It Is How You Think
You Feel and Act How You Think
Why You Feel the Way You Do
It Is How You Think
You may ask, and justifiably so, what could possibly motivate people to do some of the things you see them do. Well, the thing you can do to know the answer is to know it when you see it. You are the gatekeeper of your mind. What I say now and what I will be saying is not academic. It is visionary and will take you on a journey from what you think you know to an understanding of why you may not. We will look at life in a way you may never have. And I will give you answers to questions that you did not know you ever had.
It is how I see the world through the eyes of The Creator—life as it was created to be. Our sole purpose is life. That is if we choose to live it. And our lives consist of all the decisions we make. It is how we think—from the “womb to the tomb.” And beyond.
Nothing about It Is How You Think is fiction. No, what you will find here is about life and how we think our way through it. You did not know before, but you will know now. It is not about what you have been told or what you may have heard. It is about the way that it is. What is here and that you bring with you will help you learn that to see, you must look. You may see you in what I have to say. When you do not, maybe someone you know and love comes to mind. Or perhaps one of those troubled souls you see act out their hurt in all the wrong places when there seems to be no reason why. Now you will know what that might be.
It is a matter of knowing the real you—the person you see when all else is peeled away. Through growth and enlightenment, you can change the course of your life if that is what you need or want to do.
Where to Start
Our world (our entire existence) is about perception and how we think, feel and act.
My words and actions (what I say and do) will lay the path and lead the way to learning how to live a better life through your thoughts. It will help you to understand how we all think. It will show that if how you think is disordered, your life will be the same. How you think is the root cause of our negative feelings. My focus is on the Self: your Self, her Self, him Self, and my Self―all of us. I did not always know what I know now. I will share what I know with those who will listen. My vision is clear and sourced from The Creator.
First, you must listen. The more you listen, the more you will understand what you hear. You are sure to think and feel what you hear if you listen. There will be truths that will cause you to change how you perceive the world around you. This is good. It will challenge the way you think. If it is not a cause to think, what cause is it? I had to think about me. And you will have to think about you.
For those times when we need to connect with what it means to say, “That’s life,” this will be a reference. It is a way to look at the true nature of what is and how it came to be. The truth tells all when it is told. It is what we have to depend on. It is about how we view the world that each of us lives in. Our world is not just what is around us. It is also what is in your mind and what goes on in your head. It is for all of us who have had thoughts about “Why I Feel The Way I Do.”
Peace
Otis Redding Memorial Madison Wisconsin
The Day That Soul Cried
The day that soul cried, a chilly mist hung over Madison, Wisconsin. Fans of Rhythm and Blues anticipated a thrilling visitor that Sunday night. Singer Otis Redding was scheduled for two shows at the Factory. Three days earlier, Otis had finished recording “Dock of the Bay,” a moody song that would later be his only No. 1 hit on the pop charts.
Otis was accompanied by the Bar-Kays, fresh-faced high school graduates from Memphis. Otis (The Big O) had performed the night before in Cleveland. He, the Bar-Kays, his valet and pilot were flying to Madison in his private twin-engine Beechcraft. They were scheduled to perform at 6:30 and 9 p.m. But they never made it. The plane fell three miles short of the runway and crashed at 3:28 p.m. in the near-freezing waters of Lake Monona. The sole survivor, trumpet-player Ben Cauley, was pulled from the water 17 minutes after stunned witnesses along the eastern shore of Squaw Bay telephoned for help.
On November 8, 1987 members of the Otis Redding Memorial Fund, a Madison, Wisconsin nonprofit corporation, culminated their fund-raising drive with the dedication of a memorial to Otis Redding on the shore of Lake Monona. The memorial consists of three semicircle marble benches, custom carved in Portugal with the initials, O.R. incorporated in the legs, Georgia gray granite marker and a bronze plague. The memorial was temporarily moved to storage to make way for the construction of the Frank Lloyd Wright designed Monona Terrace Convention Center. A re-dedication ceremony was held August 15, 1997 on the Roof Garden of the Convention Center, where the memorial is now located.
James R. Yarbrough
President and Founding Member
Otis Redding Memorial Group
Peace
The Gospel Truth
Watch the video and see what I think.
Why Let How You Look Cause You Pain
Your Achilles Heel
(Everyone has one.)
There is no one who doesn’t have that one thing that causes insecurity about his or her appearance. It has as much to do with what you think others think about you as what you think of yourself. It could be your nose, your hair, breast or just about anything that has been deemed not to be how it should be. When you think this way, you will never be at ease and comfortable with yourself, the real you. You cannot be happy, no matter the circumstance or your status in life, until you resolve the issue you have with what you think you see when you look at you. Reflections do not always tell the truth.
The images you see in the magazines, on TV shows and throughout the media are not the prototype of the human. It is mostly an illusion, a fantasy created to sale an image of perfection. The perfect dazzling white teeth, long flowing hair and a curvaceous body with all of the accompanying accouterments. And as one would expect, those who this bothers the most will try to change things about themselves, even things that cannot or should not be changed. They spend loads of time and money on how they look, how they dress and right down to how they walk and talk.
Time and money surely are important, but not as important as your health. And some of the things are putting the people who do them at risk. It is no wonder when you look at how some are criticized and joked about for this one physical feature that is looked upon as a flaw and not the will of nature and how you were born to be. All the while they are using this ridicule as a defense mechanism to fight off their own insecurities.
The jokes and harsh words can be personal and quite nasty. Those who are adept at it can be creative with their techniques, while others show no mercy. The focus is always on those aspects of your person that are easy to attack. It is just superficial; yes, but it hurts nonetheless. Making these critical remarks with hurtful intent has become acceptable—it is “everywhere.” In casual conversations, in movies that we see, in magazines and even in some of the books that we read: There it is. It is no wonder that anxiety, low self-esteem and insecurity are at an all-time high.
You cannot hide, for long, what is inside about how you think about your outside. So, you think you are different, that there is no one who has your perceived shortcoming, your “defect.” In reality there is no one who doesn’t have a defect of birth of some type, some cover it up and others have procedures to change what many times are just normal abnormalities. Nothing that millions of others all over the world don’t have as well. Try telling that to yourself. For if you see you when you listen to these words, it is time to hear it and learn from it. It is not easy, at first, to accept that which you have lived with as you would an unwelcome guest, but this you can and must do. There are some things you cannot change; you have to change how you think about them.
