Ask Any Cancer Specialist, Early Detection Saves Lives!

The Obama administration has openly admitted that the sudden change in breast cancer screening is part of Health Care Rationing.

Their justification - In women between 30 - 50 we have only detected 1 with cancer for every 1900 screened... therefore it is not cost effective with a government program to screen in this age group.

Let me be deadly clear here - They have just placed the dollar value on a human life... the life of you, your mother, your sister, or your daughter... and that THEY may be the one whose life is saved due to this early detection, it is of no consequence to the government... Really, what can a cancer survivor provide to the government, anyway?

We are watching as the relationship between We The People and the Government is completely redefined to the extent that the government is laying the ground work for life valuation... In doing so, the government is telling US that we are no longer of value - that our health and our very life is of certain value (or lack of value) to THEM.

Look - if early detection is the key to surviving cancer, and we have detected that the cancer of America is the federal government, where do we go for the chemo?

On a serious note, as a member of a family who lost a member to late detected breast cancer, another who survived uterine cancer, and lost another to thyroid cancer, I can tell you that we value our lives no less than any other - in fact, we are stronger and are living our lives as advocates for alternative medicine and alternative lifestyle - how to live in remission and stay healthy after cancer treatments. We reject the government rationing plan, or their valuation of human life... Early detection may help 1899 women sleep better knowing that they are cancer free - but for that one person, it may be the difference between life and death.

I choose life, even when the Obama administration prefers death.

Is THIS the trigger?

THERE'S TO BE NO VOLUNTEERS!

In Allentown, PA a local SEIU (Services Employee International Union) is targeting city officials for hiring a scab to do "Union Work".

The scab was 17 year old Eagle Scout Kevin Anderson.
The union work was 200 hours worth of volunteer time clearing brush for a new city bike/walk path in order to earn a Scout Badge.

The SEIU President, Nick "the Bozo" Balzano has threatened the Allentown City Council with a grievance for allowing this questionable character to perform expensive union work for FREE. The Bozo also threatened the Eagle Scout personally, stating "We'll be looking into the Cub Scout or Boy Scout who did the trails".

Anderson, a junior and varsity soccer player at Southern Lehigh High School, is a member of Boy Scout Troop 301 of Center Valley.

He got the idea for the trail while taking hikes along the partially complete, 165-mile Delaware and Lehigh National Heritage Corridor. He noticed there were a few missing connections to the trail in Kimmets Lock Park, which is on the Lehigh River near Dauphin Street. He already has logged 250 hours trying to carve out a walking and biking trail along the river.

"I decided to do my part in completing this part of the trail. In that way, others could enjoy walking along the river, without having to walk on the busy road," Anderson said in an e-mail Friday.

In response to the attention the story is getting, the Bozo delivered a short remark: "We are probably going to let this one go"

Balzano said Saturday he isn't targeting Boy Scouts. But given the city's decision in July to lay off 39 SEIU members, Balzano said "there's to be no volunteers." No one except union members may pick up a hoe or shovel, plant a flower or clear a walking path.

In another issue concerning a non SEIU electrician, as the SEIU electrician was on extended sick leave and excessive absences, Bozo stated "In the spirit of the holiday, we decided to let that go"

The common theme - you deal with Union Employees or nothing gets done.

My response to this story, run the entire lot of these SEIU thugs out of town. If I walk past a clogged storm drain, I am going to move the leaves blocking the drain allowing the water to clear the street or walkway... It is my duty as a citizen to do my part in the general upkeep of our shared infrastructure... I should not have to worry about mobsters threatening to break my rakes or hoes for "stealing their work".

This union mob mentality is what is disturbing about this country... it robs the sense of volunteerism, it destroys competitive markets, and it robs our public coffers. If I were the mayor of Allentown, PA, I would look the Bozo directly in the eye and tell him to get his band of thugs out of this town before I have the sheriff run them out! I would then terminate all SEIU contracts and push for city law to hire only non-union employees, and ask for citizen support in doing so by sweeping your own storefront to save funds on street sweepers, clear the city jail for chain gangs to clean up trash at the parks, etc. I would lead by example, with a strong and heavy anti-union hand, instilling personal pride in the community and build a renewed sense of volunteerism...

I would get my town back on track... I would be a leader in my region to get our society back on track... and I would send a message to the POTUS and his SEIU thugs that THIS is how you support a society, by instilling pride and personal ownership - not thuggery and mob tactics - especially not toward children!

Once upon a time there was a great people...

