When you wake up in the morning and turn on the coffee maker,  do you ever wonder how it actually works? or the toaster? sure it heats up coils that get hot,  that in turn brown the bread, but could you sit down and make one? No, not highly likely!

It seems everything we do these days is dependent on some form of technology. You can get in the car and turn the key but do you really understand how and why a car works? Maybe if you are a mechanic but most of us are clueless! The same goes for all who use a computer everyday of the week! We have no concept of how it really works and most of us never will understand it completely. If it breaks down, someone else fixes it!

From the garment you wear, to the shoes on your feet, we remain clueless about how it is made! We are totally dependent on a company to provide for us our daily needs!

Simple things of the past such as sewing a dress or knitting a scarf with mittens is deemed too time consuming or old fashioned!

During the past 50 years or so we have lost many craft techniques and have become literally useless when it comes to providing for ourselves without the help of a large company.

We seem to believe it’s better if its bought! This is just not true! We have been led to believe we cannot make anything of quality so we go out get a job to make someone else rich. In return, we are payed money to buy everything we need, or think we need!

Trade skills our in high demand, yet bricklayers and stone masons are hard to find in this country. Men no longer do as much physical work as before; so they must attend a gym or jog to try and stay fit. Some, do not even bother to go that far, and would rather watch athletes perform instead.

We have become a nation which only wishes to work for others and entertain oneself with any free time. That free time is becoming less and less though as we become trapped in a cycle of perpetual work then shop, work then shop.

Shopping has become a past-time as we no longer know or wish to know how to make it ourselves. We are leaving ourselves and our children very vulnerable. They will become totally dependent on machines and corporations to provide for them.

A dismal future lies ahead if we do not start teaching ourselves once again the simple ways of creating that which we need. The sense of achievement is enriching and empowering; when the day comes when we can say…

” I made it myself “.

by Sandra Lynn © April, 2008

Have you heard the news today? You must have noticed all the international news stories of the day are the same; but who is it that decides what the public will read or hear on the international stage? Electronic News Gathering or ENG has changed the way we get our information, and it is to our detriment because it has caused laziness and biased reporting.

We are being told the news in a way very similar to George Orwells’ novel, “1984″. They only tell us what they want us to hear, and we know it is not the whole truth or all of the facts. Why is it the government created a new way of reporting “conflicts” or “war” as we use to call it? Imbedded Journalists, they are not independent any longer, therefore they will become sympathetic to their protectors and they will be intimidated into telling a different story as their life is in their protectors hands at all times. Some of you will say no way! these journalists have integrity they could never do such a thing! Well, when you see enough people get blown away, integrity goes out the window! believe it.!

The public is being spoon fed and thinking they are being well informed, what a farce! The government is in control, they use certain language to make the specter of war seem less violent and barbaric. Reporting is sporadic and we are never shown the true story, we are being kept in the dark, and then told its for security reasons. Limited news coverage of a war that has taken the lives of 4000 Americans, yet, we have been told many times we are winning or, its over, mission accomplished!

Big Brother is running the show and we are letting them, they have got us so indebted to the banks and/or loan companies that we have no time to focus on the erosion of our civil liberties. We are kept busy keeping our children happy with the latest technology, be it, the “I Pod”, “PSP” or “WII”. The worldwide web keeps us content and we spend more time on our PC’s than we do talking with one another now days. Watching Survivor? or maybe Big Brother the reality television show? yes!, we have it all!, so much to entertain ourselves with while the big decisions are being made without our knowledge or majority consent.

The only message the government gives to us very loud and clear is, get out there and shop! keep the economy strong! never mind the garbage we create or the urban sprawl. Forget about all the natural resources which are being used up at an alarming rate, forget about the water we cannot drink any longer so we buy it in plastic bottles containing Bisphenol A, which is actually mutating human DNA. Just make a purchase whether you really need it or not is not the issue any longer.

It seems we are all asleep,, lulled into this luxurious world of consuming all we can whenever we get the chance and then being told its the right thing to do by our government. Our government lies to us, the war was based on a lie, and the economy is based on a lie and now we must stop the lies! Say no more!

SAY NO MORE, and MEAN IT!

by Sandra Lynn Tamm, 03-2008 ©

We have all heard the recent news; food prices are going to rise especially foods made with grains such as wheat.  It seems farmers have been encouraged to grow crops solely for the purpose of bio-fuels leading to a shortage in food crops.  The prices paid for growing bio-fuels is much more lucrative for farmers who have struggled for years to make a descent living.  This creates another problem for those of us who eat food though,  rising prices in the check-out line. 