We have men, women, girls, boys and even young children—more so today than ever—who have become entrapped by the marketing of major businesses and a brain-washed society. The very people who should know better are caught up with the rest in the swirl of the marketing monster. We are now looking for the ideal when it is not to be found for it is always moving and changing. And there is no better way to separate you from your money than creating “false” insecurity and a sense of need. Know what is being sold before you buy. Money will not buy self-esteem. You have to earn it by changing how you see yourself.
If all of the people of the world were in one place, you would see much and much of what you would see would be no different than what you have seen; just “everyday people.” Everyone is beautiful at some place to someone whereas using the so called standard of beauty very few would be. Let me put it this way: There is no perfect person, physically, mentally or otherwise and few who meet the marketing criteria for beauty. On one of your typical days out and about, how many “beautiful” people do you see, few if any who have the looks of the gorgeous magazine models and the assortment of celebrities. It is all a make believe world full of illusion, makeup trickery and manipulation. It is not reality; it is not what you think you see.
We all have physical differences from height, weight, ears, eyes and all of the other variations that come with being a living organism, a creation of nature. Even the appearance of the genitals causes much anxiety and personal and social discomfort. And the public buys into it. There are billions spent annually on Labiaplasty, vaginal rejuvenation, penis enlargement and other body modifications by men, women and even teens.
First thing in the morning before your feet even touch the floor you are thinking about one thing that is never far from your mind. You have tried to not think about it and that is why you do. If you cannot change it, you have to change how you think about it. You wish to hide it from the mirror but what’s the use, it will still be there when you look. You do not have to be perfect to be perfect in the things that you do.
Nothing is hard to do, you just do not know how to do it yet.
Hear And Listen Are Not The Same
When Hearing is Not Enough
Just as you can look but not see, you can hear and not listen. You first hear, and then you listen. When you listen, you feel the sound of your thoughts and know precisely what is said. Nothing will be filtered by emotion. To hear is not to listen. It is not the same. It takes no effort to hear. This is if you want to or not. To hear is one of the senses. It is there by nature and has no on and off switch.
When you focus on what you hear, you will listen. You are home early from work. What is that sound coming from down the hall? What you hear is someone being hurt, but then you start to listen, and it is then that you realize it is not pain that you hear. It is the harmonies and highs and lows of a duo of sounds. You recognize the solo, but have no idea of the baritone. No doubt you did not want to hear those sounds, though you would not have known if you had not been driven (drawn) to listen.
I Am All Ears
Hearing is the ability to perceive sound with our ears. I will not spell out the entire process, but the ears do this by detecting vibrations. When an object makes a noise, it sends vibrations (sound waves) speeding through the air. Sound may be heard through solid, liquid, or gaseous matter, as well as anger, fear, happiness, and pleasure.
There are times when you may hear things even when you would rather not. I am leaving you. I have found someone else. The thrill is gone. You are fired. And there are other times when what you want to hear, you never do. I love you, yes, yes, yes. You make me feel so good. I understand. You are the best.
What you hear can deceive you, just as when you see an object, person, or thing and realize upon closer inspection that it is not what you believed it to be. This is never so evident as when a lover, husband, or wife says, “I love you,” when all along they are making love to someone else. To take it a step further, to a place no one wants to be, is when a person hears what is not being said.
Now Hear This
The need to hear what you want to hear causes you to change the meaning of the sound of the words being spoken. You can turn and run, as fast as you can, from what is real, but it will not change a thing. If he does not want you anymore, and she tells you she has someone else, it will be the same no matter what you allow yourself to hear. The mind is a terrible thing when it works against you. This friend who is now your worst enemy is working against you. The mind is now in charge when that is your job.
There are times when someone will say something to you, and they do not want you to listen. They only want you to hear, so they can confuse you later when you tell them what they said. What you hear then is, I did not say that, I did not say it like that, or even, that is not what I meant.
Are You Listening Now
Our lives are shaped by how well we know how to listen. Just because you can hear does not mean you are going to listen. We hear with our ears, and we listen with our mind. The words begin to sink in. It is then that you are focused. You are there. And you will see what they really mean when they say the things they do.
There is a time to Listen—There is a time to Think—(WHICH IS AT ALL TIMES)—There is a time to Talk. Listen, Think, and then Talk, to know when it is your time is what determines the outcome. These are the things you must know for information to flow and knowledge to form. It is the best way to have “give and take.” All will have a chance to express their thoughts. It works best when one talks and one listens.
The key is to know when it is your turn. When you listen, you do that, not a thing more. We do this when we tell ourselves that this is what we want and need. That you have heard what you need to listen to. This is how you think what is being said. First, though, you must be where you need to be to hear what is being said. You cannot be sure of what you have heard if you have not listened. As a result, what you say may not be what you mean, and it is because you did not hear what you thought you heard.
Hear Me Now So You Can Listen
You can talk and hear at the same time, but you will not be listening. If you try, it would be like trying to think two thoughts at the same time. Neither one can be done. Our mind moves to what we are thinking of. There is no dual track for how we think. And a thought will not divide. It is just as no two words can be said, and no two objects can occupy the same space at the same time.
1. You have to be prepared to learn.
2. You must learn to listen and listen to learn.
3. You have to listen to what you read, what is said to you, and your Self if you want to learn.
When we are born, we do not know how to listen. It is an acquired skill. You must have a deep sense of purpose and a strong drive to learn. Not just hear what is said or what you read. Once you know how to listen, the sound you hear will be what you should have heard when you could only hear.
When you listen, what you hear has your undivided attention. In so many ways, it is much like meditation. What we listen to can be calming when we feel it; of course, it can be quite disturbing, it depends on what you have to listen to. You have to want more out of what you hear to listen. Until you do, you will just hear. That certainly could be all you want to do.
You First Must Know What You Hear
I cannot say it too many times, our lives are shaped by how well we know how to listen. Just because you can hear does not mean you are going to listen. We hear with our ears, but we listen with our mind. The words begin to sink in. You are focused. You are there, in the moment. And it is then that you know what the words really mean when we say the things that we do.
