will help her have a conscious embodiment and an interest in the world with a focused presence. Like Scleranthus, this flower has no petals, that means having a detached mentality and also a certain emotional dryness and lack of warmth. Thus, the great talents of the Clematis types are largely untapped, and physical illness easily takes hold of the body because the warm forces of the ego are lacking.
• Rock Rose: A remedy to treat fear, especially for sensitive people. I think MMR has this particular kind of fear. It is a deeply hidden fear of life itself that can appear in nightmares too. As it is hidden, it is perhaps hard for others to recognize. As Julian Barnard says: "Only those who resonate with the blind panic of Rock Rose soul will recognize its quality." MMR is always awake, controlling, observing. She says little but sees much, waiting for life to respond. Used because of the traumatic situations lived with her mother, can help her by bringing her courage, and by remaining grounded and present.
Awareness of emotions and improvement in vision
This second phase lasted from mid-August until early February (5 more sessions). Acupuncture has been practiced, with a good result in cervicalgia and headache. She experienced some vertigo and dizziness, and an intestinal virus. It is the beginning of a period of internalization, there are changes, fear emerges.
I would like to highlight changes and realizations:
• Improvement of strabismus in intermittent exotropia with flower therapy. Visual therapy started.
• Almost disappearance of the migraines and decrease of intermittent spinal pain.
• She realizes she needs to improve coordination with her oral and written expression.
• She speaks more about herself, about what her strabismus causes in her, about what she feels in general (pain, lack of love, sadness, shyness, fear, she does not smile, has doubts, and feels like an ugly duckling), and about her family.
• She makes a list of her positive and negative qualities. She questions herself.
• She realizes that doing so many things and going on trips is an attempt to escape from home.
• Job changes, less friends, a less dark, gawky, sluggish and more feminine image. More relaxed.
I want to point out the following essences as the most important ones during this period; most of them bring light to her mental aspects:
• Scleranthus: It is essential in the task of helping her to coordinate vision, expression; and for those uncertainties and intermittences in diseases, symptoms, activities and states of mind. It will make her more supple, mentally and physically.
• Clematis: It channels her sight, fantasies, dreams and her escapes from physical life.
• Lavender: It continues helping her with her migraines and irritability.
• Gentian: Like Scleranthus, it will provide her with tenacity and holding to a life purpose. Because of her doubts and discouragements about her abilities, which are gradually transformed into deeper faith, she becomes too easily discouraged and disheartened when problems and setbacks occur. Gentian gives encouragement, especially helping the soul to shift its mental perspective and see the long view.
• Sagebrush: It has helped her producing new cognitive awareness about feelings and behavior, and has prepared her for the next stages, thanks to a receptive "emptiness" capable of transformation and change, moving forward in her destiny with far greater forces of discrimination and inner freedom. She needs to release dysfunctional and stifling aspects within her personality, surroundings, cluttered and chaotic attachments. Sagebrush helps her to come in touch with the naked, essential Self, for it is here that truly free and spacious spiritual forces reign.
• Arnica: Helps her to heal deep-seated shock or post-trauma (a well-known one is her mother's suicide attempt, for which I also administered Star of Bethlehem), which may become locked into her body and prevent full healing recovery. Helpful for some of her unlocking, many puzzling, or psychosomatic illnesses. I think that, at a certain moment, her soul disassociates from her physical vehicle, and may never properly re-enter certain parts of the body.
• Rock Rose: It helps her, basically, with her buried and still unconscious fear of living; with the paralysis she went through, at critical moments, with her mother; and it brings her flexibility and change in her life.
• Mimulus: She is hypersensitive to her environment with aversion to talking and to being questioned, and she lives with a great many small fears of ordinary and everyday events (of crowds, darkness, animals…). With apprehension of new thresholds of experience, in spite of the fact that she realizes she must change and changes things. In this respect, it will help the action of Sagebrush. She is afraid but she has the ability to stand up and face the difficulties of daily life. She is especially afflicted in the solar plexus, which churns with great anxiety and unease. It helps the individual shift its fixation from myriad lesser fears to usually unconscious fear, fear of the physical body, or of physical life itself, and, in this point, it complements the action of Rock Rose in her life.
• Mustard: Used because MMR appears not to be happy, with a majority of psychosomatic illnesses and with not sufficient interest in present circumstances. I think she is susceptible to depression or despair, due to fluctuating life events. At this moment, this condition may be the result of changing the anger balance into more sadness, and of the critical situation at home. It brings equilibrium and equanimity by helping her Self to balance extreme polarities of light and dark. Her soul is able to experience darkness as a transformative process.
• Gorse: Administered for her chronic physical ailments and for the oppressive family atmosphere that makes her have a pessimistic attitude, and be unable to trust or imagine a positive outcome for future events. It will contribute to her hope and renewal. Through Gorse, the soul learns to use light as an alchemical agent for change and healing, directing a powerful, illuminating beacon even in the most trying moments and bleakest situations.
Reaction, Resistance and Reconciliation
Self-realization and moving forward
I think that, in this case and at this stage that has lasted until mid-September (about 8 sessions), MMR´s soul present evolution has ended. Yet MMR still feels furious and painful towards her family. She begins talking about her mother and eldest sister saying she feels sorry for them. Furthermore, she gives more details about her childhood. Moments of resistance, with physical symptoms that come and go, have occurred, like the anal fissure, tendonitis, conjunctivitis (after taking Queen Anne's Lace), insomnia, dysmenorrhea that goes on without improvement, cervicalgia due to job stress (she quits a job and begins another one), and a sensation of dizziness for all the changes and the last year's review. The clearest resistance has happened at the beginning of the stage, in which, literally, the patient explains "she sees herself negatively" (coward, ugly, small…).
I would like to emphasize in regard to her changes:
• A very important amelioration in her visual coordination that exceeds the expectations of the visual therapist. She has been persistent with the therapy despite several adversities.
• She cries, for the first time at the office, when she speaks about the pain caused by her visual defect. She recalls past conversations and insults from friends and relatives. She does not like to be in pictures. She does not have many of herself in childhood either.
