Response to President Bush's Inaugural Address
January 20, 2005

My fellow citizens of the United States and the world:

On this day prescribed by United States law, George W. Bush was sworn into the Office of the President of the United States of America. On January 28, 2003 President Bush stated in his third State of the Union address: "The qualities of courage and compassion that we strive for in America also determine our conduct abroad. The American flag stands for more than our power and our interests. Our founders dedicated this country to the cause of human dignity, the rights of every person, and the possibilities of every life. This conviction leads us into the world to help the afflicted, and defend the peace, and confound the designs of evil men."

Today President Bush stated:
"At this second gathering, our duties are defined not by the words I use, but by the history we have seen together. For a half century, America defended our own freedom by standing watch on distant borders. After the shipwreck of communism came years of relative quiet, years of repose, years of sabbatical - and then there came a day of fire."

"We have seen our vulnerability - and we have seen its deepest source. For as long as whole regions of the world simmer in resentment and tyranny - prone to ideologies that feed hatred and excuse murder - violence will gather, and multiply in destructive power, and cross the most defended borders, and raise a mortal threat. There is only one force of history that can break the reign of hatred and resentment, and expose the pretensions of tyrants, and reward the hopes of the decent and tolerant, and that is the force of human freedom."
All throughout today's address the President spoke of freedom . . . "Freedom, by its nature, must be chosen, and defended by citizens, and sustained by the rule of law and the protection of minorities. . . . America will not impose our own style of government on the unwilling. Our goal instead is to help others find their own voice, attain their own freedom and make their own way. . . . America's influence is not unlimited, but fortunately for the oppressed, America's influence is considerable, and we will use it confidently in freedom's cause."
But I must ask Mr. President and Honorable Members of Congress . . . At what cost to the American People?
The demise of a Social Security System designed to aid our citizens in our golden years of retirement?
The reduction of benefits and services to the 26 million plus men and women of this country who put their lives on the line to support and defend the Constitution of the United States and freedom of the American People?
Or maybe the milking of the various "trust-funds" for aviation, sea ports, highways and others by borrowing millions if not billions of dollars from them to pay for this "War on Terrorism"?
Mr. President, you state: "I have asked patience in the hard task of securing America, which you have granted in good measure. Our country has accepted obligations that are difficult to fulfill, and would be dishonorable to abandon. Yet because we have acted in the great liberating tradition of this nation, tens of millions have achieved their freedom. And as hope kindles hope, millions more will find it. By our efforts, we have lit a fire as well - a fire in the minds of men. It warms those who feel its power, it burns those who fight its progress, and one day this untamed fire of freedom will reach the darkest corners of our world."
"A few Americans have accepted the hardest duties in this cause - in the quiet work of intelligence and diplomacy ... the idealistic work of helping raise up free governments ... the dangerous and necessary work of fighting our enemies. Some have shown their devotion to our country in deaths that honored their whole lives - and we will always honor their names and their sacrifice."
Mr. President in 2003 you stated: "The qualities of courage and compassion that we strive for in America also determine our conduct abroad. The American flag stands for more than our power and our interests. Our founders dedicated this country to the cause of human dignity, the rights of every person, and the possibilities of every life. This conviction leads us into the world to help the afflicted, and defend the peace, and confound the designs of evil men." In nearly every nation of the world today, the American flag flies proudly at our embassies. It flies as a symbol of human success: the freedom of speech; to choose who will govern us at every level, from the small town right up to our nation’s capital; to worship and believe as our own personal conscience dictates; to educate our children in a manner of our own choosing; to own property; and to enjoy the fruits of our own hard work.
History has shown the willingness of the United States to stand beside any nation determined to build a better future by seeking the rewards of liberty for its people. However, as much as our allies and friends abroad may not like it, the duty of the United States Government is to the people of those United States, first and foremost. I would like to quote a part of some famous Canadian words at this point,
"Germany, Japan and, to a lesser extent, Britain and Italy were lifted out of the debris of war by the Americans who poured in billions of dollars and forgave other billions in debts. None of these countries is today paying even the interest on its remaining debts to the United States.
When France was in danger of collapsing in 1956, it was the Americans who propped it up, and their reward was to be insulted and swindled on the streets of Paris. I was there. I saw it.
When earthquakes hit distant cities, it is the United States that hurries in to help. This spring, 59 American communities were flattened by tornadoes. Nobody helped.
The Marshall Plan and the Truman Policy pumped billions of dollars into discouraged countries. Now newspapers in those countries are writing about the decadent, warmongering Americans . . . .
. . . You talk about scandals, and the Americans put theirs right in the store window for everybody to look at. Even their draft-dodgers are not pursued and hounded. They are here on our streets, and most of them, unless they are breaking Canadian laws, are getting American dollars from ma and pa at home to spend here.
When the railways of France, Germany and India were breaking down through age, it was the Americans who rebuilt them. When the Pennsylvania Railroad and the New York Central went broke, nobody loaned them an old caboose. Both are still broke.
I can name you 5000 times when the Americans raced to the help of other people in trouble. Can you name me even one time when someone else raced to the Americans in trouble? I don't think there was outside help even during the San Francisco earthquake.
Our neighbors have faced it alone, and I'm one Canadian who is damned tired of hearing them get kicked around. They will come out of this thing with their flag high. And when they do, they are entitled to thumb their nose at the lands that are gloating over their present troubles. I hope Canada is not one of those."
Gordon Sinclair, 1973
Many of you may notice I omitted a portion of the middle of Mr. Sinclair’s "Tribute to the Americans." I did so not because they were not true when Mr. Sinclair broadcast them, I omitted them, because as one of my personal beliefs state, "Speak the truth, but only of good in others."
Sound foreign policy begins at home. What is the desired goal of American Foreign Policy?
The willingness of the United States to stand beside any nation determined to build a better future by seeking the rewards of liberty for its people.
Is not our Foreign Policy not like a business’s Public Relations Policy?
Should not American Foreign Policy be based on an attraction to our principles? The freedom of speech; to choose who will govern us at every level; to worship (or not) and believe as our own personal conscience dictates; to educate our children in a manner of our own choosing; to own property; and to enjoy the fruits of our own hard work. Rather than the promotion or projection of those principles? We must always work daily to place those principles before personalities.