You cannot be sure of what you have heard if you have not listened. As a result, what you say may not be what you mean. You can talk and hear at the same time, but you will not be listening. If you try, it would be like trying to think two thoughts at the same time. Neither one can be done. Your mind moves to what you are thinking of. There is no dual track for how we think. And a thought will not divide. It is just as two words cannot be said at the same time.
When You Talk To Your Self
When we say what needs to be heard, someone will listen. You should not say a thing until you say it to yourself. And that is called thinking. When we think, we are having a talk with ourselves. You can do this in two ways. You think your thoughts to yourself. That is when you talk to yourself and do not say a word.
The other, which I have done since I was a child, is to think your thoughts out loud. This is a good way to discuss what is on your mind with yourself when no one else is around. No matter what you say, you should be sure that what you say is what you know.
You do not have to say it all, but let whatever you say be the truth. There is a lesson in all the things we say and do. You have to listen to learn and learn to listen. Did you hear me? Are you listening now.
Distract Disrupt Focus Interruptus
DISTRACT ME IF YOU WILL
Focus Interruptus
There are reasons why you let some things distract you. This is whether you know it or not. When something distracts us, it can be good or it can be bad. It all depends on our thoughts. If something distracts you when you have good thoughts, it is not good. If something or anything distracts you when your thoughts are not good, it is a good thing. What you decide, good or bad, right or wrong, makes the difference. Know this and know the truth. And let not what you think you know be a barrier to learning.
When we find something to be attractive to us, a connection has been made. This may be or may not be in a physical way. It is by way of a preference that we have. And it is a thing we like that has a strong and irresistible pull. You must decide what it means to you. Our preferences are based on how we view the wants and desires in our lives. They are subject to change as the thoughts you have to think change. It is not confusion, though it may seem so; it’s the thinking process that can and does appear at times, coming from another person, as messy.
What distracts some folks the most is when they think of what others might think of them. Then they try to change things about themselves.
They try to change who they are by how they look, how they dress, and how they interact with other people. A change in the amount of makeup will not change who you are. And it fools no one. And that includes you. The Self is your makeup. It is the soul of a person, it is who you are, and it does not change. New makeup is not what you need. You need an overhaul of how you think; that is what you need. It will change how you feel, which will change how you act and view your world (environment) and the world of the universe.
SELF-ESTEEM NOT SELF-CONTROL
Let how you act be the face that you show the world. Do not let how you look speak for you. It is only meant to be a compliment to who you are. Makeup and a getup will not keep you up. When how you act does not match your inner Self, it creates pressure. You must try to act the way you look. The Self can only come out when the outside is in. How you feel, then, depends on how you look, and it grows with time. It is how a person thinks that does not allow them to be the real person they were created to be. You have done too much when what you do causes you to act and look like someone you are not. There is no place inside to hide.
Disrupt and Distract Are Not the Same
Some things disrupt the flow of our thoughts. We would rather they did not. They do not distract from what we do; these things disrupt what we are doing. Disrupt and distract are not the same. They are not of equal magnitude. One is merely being interfered with. The other is to have your attention drawn away from what you are doing.
Then there is a reminder, which can be helpful and serve a good purpose when still needed. As with many things, when it is not, it can be a disruption. It depends on whether it was turned on when it should have been turned off. This will happen when we let ourselves be reminded still, when there is no longer a need. Does not matter what you are doing; “turn it off” before being turned off. An example would be if you left the alarm on when you had no reason to do so.
What can be most damaging is when we allow ourselves to be reminded of things long past that serve no useful purpose in our lives today. A memory from our childhood can be one of them. However, I have found that a reminder is just what you need when you want to be sure to remember.
Right or Wrong Good or Bad Happy or Sad
The right thing done the wrong way will not succeed, just as the wrong thing cannot be done right. You can be right, though appear wrong to those who are not right. It does not mean that you are wrong and they are right; they are still wrong. You should let no one turn you away from what you know. Some will try until they realize you know what you do.
Ball of Confusion
Doing the wrong thing but thinking it is right is wrong. Doing the wrong thing and knowing it is not right is wrong. The result is the same for both. How we think is what tells it all. It is still wrong. When you change how you think, the results will change.
Wrong things can happen when you do right. They will not come from doing right. It will come from the wrong done by someone else. Our thoughts are our energy and are what drives us to think.
Thoughts That You Have To Think
Ways to Feel And Act
Our brains have the same makeup, but different, as we are, in what they can do for us. Our thoughts are one of them. There is no restriction on the thoughts that we think. There is a limit to the thoughts that we have. It is not the same for any of us. It depends on what you have in your world to think about. You will not have a thought about something you do not know a thing about.
There are no equal rights of thought. We do have the sole privilege to think the thoughts that we have. And that is with no known limit. Now, of course, we are not all Einstein.
The world we live in is the thing that determines our thoughts. Our thoughts come to life based on how we perceive what we see, hear, and feel. We are taught how to think, no matter the genes we may have been gifted with. We do not teach ourselves: We learn from the many teachers in our lives. Unfortunately, some are not good thinkers and pass on what they were taught. This way of thinking flows from one generation to the next. It is a part of what we have to live with.
Thoughts Are What We Have To Think
Whether we choose peace or war, love or hate, empathy or indifference, it is how we think. Well, whenever, whatever is handed down to us, we then try it on our own. As we grow and develop, we decide what to think. Even so, what we think will be influenced by what we were taught in our formative years. Many were not taught the skills necessary to survive, as a result, they do not and live a life of misery and pain on their way out.
If you want different thoughts to think, you must open your world to more things. You have to meet more or different people, go to places you have not been, and do things you have not tried. If you hold back, you will continue to think what you have always thought and do what you have always done. Even our imagination has its roots in what we know. It cannot run away with you on its own. The dreams that we have are no different; though, you may find it hard to believe with the dreams that you have.
So You Know My Thoughts
There are many things that someone can do for you, but thinking is not one of them. Though people we know, some we just met, and even others we have not, will try. To do so, they would first need to know your thoughts. There are some things that we have that belong to no one but us. They are our thoughts. And we cannot have a thought about things we do not know exist. We think based on knowing. There is no limit, but not all thinking is the same.