A very long time ago, in a land very different from that which we find ourselves in on this day, a group of shopkeepers, farmers, and tradesmen signed with conviction a valiant decree of liberty to a tyrant king. This act of defiance began a war, and a way of life. The act was so noble that future laws of the land required no titles of nobility to be accepted by those of the land. These were a hearty people whose disdain for royalty liberated them from bondage.

This same people found themselves under attack some years later by another tyrant king. Kings of distant land followed by men who believed the kings to be living gods lusted for that which belonged to the youthful nation of curious men. After years of growth and many technological advances, this innovative people found themselves rising as the leader of the fight for universal freedom, freedom against the inherent tyranny of political dynasties, royal families, and most of all tyranny.

These are a people who blew the trumpet of liberty in the faces of tyranny, time and again establishing the independence and uniqueness of this great land. This is a people who, by example, inspired generations to long for personal freedom.

However, this land became over-run with greed, corruption, blood lust, and panic. The years of manifest destiny have long since left these once noble people, and the price for their greed is simply the return to bondage... what is most notable about this new found slavery is that the people of this land welcomed it with thunderous applause and warm celebrations. The people found themselves under attack, under tyrannical control from within, and where once great leaders and men of poise stood straight before the kings of other lands, they found themselves submitting to foreign leaders through the submission of their newly elected leaders.

The people of the land felt an unfamiliar chill on their neck... the chill of the storm clouds bringing a long and cold winter. It is left but to the few to remember the great cause, remember the wishes of the men who defied the kings, and one day restore the people their liberty.

So it goes...

A Gun Free America - Obama's International Treaty

Are these tears in my eyes those of sadness or anger? Is this feeling in the pit of my stomach anything other than utter disgust and growing contempt for the leadership of this nation?

Is this not a country born of the blood of free men? Is this not a country who defied tyranny, setting into motion a series of events that would forever change the relationship between men and their leaders? Are we not the United States of America? Are we not still free? ARE WE NOT STILL FREE?

Last month Obama set into motion a series of events that will effectively kill the last line of defense against tyranny in this nation, authorizing Sec. of State Clinton to sign an international arms ban treaty. This treaty will give the State Department authority to circumvent legislative process (and in turn eliminate public debate) and enforce international gun laws within the borders of the United States of America.

The right to keep and bear arms is being made illegal, not by legislation, but by Executive Order... with an effective intent of placing the entire nation under Marshal Law in order to disarm the people. Two days ago I discussed the use of brute force and intimidation over the healthcare of the nation, and over the collection of the nation's wealth - imagine the full force of the federal government in the coming disarmament of the subjects of this nation!

We will wake up one morning and find that the United States has signed a treaty that prohibits firearm and ammunition manufacturers from selling to the public. We will wake up another morning and find that the US has signed a treaty that prohibits any transfer of firearm ownership. And then, we will wake up yet another morning and find that the US has signed a treaty that requires US citizens to deliver any firearm they own to the local government collection and destruction center or face imprisonment.

People... THIS IS HAPPENING... on OUR watch! We are bearing witness to the death of this nation... we are watching as the shackles of tyranny are closing on the throat of liberty.

The tears in my eyes are those of sorrow... for a people who sat idly by as they became slaves - powerless to do anything other than work for the good of the machine... produce a product that you are taxed for creating, which you are forced to purchase under government mandates and taxed again on your consumption... You are taxed on the land you live, the income you earn, the products you buy, the lifestyle you live. The government owns the banks, the money, the industry, the healthcare, and the guns... you are nothing more than a disposable worker of the party, a pawn in the irrelevant existance in which we are finding ourselves... Shame on us...

Have we forgotten the words of Patrick Henry - Give me liberty or give me death?

Perhaps the tears are sorrow for my realization that From my Cold Dead Hands is more than a witty motto spoken by the NRA - but a battle cry for our generation, stating simply to the Government: "Come and Get 'em!"

Let me end with a thought from Patrick Henry, from a man more free than we will ever know:

Sir, we have done everything that could be done to avert the storm which is now coming on. We have petitioned; we have remonstrated; we have supplicated; we have prostrated ourselves before the throne, and have implored its interposition to arrest the tyrannical hands of the ministry and Parliament. administration.

Our petitions have been slighted; our remonstrances have produced additional violence and insult; our supplications have been disregarded; and we have been spurned, with contempt, from the foot of the throne. In vain, after these things, may we indulge the fond hope of peace and reconciliation. There is no longer any room for hope.

...