• She relates her lack of physical appeal with her visual problem and she does not believe a word when men say she is good-looking, because they have not treated her very well. She speaks much more about her need to have a partner and sexual relationships.
• In sentences, she often uses variations of the verbs "to see" and "to settle down."
• She describes with details, after a year, her mother's suicide attempt to which she was the only witness. At that moment, her mother suffered again from a serious attack, but she feels she has more resources and she is the only one taking action.
• She describes the various arguments at home, the lack of financial cooperation, of communication, the insults at home and the excessive, hateful comparisons. Apart from rage which comes and goes, she feels sorrow.
• She is aware that she is very obsequious, accommodating, and she does not know how to set limits.
• She has internalized much the hysteria, anguish and pessimism of her immediate environment.
• She is afraid of inheriting her mother's depression, of not getting a job related to her degree, and to a degree, of talking in public.
• There are attempts to change her parents' attitude towards her.
• She is very focused on her studies, she has finished her degree with such good grades that she is surprised. She is clear about studying for a master's degree in Italy that she is going to begin in October.
• Despite some sessions in which she goes back to all the dark feelings, she uses the word "happy" for the first time, she has been more spontaneous and open, she has felt like opening up more to people and fitting in with them more, she has seen herself as a beautiful woman, and she dresses less in dark colors and with a more feminine image.
These were key flower essences used by MMR during this period:
• Scleranthus: It continues helping the described levels contributing, together with Queen Anne's Lace, to the satisfactory results of the visual therapy. It will enliven her consciousness towards deeper levels of development.
• Queen Anne's Lace: A key essence that has provided her with focus and orientation, has improved her physical and emotional vision, and has helped her to get a grounded connection with the physical world. Queen Anne's Lace harmonizes both "higher" and "lower" energies, which in her case are in an unbalanced state, so that one can stay connected with the Earth, yet also be emotionally clear and objective in one's spiritual insight and vision. When she ended this period, she began meditation practice.
• Willow: Administered for her tendency to blame others or see herself as the victim. It will furnish forgiveness for the rage directed towards her family. In her case, her physical body is still not flexible, but becomes stiff and contracted, due in part to the accumulated resentment.
• Star of Bethlehem: Contributes to the consolation of having asked for very little during her life. She restructures old and new side effects of trauma and pain, and prepares her for a new growth.
• Mimulus: Used in the same sense as in the previous stage.
• Pine: For that guilt feeling that comes to the surface in her family life. To help deflect the fury that she directs back at herself and help her to believe that she deserves and is worthy of a fluid and happy life. At its highest level, Pine teaches self-acceptance and inner esteem as a pathway to the soul's realization of its own sacredness and divinity.
• Gorse: Used in the same sense as in the previous stage.
• Scotch Broom: MMR needs positive and optimistic feelings about future events, as far as her mother's health and her life in general are concerned, especially bearing in mind the family atmosphere. This essence helps her soul to meet the challenges of our times as opportunities for self-growth and for helping others. In making this transition, the soul shifts from its unconscious identification with world darkness to the vision of a more hopeful, positive world future.
• Saint John's Wort: This young lady with slight insomnia, photo-phobia and sun blotches on her skin, which appear in the summer, presents a psychic and physical vulnerability. This essence will help her, so that light will work within the Self as a spiritual force which can illuminate and anchor the consciousness.
• Red Clover: MMR is sensitive to mass hysteria and anxiety. At times when she loses her own identity, she is used as a vehicle to serve the needs of an unleashed force of negativity. This situation can also arise in her family, especially during emergencies or crises, when the blood ties of the family become stronger than the self-awareness of her individuality, which is then propelled by hysterical or destructive energy. Red Clover infuses strong forces of self-awareness so that the individual can think in a calm and steady way, and act from her own center of truth.
• Centaury: Used for her servile attitude and her difficulty in setting limits, both of which feed her tiredness. It will provide strength to her ego.
Renewal and Reconstellation
MMR was about to enter this stage when she finished her therapy. Beginning to tackle more profoundly various aspects of her soul development as are defined in the MetaFlora levels will undoubtedly help her become fully immersed in this stage characterized by the 4 R's.
Iolanda Sarri
Having been raised in the country, Iolanda Sarri, has always been captivated by the wonders of Mother Earth and especially by flowers. She has a Doctor's degree in Biology, is a former professor of Physiology at the University of Barcelona, and has also taught doctoral level classes at the Hospital Clínic in Barcelona. She has been a member of a Doctoral Dissertation Committee and holds a Master's degree in Pharmaceutical Medicine. Iolanda has been connected with health issues for over 17 years, through research, both in biomedical diabetes as well as in clinical investigation of drugs for multinational pharmaceutical companies, in various medical specialties. Fruits of this work are the more than 20 scientific articles published in Spanish, and in international journals and congresses, and participation in three books.
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As an extension of the learning that happens during the PwC-KWHS Seminar for High School Educators on Business and Financial Responsibility, PwC US and Knowledge@Wharton High School (KWHS) have launched a podcast series for high school educators on business and financial responsibility. The series features experts from Wharton and PwC and is designed to help high school educators reinforce their financial literacy and business education knowledge while enhancing their classroom lessons. During the moderated podcasts, featured speakers discuss the topics at-hand and address related questions collected from educators around the country.
We welcome you to listen to the podcasts in their entirety (about 60 minutes) or divided into separate parts. Edited transcripts are also available and include related links to assist you in further exploring the various financial literacy and business education themes.
We encourage you to listen, read, learn and share with your students as well as your colleagues (#HSBFR on Twitter). Please send your webinar feedback and suggestions to email@example.com.

subset: commoncrawl


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Unhealthy food choices, lack of exercise, smoking, and genetics are all factors contributing to high cholesterol, but one undermentioned factor is the role chronic stress plays in cholesterol and heart health.
Whether you have a tough job, you have relationship problems, or other high anxiety situations in your life, chronic stress can raise cholesterol in a number of ways. When stressed the hormones cortisol and adrenaline are released which activate our fight or flight response. These hormones increase energy production by releasing glucose and fatty acids into your bloodstream to supply energy to your muscles. Epinephrine increases your heart rate and cortisol narrows your arteries which helps your heart pump blood faster to deliver oxygen and glucose to your muscles.
