Taps
Listen
to the lake..
to the hill
to the sky
to the sun
and the day..
these color
temporarily
that which I am...
Wednesday, July 31, 2019
Journeys...
Journeys...
Small Group...meeting Monthly
at Broadmoor Community Church...West Wing,
Third Thursday...3: 30 to 4:30 PM...
Q’s: Charlie Coon, charlesrcoon@gmail.com
Context...
We use the metaphor of a journey to explore the experience of Non-Duality for the healing of individual lives, our nation, and the planet. Emphasis is on Recognition of our own Identity, and the Identity of others, as a Direct experience of Grace and Peace...
Sunday, July 28, 2019
To believe or not to believe
To believe or not to believe
that is the question..
whether to hold tightly to a belief
or allow it to sink into unbelief
to which all beliefs are prone..
To recognize belief as settled thought
seemingly permanent..but
alas..always temporary..
Now to recognize our dependable
experience..and fall into that space:
the space without belief but
filled with an ultimate joy...
On Stage
On Stage
Division seems the certainty of our days
Seldom questioned from birth to death
Upon waking we go forth on our stage
The stage we have always assumed
With its hidden dangers and our fears
Fears based on the ending of our show
But sometimes an intermission is reached
A gesture interrupts our performance
A divisive trance is suddenly shaken
We Recognize what always has been...
The Daily Quote from Rupert Spira, 28th July 2019
The separate, inside self is like a middleman, dividing our essential Being of ever-present, unlimited Awareness from all experience. This division places us in a relationship of conflict, always seeking to hold onto, resist or change the current situation, never letting it be the one thing it always is – just what it is. Without the middleman, the relationship between ourself and all experience is one of natural, effortless intimacy. This intimacy is the experience of love in relation to people and animals, happiness in relation to situations, and beauty in relation to objects.
Saturday, July 27, 2019
It is..
It is..
It is the same
and vast
for everyone..
It is prior to the
sights and sounds of
this morning..
It is within the bestial
events of the day..
It is the Self
stirring in suffering
waiting in shadows
to be born...
The Second Coming
The Second Coming
Turning and turning in the widening gyre
The falcon cannot hear the falconer;
Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold;
Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world,
The blood-dimmed tide is loosed, and everywhere
The ceremony of innocence is drowned;
The best lack all conviction, while the worst
Are full of passionate intensity.
Surely some revelation is at hand;
Surely the Second Coming is at hand.
The Second Coming! Hardly are those words out
When a vast image out of Spiritus Mundi
Troubles my sight: somewhere in sands of the desert
A shape with lion body and the head of a man,
A gaze blank and pitiless as the sun,
Is moving its slow thighs, while all about it
Reel shadows of the indignant desert birds.
The darkness drops again; but now I know
That twenty centuries of stony sleep
Were vexed to nightmare by a rocking cradle,
And what rough beast, its hour come round at last,
Slouches towards Bethlehem to be born?
~~William Butler Yeats, 1919
My response~~
Now I know..
A blank gaze
Of a pitiless Sun has
Ignited a flame exposing
Painful perceptions of
Separation and anarchy..
These vexations of centuries
Are now visioned
As garments clothing
My rough beast
Slouching toward
Bethlehem for a
Flaming reentry and
A naked recognition
Of what I am...
Now I know...
Fred Bidgood...USMA, 1960...
A Memorial Article
What especially stands out to this writer (and classmate, Charles Coon) is Fred's exemplary self-fulfilling service after retirement, for our veterans, especially those whose lives were most painfully interrupted by their own service to our country. His passion for such service also overflowed into various activities involving the handicapped. Upon his retirement he worked as Associate Executive Director of the Paralyzed Veterans of America in Washington, DC and served as Chief of Staff for the National Victory Celebration, welcoming home the troops from the Gulf War. He was a Director on the Board of Governors of the World USO, and was Chairman of the Human Resources Committee and a member of the Executive Committee for more than four years. He was also a member of the Board of Advisers of National Handicapped Sports. His service to America's veterans was recognized by the American Legion, the Veterans of Foreign Wars, the Paralyzed Veterans of America and the Disabled Veterans of America. Fred's passion for our veterans did not end with his death, as noted by his family's request that contributions be made to the Wounded Warrior Project, in lieu of flowers. Apparently, compassion was a driving motivation in his life, which came to special fruition during his retirement years. So, what led up to this most notable service during retirement? We find that his earlier years were times of accomplishment, movement, and preparation!