When I say to think a thought, I mean that thought and thinking are not always the same. A thought is just a thought until you think it. Think of a thought as being inert, not doing a thing from when you have it until you think of what you want to do with it. The time between the two is so short that there is no way to measure it. Another thing, when someone says, I know what you are thinking, well, of course, they do not. We are yet to know when someone has a thought to think. And there are good reasons we do not.
I Read Minds. No, You Do Not
We know other people by what they say and do. We were not given the ability to read minds. If you are wondering why not, think if you knew what is on the minds of the people you know, and, likewise, they could read your thoughts. The things we would do to each other are unimaginable. It is not possible if we want to continue to exist as we are or at all.
Thought is not only what you had. It is also what you have. You thought, and you have a thought. A thought cannot be forced. To try to do so is called thinking. Once we have a thought, we think it or it moves to our memory. It will not be undone. It is the same as it is with life. The life we have lived cannot be changed. What exists to us is all we know. And we decide what we are going to do with it. Think about this.
You perceive, have thoughts, think, feel, and then act.
Say you are walking down a long and winding road, and along the way, you meet me. You will have a thought based on your perception of me and others “like” me. This is the first thing that will happen. You will then think about us. If you like what you see, you may proceed, though with caution. If you do not feel safe, you may go in another direction. Or you may not have strong feelings either way. No matter how you feel, your feelings will be based on what you think. And you will act according to how you feel. We perceive, have a thought, we think, we feel, and we act. That is the course of an action process, as I believe it to be.
Why You Feel The Way You Do
It Is How You Think
How You Think Is How You Will Feel
It is not always what we think of ourselves that bothers us the most. Much too often, it is what you think others think about you. Why? When you do, you are thinking about a thing only they can know. That should not be the cause of your discomfort. You should let no one influence your thoughts to make you feel bad. There’s more just below.
No one would approach you with this in mind if they did not think they could. How you act is how other people will judge you. It is how you are thought of when they think of you. What else is there to go on? How else can they know? When you change how you think, if that is what you need to do, it will change how you feel, therefore, how you act, which will change the opinions people have of you. To change my thoughts about myself, I must change how I think about myself. To do this, you must change your mind. Painful thoughts cause you to think in a way that does not serve you well.
When you think painful thoughts, there is a cause. This kind of thinking shows in how you act and affects your relationship with others. You can come to depend on feeling bad. Then think that it is normal. Of course, it is not. You should not think your thoughts this way. When you are unsure of your thoughts and how you think them, you know that things are not right by how you feel. All you need to do is tell yourself that you know. Why you feel the way you do: it is how you think.
Do you see yourself in what I say? If you do not, it is about someone you might know, have known or may know. There is but one purpose, by nature, which we have. That is to create people and be the best at it (planning, mate choice) that we can be. If we do this, our lives will surely reflect this simple truth.
Why Does It Hurt When I Think
No one can hide from the truth forever. It will find you, and you know why.
Yes, it does hurt to think the wrong thoughts. What you think should not be the cause of your pain. Knowledge will do no harm, but how you think about what you think you know can. We can be perfect in the things that we do. We individually, as a whole, as groups, will not be perfect in how we think or act. There is but one who is perfect. It is not you or me. It does not help to pretend that you do not know what you know. No one can hide from the truth forever. It will find you, and you know why.
You will not learn if you are afraid to know. I cannot hide from what I know about myself. You cannot hide from what you know about yourself. Once you know, you cannot close your mind to what you see. In the absence of damage, the brain does not “un” know. Knowledge builds, it does not leave. We should use what we know to know more, not to try to forget. The mind is not next door. There is nothing to fear; there is no bad knowledge. However, there is no doubt that you can know some bad things. Or wrong. Do you know your reasons why?
Nothing you know--no thing, place, or person is so bad that you cannot think about it. It may not always be a pleasant experience. It’s based on your years and how you live your life each day. For that determines the memories made and thoughts at play. When thinking of days since passed, it is good to remember that it is okay for occasional visits and short stays, but it is not healthy or helpful to overstay your time in the past. If we feel bad about our past, it is how we think of our past. And we all have one. And many have two. What will you do to change how you think?
If you have memories of hurt and pain from your past, they will change when you change how you think. You must understand what it is and how it influences your thoughts. Emotional hurt and pain without a remedy can last a lifetime, but how you think about pain can and should change. How you think is how you will feel, and how you feel is how you will act.
Wealth and The American Dream
The Upward Flow of Wealth
All wealth is generated from the bottom of the human pyramid. You may find this hard to believe, but it is true. Money circulates through the purchase of goods and services. So the most has to be purchased by those who purchase the most, which would be the masses. And in this category, you have the lower and middle earners. This also includes the poor. The wealthy produce more wealth that very seldom trickles back down. There are a number of our institutions among this group that come to mind. One in particular is easy to recall if you think for a moment.
Wherever you give up your money and see little to no return is a true example of the money flow and where your money goes.
The working class supports the upper class. Without the base, there would be no pyramid, no wealth. As much as you may not want to think about it, with the system in place, there has to be a worker/consumer class and the means of production. But we are not all that different. Humans, as well as other life organisms, have a hierarchical system of existence. What you see today, though, cannot continue. More and more, the workers are in China, India, and Mexico, to name a few countries.
And the consumers are, you guessed it, here in the USA. The money class does not care where the base is, as long as it is there and low maintenance. Now, do not get me wrong, money is good, but not everyone will have it for long before it makes its way to the top. That is where you will have to be to keep it. Credit and from paycheck to paycheck will not do it. So, what does this all mean? I know what it means to me, only you can decide what it means to you. It takes a large base to support the top. Without the working class, who would do the work?
Is It Real or Just An Illusion
Don’t Let Credit Fool You
Now, here is the rest of the story. The working class (middle class?), which is actually the credit class, is an invention that generates wealth for those on top and serves as a buffer or a kind of protection against those on the bottom rung of the social and economic ladder. It is an artificial class supported by the credit industry. There can be no other logical reason for it to exist. And because there is no foundation in financial reality, it is just a tool to be used when the job calls for it.
If the lower class is getting restless, call out the middle class; when more money is needed at the top, you do the same. The so-called middle class has been led to believe that they can live the American dream with hard work and determination. But what happens when the credit runs out? We are now finding out what that means.