Releasing some cortisol is normal and actually healthy, but chronically elevated levels can raise cholesterol, effect your weight, decrease your immune function, and increase your chronic disease risk. Cortisol also increases hunger signals in the brain resulting in cravings for high calorie foods. Stressed people often stop exercising too, which contributes to higher cholesterol levels as well.
Tax day is fast approaching and one study published in Circulation Journal looked at how taxes impact cholesterol. The study followed accountants filing individual income-tax returns through tax season. The accountants were 28-50 years old and remained consistent with their diets and exercise routines through the study period. Researchers found cholesterol rose on average 13% from 206 mg/dL in January to 232 mg/dL on April 15th and then back down to 215 mg/dL in June.
Similar research on airline pilots found total and LDL cholesterol rose about 5% when under high stress preparing for recertification exams. Cholesterol levels also rose when pilots were asked to give a speech on short notice.
Stress management is important for cardiac health and should include regular exercise, adequate sleep, and relaxation. Limit caffeine as this can stimulate cortisol. Also limit sugar, chocolate, baked goods, and white grains as these are stimulants which can also elevate triglycerides. Avoid high saturated fat foods which can increase cholesterol such as butter, cheese, ice cream, red meat, fried foods, whole milk, 2% milk, baked goods, and many packaged snacks. Focus on eating a well balanced diet rich in vegetables, fruit, beans, whole grains, lean protein, low fat dairy, and a small amount of healthy fat every day.


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Hi, my name is Robert, and my passions have always been cars, design and technology. icon incar has given me the opportunity to do all these things in one office. After almost three years of being a dual student with iic, I am currently writing my bachelor thesis in the major media design. Over this time I have learnt a great deal about UI & UX design, design processes, prototyping and lots more.
How it started
After deciding to do a Duales Studium (dual study program) at the DHBW Ravensburg, Germany, I needed to look for a company that would sponsor and support me throughout my three year bachelor program. After applying to several companies, icon incar was one of my favourites due to their specialisation in the automotive industry – perfect for a petrol head like me. When walking into the office to meet with the studio manager, I knew this was the place to be. People were working away on creating the latest and greatest in the automotive UI/UX world, laid-back, friendly and most importantly interested in cars.
icon incar decided to incorporate me into the family, being the first time the office was supporting a dual student. I had no idea how much I was going to learn and develop over the course of the next few years.
How does it work?
The program is split up in two phases (practical and theory), I would be rotating every three months between working at the company, and studying at the university. Over the course of the program, there are no holidays stretching across several months: it's switching between practical and theory phase every three months. Even though it can be quite exhausting at times, I do not mind this as it always encourages me to learn new things, be on the go and not let myself slack.
Which phase do I prefer more? Definitely the practical phase. During these three months I am always in touch with real projects, real customers and because of this learn so much more in this time.
The office
One of my favourite things about the team is that it is not too large. The office is split up into several smaller teams, of which I would switch around each phase. This allowed me to dive into different steps and phases of the design process. Relatively quickly I got the feeling of holding responsibility, and not having to do typical "intern jobs" – which is fantastic. One is viewed as a equal member of the team, contributing to the projects and always being able to ask questions and learn new things. This is one of the main reasons why I learnt so much every time I was there.
Besides the office having a very strong and diverse team, the people are great too. Whether it be cooking lunch together or hosting an event followed by a party, it always ensures for a great time.
Looking back
Now it has almost been three years, and every time I look back it astonishes me how much I have learnt since starting at the company. It has been great fun being part of different projects with different teams, and now I am very excited to write my bachelor thesis with icon incar and receive a lot of support from my supervisor and the team.


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Vintage book dealer, Thomas Cary has quite the collection of books and everything else under the sun. His clients include Ralph Lauren, Tommy Hilfiger and Tory Burch. The images are from a piece Unbashedly Prep did on the passionate collector.
Thursday, April 10, 2014
The Cary Collection
3 comments:
- Caron said...
Oh, Erin! It makes me want to clean my closets. There is a fine line between collecting and hoarding. Here that line is a bit blurred. Having said that, there are a few items that I fancy in those images.
- April 10, 2014 at 9:04 AM
- bisbee said...
I'm sure there are many enviable items in those rooms, but no, those pictures don't make me want to go treasure hunting! They make me claustrophobic!
- April 10, 2014 at 12:57 PM
- Alexandra Bee Blog said...
Wow! Especially love all the fun pillows!
- April 18, 2014 at 11:13 AM
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Toys By The Bushel: A New Toy Box Inspired By The Orchards
Looking for something other than your typical wooden toy box? The Bushel Box Co., has taken inspiration from the orchards and created wooden, hand-painted personalizable boxes and crates suitable for the toy room, bedroom, living room or any other place you need a little help in the storage department.
The boxes are available in four different sizes the Apple Crate, Apple Tray, Apricot Crate and Bushel Box. Once you choose your box you can choose the wording you wish to put whether it be a name, phrase or date. There are nine different colors to choose from in addition.
I think these would be such a fun addition to a shabby chic nursery or rustic style home! Sadly, they are only available in Australia. A fun idea to play off of though in case you want to try and make your own.


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Apple thwarted Google's effort to release Latitude—which allows your control-freak friends to know where you are at all times—as an iPhone application. You can only update it manually using a web page, which makes it not-so-useful. Until now.
Developer Nat Friedman thought the same as you did (something along the lines of "f*cking stupid Apple morons"), and spent the weekend writing a script called playnice. The script will get the iPhone's location information from MobileMe, then sends it to Google's Latitude. Obviously, it only works if you are a MobileMe user, making it less useful for the rest of the mortals who are not willing to pay more dollars to Steve and his minions. [playnice via Nat Friendman]


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It's Friday, ya'll – FRIDAY! Let the happy dance commence. 🙂
My little love list on Wednesday never posted to Google Reader – what is that about? G Reader, you got some beef with me? I can take ya… I can – you better watch your back!