While our American system of principles works here, we could use some improvements on their application here at home. The same applies to many countries around the world, their systems work for them, and some could also likely use some improvements.
Yet you do not see Ford Motor Company telling IBM how to build computers. You do not see IBM telling Boeing how to build airplanes. You do not see Boeing telling Hormel how to make chili. And you do not see Hormel telling Ford how to make cars. What you do see in business, is those in the same line of business observing each other and learning from each other’s mistakes.
But governments are not corporations, they direct peoples lives you say. To that I say our elected, and then subsequently appointed government leaders are there for one and only one purpose, to serve then needs of the People of the United States of America. Look at the words of the Preamble of the U.S. Constitution, "We the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquillity, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States."
There are seven key phrases there:
We the People
Form a more perfect union.
Establish justice.
Insure domestic tranquillity.
Provide for the common defense.
Promote the general welfare.
Secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity.
Why do many nations not trust the United States or dislike us? Could it possibly be that we do not practice at home what we preach abroad? It took the United States how many years after the end of World War II to pay restitution to the survivors of the Japanese-American internment camps? How many treaties with the original residents of this continent, the Native Americans, were blatantly ignored and what of those atrocities, such as Wounded Knee and the Trail of Tears?
In the Bible, the Book of Matthew, Chapter 7 it says, "Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye, and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye’ when all the time there is a plank in you own eye. You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye."
True compassion comes without judgment. True compassion means we personally are accountable and responsible for our own actions. True compassion comes when our own house is clean, first. True compassion is experienced when we respect the rights and property of others.
Yes, Mr. President we live in one of the most wonderful and greatest nations in the world. But as that beacon of freedom standing atop the hill, we must remember that the light from that beacon does not only shine outward to other nations, but also downward upon our nation for all to see. Have we established justice? Have we ensured domestic tranquillity? Have we promoted the general welfare? Have we secured the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity? At best in these areas if we as a nation were graded, we might receive a "B" quite possibly a "C" by other nations or independent observers.
Mr. President you speak of the Homestead Act, the Social Security Act and the G.I. Bill of Rights and how "now we will extend this vision by reforming great institutions to serve the needs of our time." I'm sorry but you can not "Save the World" on the backs and the wallets of hard-working Americans and our senior citizens. Do not worry today what the history lessons twenty years from now will say about your Presidency and if you helped advance the cause of freedom.
As a former Federal Employee and a Honorably Discharged United States Air Force Veteran, we can not and will not stop the bleeding of America's military men and women on foreign soil, until we can stop the figurative and literal bleeding of our citizens on American soil.
A great responsibility rests upon you and the Congress to develop the best possible public relations policy for the United States. Through many painful experiences, some should have and idea of what that policy ought to be. It is the opposite in many ways of usual promotion practice. Policy makers must realize that they must rely upon the principle of attraction rather than promotion.
America isn't about a building or two, not about financial centers, not about military centers;
America isn't about a place;
America isn't even about a bunch of bodies.
America is about an IDEA.
An idea, that you can go someplace where you can earn as much as you can figure out how to, live for the most part, like you envisioned living, and pursue Happiness.
No guarantees that you'll reach it, but you can sure try!
The principle of attraction, rather than promotion. Something rare in the world -- a society that wishes to publicize its principles and its work. We Americans know what we have here. Yes, at times it is not so rosy or covered with silver-lined clouds, as Gordon Sinclair stated, we put our scandals in the store front window for all the world to see.
This principle of attraction in geo-political affairs requires a delicate balance. As you stated, "supported by communities with standards, and sustained in our national life by the truths of Sinai, the Sermon on the Mount, the words of the Koran, and the varied faiths of our people." Those truths and standards are global in nature, if not universal. But we as a nation can not expect others to follow our lead in the ideal of freedom, unless we as a nation have made direct amends to those we have harmed whenever possible.
Yes, it is unfortunate that there are tyrants who rule and control people by fear and oppression. But it was only 229 years ago that the first Americans faced similar fear and oppression.
"When, in the course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bonds which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the laws of nature and of nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation."
"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. That to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed. That whenever any form of government becomes destructive to these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their safety and happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shown that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such government, and to provide new guards for their future security."
Do we aid others in their efforts to throw off such government and help to provide new guards for their future security? Most certainly, however the world has dramatically and dynamically changed since 1776, there are no new "frontiers" but the ocean and space any longer. Therefore we must then act in concert with other like-minded nations to aid others in this endeavor, i.e., the United Nations. How many years did the American Revolution last?
Do we respond in kind to any acts of aggression against the American Homeland or its Territories? Hopefully diplomatic efforts can preclude the necessity to respond in kind, but that is always an option. However, when in the case of September 11, 2001 an act of aggression or terrorism is perpetrated against the American Homeland, ... what is the appropriate response? Is the act sponsored or effected by the government of another sovereign nation? Or is the act sponsored or effected by some cross-national group without government support?
Obviously we face a new warfare scenario. A tactical/surgical operation such as was launched against the Al'Qeda facilities in Afghanistan in my personal opinion was and is warranted and politically acceptable.
At issue is the perceived lack of integrity for the hawk-like methods used for Operation Iraqi Freedom. For as history has brutally shown us in Vietnam, 20th and now 21st Century wars of liberation are not only expensive in dollars, but in the lives of American Military men and women.
I close with two quotations from General Douglas MacArthur:


"I find in existence a new and heretofore unknown and dangerous concept, that the members of our armed forces owe primary allegiance or loyalty to those who temporarily exercise the authority of the executive branch of the government rather than to the country and its Constitution which they are sworn to defend."
(In testimony before a Senate committee)
"Men since the beginning of time have sought peace," but "military alliances, balances of power, leagues of nations, all in turn have failed, leaving the only path to be by the way of the crucible of war." Now "we have had our last chance. If we do not now devise some greater and more equitable system, Armageddon will be at our door. The problem basically is theological and involves a spiritual recrudescence and improvement of human character that will synchronize with our almost matchless advances in science, art, literature and all material and cultural developments of the past two thousand years. It must be for the spirit if we are to save the flesh."
(September 2, 1945, on the deck of the USS Missouri)

Who's to blame? The People or The Government?

Failure of an idea... and a people In his 1935 State of the Union Address, FDR spoke to a nation mired in the Depression, but still marinated in conservative values: "Continued dependence upon welfare," said FDR, "induces a spiritual disintegration fundamentally destructive to the national fiber. To dole our relief in this way is to administer a narcotic, a subtle destroyer of the human spirit." Behind FDR's statement was the conviction that, while the government must step in an emergency, in normal times, men provide the food, clothing and shelter for their families. And we did, until the war pulled us out of the Depression and a postwar boom made us, in John K. Galbraith's phrase, "The Affluent Society."