Welcome Home
You are on your way to the poor house. The credit monster has deceived you. It does not whisper; it shouts that you can have it all. Just make sure you keep a good credit score and some kind of job. With the strategy fully in place, the money handlers aimed to change the mindset from saving for what you can afford to a spend what you do not have way of thinking. To keep it all going, the marketers keep the consumer goods* dangling in front of our eyes. With the same old slogans ringing in our ears: you must have, you cannot do without, new and improved. And when the economy falters, as it inevitably will, it all comes tumbling down for those who were really never up. It was all just an illusion; now you see me. Now, you do not.
*Consumer goods are products purchased for consumption by the average consumer. Alternatively called final goods, they are the end result of production and manufacturing and are what a consumer will see on the store shelf. Clothing, food, automobiles, and jewelry are all examples of consumer goods.
Temptation Duration Frustration
To Temptation
CREATED TO DO RIGHT AND WRONG
Yield is just one sign. There are more than I wish to count—laws, rules, and regulations to keep us from doing the wrong thing. Now think about that, if you will. So it would seem that we are not that much different from nonhuman animals. We are not as civilized as we would like to think we are. Other animals are put in cages, and so are some of us. There are thousands of laws throughout the world with the sole purpose of keeping humans in line. Why would this be? Are we not supposed to be the higher-level thinkers of the animal world. If this is so, why do we need the police, the military, and other means of enforcement to keep us in check? Some among us break the law all the time, even when they know there could be punishment to follow. Will you yield to temptation?
Are we just wild by nature with an inclination to do the wrong thing
Of course, no laws regulate our relationship with each other: How we treat one another. You are my wife, but I am having sex with your “best friend,” is that right? You tell your husband that you are out with the girls when you are at the motel getting it on. I tell you I love you when I know it is a lie. You act as if you are really feeling it when, at the same time, you can hardly wait for him to roll off to his side of the bed. Your husband’s buddy cannot keep his eyes off your body parts. He does this every time your husband looks away. You enjoy his attention to the details of your assets. What are you going to do about it? Will you yield to temptation?
IS IT MORE THAN AN IMPULSE
On your last trip to your friend’s house, you made sure to brush up against her husband. Did that satisfy you enough, or do you need more? Did he say you are excused, or did he push back in silence, letting you know he was thrilled by the touch. A casual acquaintance you had “noticed” tells you she wants to be with you, and her loins ache for you. And you are married, will you yield to temptation? Your boyfriend, whom you care about in so many ways and want to be with, cannot satisfy you in bed. Will you yield to temptation and be with someone else just for sex? You are out with the boys, and they want to go to the strip joint; you promised your wife you would not do this. Will you yield to temptation and go instead?
Will You Yield to Temptation
You will be tempted to do things you know are wrong by moral standards, but feel right by your own. Do you yield to temptation, or do you deny yourself the pleasure of being who you are? The Creator put pain and pleasure in life here for us to decide. Some believe there should be no pleasure, or there should be some type of on and off switch. No such control was included when we were created, for pain and pleasure are part of who we are. And pleasure is what we seek because it feels better than pain. That is why it is so difficult, and not natural, not to yield to certain temptations. The Creator chose desire to make sure that the life of his creation would continue. It could not happen with pain. Pain’s purpose is to tell us that not all is well.
We are animals, yes, you heard what I said, and we are human.
When we deny ourselves the pleasures of life, all that is left is pain. Now I ask you, will you yield to temptation?
DESIRE MY SOUL IS ON FIRE
Even the feelings of love and hate struggle against the seduction of desire. You can “feel” love for one and desire another, just as you can feel hate for one you desire. If you have thought it, you know it. If not yet, you will. A true sign is when the heart races and the pulse quickens with just the thought of the object of your desire. And when in the presence of the one, the body is triggered, feelings swell and pulsate to the rhythm playing in your mind. And at that moment, no one knows but you.
We did not make it the way that it is. It is in us. The great taboo is no taboo at all. The Creator created us so that when stimulated, we would react. And that we would have strong feelings, and be desirous of each other. The hands of nature hold the switch. You can turn your back on desire. Though each time it will turn you back around. It is not a sin. It would not be as strong if it were wrong. We cannot erase it. However, you must maintain control of your feelings and how you think about them. There should never be a time when you do not.
Do not, though, confuse temptation with desire.
Of course, as with all things in life, there is a time and place if it is to be a time and place. You do not have to act on desire, but pretending will not change your feelings. There is no human power or words that can change this. So let no one tell you that you should not feel what you do, for they desire as well as you. It matters not what role or title they hold. Do not, though, confuse temptation with desire: They are not the same.
Right Time for Change—There Is a Better Way
Right or Wrong Good or Bad
You first have to know, and then you have to realize you know. When you know that you know better, you will do better. Let there be no doubt that no matter what you have thought, what you think, or have been told, you cannot turn away from doing better when you do in reality and fact know better. Good is what you do until then. It is a goal with no end, and you should strive to make your good better. You will now know that you can. Good can and does get better. If you fail, you cheat your Self.
When you think in a way that takes from who you are, that is what you are doing: cheating your Self. It is the worst kind of way to think. There is no right in that wrong. Disordered thinking at its best or is it worst?
One of the rules of nature is not to harm the Self. If you do, you can never be you, the real you. Life will not be what you deserve. When you do not use your gifts and talents—we all have them—they do not stay their best. Nature will not let it be. You must put your assets to their best use. When this does not happen, life moves on, but you will not keep up. To work against what is good for you pokes a finger in the eye of nature. We live and grow by the fundamentals of life. To know this, you must have the vision to understand the core of our existence: Man, woman, and child.
When it feels wrong, it is not right.
You do not have to do or say a thing, if, however, you do, say, and do the right thing. There is nothing we can do when we do not have the energy to do it. It comes from will and desire. They are the fuel that propels us toward our goals. You must motivate yourself. The effort must be up to the goal. Great change needs a great effort. To gain much, you have to put in a major effort. A gain from little effort is not here to stay. It will go as it came. There is no solid or sound foundation of effort, so what was needed to be done no one did. Success is that moment when you have given all that you have to give. And you know it.