I've been wanting to change the title of my blog for awhile now… Little Miss Obsessive while it is true, I can obsess about things – I find it a little bit negative. Also I have run across too many other Little Miss Obsessive's and the unoriginality makes me sad. So if one day you pop on over and I've completely changed the name and blog title, don't be surprised. BUT I'm still mulling it over so we will see.
I've been thinking a lot about my little bloggy here and my brand – or well, lack thereof. I've been thinking about what kind of blog I want this to be – you know, what my shtick is? I've been hearing a lot about branding yourself and of course it does make a lot of sense to me. Blogs are more popular, it seems, when you can clearly define what you are all about and who your audience is. But, the thing I've realized is that maybe "my thing" is just being me. 100% me. And maybe that is not the clearest, most defined direction for a blog but that's what I want this space to be.
I talk a lot about dating and relationships but would I call myself a relationship blog? Not really. I talk about other things like TV, fashion, my goals and dreams. Some days I'm in the mood to be really positive but do I want to be an inspirational positive blog…. well, no because some days I want to just be honest. And tell you that I'm sad or whine just a little. I don't want to have constraints.
I guess the thing I've come to realize is that I just want this space to be a reflection of all that I am. I can't only write positive because I don't always feel positive. I like to write about dating and relationships but I don't want to only write about that. So, I guess my general conclusion is that my only direction in this blog is being me. Plain and simple. And if you like reading about litle ole me, then thank you. 🙂
Do you brand yourself as a certain type of blog or blogger? If so, do you feel like it constrains what you write about?


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|This is the truck that carried their Porsche from UB to Russia border, 1800km.
Image © Stanley Gold
"The Russian people continue to be friendly and completely fascinated by the cars. Wherever we buy gas, the young boys are thrilled to see our old Porsche.......and yes, they have smart phones, so lots of pictures."
|Stanley and his three new friends in the Vostok Hotel bar. Image © Stanley Gold
|Garmin GPS navigation equipment. Absolutely necessary in Mongolia as there are no roads and no road signs. Image © Stanley Gold
6/12/2013-"Just got into Tyumen after a 674km (418 mile) drive from Omsk. Car was running fine, and it was a wonderful drive in 80 degree weather. The fields are still saturated with water from the melting snows, but the first plantings are going in. Farmers here have to get their land cultivated, crops planted, tended to, and harvested before mid-October when the first snows arrive. Being a farmer here is tough work."
"Many of the towns and cities we're traversing in Siberia are factory towns. When the Nazis moved into Western Russia during World War II, Stalin moved his factories to the east so he could continue to produce war material for the Russian army. Many of these factories have converted to peacetime production, while others have closed because they are unable to be competitive in a free world economy."
|Worker's housing built circa 1950. Image © Stanley Gold
|Best piece of equipment we bought. Keeps track of our mileage from point to point by GPS and has a wheel sensor so if you go into a tunnel the machine doesn't stop and lose mileage.
Image © Stanley Gold
6/13/2013-"After writing and sending last night's blog, we learned that one of the competitor's, Emma Wilkinson, was killed in a head-on collusion. She was driving with her husband, Peter. Her two brothers are also in the Rally driving another car. Very sad news and everyone in the Rally was very somber today. Motorsports are inherently dangerous and it is a risk we all take."
"Today we drove a little over 425km (250 miles) from Tyumen to Yekaterinburg. Yekaterinburg is considered the dividing line between Asia and Europe. So today we left Asia and tomorrow we begin our trek through Europe. Yekaterinburg is Russia's fourth largest city with a population of about 1.4 million people. The city is named after Tsar Peter's wife, Catherine, and is the prettiest city we've been to since we left Beijing. Many modern office buildings and apartment houses; tonight we're staying in a brand new Hyatt Hotel with grand vistas of the river and the city."
|Typical view of the Siberian Countryside. Image © Stanley Gold
6/14/2013-"Shortly after we left Yekaterinburg this morning, we entered Europe, which more importantly, is the half-way point in the journey. Paris is ONLY two weeks away."
"The car is running fantastically well. Oil temp is cool and the oil pressure is right on the mark. We're getting very good gas mileage. We are so confident in the car that today we ran in the competitive Time Trials. Brant drove a section where we were looking to do the course in 11 minutes and he did 9 minutes, 9 seconds (good news there was no penalty for an early finish)."
"Today's 425-mile journey took us through many small farming villages. Many of the houses are log cabins with elaborate window treatments. Most have a small family garden plot in the rear (these were given to the peasants shortly after the revolution, when the State confiscated most of the agricultural land to be worked as collectives). The small family plots are still worked by the families and some of the products from these plots are offered to road-side travelers from little make-shift stands along the road (they look like lemonade stands)."
|Another log cabin with fancy window frames. Image © Stanley Gold
Two other observations:
1. "Today we did not see any onion-shaped domes of the Russian Orthodox Churches. What we did see were 4-5 small, but pretty and well kept Mosques. These were mostly in the larger villages (2,500 people), but we saw some in very small villages."
2. "Alcoholism is a real problem in Russia. A day does not go by where we do not see a young person (14-25), mostly but not exclusively boys, drunk in public and making a scene. You see this behavior in the cities and the countryside."
"Off tomorrow to Samara, where we get an extra rest day and an opportunity to get our clothes cleaned. Might even try to get my beard trimmed as the bar maid tonight said I looked like Santa Claus."
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Rose Pests and Problems
Roses are easy to grow if given the proper conditions. Adequate sunlight (5-6 hours minimum), water (about an inch a week on average) and fertilizer (roses are gluttons and love to be fed). Roses are also like most any other garden plants in that they are susceptible to a number of diseases, insect pests and other problems. It is up to the gardener to decide what level of damage and maintenance, or lack of, they are willing to live with. The hard core exhibitor is striving for the perfect bloom and immaculate foliage, and will do whatever it takes to achieve that goal. Then there is the "survival of the fittest" type gardener. This type gardener digs a hole, plops a rose bush in, fills the hole, and gives little, if any, water or fertilizer through out the year. Most rose gardeners fall some where in between the two extremes.