By the 1960s, America, the richest country on earth, was growing ever more prosperous. But with the 1964 landslide of LBJ, liberalism triumphed and began its great experiment. Behind the Great Society was a great idea: to lift America's poor out of poverty, government should now take care of all their basic needs. By giving the poor welfare, subsidized food, public housing and free medical care, government will end poverty in America. At the Superdome and New Orleans Convention Center, we saw the failure of 40 years of the Great Society.

No sooner had Katrina passed by and the 17th Street levee broke than hundreds of young men who should have taken charge in helping the aged, the sick and the women with babies to safety took to the streets to shoot, loot and rape. The New Orleans police, their numbers cut by deserters who left their posts to look after their families, engaged in running gun battles all day long to stay alive and protect people. It was the character and conduct of its people that makes the New Orleans disaster unique. After a hurricane, people's needs are simple: food, water, shelter, medical attention, but they can be hard to meet. People buried in rubble or hiding in attics of flooded homes are tough to get to. But, even with the incompetence of the mayor and governor, and the torpor of federal officials, this was possible.

Coast Guard helicopters were operating Tuesday. There were roads open into the city for SUVs, buses and trucks. While New Orleans was flooded, the water was stagnant. People walked through to the convention center and Superdome. The flimsiest boat could navigate. Even if government dithered for days - what else is new - this does not explain the failure of the people themselves.
1865 and 1940, the South - having lost a fourth of its best and bravest in battle, devastated by war, mired in poverty - was famous for the hardy self-reliance of her people, black and white. In 1940, hundreds of British fishermen and yachtsmen sailed back and forth daily under fire across a turbulent 23-mile Channel to rescue 300,000 soldiers from Dunkirk.
How do we explain to the world that a tenth that number of Americans could not be reached in four days from across a stagnant pond? The real disaster of Katrina was that society broke down. An entire community could not cope. Liberalism, the idea that good intentions and government programs can build a Great Society, was exposed as fraud.

After trillions of tax dollars for welfare, food stamps, public housing, job training and education have poured out since 1965, poverty remains pandemic. But today, when the police vanish, the community disappears and men take to the streets to prey on women and the weak. Stranded for days in a pool of fetid water, almost everyone waited for the government to come save them. They screamed into the cameras for help, and the reporters screamed into the cameras for help, and the "civil rights leaders" screamed into the cameras that Bush was responsible and Bush was a racist! Americans were once famous for taking the initiative, for having young leaders rise up to take command in a crisis. See any of that at the Superdome?

Sri Lankans and Indonesians, far poorer than we, did not behave like this in a tsunami that took 400 times as many lives as Katrina has thus far. We are the descendants of men and women who braved the North Atlantic in wooden boats to build a country in a strange land. Our ancestors traveled thousands of miles in covered wagons, fighting off Indians far braver than those cowards preying on New Orleans' poor. Watching that performance in the Crescent City, it seems clear: We are not the people our parents were. And what are all our Lords Temporal now howling for? Though government failed at every level, they want more government. FDR was right. A "spiritual disintegration" has overtaken us. Government-as-first provider, the big idea of the Great Society, ! has proven to be "a narcotic, a subtle destroyer of the human spirit." Either we get off this narcotic, or it kills us.

God Bless America And God Bless Our Troops

The Four Agreements

1) Be impeccable with your word. Speak with integrity. Say only what you mean. Avoid using the word to speak against yourself or to gossip about others. Use the power of your word in the direction of truth and love.

2) Don't take anything personal. Nothing others do is because of you. What others say and do is a projection of their own reality, their own dream. When you are immune to the opinions and actions of others, you won't be the victim of needless suffering.

3) Don't make assumptions. Find the courage to ask questions and express what you really want. Communicate with others as clearly as you can to avoid misunderstandings, sadness, and drama. With just this one agreement, you can totally transform your life.

4) Always do your best. Your best is going to change from moment to moment; it will be different when you are healthy as opposed to sick. Under any circumstance, simply do your best, and you will avoid self-judgment; self-abuse; and regret.