The right thing done the wrong way will not succeed, just as the wrong thing cannot be done right. You can be right, though you appear wrong to those who are not right. It does not mean that you are wrong and they are right; they are still wrong. You should let no one turn you away from what you know. There is no “little white lie,” no shades or degrees of right and wrong. They are what they are. You do not have to prove you are right, just be right. Right will hold its own, even when trampled on. To make a change to what is right will not make a thing that is right better. It will likely make it worse. You will not improve on right. If it is right, it is not wrong. Leave it alone.
High John
How can you do something wrong when you know how to do it right?
You are the one to decide what is right or wrong for you. As we all must do, you must live with what you choose. When you have done the right things, it does not mean all the right things are done. Trying to do the right thing is good. To do it is better. You must put forth the effort until all things that can be done right are. You will have the tools to do this. When you do it right, you will feel right. Then, you will know how much better it is than what it was. You cannot be “caught” doing the right thing. How can you do something wrong when you know how to do it right? You cannot; when you know better, you will do better. There is no exception.
I talk about right because right is the most potent weapon against all else. It’s beat up, kicked around, lied about, and twisted. So that someone can do wrong. Yet sooner or later, right will prevail.
How great it is to meet your Self for the first time.
It Is How You Think
How you feel and act will change as how you think your thoughts change. There is no better time for change than when it is needed. Change will happen when you change how you think. This will change how you feel. How you feel will change how you act. Our roles in life are shaped by how we act. It is how we will be known to those who know us. It is what others will use to judge us. Some may say it is not all about me. Well, I say, it is. When it is about you, it is about us, all of us in some way. We all have the Self as the core of who we are. You get to know your Self by being yourself. How great it is to meet your Self for the first time.
You should not let your life pass you by. Be happy to know who you are. This you have coming to you. When you are not happy, it shows.
If there is a thing you need to do, you can do. You only need to let the mind know.
Mind Over What Matters
There is no time or age limit to do better for yourself. It is not too early or too late. Either way, it is up to you to choose if it is time to “think healthy.” The body and the mind can both be fit. Though the mind, you must convince. To change your mind is to change your life. This is where the rest of your life begins. If there is no way to know, there is no need to know. Where there is a need, there is a way. If there is no way, there is no need. The more you get, the less you need. It is called nature, it is called life. If there is a thing you need to do, you can do it. You only need to let the mind know.
If not to be perfect, what then could be your goal?
When you do not succeed as you think you should, there is more work to do. Perfection in what we do is a worthwhile goal for all of us. You are not wrong when that is your motivator whether reasons known or unknown. Perfectionj is not a bad word. It is a Self, defined state of mind; it is personal. If not to be perfect, what then could be your goal? A thing less is less than your best. We were created to decide the scope and reach of our lives. Observe your world well. And do when you can do. There is much to be gained from each. However, one should not take from the other.
You must learn to listen, and listen to learn what your world has to tell you. Hearing is not listening. It takes no effort to hear. Hearing is one of the senses. Listening is an acquired skill. To get the most out of what you hear, you must listen. Learn to listen, listen to learn. Do not run from what you should be running to, your Self. We can never run out of time. Time runs out for us. Time is time we are not.
No Time Like The Right Time
You can only get there from here. It does not matter the means or the mode. You will not get there from anywhere but from where you are. You can only get there from here, and you got here from there. You were there in the past; now you can be there in the future. You can go back there, or you can go to there, it is your choice, which there do you choose. You can only get there from here. For sure, your mind cannot stay where it is.
You have to believe it to see it. When you see it, you will know. What do you believe?
Place And Label For You
Labeled and Put in Your Place
Man and woman are now how we are known. We have a name, which is our label. We must use the labels we know by shapes and words to make sense of our world. As we grow and change, our labels will change. You will not have a thought of what a thing is if it does not have a label. Nor will you know its purpose. No one would know who you are, and you would not know them. You and I would not even know who or what we are—no place like the one where you want to be.
A society—the world—must have in place the means of survival for its citizens to thrive and grow. Labels, though, not for consumption, will prevent you from consuming what could be life-threatening and others that take you where you want to go—some labels, unfortunately, are designed to mislead through words spelled out and actions taken. Do not be taken in by person, place, or thing. Today, and every day, your mind is prey.
Your Place the Place You Want to Be
Still, we have some who say they have no place and do not put a label on them. We are here; thus, we have a place and a label. Yes, if we accept it or not, it is so. In many ways, just being a person with a name, which is a label, tells who we are and where we stand. Some labels we can change, others—of course—we cannot. However, you have more each day, it seems, of medical and non-medical persons and institutions doing their best, Dr. Frankenstein to make a new kind of human.
We all have a place starting in our mother’s womb. It comes with a label that tells who we are. And our place is in the order of our birth, as well. This does not change. We have labels that will change as our roles in life change. When we feel that we do not have a place, we will get less from the place we are in now. We all have a place to belong and a label to tell who we are.
It Is How You Think
My words and actions (what I say and do) provide the framework and pathway to learning how to live a better life through how you think your thoughts. All that I say and do is to help you and others like you understand how we all think. How you think is the root cause of your negative feelings and all the other feelings you may have. It Is How You Think.
If how you think is disordered, your life is or will be disordered as well.
The more you listen, the more you will understand what you hear. You are sure to think and feel what you hear if you listen. Hearing is not listening. It takes no effort to hear. Hearing is one of the senses. Listening is an acquired skill. To get the most out of what you hear, you must listen. Learn to listen, listen to learn.
Much of what is here and will be here when you visit again will be about how I view the world that each of us lives in. Our world is not just what is around us. It is also what is in your mind and what goes on in your head. It is for anyone whose life has forced from them a poignant pleading: “Why Do I Feel The Way I Do?”
AND HOW YOU THINK IS HOW YOU WILL FEEL.
Time In Time Out What Time Is It
Time Count Down: Tic Tock
Do You Really Know What Time It Is
…for us physicists believe the separation between past, present, and future is only an illusion, although a convincing one… — Albert Einstein
Time is like the wind you cannot see —you only see the effect on person, place, and thing. — JRY
What is it that makes time so important? Why do we speak about it like no other. There are times when what we say about time does not make sense. It is time, your time, my time, what time is it, now is the time. You will not know if it was time to do a thing until it is done. How many times have you said it’s time and it was not? If it has become reality, then it was the time. One thing is certain: we live in time. Without it, there would be no space for things to go. Time is space. And all things that exist do so in space. There has to be room to exist. Space was here when we arrived. We are the occupiers. We do not touch space, we only move around in it. We live when it is given.