The most common disease problems in the Atlanta area are fungal diseases such as Blackspot, Powdery Mildew, Downy Mildew and Bothyris . Blackspot is the most common disease and causes dark circular spots with irregular margins, mainly on the upper surfaces of the leaves. The spots enlarge until the leaf turns yellow and drops from the plant. Blackspot loves the humid conditions found in the Georgia and the Southeast and can occur at any time in the growing season. Uncontrolled blackspot can rapidly defoliate a rose bush and spread throughout a rosebed. There is no cure for blackspot only prevention. One of the best ways to control blackspot and other fungal diseases is the regular application of fungicides. The ARS website has an article on blackspot titled What is Blackspot?. Other ARS articles on Powder Mildew and Downy Mildew can be found at the Diseases in Roses page on the ARS website.
Two of the more serious disease problems are Rose Rosette and Rose Mosaic . While Rose Rosette hasn't been reported in Georgia, confirmed cases have been found in western and middle Tennessee, with possible cases in the Huntsville, Alabama area. It is thought to be caused by a virus and spread by a specific type of mite. Good articles on Rose Rosette can be found at:
Rose Mosaic is also thought to be caused by a virus that, unlike Rose Rosette, is not fatal to roses. However it has been shown to reduce the vigor and flower production of most infected plants. An excellent article on Rose Mosaic by Dr. Malcom Manners, of Florida Southern College, can be found on the ARS website at Rose Mosaic Virus Disease.
There are a multitude of insects that feast on roses and almost as many solutions for eliminating them. Fortunately, most of the bad bugs have a good bug counterpart or predator. The problem is that you first must have the bad bugs before the good ones show up and by then the damage is done.
Some of the more common bad bugs are aphids, thrips, caterpillars, grasshoppers, spider mites, and the dreaded Japanese beetle. The most common good bugs are Lady bugs, bees and wasps, praying mantis, and the one that I personally hate but co-exist with in the rose bed - the spiders.
All of the bug problems can be treated by various insecticide sprays with varying degrees of success. The thing to remember is that when you use insecticides you are also killing the good bugs, which in the long run may make your problem worse. By using Integrated Pest Management (IPM) you may be able to keep your bug problems under control. A good place for more information on IPM is at www.gaipm.org/turf/index.html which is published by the UGA Dept. of Entomology.
If you do choose to use sprays, either fungicides, insecticides or combinations, always read the label carefully and follow mixing directions exactly. This stuff is poison!!!
information on insects and insect control can be found at: http://www.jps.net/rosebug/
Pesticide Safety information can be found at: http://ace.orst.edu/info/extoxnet/pips/ghindex.html


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Do you want to include puppetry in your work, but don't know how to begin? Do your existing puppetry ideas need a bit of a shake-up? Would you like to build a deeper practical understanding of puppetry?
Then this week-long guide to the use of puppetry and its qualities in art is for you!
The week will be collaborative and explorative, the agenda responding daily to the objectives of the participants. Through improvisation with a focus on "liveness" the workshop will explore:
Bunraku Puppetry
Shadow Puppetry
Object Manipulation
Glove Puppetry
Overhead Projector Work
Jess Mabel Jones is a theatre maker, puppeteer and performer. Her puppetry practice is extensive and diverse, often influenced by the companies she has worked with including Blind Summit, Little Angel Theatre and Improbable. Jess's work spans physical theatre, improvisation, street theatre, cabaret and site-specific community arts.
To stay up to date with the latest news from Pants on Fire, including workshop dates...
"I really loved the whole week. I'd done a tiny but of puppetry work before so it was nice to develop that further and also to learn and explore new methods. It was good being able to watch other people do it so much as you learn a lot that way... it was just magical!"
"Jess created such a positive working environment which was open and safe. She was incredibly motivating and helped me not only gain a greater understanding of puppetry but also an understanding of new ways of theatre."
"I particularly loved the Bunraku puppetry. It was such a positive way of working. Thank you."
"I learnt the fundamentals of puppetry and explored many ideas about puppetry in practice and have already found uses for it in my outside work. I felt so comfortable throughout the week, which for me is hugely important."
"I loved working as a team and creating a character. I have learnt lots of the basics and have experimented with different ways to move an object or puppet to give it life. It was such a fab experience, I learnt so much I wish it had been longer!"
"My confidence with puppetry has improved immensely and I can't wait to take it into my directing work."


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Last week, we visited Brooklyn startup Loosecubes, the company that lets workers rent open cubicles around the world.
The four person team is working out of a large loft with a killer view of the river, three ridiculously cute puppies, and a tented lounge that gives the office an L.L. Bean vibe.
If you have to work in an office, this is the one to work at.


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Child Support
On January 1, 2009, the Massachusetts Trial Court issued new Child Support Guidelines that
affect the lives of families in the Commonwealth. The new guidelines were designed to ensure
the smallest impact on the child's standard of living and help to encourage joint parental financial
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that every case is different. The attorneys at McEvoy & Stuntz, LLC, are expert in working with
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• Child Support Guidelines
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Different types of sort-term pain, various testings, long-term suffering, sorrow, reproach, failure and loss accompany many people that I meet. I too have had some of this, but not much in comparison.
When we experience any of these we can opt to get harder in our hearts or softer. We can go away from God, and away from His church with spiritual pastors, or we can seek Him more and go closer to Him, to His church and His born again pastors. Of course getting closer to Him in a meaningful relationship is the most important thing in life.
We can choose to become bitter inside, disillusioned, cynical, resentful, or we join our hands with these aspects of our lives that have broken, whipped, kicked and bent us.
What happens when we believers choose to join hands with em? Well, God can actually add great things into our spiritual walk of faith then. Yes, He that has allowed these things into our lives can actually contribute to our personal character, intimacy, compassion and kindness through them as we turn to Him.
People around me have failed, I have failed..I hate failing, but God hasn't and He can teach me to have compassion on those who fail.
What's really hard for me to take is when I see a leader keep hurting his followers over and over again..in the Name of Jesus (who doesn't do that). Puffed up ego is an ugly thing. I have even tried to stop such leaders before.
But for the grace of God go I….don't wanna mess up...and don't ever wanna hurt people. Go ahead and join me in meditating upon the truth and application of these verses that will greatly encourage you.