Ferdinand Clarence Bidgood Colonel, U S Army Retired, May 28, 1938 – September 27, 2015. Fred was born at the station hospital at Fort Benning, Georgia, the son of LT Clarence Bidgood (USMA 35') and Isabel McKee Bidgood. In 1955 he graduated from Central High School in London, England, spent a year at Braden's Preparatory School in New York, and entered West Point with our class of 1960. Upon graduation in June he was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant in the Army. He served throughout the world in command and staff positions in both the Artillery and Corps of Engineers. He received a Bachelor of Science degree from the Military Academy, a Masters degree in civil engineering from Texas A&M, and is a graduate of the Armed Forces Staff College. His final military assignment was as Executive Assistant to the Administrator of the Veterans Administration, which provided an entryway to his post-retirement service, portrayed above. His military decorations include four awards of the Legion of Merit, the Bronze Star, two awards of the Meritorious Service Medal, the Air Medal, and the Army Commendation Medal.
In addition to his notable achievements described above, a sketch of his life must also include something of his engaging personality, and his relationships with all of those persons who touched his life. His days at West Point were marked with sports portraying his athletic prowess (swimming, water polo, and cross country running). A musical talent featuring his rock-and-roll guitar, and a great sense of humor, provided entertainment and levity for all of us, which made our rigorous lives at the Academy a bit more pleasant. Fred's athletic life continued as an avid golfer and a longtime member of the Army Navy Country Club, where he was twice the senior club champion!
Finally, and likely most important, Fred married the love of his life, Marilyn Louise Clark, on July 9, 1960 in Rutherford, New Jersey. The marriage was blessed by 55 years of togetherness, with their family of two sons, Mark (wife Lori) and Matthew (wife Nora), and beloved grandchildren Damon, Haley, Aidan and Brianna. Fred was preceded in death by a daughter, Kerri, in 1965.
A funeral service was held in the Old Post Chapel at Fort Myer, VA on Wednesday, February 24, 2016. Interment with full military honors followed at Arlington National Cemetery, and a reception at Fort Myer's Officers Club after the conclusion of the service. In lieu of flowers, the family requested a memorial contribution in Fred's name to the Wounded Warrior Project, a fitting tribute in itself.
What especially stands out to this writer (and classmate, Charles Coon) is Fred's exemplary self-fulfilling service after retirement, for our veterans, especially those whose lives were most painfully interrupted by their own service to our country. His passion for such service also overflowed into various activities involving the handicapped. Upon his retirement he worked as Associate Executive Director of the Paralyzed Veterans of America in Washington, DC and served as Chief of Staff for the National Victory Celebration, welcoming home the troops from the Gulf War. He was a Director on the Board of Governors of the World USO, and was Chairman of the Human Resources Committee and a member of the Executive Committee for more than four years. He was also a member of the Board of Advisers of National Handicapped Sports. His service to America's veterans was recognized by the American Legion, the Veterans of Foreign Wars, the Paralyzed Veterans of America and the Disabled Veterans of America. Fred's passion for our veterans did not end with his death, as noted by his family's request that contributions be made to the Wounded Warrior Project, in lieu of flowers. Apparently, compassion was a driving motivation in his life, which came to special fruition during his retirement years. So, what led up to this most notable service during retirement? We find that his earlier years were times of accomplishment, movement, and preparation!