They tell us, sir, that we are weak -- unable to cope with so formidable an adversary. But when shall we be stronger? Will it be the next week, or the next year? Will it be when we are totally disarmed?... Shall we gather strength by irresolution and inaction? Shall we acquire the means of effectual resistance, by lying supinely on our backs, and hugging the delusive phantom of hope, until our enemies shall have bound us hand and foot?

...

The battle, sir, is not to the strong alone; it is to the vigilant, the active, the brave...There is no retreat but in submission and slavery! Our chains are forged! ...Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty, or give me death!

China's Weather Modification Office?

FoxNews has a "back page" story about a Chinese Snowstorm, with very little concern other than a slight mention of "debate" over weather manipulation:

"Chinese scientists have artificially induced the second major snowstorm to wreak havoc in Beijing this season, state media said today, reigniting debate over the practice of tinkering with Mother Nature.

After the earliest snow to hit the capital in 22 years fell on November 1, the capital was again shrouded in white yesterday with more snow expected in the coming three days, the National Meteorological Centre said.

The China Daily, citing an unnamed official, said the Beijing Weather Modification Office had artificially induced both storms by seeding clouds with chemicals, a practice that can increase precipitation by up to 20 per cent."

Did I miss something? Is it old news to anyone that China has a Weather Modification Department and that they are actively manipulating the Weather paterns over China (and who knows where else)?

What are the regional or global impacts of this manipulation? What effects do these "chemicals" have on the environment, the ecosystems, or humanity? If you catch a "chemical snowflake" on your tongue, what exactly are you injesting?

I seem to find that the story should be more on the fact that China has the capability to manipulate weather patterns, and less on the grumpy Chinese citizens stuck in the snow!

Your own, Alien, Jesus...

The Vatican is discussing the existence of alien life and the implications it may have on the Christian Faith and humanity. After centuries of blocking science, independent and innovative thought, and putting some of history's brightest minds to task for questioning the status quo, it seems as though the Catholic Church, and Christianity along with it, may be opening their hearts and minds to speculative thought and independent reasoning.

"The Church of Rome's views have shifted radically through the centuries since Italian philosopher Giordano Bruno was burned at the stake as a heretic in 1600 for speculating, among other ideas, that other worlds could be inhabited."

What is most fascinating about this, to me, is that it absolutely reinforces my belief in a collective conscious awakening / awareness - where reason, logic, and spirituality overtake fear, intimidation, and brutal submission... the line between advanced spirituality in Christian based faiths (and other Eastern originating faiths) and oppressive faiths of submission, such as Islam, has been further defined.

There are those who are free to think and question, and those who fear thought and independent questioning of spirituality.

I pose some questions:

1. How would the discovery of alien life affect your faith?
2. How would it change your life?
3. How do you think it would change humanity?

To answer my own questions -

1. It would not. As a man of science AND spirituality, I firmly believe that life is not limited to this tiny planet. Life is so diverse, so resilient, and so unpredictable that to assume over the Billions of years and across the great expanse of this existence we are the only single source of life is not only improbable but irrational. Whether or not advanced species visit this planet in space ships, I don't know... but to think that life is so limited when the universe is so UNlimited is wasteful!

2. If we discovered life on another planet, I would personally feel relieved that we are not alone in this expanse! If we find microbial life on a nearby planet or moon, great - if we find intelligent or advanced life, better. I think we are approaching a time in our human development when real lessons and advancements are able to be fully comprehended. We are ever-evolving, and are at a point of great awakening... or re-awakening - ask me and I can explain further.

3. There are those of us who would be greatly relieved to find such a discovery... there would be those of us who would equally be horrified by it. It will be the challenge of humanity to overcome our preconceived notions of universal uniqueness and accept our place in the Universe... I think we are ready.

How would you answer those questions - the same questions being asked by the highest Christian leaders in the Vatican...

"We the People" - Govt. Relationship Redefined

Congress votes on a bill, it passes. Seems simple enough.

The Senate takes the same bill, votes, it passes. The Senate is simply performing a series of actions perfectly authorized by the Constitution.

The President signs the bill laid before him, and suddenly we have a law. School House Rock would be proud!

Our founding fathers, however... not so much.

This is a law that forces compliance to federal mandates, threatens fines of $10,000 and ten years in federal prison, and advances this nation further from a Government of and by the People into a Government Over the People.