"More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us." Romans 5:3-5esv
"Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing." James 1:2-4
"And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you." 1 Peter 5:10
"For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us." Romans 8:18
"Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice insofar as you share Christ's sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed." 1 Peter 4:12-13
P. Dear God and Jesus and Mr. Holy Spirit. I love You. And thank You for all that you do in our lives. I don't like pain.. for me or my friends. I don't ever seeking, try to have it, or think it will make me more righteous in my standing with You. I want you to remove it. But if you won't, then please help me and my friends to learn from it. I do want to care for everyone I see in good and practical ways.. cuz I simply want to care more and represent you well. With some people I meet who don't seem to know what suffering is about at all, except in that they cause others to experience this, I find it very hard to care for them at all. I sometime feel like making them have what they give others. My old nature is so clueless on how to pull that caring stuff off sometimes. Bless and comfort people through us and help us not hurt people God in Christ's Name. Amen.


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Despite industry assumptions, investors are buying golf real estate
More Diversity has a Big Impact on Your Success
One of the primary aims of the World Golf Foundation is to represent the game's interests through WE ARE GOLF (WAG), a coalition of golf's leading organizations
States are constantly making changes to their escheatment laws and regulations
By Kyle Darbyson
A Nebraska-based group calling itself the Dormie Network is growing a countrywide network of destination private clubs on an ironically overlooked part of the experience–the game of golf itself
Once the concerning numbers around golf participation began to surface, many panicked operators scrambled to make their product attractive to as many non-traditional demographics as possible.
Forgotten in all the relaxed blue jean policies and pickleball courts was the one core demographic that never turned its back on private clubs; the affluent, well traveled, corporately-connected golf purist. Now, Zach Peed has an ambitious plan to serve them.
The Nebraska-based, former collegiate golfer has been steadily assembling a stable of ultra-high end properties across the country. The organization, currently using the working name "Dormie Network", boasts Ballyhack Golf Club in Virginia, ArborLinks in Nebraska, Briggs Ranch outside San Antonio and, most recently, Dormie Club in North Carolina.
The end goal is to create a network of 20 to 25 destination private clubs focused purely on the game and aimed squarely at these golf traditionalists. It's a simple idea, and that's precisely the reason Peed thinks it will work. "There are no gimmicks, it's a pure product done best."
Mark Ruhga is an operations manager at Landscapes Unlimited, the company tasked with managing the burgeoning group of courses for Peed. He says the timing is perfect for an endeavor like this. "There are many courses that opened just before the issues in 2008 that started out on the wrong foot and never fully recovered," he says. "A lot of people trying to get out."
The Dormie Club in Pinehurst, North Carolina, is perhaps the best example of this. The facility, which opened in 2010, was originally conceived as a members-only club. Even with a No. 3 ranking on GolfWeek's Best New Courses list, Dormie Club ran into trouble immediately. "They tried to make a go as semi-private, but it just never worked," says Ruhga.
Reports suggest the original owners paid north of $15 million for the 1,000-acre parcel of land, and close to $10 million on the course. Peed was able to secure both for $7 million. Ruhga says numbers like this allow Peed to breathe new lifeblood into these distressed properties. "It's really an opportunity to create the magic that was originally intended."
One of the first investments stakeholders at the Dormie Network make when they acquire a new property is in course conditioning. "Our first priority is ensuring that the golf product is up to the standards we set as an organization."
Staff will conduct a full agronomic assessment to see where improvements are needed. "One consistent thing we've found in the properties we've acquired is that the maintenance fleet has been somewhat deferred," Ruhga explains.
Next up is the construction of on-site lodging, an essential component if the network is going to attract these 'national' members. "We're looking at four-plexes, cottages, casitas, whatever type makes sense for the particular region the club is in."
Then, the non-golf infrastructure is considered, from clubhouse expansions to new maintenance facilities and cart storage.
It's a substantial investment, and one existing members are universally happy to hear. Each club acquired by the Dormie Network offers local memberships that are capped at 100 per property. All four clubs in the network are already at or near this number, and those members see Peed as an angel investor of sorts. "They kind of got used to a lot of false promises, and Zach comes in and sort of disproves that myth pretty quickly with his willingness to invest."
While these local memberships provide a stable financial foundation, the real focus will be on national members across the entire network. "We're in a growth mode right now, so our pricing is very aggressive," explains Ruhga. Initiation fees have been dramatically reduced, and pricing set at surprisingly affordable levels. It's all in an effort to layer in a group of early adopters who can then become advocates for the network. The potential market for memberships of this type is quite niche, and intertwined. Securing just a few can lead to numerous referrals quite quickly. "Getting these golf purists onto the course at any of our properties will be the best sales tool we have," Ruhga notes.
Dormie Network is also tapping into the burgeoning arena of social media influencers. "We've hosted quite a few social media advocates to give them a taste of what we're offering," says Ruhga. The idea then is to have these super-connected influencers share their experience with their network of followers, who will then repost or retweet the story and so on, amplifying the message exponentially.
The organization is very active in acquiring new properties, and the industry is starting to notice. "Brokers are calling us with much more frequency now," Ruhga adds. There are a few criteria the organization uses to filter opportunities. "Obviously, the quality of the golf course is first and foremost, but we also prefer clubs that are close to, but not in larger metro areas." The ethos of the network also means there's no need for traditional country club amenities. "Zach (Peed) isn't concerned with tennis courts or pools."
The final decision is not made until Peed is able to pay a visit the property and play the golf course. "If it speaks to him, he'll make the move," Ruhga explains.
Ruhga says several courses are currently being assessed, and he see's no reason for the organization to slow down. "The people we are targeting use golf for pleasure and for business, and I think we're providing the perfect venues for both."
Kyle Darbyson is a Vancouver-based freelance writer.
Brought to you by YamahaVisit the Owner's Manual library within the GB Archive for practical, small business insights and know-how for your golf operation.