There will soon be a world-wide shortage of wheat,  in fact,  the marketing boards which control the sale of wheat will be implementing strict controls this year. 

I went shopping yesterday and what did I notice?  Price increases!  Oh, yes, as soon as the news becomes public knowledge the grocery stores hike up the prices before the real crisis has even hit.

The prices were predicted to go up for breads and  bakery items, cookies, dry cereals, flour and grain products made from wheat.  The grocery stores however have decided to raise prices for other goods as well, such as canned foods, and conveniences foods such as macaroni & cheese in a box, which was an incredible $1.69 a box!

Foods that we once bought to try and stretch our grocery budget for the week are now becoming expensive!  This is just the beginning and while the middle class are going to feel the strain on their pocket books this coming year ahead, those in the low income bracket are going to find it very difficult to feed their family.  The food banks which are a disgrace to our country and should be to our government as well, will also feel the crunch; as food costs rise donations will most certainly become less and less.

The worldwide shortage of wheat is just the beginning of a new reality; the rationing of food.  Those of us who have never suffered through war, drought, or famine will for the first time feel what its like to do without.  A harsh reality that many of us will deny could ever happen here in North America;  even as many of your neighbours and their children rely on food banks every month, just to survive.

We as a society have lost sight of what is truly important.  We have let government and corporations dictate to us what is important and what it is we need in life.  We have been manipulated and deceived on a grand scale and now we will pay the price.

To use agriculture to grow bio-fuels, to deplete the soils with corn crops and ignore growing food crops is greed of the utmost!  To devote our planet to keeping the cars and trucks on the road at all costs,  is truly insane.

by sandra lynn  Feb,14th/08  ©

Think about this;  you have been diagnosed with cancer, you must get treatment, and the hospital where that treatment will take place is an hour and a half commute from where you live. 

You do not have the option of city transit, you must find someone who will drive you to and from your daily radiation and /or chemotherapy sessions. 

If you are fortunate enough to have a spouse or a partner who can drive you there, that is a plus.  If not you must try and find someone who can take time out of their daily routine to help you out.

  The Cancer Society has made the effort to provide volunteer drivers for those who cannot,  but if you do not live within the greater Toronto area or (GTA) than you will be hard-pressed to find a volunteer near where you live.  This can be a great headache for many who live in rural areas and some have had to delay treatment until they can find some type of accommodation within the city, or a driver to assist them.

Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre provides excellent treatment for those suffering with cancer; and provides state-of-the-art quality care to all who are referred to them.  That being said,  Sunnybrook is severely lacking when it comes to caring for those who must commute daily for treatments.

Sunnybrook has no parking areas designated for those who must attend cancer treatments daily.  The parking lots are out-sourced to a private company, and this is where the problem lies.  This private company has no sympathy whatsoever for those who are suffering.  In fact,  they have security guards scouting the property like vultures just looking for someone to tag!  It is very disturbing to stay the least! 

Imagine the cost of having to commute to Sunnybrook, five days a week for three months of treatment!Sunnybrook makes you pay for parking expenses on top of  the out of pocket expenses for gasoline and wear and tear on your vehicle.  Is this stress part of the treatment?  Is worrying about the exorberant parking ticket you receive when doctors are behind schedule suppose to be good for you?

I think not!  Why has Sunnybrook let this go on for so many years?  I am sure my observations have been noted by many others,  and I bet there have been complaints regarding the parking dilemma faced by cancer patients.

Not everyone comes by TTC!  Not everyone has unlimited funds to pay for expensive parking on a daily basis!   There seems to be no mercy for those living with cancer and trying to fight it.

Sunnybrook needs to take a long hard look at the facts, and change the way they treat cancer patients, in their hospital and out-side of their hospital!

There should be a pass made available for those who must commute from out of town.  There should be designated parking spaces made available for those patients; so they do not have to worry about getting ticketed while undergoing treatment!

It is the right thing to do!

Written by, Sandra Lynn  January 28th, 2008

It has been documented that 5 of every 6 inmates are substance abusers.  The stats are even worse when it comes to education!,  80% have only made it to grade 10 before dropping out.

Why is it we condemn those who must feed their drug habit to committing criminal offenses to get what they most need?  

If it where not for the laws that were created and imposed, laws that make it a crime to obtain certain drugs,  our jails would be virtually empty.  Tax payers money could be spent on much more positive endeavors such as education, health-care and a clean environment.