The year is 1934, The law was the Gold Reserve Act. The federal government very literally seized, at gunpoint, the entire wealth of the people of the United States. The government acted as common criminals perfecting their weapons of choice - fear, intimidation, and brute force. It was made a federal crime to own more than 5 ounces of gold, and was severely criminal to use the metal as a source of monetary value for trade. The federal government made themselves very clear - hand over the cash and no one gets hurt.

Under a guise of national security, and with the authority of the Trading With The Enemy Act, FDR and his congress effectively labelled any merchant of gold an Enemy of the State - what would be considered and widely reported in today's media as a terrorist. Suddenly, any free American not declaring their gold and not surrendering it to federal authorities was a TERRORIST.

The year is 2009, the bill in question is the Affordable Health Care for America Act. The federal government is seizing, at gunpoint, the entire Health of the people of the United States. The government is acting as common criminals, forcing submission to their product under the threat of fear, intimidation, and brute force. It will be a federal crime to not purchase a US Government Product - Health Insurance. The federal government is making themselves very clear - hand over the cash and no one gets hurt... unless the end of life counselors determine, on your behalf, that it is in your best interest and the best interest of the country.
Under the guise of national security and economic stabilization, and with the authority of, well, its the Government - who's gonna stop them? Obama and his Democratic Congress will effectively label any free citizen exercising a Natural Right NOT to procure a product as an Enemy of the State, a terrorist.

One has to look at the History of the United States and ask, "How is it that we are considered a Free Society?"

What is the relationship between the People of the United States and their Government?

History would reveal a series of gross offenses by a tyrannical government over a free people. From the Indian Wars for US backed Gold Prospecting, to Japanese internment after Pearl Harbor; from the invasion of Southern States by Federal troops, to the invasion of foreign lands for Imperial resources; from the Gold Reserve Act to the Patriot Act... The list goes on and on, but the result is always the same: The People are absolutely powerless to stop the will of the Federal Government - any resistance will be met with fines, imprisonment, internment, or Death.

Blue Lyon even reported last week on a Washington Post piece finding that Federal Prosecutors are free from legal recourse for FRAMING individuals in order to win cases!

But here’s the twist: The prosecutors say that they can’t be sued for anything they do in their official capacities, even framing suspects.

It is not an argument outside the legal mainstream. The federal government, a majority of states and thousands of prosecuting attorneys are supporting the proposition that prosecutors must receive absolute immunity for their actions at trial to do their jobs properly. And that extends, they say, to any investigative work they do before the suspect is charged.

[...]

There is no “free-standing due process right not to be framed,” Deputy Solicitor General Neal K. Katyal agreed. Having to worry about a potential lawsuit when deciding whether to introduce certain evidence, Katyal said, might cause prosecutors to “flinch” from their duties.

The federal government's corruption is extended across three branches, with power to suspend or ignore the Constitution and those blessed rights preserved by the people, for the people, as we granted limited powers to our government. There is no power to stop the government in their forceful rule of our daily lives or personal property - only fear and intimidation, powerful tools to keep subjects in line.

The relationship between the Government and We the People is no longer what it was intended to be. We find ourselves on this day, and for many days before, born into slavery to a government that is rabid with power, and brutal with enforcement of their laws.

To keep gold - a crime.
To refuse Government Healthcare - a crime.
To use force to obtain property belonging to another individual - a crime sound government policy.

I ask you, my reader, my fellow citizen - what is the trigger... what is the catalyst... what is the offense that is so egregious that it will be THE ONE to make the citizenry rise up and demand that they simply STOP - that we want nothing more than to be left alone!

"...experience hath shewn that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed..." - The Declaration of Independence

When do we say "Enough". How do we stop these elected officials from further eroding our Natural Rights? How do we ensure that We the People are the keepers of the power, and that the Government should fear us - Not the other way around?

We support the most debilitating punishment for a government - the Right of the people to Opt Out... the right of the States to Opt Out... we support with the fullest power of our body and mind the freedom of a group of people to say "No More".

The United States applauded the secession of the Soviet Republics 20 years ago, when the Iron Curtain fell and with it the Berlin Wall, but in America the thought of secession is criminal. Scholars and paupers alike will tell you that the Right to Secession was lost when the South surrendered during their war for independence. Does the rule only apply to enemies of the US, or are we subject to the same rules of Natural Law? Is there any wonder why Obama downplayed the anniversary of the collapse of a Socialist Power and the secession of her states?

There is a very simple, very clear message being sent by the US government: Every Knee Shall Bow.

The Meaning of Life...