Golf Business - The Official Publication of the NGCOA © 2019 | ngcoa.org


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Thursday, April 29, 2010
Not-So-Secret Origins of the JLA Week- Wonder Woman
Technically, the Silver Age Wonder Woman WAS the Golden Age Wonder Woman. Her series had never been cancelled. This new origin story, however, creates a dividing line between the Wonder Woman who was the secretary for the Justice Society of America during WWII and the new, more powerful Wonder Woman who was an equal member of the Justice League.
Enjoy "The Secret Origin of Wonder Woman" by Robert Kanigher, penciled by Ross Andru and inked by Mike Esposito from Wonder Woman #105, April 1959.
Posted by Aaron at 12:00 AM 2 comments: Links to this post
Labels: Mike Esposito, origin story, Robert Kanigher, Ross Andru, Wonder Woman
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Not-So-Secret Origins of the JLA Week- Green Lantern
Imagine my surprise when I suddenly realized I did NOT actually own a reprint of this story! I have a reprint of Green Lantern's origin being abbreviated and recapped in Green Lantern #1, but somehow, I was unaware that this specific story was missing from my library.
In a state of panic, I went to the local, public library to check out Green Lantern Archives. Little did I realize they only had a copy of Green Lantern Archives vol. 6!
Thankfully, that blogger's blogger and all-around good guy Mykal Banta helped me out with a scan of this landmark story. Incidentally, If you're a big fan of Gil Kane's artwork, (and who wouldn't be?) you may want to check out Mykal's newest blog, "Kingdom Kane".
As I alluded to yesterday, the unbridled success of DC's remake of The Flash in Showcase #4 struck a chord with the powers that be at DC. It was decided to try the formula again, this time with another cancelled hero, Green Lantern. The original Green Lantern (created by Martin Nodell) had been a railroad construction engineer who found a mysterious and ancient lantern fashioned from metal from a meteorite. This lantern and the ring fashioned from it had almost magical powers, a sort of Aladdin's lamp.
Editor Julius Schwartz had come from sci-fi publishing and he liked the idea of modernizing DC's heroes with more "scientific" explanations. There were hints of that in The Flash's origin, but sci-fi takes a front seat in this, the debut of Green Lantern. From Showcase #22, September-October 1959 here's Green Lantern's origin from "S.O.S. Green Lantern" by John Broome, drawn by Gil Kane and inked by Joe Giella.
Posted by Aaron at 12:00 AM 2 comments: Links to this post
Labels: Gil Kane, Green Lantern, Joe Giella, John Broome, Showcase
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Flash Origin Update! A Reader Spots Something Interesting!
I received an entertaining comment from Silver Age Comics blogger Pat Curley:
Pat, you are HARD CORE! You're dead right, my friend. I even checked All-Flash Quarterly #13- no match there, either. In fact, I checked all the covers of Flash Comics and there were no close matches at all! That cover is pure Infantino.
Now, not to get all geeky and take this to some meta-comics level, but perhaps that cover is a cover of Flash Comics #13 exclusive to Earth 1? I mean, after all, on Earth 1, which is much like our Earth except it has superheroes and stuff, there was a Gardner Fox, much like our own Gardner Fox, except he wrote Flash comics based on visions he had in his sleep of the Flash of Earth 2. So, perhaps Earth 1 has many of our Golden Age comics, but with variant covers. Imagine the new collecting frontiers!
Man! Even I want to beat me up after that!
Nice job, Pat! you win the "no-prize"!
"Pat said... It's a minor thing, but it's always bugged me that Barry's reading Flash Comics #13, because the cover shown has no resemblance to the actual cover of that issue--for one thing, Flash Comics #13 is a Hawkman cover (Hawkman and Flash basically alternated cover appearances)."
Pat, you are HARD CORE! You're dead right, my friend. I even checked All-Flash Quarterly #13- no match there, either. In fact, I checked all the covers of Flash Comics and there were no close matches at all! That cover is pure Infantino.
Now, not to get all geeky and take this to some meta-comics level, but perhaps that cover is a cover of Flash Comics #13 exclusive to Earth 1? I mean, after all, on Earth 1, which is much like our Earth except it has superheroes and stuff, there was a Gardner Fox, much like our own Gardner Fox, except he wrote Flash comics based on visions he had in his sleep of the Flash of Earth 2. So, perhaps Earth 1 has many of our Golden Age comics, but with variant covers. Imagine the new collecting frontiers!
Man! Even I want to beat me up after that!
Nice job, Pat! you win the "no-prize"!
Posted by Aaron at 8:19 PM 4 comments: Links to this post
Not-So-Secret Origins of the JLA Week- The Flash
For many comics historians, Showcase #4, October, 1956 is the "Day the universe changed". Or at least one of them. The publication of this little number ushers in The Silver Age. The Flash is widely regarded as the first new superhero of the Silver Age. Especially by DC. I'm not sure why they withhold their love from poor little Johnny Jones, Manhunter from Mars. After all, he did debut almost a full year earlier than The Flash. Perhaps, as a back-up feature to Batman he just didn't bring in the sales figures of a coverboy like Flash.
At any rate, in Showcase #4, DC takes it's first steps towards creating a new age of heroes. And they did it by looking towards the past. The Flash was a remake of a previous DC hero from the 1940's whose book had been cancelled (in fact, Barry Allen is reading one of his comics in the story). This process is old hat these days, but in 1956, comics had only been around for 2 decades. As you'll see tomorrow, it was successful, because DC went back to the same well time and time again.
Enjoy the beautiful dynamic art of Carmine Infantino, inked by Joe Kubert (more commentary after the feature) :
I have to say, Barry Allen is a likeable guy. While The Flash is a very physical sort of hero, his alter-ego is a genuinely nerdy police scientist and comics geek.
There are many ways to show a man running fast but Infantino seems to have mastered the technique of depicting The Flash's speed through blurred motion lines, suggesting that he's moving faster than the eye can keep up with.
My favorite panel in this issue? Top of page 5, with the food floating in mid-air. Comics don't actually move, like film or TV, so it's remarkable how well Infantino captures the moment here. I think the coffee really sells it. It would have been very easy to draw this scene and simply rely on captions to tell you what was happening, but this picture actually tells you that everything is standing still except Barry.