Time, as we know it, is a concept of “man.” And there are many who cut their time short by how they live their time.
No matter what time it is, time does not change. What happens in the space of time does. Time is not changing; we are. For you and me, it is personal. It starts for each of us when our parents create us and is not shared. You cannot lend nor can you borrow time. And your time is the only time you will have. More time will not be given when you have no more to live. Time, though, is not as important as what we do with it. When you think of the time you have, which is only now, the present, the first thing you should consider is what you will do with your time. What is just as important is how you feel while doing it.
To get the most from the time you have been given, you must understand what it is and how to use it wisely. The longer it takes to know what to do, the less time you have to do it. Because for sure, you will not get it back. Our lives move on even when our minds do not. You can “live” in the past. You can never be there.
There are two kinds of time in my way of thinking. It is the time given to us by the Creator—our own time—and universal time-space, which is the greatest of all; it was here before we arrived. It does not change. What I am saying may be clearer if it is thought of in terms of the world as we now know it. There are thirty-seven world time zones. The United States uses 11 standard zones. Therefore, the question is, what time is the right time? With every area of the world having its own time zones, how can you know what time it is? Neither of them is correct when next to the other. Time that can change is invented by man. It is never the same and is not correct.
The time that is, which is the time of nature, will always be. If we had the power over the nature of time, what would we do with it, and where would we put it? Would we add a little here, take a little there? It would surely be the final step to the end: for us.
You should not make your decisions based on time. Time will not accomplish a thing on its own. Decide what you want to do, then make time to do it. This should be the order in which you decide. No matter how much time you have, if you do not know what you are going to do with it, you will not know how much you need. What matters is how you are going to fill the space. If you bake a cake for the required time but use the wrong ingredients, you will not get the cake you want. What you would have, then, is a cake you cannot eat and time you no longer have. This time was your time.
Let us take a look at nature’s time. In a room, some things are moved in and others are moved out. It makes no difference what time these things are moved or changed. The space does not. Time is space. And there is a time for all things.
What clock do you watch to know what time it is?
The segmentation of time was born by us. The clock on the wall has less to do with the outcome than what we do. The concept of our view of time was imposed on us by us. All things live by the time and will of nature. However, we are the ones who live by the clock. We do need it to keep things in order. To know why we are where we are at all times. It is a means to know the ebb and flow of life. Overall, it is a way to monitor and control how and when things are done. It is one of the things a society must do.
A system of time for each of us starts when life starts. There is a time to be born, a time to live, and a time to move on. Once we are, there is a time for all things. We do not know the future. We do live for the promise. We do not control time. We do have control over how we live our lives. Time does not change things happen. It will be the same, regardless of the clock on the wall. Time is whole, as it is with space. We will not divide it. There is but one time, and it is the same all the time. It is life, it is nature, and it is one.
Time And Space Are Senseless
We may ask much of time, but time does not give. The question asked most is for more. Time will not answer. It does not give in to what we have to say. It stands still, though we do not. You cannot stop it, slow it down, or speed it up. Nor can you waste it. The thing that we can do with time is live it. When there is no more time, there is no more to live. We do not start it over. Time goes on, our time does not. You should live your time. You cannot get it back once it is gone. Time for all things was here before us and shall be when we are gone. It will be for all time. It is the only thing out of all things that we can depend on. If all things are removed, what is left is the space of time. There is never a void in time. It has been full from the start. In the beginning, there was space for all things.
We are the masters of the time we have. Each of us has been blessed with a lifetime. And each life is one of a kind. No two are the same. Not one breathes the same breath. When we can, we decide what to do with our lives. This tells the type of life we will have and the path we will follow. As straight as this may be, many do not understand this simple truth. They still try—but can never succeed—to live their lives for and through others. The only thing you do when you do this is live your time away. Live it, do not live it away. Your time is the only time you have.
Do not say I cannot do it for myself, I will let someone else do it. No one can do for you what only you can do for yourself.
NOTHING CREATED THAT WAS NOT TO BE CHANGED CAN BE CHANGED.
You never know how much time you have to use the time you have. Time should always be put to its best use. When you do not know what to do next, do what you are doing now. Your next step should never be rushed or forced. We can never breathe the next breath. It is not for us to know it all. It is for us to know what we need to know. Time is not precise for humans. When a thing will be can never be known. Just as it can never be known when it will not, all that we can do is plan. The future is not ours to know. It can all be over just when we think we do.
Nothing created that was not to be changed can be changed. The existence of life is one of them. If this is not the case, who would turn off the lights after we know how, and there is nothing more to see? It is not within our reach. We humans did not create life. We were created by it to create life. We will not change the nature of life, and yet we have those who, for whatever reason, try. It is not for us to do. We are still learning how to think.
We will be learning about how we think and the workings of the brain as long as there is the power of thought. There can be no end. There will always be much left to learn, just as it is with life. It would be a lofty goal to want to know why there is life. To think that we can know this reveals a great deal about how we think. And it is a road with no end, as well. We are yet to discover why one would take a life. To illustrate how far we are from achieving these incredible feats, researchers studying the brain are still trying to understand why we sleep. Sleep. A thing that seems so basic to know.
We have dreams, and no one knows why. Time is what we need, and we know we have that. What we do not and will not know is how much. Are you using your time wisely?
Male In The Female To Be No More
End of The Male In the Female Is Near Here. Who Needs a Man Anyway.
When I focus on what appears to be an ever-increasing trend, I cannot help but conclude that a significant number of females in the human species do not value the warm and tender touch of a male. As I explained in my comment to the CNN online article below, this seeming desire to do without men has taken on the appearance of hate. Read on to see where all of this has taken us.
By Aarathi Prasad, Special to CNN
updated 4:11 PM EST, Thu December 20, 2012
http://www.cnn.com/2012/12/20/opinion/prasad-reproduction-sex/index.html
Editor’s note: Aarathi Prasad is a London-based biologist and science writer and the author of “Like a Virgin: How Science is Redesigning the Rules of Sex”.