Unemployment has reached 10% in the United States... 16 million people without work... 16 million people unable to pay rent, buy food, or pay the bills. Assuming each individual pays ten bills in a month, 160 million businesses a month will now not be receiving payment. Assuming each person would be paying $1000 in income taxes for the year, that is $16 Billion lost income revenue. Consider that those individuals would be likely to purchase at least $100 worth of Christmas toys had they been working this season, that is $1.6 Billion that will not be exchanged for goods or services into our economy this Christmas Season... The reports are all around us on this day: Lost jobs, lost revenue, lost income, lost taxes. The focus of our life energy seems to have been taken very drastically off course.

Consider this a moment of clarity.

Step back from material things... from jobs and homes, from cars and reality TV, from iPods and bottled water... what are you left with? You. The simplest yet most profound statement you can make is simply "I exist". You exist in mind, body, and soul. You are a force of energy, a source of love, an embodiment of the most divine. The material is distraction. The spiritual is reality.

When the student is ready, the teacher will come... so it has been said.

What is more divine than life? The collective experience of living, the personal journey of emotion. Life is our spiritual interface with the material world. It is our opportunity to learn, to experience, to seek out, and to love. These are the lessons of all history's spiritual teachers... but we are failing the test.

We are currently involved in multiple wars around the globe. There are those who seek to do harm for the sake of doing harm - thoughtless massacres, savagery. We have perfected the art of murder in the name of religious duty. We are failing the test. We can see it in the eyes of the innocent victims of senseless shootings, bombings, raids, etc. The cries of children, women, and men mourning the loss of their fellow man echo the distress of the individual soul, and the collective soul. What we do affects our ability to exist, and undermines our ability to achieve a higher state of understanding of the meaning of this life.

Should we not vest every last ounce of energy and effort to make our fellow man smile, instead of cry? Is the challenge so great, the purpose of all things so complex that we have lost our ability to recognize the truest truths, the simplest concepts, the holiest of purposes? Have we become so distracted by the things of the world that we forget the teachings of unconditional love? Pick your religious icon of choice, isn't their teaching that of altruism? Across all religions, all faiths, all spiritual concepts, unconditional selflessness is the holiest of hollies - the one common truth - the meaning of life.

The conflict of this world comes from the individual evolution of spiritual consciousness. Just like the evolution of civilization, the evolution of spiritual consciousness begins with the simplest task of just surviving, and culminates with true enlightenment. The conflict arises when one group at a level of consciousness fails to comprehend or accept that of another. Or it is out of dutiful obedience to their collective god, rejecting any other explanation of the same by way of the sword. In simple terms, religious wars for the sake of religious observances. Be it Islamic Jihad which caused mass genocide in Africa to Christian inquisitions which bore witness to human sacrifice in the early Americas, religious warfare has been the leading cause of torment in the history of this planet. What is most ironic is that all of the great teachers warned of this, and offered the answer, the truth, the secret to life... love and happiness. Does not the New Testament teach that of Faith, Hope, and Love the greatest is Love/charity... the complete giving of yourself for selfless reasons. It is not done out of obedience to God, but out of Oneness WITH God. The secret - revealed? God lives within us all, as the source for life, the breath of life. Our soul, our spirit, our very existence is the divine order from chaos - realizing this divine oneness is the highest level of spiritual consciousness.

Life was created in the image of Perfection. The breath of life was given, and with it the love of the most Divine. The energy of our spiritual consciousness is greater for knowing this - that God is Love. Not simply a bumper sticker or a televangical slogan... God = Love, and therefore Love is God... To love is divine. To Charity is Divine. Unconditional Altruism, the complete giving of the self, is the meaning... not out of duty, but out of divinity.

It is not what we have, what we give, or what we say... It is How we live, how we love, and how we share which allows our spiritual evolution... These are the teachings of all religious lore, legends, and leaders... from the earliest teachings of creation to their modern day counterparts, the message has remained unchanged since the beginning of time. Follow the golden rule and you will surely know God.

The face of God is found in the face of your fellow man. In the eyes of every man, woman, and child you will find the secret of life. When the eyes are filled with tears, filled with pain, filled with fear - there is an energy, an imbalance, a darkness being applied to the universe... The knot in your stomach, the pain in your tears, the longing for an embrace of comfort - it is life. When you are overcome with joy, when you see your child at birth, when your heart jumps out of your chest and you find yourself longing for a shared embrace of joy - it is life. There is an energy that connects us all... the spiritual consciousness, the energy of life, the power of humanity, the holy spirit. It is our compass. It is spiritual intuition, and it will guide you to the truth.