Ferdinand Clarence Bidgood Colonel, U S Army Retired, May 28, 1938 – September 27, 2015. Fred was born at the station hospital at Fort Benning, Georgia, the son of LT Clarence Bidgood (USMA 35') and Isabel McKee Bidgood. In 1955 he graduated from Central High School in London, England, spent a year at Braden's Preparatory School in New York, and entered West Point with our class of 1960. Upon graduation in June he was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant in the Army. He served throughout the world in command and staff positions in both the Artillery and Corps of Engineers. He received a Bachelor of Science degree from the Military Academy, a Masters degree in civil engineering from Texas A&M, and is a graduate of the Armed Forces Staff College. His final military assignment was as Executive Assistant to the Administrator of the Veterans Administration, which provided an entryway to his post-retirement service, portrayed above. His military decorations include four awards of the Legion of Merit, the Bronze Star, two awards of the Meritorious Service Medal, the Air Medal, and the Army Commendation Medal.
In addition to his notable achievements described above, a sketch of his life must also include something of his engaging personality, and his relationships with all of those persons who touched his life. His days at West Point were marked with sports portraying his athletic prowess (swimming, water polo, and cross country running). A musical talent featuring his rock-and-roll guitar, and a great sense of humor, provided entertainment and levity for all of us, which made our rigorous lives at the Academy a bit more pleasant. Fred's athletic life continued as an avid golfer and a longtime member of the Army Navy Country Club, where he was twice the senior club champion!
Finally, and likely most important, Fred married the love of his life, Marilyn Louise Clark, on July 9, 1960 in Rutherford, New Jersey. The marriage was blessed by 55 years of togetherness, with their family of two sons, Mark (wife Lori) and Matthew (wife Nora), and beloved grandchildren Damon, Haley, Aidan and Brianna. Fred was preceded in death by a daughter, Kerri, in 1965.
A funeral service was held in the Old Post Chapel at Fort Myer, VA on Wednesday, February 24, 2016. Interment with full military honors followed at Arlington National Cemetery, and a reception at Fort Myer's Officers Club after the conclusion of the service. In lieu of flowers, the family requested a memorial contribution in Fred's name to the Wounded Warrior Project, a fitting tribute in itself.
Chuck, Dave and the other Frank,
Chuck, thanks for the informative response and update on Walt Wilson. We can put his situation in the “inactive file”. Thanks also for pursuing this so diligently.
Regarding Fred Bidgood. I agree it would be nice to “get some life” in his MA from company mates. Unfortunately you and Dave Byrnes are the only two who have ever responded to my current and past pleas. (Dick Walters did comment on Joe Felber’s MA which I wrote.) Let’s talk about who can take the lead on doing Fred’s. From my perspective, we are limited to the howitzer, the 50-year book and his obit. My howitzer was lost so I don’t have the full deck. I do have his obit which is attached.
Regarding Jerry Lewis, Frank Cloutier says he has a copy of his MA which I have asked for. I also attached his obit to this message. I would be happy to take care of his MA if I could get a copy of the howitzer write-up. Can one of you scan that for me?
Frank F.
Wednesday, July 24, 2019
Talisman
plural talismans
Definition of talisman
1: an object held to act as a charm to avert evil and bring good fortune
2: something producing apparently magical or miraculous effects
Improvising
Improvising
Perhaps there are types..
inventions of mousetraps that
catch with compassion..
celebrating the inventiveness
of the finite mind..
but what of those appearances
of brushstrokes or words
which seem from afar..
as from the whiteness of
this page..
or the sudden juxtaposing
of nature's dissimilarities..
those sudden types
seem available to all..
do not depend on our
diligent preparation in
schooling or craft..
or culture or beliefs
but only upon a
recognition of ourselves
without the opaqueness
of splitting resistance...
Culturium..on Improvising
https://www.theculturium.com/stephen-nachmanovitch-the-art-of-is/?fbclid=IwAR0FoA4OI9VLDi4Mf1K3oWleYyn2SJyFDC7u7dcV_WjuDITcCzKNywdwxds
Related:
http://www.freeplay.com
Related:
http://www.freeplay.com
Monday, July 22, 2019
Thoughts and Freedom
Thoughts and Freedom
thoughts
pass in review..
temporary shapings
within and made of
our only Self
Awareness..
then our choice:
am I a thought
or am I Awareness
or restated:
am I caught or
am I free...?