(CNN) — Last year, on the 50th anniversary of the creation of the contraceptive pill, its inventor Carl Djerassi spoke of the coming dramatic changes to reproductive options — of the technologies that will have just as big an impact on society in the 50 years to come.
After sex without reproduction, reproduction without sex.
In an article in the UK’s “traditional values” tabloid, the Daily Mail, titled “A Terrifying Future for Female Fertility,” Djerassi said, “There are an enormous number of well-educated, proficient women who, when facing the biological clock, first pay attention to their professional ambitions…in the next 20 years, more young people will freeze their eggs and [sperm] in their 20s, and bank them for later use.
They will do away with the need for contraception by being sterilized, and withdraw their eggs and sperm from the bank when they are ready to have a child via IVF.”
That is certainly one option as we develop greater capabilities to store eggs more reliably and safely so that they are not damaged by the freezing/thawing process meant to preserve them. But in the next 20 years, there could be other developments on their way to the clinic. For example — also to avert damage — freezing strips of ovarian tissue instead of eggs, or tapping into recently identified reserves of ovarian stem cells that could be turned into a fresh supply of eggs for a woman, at any age; or even creating to order eggs (or sperm) from skin or bone marrow stem cells of men and women.
Early experiments with mice have shown that both sperm and eggs can be generated from the stem cells of males, and eggs from that of females, and that they can be fertilized to produce viable young. Djerassi described the idea of being able to access healthy eggs later in life as something set to be a fundamental tool of family planning, and one that will empower women just as the pill has. He talked of female colleagues on tough career trajectories just at the time in their life when they are most fertile, and then on into the years leading into sterility.
It’s no coincidence in the decade of our life when we are most biologically capable of reproducing, men and women are also working full steam on their studies or on building their careers. In our 30s, fertility declines – after 35, exponentially so — and specifically for women. Around age 50, while the rest of our faculties continue functioning beautifully, the ability to reproduce comes to an abrupt stop.
There have recently been a spate of reports and discussions about equality — the dearth of women in science, on the boards of top companies and of the pay gap that has yet to be bridged, but it is not clear that those taking part in this discussion fully appreciate that in pursuing in parallel the fulfilling goals of education, work and having a family, we are limited by both social and biological barriers.
In achieving the hoped-for 40% of leadership positions being held by women, executive bodies like the European Commission and governments could, for example, legislate interventions like free or cheap childcare in all workplaces. However, only technology can tackle the biological brick wall of menopause, with all its detrimental effects on a woman’s health, and especially at a time when she is likely to live another 50 years in this condition.
ARTIFICIAL WOMB
MAN THEY ARE TRYING TO MAKE A WOMAN OUT OF YOU — JRY
In the quest for reproduction, only technology can give same-sex couples the chance of having their own genetic children. If eggs can be made from the stem cells of men, with the advent of an artificial womb (already in use for sharks, in development with mammals and projected to be in use for humans within 100 years), it will also give them an organ they currently have to pay surrogate mothers for the use of.
So if it is to be the egalitarian society that we hope to see for ourselves and our children — particularly our daughters, and those whose relationships and family choices still find themselves the topic of social and religious debate — then technology that gives an individual the capability to generate healthy eggs and sperm from his/her own body and allows a baby to be gestated independently could offer us a more ethical option than what we do today.
In our world, girls study just as hard as boys but face far more difficult choices once in the workplace. To make money, poor women from countries like India or Ukraine “donate” eggs or their wombs, or churches refuse to marry gay couples because they cannot be fruitful and multiply.
Freedom, power, choice? It’s the alternative that sounds terrifying to me.
END OF STORY
My comment to Reproduction without sex, a liberating future:
Hate of Men Comment Posted CNN 12-21-12
It seems to me that there is a segment of society that does not think very highly of men. It is a form of hate, and it certainly could have its roots in the beginning. Genesis is the book of the beginning, of the creation of life and all that is. This is what the bible tells us. There are two verses that certainly could be the seeds of hate.
[Please Note: This post is not about religion. It is only mentioned to make a point. Or dispel a myth.]
Adam and Eve ate from the tree of knowledge of which God had warned them not to do. For this transgression, he placed on them, for lack of a better word, a curse. This could be construed as the first instance of hate. And the curse that he placed on Eve is exceptionally harsh: “Unto the woman he said, I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee.” Not only has the wrath come down on Man and woman, the man shall rule over the woman.
The curse on Eve appears to be laced with a bit of venom that remains at the core of the man-woman relationship to this day. In the real world, God’s design for the woman plays a significant role in what we think of each other. And if we tell the truth, most of the time, what we think is not very good.
Whether you choose to take the bible as the word of God or not, there is no denying that the treatment of man and woman is not equal, nor is it meant to be. It is the way life is. And, without a doubt, it is a cause of resentment and hate. No person with a sense of self wants to be ruled or lorded over. This curse or will of God, any right-thinking person would see it, as it would be felt. And any reasonable thinking person would find it hard to deny that it would not be an easy thing to live with.
It is not a stretch to think that Eve would have hate in her heart for not only man but also God for bringing on her such a horrible fate. To have Adam as her master, the only man there is, could not have been an easy thought to think. And the roles could easily be exhausting and, over time, unable to generate pleasure.
It is not easy to dodge what is plain to see. Not just in eons past, but what we see today. Perhaps that is why there is such a high rate of divorce and couples finding it so hard to stay together. You often hear that a marriage takes work. I say work is what we do to get what we want and need, and we should not have to work as hard to keep it. With so much work, how would you find time and space to appreciate the life that you have? It is undoubtedly one of those things that should cause you to think.
However, if this is, in fact, true—as it appears to be—the hate we see to this day is firmly rooted in the past. There has been fertile ground from the beginning. God’s words (if you take man’s word for God’s words: I do not ) would be reason enough for Eve to be the birth mother of hate and female resentment. We see it all around us. It festers and comes to a head much too often.
Man and Woman and Man and Woman and Man
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THE MESSENGER
James R. Yarbrough
Thought
What Do They Say To You
Snapshot In Time
I SEE YOU
Community
THE BEAT GOES ON
BLACK MAGIC WOMAN
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