Without the law there is no crime committed.  The war on drugs is a dismal failure, and a money pit; expenses are astronomical and the good that comes from it is little to nil.

We must stop this nonsense and look at these issues with a less barbaric attitude.  Locking up addicts is no way to treat them.

Addicts are not responsible for the crimes that they commit because they are not doing so for any other reason than to obtain that which they are addicted to!  They are not the person they use to be as they are driven by a desperate physical need.  Without that need they would not commit the crime.  If the drug was easily accessible and not “illegal” they could be monitored and treated accordingly.  It makes so much more sense than creating criminals because we are too ignorant to change the laws,  instituted by age-old prejudice and fear.

Treating people who are sick like animals and criminals is not doing society any good whatsoever!  Those who have a physical addiction need help to manage the addiction,  and we should not look to the government to deal with this issue any longer.

They are dead wrong, and the war on drugs was over before it had even begun.     

A new study reports plastic surgery is up!  More and more North Americans are opting for surgery to turn back the hands of time, rather than face up to the inevitable.

Of course, plastic surgery is a quick fix!  like everything in this brave new technical world of ours; we want it all and we want it NOW! 

Unfortunately, the majority of those who trusted a Plastic Surgeon to enhance their appearance were very disappointed with the outcome of the procedure.  Many did not like what was done and went under the knife again, to have the work altered. 

Such a sad state of affairs we live in,  never satisfied with what we have.  Never quite sure what we really want.   Societies obsession with ageless beauty, perfect bodies, as if we are not meant to age or grow old!

We treat aging like a disease, instead of a natural process.  Everything in this biological world ages!  We, in our neurosis,  want to put a stop to it! 

 We think we are this body and so we do everything possible to halt the progression of aging.  It is the atmosphere that is to blame!  if you want to stop aging,  stop breathing!   Alas,  that is not yet possible, without your demise,  and so,  that is the dilemma.

Yes, we are truly lost in a world of vanity where products such as hair colour, anti-aging creams and vitamins, miracle drinks full of antioxidants promise us a youthful glow again!.  If that doesn’t help, there’s  plastic surgery,  and for the ultimate youthful appearance you can even photo shop and/or  air-brush your wrinkles away!  that will do the trick! in the virtual world only,  mind you.

The culture of youth,  all the baby-boomers must dread the age factor!  As our culture is pre-occupied with appearance and vanity, they, the boomers, are facing their own mortality.

 The lingo is now, “Pro-Age”!  What a concept!  The corporations love it, now they can create more products to keep the big machine humming along while we drive head on into environmental catastrophe.

Well,  as long as we look good, that is what is deemed most important now, don’t forget to get your teeth whitened and  smile as you wave good-bye! 

Alone,  I came into this world, not knowing anyone or anything, not even knowing I existed!

What,Who is this,  I?  

As a child, I had no inkling of an idea that ”I” was anyone in particular.  To just ”be” was good enough, and should be good enough even now!  It is however not the way of the world.

As a child, to experience, movement, gravity,touch,smell,taste,sounds,  that was to “Be”.  It was all so very simple, so wonderful, without the need to even express so;  for language was non-existent! 

Language became the first link in the chain of the creation of “I” the self we begin to refer to as if we are that,  and always have been. 

The mistake of identity.

We are taught, as were they who teach us,  to believe in this “self”.  We are born a gender,  and  we are told this is what we are.  We are given a name,  and are told this is who we are.  We are taught a language to communicate with, and we are taught all the labels,  of every thing that has been given one.  Such as, “this is a tree” or “this is a table”, and so we are then caught up in the trap of labels and identity.

As a child there is no concept of time.  As a child there is no concept of beginning or end.  All of these concepts we have handed down to one another via generations.  Concepts that were conceived to bring some kind of order to the natural world.  Concepts that hinder us, as well as create all kinds of fears and neurosis within our conscious mind. 

Have you ever wondered why it is,  you cannot remember much of your existence prior to four years of age?  and if you do these memories are usually experiences without the self identification we have cloaked ourselves with since.  When we truly begin to believe we are that which we were taught and become tangled up in the web of self identity, the advent of the ego. 

Today we believe in the ego more than at any other time in mankinds’ history.  We actually embrace it as ourselves and we are taught to be an “individual” and to express your “individuality”, whatever that is, because we are all posers, we are all copycats, we all take an  old or out-dated idea and make it our own, then say we are an original!  We all are taught to just be “ourselves” and the school system is the worst for promoting this big charade.  We take on an identity to play in this world and we should not be taught it is real, it is not, it is like a mask, a costume, we put on.  Part of this costume is picked out for you as a child, and the other parts are given to you by friends or relatives and the other parts you pick up along the way and keep; that is all that the so called “self” really is!