Rupert Spira on thoughts..
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HeCvA15cVOc&feature=youtu.be&fbclid=IwAR0jby_0DW5bUGTSKBtiWxhh-bAAOwLm97Ms-8ZCcFc5fTY6nbeCj5UhHb4
pass in review..
temporary shapings
within and made of
our only Self
Awareness..
then our choice:
am I a thought
or am I Awareness
or restated:
am I caught or
am I free...?
Rupert Spira on thoughts..
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HeCvA15cVOc&feature=youtu.be&fbclid=IwAR0jby_0DW5bUGTSKBtiWxhh-bAAOwLm97Ms-8ZCcFc5fTY6nbeCj5UhHb4
Saturday, July 20, 2019
Look around...
Look around..
What do you find..?
Discomfort rampant
Freedom under lock and key
Passionate dark discourse
Desperation on borders
Spiritual aridity
Wonky and heady proposals..
That's enough..!
What of a new finding
Coming from simple
Recognition..
Recognizing that in which
All findings appear..
Simply that...
“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, 'Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous?' Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”
― Marianne Williamson, A Return to Love: Reflections on the Principles of "A Course in Miracles"
Discomfort rampant
Freedom under lock and key
Passionate dark discourse
Desperation on borders
Spiritual aridity
Wonky and heady proposals..
That's enough..!
What of a new finding
Coming from simple
Recognition..
Recognizing that in which
All findings appear..
Simply that...
“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, 'Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous?' Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”
― Marianne Williamson, A Return to Love: Reflections on the Principles of "A Course in Miracles"
"Look around at the world, look at what human beings are doing to each other and to their planet. If you were an alien species visiting earth, would you look at human beings and think, "Wow, what an intelligent species! I want to know about their ideas! We would like to have a civilization like theirs."? Would the alien think like that? No! The alien would think, "What is wrong with these people!? Look at the way they treat one another! Look at the way they treat their animals! Look at the way they treat their earth!" ... And they would start exploring the fundamental ideas that inform the way we behave and relate with one another. They would trace back to this belief that dead inert stuff called matter gives rise to consciousness and that each of us are separate, limited, enclosed within our bodies, so we are all separate from one another, separate fragments and everyone and everything 'out there' is all separate. They would trace back the way we treat each other and our animals and our planet to this original idea."
~~Rupert Spira
~~Rupert Spira
by Andrew Harvey, Carolyn Baker
In the boldest and most daring book either author has ever written, Andrew Harvey and Carolyn Baker confront us with the life and death reality of the global crisis and the fact that four crucial strategies must be employed not only to survive the dark night, but to inhabit our bodies and our lives with passionate authenticity, honesty, vigilance, community, compassion, and service. These strategies are Reconnection, Resistance, Resilience, and Regeneration. Deep and unprecedented reconnection with self, others, and Earth must be our mission, regardless of the outcome. Distinguishing between “problems” which have solutions and “predicaments” which can only be responded to, Harvey and Baker articulate precisely how we have arrived at this unprecedented juncture and offer strategies of resistance against the fundamental enemies of humanity and the Earth. Such a response demands of us something far deeper than what conventional religions and visions of activism call for--nothing less than living and acting from the Sacred Self, both without illusion and totally committed to compassion and justice even, if necessary, in hopeless situations.