Come Fly With Me

Come Fly With Me
"Come fly with me"
the Eagle says to you.
Experience all I have to give,
and through my birds eye view.
Come step off that earthly plane,
For a different point of view.
Soar high above lifes troubles and woes,
Let this new vision become a part of you.
Climb high with me,
And touch God's face,
To heights you've only dreamed
about but never understood.
Look through my eyes,
And see all life below
To see how really small you are,
In this larger view I give to you.
But remember always dear one,
Just as the eagle flies,
I too must come back to earth again
Lest I fail and die.
So this is my message to you
Come fly with me on Eagles Wings
Join our connection with Spirit,
Yet always come home to Mother Earth.
Because as that old song once said,
You can be so spiritually minded,
That you're no earthly good.
Come Fly With Me, the Eagle has called on you.
Copyright 2003, All Rights Reserved
Silver Eagle, The Path of the Eagle

Do You Remember

Do you remember?
Do you remember a time from the past?
When playtime was a time spent outdoors
Where imagination was the key
Where you could be anyone you wanted to be?

Do you remember a time from the past?
Where hours upon hours were spent
Playing with cars and trucks
You created a world all of your own.

Do you remember a time from the past?
When being dirty meant nothing much at all
But being covered with dirt and dust
From head to toe, and everywhere in between.

Do you remember a time from the past?
When friends were playmates
Whose friendship you shared
Because it was fun, just to be together.

Do you remember a time from the past?
Before you knew about sex
But that one special moment, first holding hands
Eventually became that first small kiss.

Do you remember a time from the past?
Where being at school was not such a chore
But learning to be creative
Painting a picture with only your fingers.

Do you remember a time from the past?
Maybe the first school dance
Where boys stood on one side
And girls on the other.

Do you remember a time from the past?
When your life was filled with innocence
When yes meant yes, and nothing more
Where there were no hidden agendas.

Do you remember a time from the past?
When an event changed you life
That innocence was gone
Do you remember?
Copyright 2003, All Rights Reserved
Silver Eagle, The Path of the Eagle

Circle of Life

Circle of Life
When "The Lion King" was released years ago, the movie script or story line, and the words of the song Circle of Life were special to me in a certain way. The full meaning took some time for me to realize and recognize. Unfortunately for me it too some significant life experiences and hardships to comprehend them and come to an understanding of them. For the early years of my life, I believe I possessed a certain level of innate spiritual knowledge; though I found I lacked the understanding or the wisdom of that knowledge.
As the song so accurately says, "There's more to be seen than can ever be seen, more to do than can ever be done." Regardless of one's beliefs on life, the opportunities and choices we face each and every moment of life generates another series of new opportunities and choices. However, the path we choose is entirely up to us, and resting upon those choices is the level of understanding and wisdom that we can gain through growth. That growth comes from experiencing life a new each and every day.
Some may choose to argue semantics of a circle or a spiral or a helix of life, by stating that life has a beginning - birth - and an end - death - whereas a circle has no beginning or ending. However we choose to look at it, each choice unwinds a little more of our path of life, and more new experiences. Others may point to life as merely the point where we step onto the circle of life and which direction we begin to follow in our journey in this earth walk. Again we can argue whether there was a life before this one, and whether there will be one after this one, but I ask does it really matter? What is important in right now, this moment, because once it has passed you can never live it again.
Is there an answer? Maybe, maybe not. Obvious is that this present human existence has a beginning and an ending. There are many teachings that deal with aspects of existence, before or after this present one. Based upon personal beliefs and faith gained through knowledge and understanding and wisdom. We all possess the consciousness to seek the expression of our full potential. The choice is ours to take. Do we experience each moment fresh, with a new breath, taking in or absorbing all there is? Or do we experience each moment shaded by a previous event or experience? That is not to say we do not base or make judgements on new experiences based upon passed events or knowledge and wisdom gained from them. But rather to not allow those to cloud our fresh experience.
That potential, innate within each of us is manifested when we recognize that it is within us, and we begin to take steps along the unwinding path, or searching out how big is this circle. Through potential there is growth. A seed that falls on concrete has less potential to grow than does a seed that falls upon soil. Yet the seed that falls on the concrete still has potential to grow, but is going to need external assistance to get to where it can grow.
At the beginning, I alluded to the words of the song Circle of Life. While many I'm sure have listened to the words, I wonder how many have actually heard them. Life is a path unwinding before us, each moment of every day. A journey on a path unwinding represents the potential for an always changing and dynamic journey. However we may never experience that unwinding path if we continue to follow the internal dialogue within ourselves and the dictates of society surrounding us.
For unless we stop the internal dialogue, we will only continue to view and experience life from the same vantage point that we always have, over and over again. We will go through life something like listening to a single song on one CD playing over and over again. Some may experience life through one dogma or teaching, akin to listening to the same 16 or so songs on that one CD. But in order to fully experience life we must be willing to listen to all the CD's available to us, kind of like putting an unlimited number of CD's in the player and putting them on the random play mode. Ideally it would be akin to putting all life's knowledge through the ages on CD's and putting them in the old style jukebox and playing the in the random mode. That is not to say that we must accept everything we hear as our own personal truth, but it is rather to allow our individual potential, that wisdom innate within us to discern what we need, and then let that which we do not to just pass away.
In my humble perspective, once we are able to stop the internal dialogue, the repeat sequence of our pasts, we are then able to see life with a new perspective and vantage point. For even if our daily routine is repetitive, there is enough in everyone's daily routine to become aware of something new each and every day.
Walk in Peace & Love,
Silver Eagle, The Path of the Eagle
October 29, 2003