The ego is big business for the corporate world.  The North American ideal of being famous, be it an actor or a singer or a model,  everyone wants to be famous!  We are brainwashed with television, movies, magazines and told this is the way to look, this is the way to dress, this is the way to be more popular, attractive,sexual,confident even arrogant!  We have no shame when it comes to “self” promotion.  Everyone wants to own a camera phone to take pictures of themselves to post on the web.  They create a page devoted to themselves, and what they look like, it is a shrine to themselves and anything they deem important and meaningful in their life. 

A pathetic display of egoism. 

We then wonder why we are so alienated from one another, why we don’t look each other in the eye while passing on the street, or why we don’t even know who are neighbours are any more.

We are selfish and careless, vain and self-centered.  We do not trust anyone any longer, and we would rather have the streets surveillance with remote cameras and lock ourselves in a prison of our own making, than reach out to others without fear and apprehension.

We are all mislead, and we are all believing something which is not,  quite the dilemma,  for how can one comprehend that which is?  that which,  is buried below layers and layers of concepts and labels.  That which is accessible but forgotten or denied?  It is so much easier to live in the make believe until it all comes crashing down around you,  and you have none of it left to hold onto?

  Some call it a break-down, some call it depression, some would say you have lost your mind! 

Try to remember that which was and is before you called your self “I”,  before you became self aware,  the days when existence was forever,  no time, no beginning, no end,  for that is what we are living at this moment,  if we can drop all the concepts.

OF course you would rather call this a ranting from within the asylum!

I believe we as a society have come to accept cancer as a given in life. Presently there are very few people who are untouched by this disease, whether it is a close family member such as a mother or aunt, or distant family relatives or even close friends and/or a neighbour. We all know of someone who is either battling this scourge or have suffered and died because of it.

What I find unacceptable is that we are accepting it! Yes, we donate billions of dollars to the various cancer societies/charities, and they spend quite a lot of our money on research but they spend more of it on developing ways to live WITH the disease. Yes, how to make your life more comfortable while suffering with cancer! Why? why do they insist on spending donated funds to help us learn to live with it!

Is not the point to eradicate it? stop it from permeating even further, into our lives?

Yes, it is nice to be able to live more comfortably, if the prognosis is hopeless; but the fact is the cancer societies are getting carried away with funding which does nothing to stop cancer from killing us or are loved ones!

The pink ribbons! now there are clothes and key chains and trinkets! It is turning into an economic windfall, a consumerist nightmare! Its becoming an exclusive club for some! who would really rather not be a member, if that were possible. It has become almost acceptable to say, “yes,!I have cancer and I am not ashamed, I am fighting this battle with dignity and grace!”

These cancer charities are making certain that all can live in dignity with this disease! They provide you with real human hair wigs! when your hair falls out because, after all these years and billions of dollars, they still use chemotherapy as the best line of defense! although that treatment is worse than the disease!

Not much has changed regarding treatment! radiation therapy, chemotherapy or both! not to leave out the other method, mastectomy or amputation of the tumour along with whatever body part is affected! Sounds just as barbaric as it always has, not much in the way of advances, is there?

What are they doing regarding the environmental hazzards which cause cancer?

The head of one cancer society was asked by and investigative news reporter what the cancer society was doing about a certain cleaning product which contained an ingredient known to be a carcinogen (cancer causing) chemical? The head person in charge said that it was up to consumer and corporate affairs to take responsibility on what products where being allowed to be sold safely to consumers. In fact this cancer society had no knowledge of what the product was or what the carcinogenic chemical was! So, what good are they doing? They have no lists of carcinogenic chemical ingredients to offer the public! They do not even ask companies to stop using certain known carcinogens for public health and safety!

Why are we letting these cancer societies pretend they are doing everything they can to stop this disease?

We should be educating ourselves as to what is safe and what to stay away from as these cancer charities are of no help whatsoever!

Cancer charities give our money to the big pharmaceutical companies who are getting rich, by offering us better drugs to help us live more comfortably with cancer! Why should we live with it at all? They are developing ways to tell if your offspring have a gene that makes them more predisposed to certain cancers! Well, thats’ all fine and dandy but… why do we not try to find ways to stop it in its tracks? Stop the poisoning of the environment, the air, the water with pesticides,fungicides,chemical preservatives, dioxins,phalates etc.etc.