Read the book here: http://world.350.org/eugene/files/2017/11/Savage_Grace.pdf
Book summary on Carolyn Baker's website: https://carolynbaker.net/2017/09/07/introduction-to-savage-grace-living-resiliently-in-the-dark-night-of-the-globe-by-andrew-harvey-and-carolyn-baker/
Point of no Return...
https://www.truthdig.com/articles/the-united-states-has-passed-the-point-of-no-return/
Eco-anxiety...(from Robin)
https://medium.com/@office_5815/as-a-psychotherapist-treating-eco-anxiety-and-eco-grief-mindfulness-helps-sometimes-a6f2f45e7251
Marianne Williamson critique...
https://www.nbcnews.com/think/amp/ncna1035956?fbclid=IwAR15uBQIaoTYfApt3FyulwmjXFyKa13c15i8F7R2pn5fDQ9jiWE02jb9zck
David Brooks (NYT) on Marianne Williamson
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/01/opinion/debate-marianne-williamson.html
Quo-tid-i-an...
Boredom
is an overtone of
the quotidian..the everyday
the mundane..as is said
"same old same old.."
seemingly there is belief
of an inequality
showing up on occasion
and labeled as exciting or
not so exciting..
yet..
the root of our boredom
as with our fears and angst
is the concealed culprit:
an unquestioned belief
in a life lived in separation...
Rupert Spira on BoredomDaniel Castonguay photography...quotidian
Every time I open my eyes,
I invite the world to take shape.
And every time the world takes shape,
I’m invited to open my eyes
And see the world raw and naked,
Holding out its hand,
Calling me into itself,
Where I am taken into the transparency of things
And find myself transparent there.
Standing on the edge, looking down and in
To the dark, silent pool in which the world is cradled.
And I am cradled there, held with all things
And hold all things in myself.
Myself, not a thing in the world,
But This, Here, Seeing,
In which the world opens,
Inviting and offering itself.
And every time it is seen, it dies.
And in dying, holds out its hand again
Asking to be taken in.
And every time I take it in,
I, too, die.
And in dying, am known,
As This, Here, Seeing.
Every time I open my eyes.
~ Rupert Spira
memories
memories
in nostalgia we wish
for a return to those
imagined wonderful days..
but might we say
our morning memory
of those days is
more wonderful still..?
considering those days
residing in our youth
we were living without
the context of our
remembering experience:
recognized coloring of
Now..
Friday, July 19, 2019
lead us not into temptation
lead us not into temptation
this line leads many to question
its language and source..
bad translation say some
others find logic strained..
our separate self rises (ego)
as a fragment in consciousness..
a fragment when misunderstood
expands and insists..evermore..
that separate self believes
its suffering episodes
come from elsewhere..
why not in separate divinity..?
So..lead us not..is the prayer
of our ego enlarged
searching for suffering's end
in a far place hopefully found...
(perhaps this line is a concession to
those who believe in the reality of
separation.. as does western culture..)
See:
https://progressingspirit.com/paupress/profile/20015
Thursday, July 18, 2019
Fixing yourself
Fixing yourself
This is the imposition
of practices rooted in
all seeking..
whether seeking falls
in Sunday church
in Monday yoga
or Tuesday webinar..
please honor your seeking
yet know what you seek
is always here now..before
fixing yourself...
" If you think you have to fix yourself to come home to yourself, I'm telling you this is not true.
It's a dangerous lie, that will cause you to suffer unnecessarily. When suffering becomes your business, your allegiance to it steals your lifeblood and whatever time you have left. "
~~ Gangaji ('Fallen Leaf Lake Retreat 2017')
Saturday, July 13, 2019
Are you that one..?
Are you that one..?
have you noticed
conversations are made of
percepts and concepts..
assumptions abound
that these 'cepts
define our lives and
the lives of others..
campfire tales
grammar school grammar
science's standard model
those wedding vows
all of these reinforce
said assumptions..
and most would say
of the above:
yes..so far so good..!
yet there is that
quiet one in the back
who has not spoken..
that one observes
the play of assumptions..
how the assumptions
cloud a hidden freedom
which is shared by all..
Are you that one...?