The power of prayer, of meditation, of a simple thought is real. It is the connection with God, the oneness with the universe, the evolution of the spirit. We know these rituals by different names and understand them at different levels of our own consciousness. They are the universal truths... the secret to happiness, the meaning of this life.

Be happy in your own mind. Love others unconditionally. Accept that each individual exists on their own level of spiritual consciousness, and judge not. Be kind in your thoughts and in your actions. Offer a positive thought or a prayer for a stranger in need. Forgive as freely as you have been forgiven. Lend a helping hand to one of the 16 Million neighbors in need of compassion. All of this is Love - the meaning, my friends, of Life.

Onward to 2010

The local elections of 2009 are over, and as much as the GOP or the Dems are going to spin certain victories one way or the other, it was very certain that the races and the outcomes were largely driven by local politics... which is a powerful message in and of itself.

The message for 2010 is that candidates had better be prepared to think globally but act locally. Apply the concepts of universal liberty and you will find absolute success. If you find yourself bogged down with government mandates or dictating morality, you are the tyrant, not the liberator - and you will have a tough, tough race.

I have nothing overly significant to say about the election outcome. Two parties continue to struggle for the reigns of power with the intent to rule. Those elected represented local ideals, and it is my hope that they aid in changing the perception of "conservative rule" in favor of "conservative example". Other than that, continue to push your candidates for 2010 on Liberty and let's work for the better in 2010... a new congress can be realized!

REPOST: Purpose of All Things

I often re-read some of my old posts to remind myself of my message and to self-inspire when appropriate. I came across a post from March of 2008, three months before my daughter was born, a time when I was a man much different than today, but in many ways, exactly the same. To remind myself and my readers of such an important message, let me go back a year and a half and offer you a message of hope in these dark days:

The Purpose of all things, by Steven M Nielson - Thursday March 6th, 2008

As a community of bloggers, citizens of the internet, we tend to spend much time analyzing and prognosticating... discussing issues and arguing the meaning of results... the free exchange of intellectual thoughts and ideas... sharing ourselves for a common cause. A cause protected by the Constitution... endowed as an inalienable right... Liberty... freedom to think... freedom to speak.

As we move forward through the political waters, I am reminded on a number of occasions that spiritual growth is essential as a part of personal growth.

So I thought this was a perfect place to share my thoughts on praise...

When I prepared the funeral for my Best Friend's father, Skip Hildebrand, I found myself in prayer... prayer that I could find the words within myself to capture the nature of Skip's spirit. While I was in prayer, I was reminded of Skip's obsession with lighthouses... and I thought of what these towers of light represent. Hope, for the ships lost at sea that land is nearby. Warning, that ships tossed about on the sea should heed the warning of the rocks which will surely break them. And Faith in Fellow Man, that it is our natural instinct to protect one another against all adversity. I wrote a moving eulogy, which was reinforced later that day. After reading the Biblical passages and words in memory of his father, my best friend played for me his father's favorite song... Kathy Troccoli's "Go Light Your World". I broke down in tears and exalted the Creator for allowing me to find the words, for answering my prayers, and for letting me know that no truer words could be spoken about the soul of Skip Hildebrand. There is no feeling like the one when you realize that you are in tune with the Creator, and doing His will.

That was a long four years ago... and though I find myself in meditation daily, and searching for the next mission or sign that I am living my life in a way that is right with the Teacher, the miracles are few and far between, though the signs are in abundance (and I am blessed that I recognize them). I am blessed with family, friends, health, and the ability to pray and meditate freely. I am blessed that by June I will be a father of a precious little girl. I am blessed that I am part of a community of thinkers able to understand and discuss. I am even blessed that my life was touched by a wonderful addition of our rescued dog, Sadie... who is a beautiful soul!

The point that I am trying to make is that all things have a purpose. The rise and fall of country and men... all for a purpose. The gaining or loss of wealth... all for a purpose. There is a time to every purpose under heaven. The purpose of man is to rejoice and do good in his life, and know that the fruits of his labour are the gifts from the Creator, our Father in Heaven, YHWH.

In all that we do, let us sing praise to the Father. Let us not worship, but thank. Let us not idolize, but emulate. Let us know that the strength we find beating in our hearts is the love of the Divine.

Let us each take a moment every day, not to ask for miracles, but to thank our Creator for the miracles around us... Let us raise our hearts and voices in praise... הַלְלוּיָהּ ... Halleluyah

May you all find comfort in your days, and find praise in your hearts for the miracles that exist around you. And remember - You, too, are a miracle.

Thank you for reading!