They are quite aware of the many cancer causing chemicals we are now being born with in our bloodstreams. They are quite aware that the rates of breast cancer are on the rise, as is prostate cancers! Is it not unusual and pretty suspicious that these cancers are affecting the human reproductive systems?

They understand what the link is, but they choose to use our money to find ways to live more comfortably with cancer! better treatments, better quality of life, maybe even live longer with cancer!

Why live with cancer at all! Why do we sit idly by and let them get away with this incredibly greedy, morally corrupt, irresponsible, despicable charade?

If cancer was a contagious disease, we would call this an epidemic of monumental proportions! Worse than H.I.V./A.I.D.S!

In my family alone there has been more than 5 deaths due to cancer beginning in the 1960’s and continuing on even now as my father was recently diagnosed with prostate cancer. The treatment is, radiation therapy, which is destroying his intestinal health, his body has lost most of its muscle mass and he is losing weight for no apparent reason, other than the treatment!

If this is the best the cancer charities can come up with after decades of help and billions of dollars in donations?

Is this all they can come up with? It seems so! and it is a great tragedy, a catastrophe we are choosing to accept!

We must not remain so complacent! We must demand action! They must do more! They have the capabilities, they have the funding, they have the science, they have the brains, all they lack is the will!

When its your father being exposed to radiation 5 days a week for 10 weeks to try and kill prostate cancer, getting tired and weaker by the day, you tell me… is that good enough?

Is that the best they can do?

I am haunted by an image, sadly it has been 7 years since I witnessed the incident I am about to relay to you, gentle reader. Seven long years since I was in hospital very ill with cellulose’s, laying on a gurney in the emergency departments’ hallway, as it was crowded to over capacity that evening, and beds were in short supply! 

I lay there in the alcove of a doorway leading to another part of the hospital,  hooked up to an intravenous drip, hours and hours I watched the ill, being lead by a nurse to an available examining room,  to await the attending to physician.  Some had family, some were alone, and there where also mothers with babes in arms, waiting for hours to be examined and treated accordingly.

Time drags on when your not feeling well and must wait, and I noticed as I lay there being pumped full of antibiotics,  a young mother and her infant child in the examination room, just across the hall from me.  She was maybe 25 years old at the most, and her baby was approximately 4 to 5 months old.  It was getting late maybe 10:30pm by now and the baby was starting to fuss a little, so the mother put him down on the bed and gave him a pacifier, and covered him with a blanket.  I lay watching from my alcove, she could not see me from the angle of the room, and if she could have,  she would not have done what I watched her do! 

The baby was doing well, considering that over an hour had passed by now; it was the mother who was becoming frustrated and angry at the situation.  The baby did not want to lie down anymore, so he spit his pacifier out and started kicking his feet, kicking the blanket off;  that’s when the mother became angry.  I watched stunned as she picked up the baby roughly and stuck the pacifier back in his mouth, she then wrapped the blanket around him so he could not move his arms and she held him very hard against her chest!  She then placed her hand at the back of his head and shoved his face into her chest, holding him there, she began moving side to side as if rocking him,  only very hard.  All this time, she was on guard to make sure no one was watching.  I saw the look on her face as she gritted here teeth, anger in her eyes and in the rocking motion she made.

To this day I cannot get it out of my head,  I then watched her put the baby back down on the bed and try to put the pacifier back in his mouth and cover him with his blanket.  This worked for only a minute or two and the restless baby again kicked off the blankets and began to cry.  This time the mother was very rough when picking him up and she did the same thing again holding his face hard against her chest almost as if to stop his breathing!  My heart was racing as I saw the anger on her face and she knew what she was doing as she looked to make sure no one was watching her.

She put the baby back down on the bed hard and shoved the pacifier in his mouth and that’s when the doctor came in!  Like Jekyll and Hyde she changed!  Her face relaxed instantly and she smiled as the doctor asked her about the baby.  She looked down at her baby as the doctor spoke about how beautiful he was, and asked about what her concerns were.  She smiled and nodded as he spoke and she seemed like the perfect, adoring, nurturing mother figure we all want to believe in.  I was stunned.

I lay there in my sickened state, weak and feeling even worse for that poor child.  He was going home with her, and I was a witness to her cruelty, her frustration and anger,  which she took out on her baby.