Wednesday, July 10, 2019
history's assumption
history's assumption
history has assumed
time and space
houses the past..
the activities examined
in unending research..
this assumption
is a mind construct and
a self-imposed limitation
hiding a fuller and fruitful
truth..
history is dawning
as temporary shaping of
Awareness just now..
bypassing at last
that assumed confinement
in time and space..
history is upending...!
that too is part of the story
that too is part of the story
knowing our luminous self
renders all else as commentary..
story is then recognized as story
and the facts in the morning paper
whatever their favor or disfavor
become simply a part of the story..
this recognition of our luminosity
is a gateway to freedom..
a gateway for which we have
searched..perhaps until this morning..
a gateway in plain sight..hidden only
by our immersion in story...
Sunday, July 7, 2019
for Molly
Molly's Place
I know you
remember your dance..
your steps and routines
after diligent practice
after diligent practice
came from some place
you knew..yet words
could not name..
I hope you find
in your life unfolding
though you dance
with different routines
that place you knew
those years ago
is recognized as the
beauty you are...
"Let the beauty
of what you love
be what you do."
~~Rumi
beauty you are...
"Let the beauty
of what you love
be what you do."
~~Rumi
Making Music
Making Music
first
is the infinite field
unbroken and eternal..
this is the silence
before the sound..
then
this permanence
breaking with sound
yet not broken
as sounds
come forth appearing
as notes..shaped by
curling and uncurling
of that which
is still silent...
first
is the infinite field
unbroken and eternal..
this is the silence
before the sound..
then
this permanence
breaking with sound
yet not broken
as sounds
come forth appearing
as notes..shaped by
curling and uncurling
of that which
is still silent...
RS: What is Music Made Of?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1-4U_a_UA8g
Also..this Rachmaninoff piece
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c33q87s03h4
Andrew Harvey & Carolyn Baker, Savage Grace (recommended
by Robin Izer)
https://books.google.com/books?id=hFc1DwAAQBAJ&pg=PT8&source=kp_read_button#v=onepage&q&f=false
Also..this Rachmaninoff piece
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c33q87s03h4
Andrew Harvey & Carolyn Baker, Savage Grace (recommended
by Robin Izer)
https://books.google.com/books?id=hFc1DwAAQBAJ&pg=PT8&source=kp_read_button#v=onepage&q&f=false
Garments
Garments
religion is a garment
is it not..?
although its roots
may lie deep in memory
it is wearable today..
as I see it
very often the
garment gains import
and that which houses
diminishes in scale..
in other words
religion only flourishes
when its housing
shines with knowing
that all garments
can only express..
expresses that
expresses that
which shines within..
Friday, July 5, 2019
Surrender
Surrender
there is a battle..however subtle
which rages within each of us..
battle lines are drawn by frustration
over failure to find more than temporary
peace..in the seeming reality of this world..
disappointment claims to be the reward
for skirmishes fairly engaged and won..
it is reported that our disappointment
is a spy which observes our maneuvers
and watches for opportunities to whisper:
your strategies are futile..
when the spy suggests surrender as
the only workable plan..we resist and
return to our tents..to refresh and reset
our aims.. promising conquest ahead..
but the spy also persists with her
ready advice..as victories and losses
do not end in declarations of peace..
it seems the world awaits our attention
to the soft whisper of the spy...
Rupert Spira...God is Self of Each of Us.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tQWIcYbtsEc&fbclid=IwAR0GRL9XpEG9t2B76xTtQVx3sdhC_XrsT8qwQA-F-BSr5WgKPebhGGT6e7k
Wednesday, July 3, 2019
July 4th
July 4th
is marked for
independence
and identity
and birth..
1776 and counting..
an identity of separation
which has claimed our
treasure and allegiance..
prideful citizens
music and fireworks
have shaped romantic
imagining of the
magical 4th..
a day which lingers
pleasantly in memories..
until sometimes
a quiet doubt
nudges and retreats..
and nudges...
Happening
"there is only what is happening"
this is the teaching;
what the senses sense
NOW
is the whole shebang..
happening dissolves
the solidity of our
persistent illusion..
happening
not a noun..but a verb:
the momentary dancing
of experience..
seemingly
entering and departing
what is known as
Awareness..
More..
happening is
what we are:
Awareness dancing...
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