Tomorrow: Green Lantern.
Posted by Aaron at 12:00 AM 5 comments: Links to this post
Labels: Carmine Infantino, Flash, Joe Kubert, origin story, Robert Kanigher, Showcase
Monday, April 26, 2010
Not-So-Secret Origins of the JLA Week- Martian Manhunter
This week, I'm going to further highlight the original Justice League of America- One member at a time.
Since the JLA debuted already formed in Brave and the Bold #28, I have decided to spotlight them each in the order they (or their Silver Age origins) debuted in the comics.
We start with Martian Manhunter or, as he was originally known, John Jones, Manhunter from Mars. Mr. Jones debuted as a new back-up feature to Batman in Detective Comics #225, November, 1955. As you can see from the story you are about to read, the emphasis of the comic was on the detective angle of the character. John wouldn't be written as a more conventional Superhero for a few years.
Enjoy "The Strange Experiment of Dr. Erdel" . Script by John Samachson, art by Joe Certa.
I don't know a lot about 1955, but I still find it unlikely that you could walk in off the street and become a police detective. I doubt it was like walking into a diner holding up their "Help Wanted" sign.
Posted by Aaron at 12:00 AM 10 comments: Links to this post
Labels: Joe Certa, John Samachson, Martian Manhunter, origin story
Saturday, April 24, 2010
One of the Many Reasons I love My Wife!
So, this morning (being Saturday) I popped in a "Challenge of the Superfriends" DVD. As (my wife) Amy and I sat watching Superfriends over breakfast with our 5-year-old (who LOVES Superfriends), the Superfriends were in trouble. Seems they were captured by the Legion of Doom. The L.O.D. locked the Superfriends in a cage and launched the cage into space, headed for the sun.
Now, every time I see this, I think to myself, "I'm pretty sure they'd all starve to death before they ever reached the sun." Never mind other questions regarding exposure to cold and radiation. But Amy, out of nowhere, says " As they were getting closer and closer to the sun, wouldn't Superman be getting more and more powerful?
Damn! I love you, baby!
Now, every time I see this, I think to myself, "I'm pretty sure they'd all starve to death before they ever reached the sun." Never mind other questions regarding exposure to cold and radiation. But Amy, out of nowhere, says " As they were getting closer and closer to the sun, wouldn't Superman be getting more and more powerful?
Damn! I love you, baby!
Posted by Aaron at 10:41 AM 1 comment: Links to this post
Labels: Legion of Doom, Super-Friends
Friday, April 23, 2010
If It Sells, Keep Sellin' It!
To say that Batman and Robin were a huge commercial success would be a vast understatement. True, Batman sold well for the eleven months he existed prior to adding his now-famous sidekick, but nothing like the household name he would become simply by adding a spunky kid to the team.
The combo was so successful, that every comics company rushed to imitate it, adding junior partners to their established heroes (often just a miniature version of the adult hero, such as the Human Torch's buddy, Toro) even DC itself. Few of these duos were very dynamic. Still, it had worked once, it would work again.
Not only did DC slap sidekicks on many of their existing heroes ( and by the Silver Age there were enough of these scamps to form their own team-the Teen Titans) and create heroic duos from whole cloth (Green Arrow and Speedy, for example) they also gave us an endless string of Batman and Robin wanna-be's.
Let me elaborate on that. I don't mean just pale imitations of Batman and Robin, I mean that, within the context of the Batman and Robin comics, the Dynamic duo encounter myriad crime-fighters who have based their careers on those of Batman and Robin. The Knight and Squire may be the most famous.
My personal favorite are B&R's Native American counterparts from the Southwest- Chief Man-of the Bats and Little Raven!
But, as mentioned, this formula for success was not limited to the pages of Batman. DC felt that what was good for the goose was good for the gander. Therefore, what had been good for Batman would have to be super for Superman. Enter Nightwing and Flamebird:
Not content to simply go around fixing all of Earth's problems, Superman decides he needs to also fight crime in the bottled city of Kandor.
For those who don't know, Kandor is a city that was shrunken, placed in a bottle and stolen by Brainiac all before Krypton exploded. Kandor currently resides on a table in Superman's Fortress of Solitude, where it sits under a red sun lamp (can't have a whole city of Supermen running around, can we?). Whenever Superman uses his shrink ray and stops by for a visit, he has no superpowers.
So, how will Superman fight crime in Kandor if he's not... super? He'll do it Batman-style. And he takes that lovable doofus, Jimmy Olsen along with him to play Robin.
Superman names himself Nightwing and Jimmy Flamebird, after two Kryptonian birds. He fashions costumes based vaguely on the birds' plumage. Pretty soon, they have a Nightcave, Nightmobile and even a Nighthound. Of course, Nightwing and Flamebird are a little spoiled by being Superman and Superman's Pal, so they wear jetbelts that allow them to fly.
"Er- ahem, that's NightWING, Jimmy!"
What's really remarkable, is that this concept didn't just yield a couple of memorable stories and vanish. In fact, Nightwing and Flamebird were one of the back-up features in Superman Family well into the 1970's- although at that point, Nightwing was Superman's cousin Van-Zee and Flamebird was Van-Zee's lab assistant, Ak-Var. (if you'd like to read one of those nifty stories, check out Diversions of the Groovy Kind)
Nowadays, if you mention Nightwing, people think of Dick Grayson after he quit being Robin. And Flamebird was also used again in Teen Titans, this time as a new name for the original Batgirl, Bette Kane.
The names have since been recycled several times.
Still, even though it was a throw-away idea that really broke no new ground, Nightwing and Flamebird's adventures were tremendously fun.
Posted by Aaron at 8:44 AM 2 comments: Links to this post
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text: Ted Dekker (born October 24, 1962) is a New York Times best-selling author of more than twenty novels. He is best known for his science fiction, Christian fiction, and fantasy novels, although he has also written a few non-fiction books. Other genres he has written in include thriller, horror, mystery and suspense. His novels are fast-paced and include surprising twists, unusual characters, and confrontations between good and evil. Dekker is the author of The Books of History Chronicles, some of which he has co-written with Kaci Hill and Frank Peretti.