Or was she the nanny, the babysitter?  whoever she was, she should not be left in stressful situations with a baby to care for!  I cannot condone or make excuses for such behaviour,  if you are frustrated you do not take it out on a child or an innocent, defenseless,  baby! 

As the doctor did his examination on the baby and the mother looked on I wanted to yell across the hall,”I saw what you were doing!”  “I know what you did!”  I imagined her staring at me startled, blushing, mouth open ready to deny it all!  but…. I did not.

I did nothing!  I could not muster up the strength to call her on it,  to ask the doctor to “come over here for a moment”.  I am ashamed of myself for staying silent for letting my illness get the better of me.

I have nightmares about this, and I cannot forgive myself.   I pray that this was just an isolated incident;  that,  that womans’  behaviour was totally out of character and that the baby is now a happy, healthy little boy with a loving family.

I can dream can ‘t I?

Got your attention, of course any story with such a violent headline draws attention.  Our society gets very excited and curious when it comes to reading about or watching movies about violent,sadistic,murderous crimes.  We have been become de-sensitized to such an extent that we actually enjoy or become overly intrigued,  when we read about the victims of violent crimes, serial murders,ritual killings,dismemberment.  You will disagree with that last statement but you will still want to know what happened, why,who,where,how and any pictures?  

Another killing on the streets of Toronto, Ontario, Canada,  another slap in the face to all those who deem it safe enough to walk to the corner store at night for a jug of milk.

A storekeeper shot by a stray bullet, died because he happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.  This is the second time in a week, that an innocent bystander has been killed, shot with a handgun by thugs who do not value any human life except maybe their own and that could even be disputed.

The Mayor of Toronto, David Miller, is now hard at work doing damage control, and calling for a national ban on handguns.  He was a guest on numerous Toronto talk radio shows trying to convince Torontonians to get out there and walk in your neighbourhood, support local business, and do not avoid certain areas because of a recent shooting.  In other words,  don’t let the thugs push you around, show them you are not afraid.

 Those are brave words but if you have a family and children, you are not going to risk them being shot by accident,  for the sake of a loaf of bread at the corner store are you?  

The Federal Governments’ Stockwell Day says, we must create stiffer penalties, meaning,  more jail time for those who use handguns during the commission of a crime.  What will more jail time teach anyone who is morally bankrupt?  nothing beneficial to society that is certain.   Longer jail sentences are not a deterrent to those who do not care for anyone or anything and who have nothing to lose.

  If you treat people like wild animals and lock them up in cages,  they will turn on you whenever they get the opportunity, unless you keep them inside until the day they die!  We would have to execute a lot of young people to acheive a safer society,  and I do not believe children are born bad and become killers later in adolescence.  What can be done? Is our society doomed to live in fear of their own children?  

Is it really getting that bad?

Well,  I am hoping it is not that bad but,  we must do something to put a stop to the gunplay in our streets.  It all starts with the children, they are growing up to become what we in society fear most, killers, moral degenerates and juvenile delinquents.  Why?  

I believe it is because we, (society in general) do not raise our children any more.  We,  due to government and economic change have made it impossible to survive on one income!  We have been bombarded with materialism and a culture of buying, consuming for items we truly do not need!  We put ourselves in debt, we become enslaved to a bank who holds our life in their hands.  Miss a mortgage payment and look out! We are so busy trying to acheive and maintain a lifestyle we have been brainwashed into believing will bring us happiness and the perfect family life;  while we forget the most important thing we can give our children;  our time, our company, our moral values, our stories of life and experiences, and a belief in spirituality.  Not religion per say,  but a spirituality in knowing we are not in control, we are just a speck in time as compared to this great universe, and we must respect the gift of life, of earth, of all the living creatures we share this planet with. 

We have forgotten where we come from and why we are here; and it is not to make a six figure salary and retire at 55.  It is not what all those commercials try to drill into your psyche, it has nothing to do with the stock market or the latest fashions or the hottest car. 

 All those “things” are not going to make you a better person, they are just window dressings for an empty soul,  we try to fill it with all the material wealth they can sell us and we will continue to buy it.   Our children learn by what example and we have taught them well,  maybe too well.  They have bought the dream hook,line and sinker!  Want,want,want! 

Get rich or die try’in,  this should tell you exactly where there heads are at!  We, society has taught them, if you want respect just get rich!  money buys everything and everyone!  Look at the reality shows,  people will stop at nothing for the All Mighty and I’m not talking about God either.  

 Our children are a reflection of us, of our society, and we, (as we can read by the daily headlines) are in big trouble!  Is anybody listening?