Welcome to Silver Eagle's Blog

The Road to Atl'aman:

Becoming a Warrior of the Spirit

Greetings and Blessings,
Welcome to my little part of the Internet. On the pages that follow you will read of my dedication, creed, foundation of beliefs, as well as some of my writings, visions and sermons. What I have posted here, is not to persuade you or to even attempt to try to change your own beliefs. Rather, they represent the life experiences, hence the wisdom I have gained over my brief journey on this Earth. It is my hope and prayer that if the following pages do anything, they will cause you to become grounded in your own personal beliefs and faith.
To summarize my belief system in but a few short paragraphs would be a challenge in and of itself. But in an effort to assist you in determining where I'm coming from, I'll give it the old college try ...

My foundation is predominantly a Christian background, with over 20 years of personal study in the Scriptures (biblical and extra-biblical writings). However, in as much as "religions" are man's attempt at a belief in a power greater than themself, they are also man's attempt at retaining some assemblence of control. In my scriptural studies, there was often that question pertaining to dogmas and doctrines ... Why?

I began to learn to question everything, especially the sacred cows of dogma. Always think for yourself. Experiment and learn from all that life has to offer you. Listen to and consider the wisdom of others, and try on their ideas as you might try on a new coat for size. Never buy a new coat just because it seems to fit; it must be practical, within your price range, and look good on you too. And above all, build your own foundation belief system from the wealth of your own personal life experience.

As I began to question everything, I also began to search and seek wisdom and understanding from multiple sources. My first stop on this journey was that of Native American Spirituality. It was here that I came to my first understanding of the interrelatedness of all life ... Mitakuye Oyasin ... We are all related, We are all one. It was also hear that I accepted as my own belief, the sanctity of all life, not just human, but plant, animal and everything else here on the Earth.

The next stop on this journey was in part due to my affinity for Arthurian Legend, and something I read in a book by Ed McGaa, The Rainbow Tribe. This stop was a journey and continued study through Celtic and Druidic beliefs. Here my understanding of Natural Spirituality from Native American Spirituality was deepened. Here also I began to study and evaluate the concept of "The Goddess". I learned that life is a balance, albeit ever so delicate.

I have also made brief stops in Buddism, Wicca, Eastern Mysticism. But one of the most solidifying stops was a journey through Toltec Wisdom and the books of Don Miguel Ruiz and Theun Mares. What I learned to date through my studies, is that life is a mystery. That it our duty to explore that mystery, to gain understanding of our own spirit, and to make our own decisions. That includes lifting the veil of illusion from what our social and familial conditioning.

What I have learned in the past few years, is to neither accept nor reject anything, that is to place no value upon the teachings of mankind. Instead to explore the mystery of life and all that it has to offer. To accept that which fits my understanding in the current moment of time. To allow that which does not fit to sit on the shelf of possible future reference.

One would then question likely where am I at Spiritually? I am here at this moment right where I am supposed to be on my journey. I am truly not the "traditional" Christian, nor the "traditional" pagan. My belief system is a mixture of beliefs, basically Christian yet interwoven with the understandings of my studies to deepen my relationship with all that there is, was and will be. It is firmly seated in the harmony and balance of all life.

As I said at the beginning a short synopsis would be a challenge, but there it is. Again all I ask is that you read with an open heart and mind and allow the spirit within you to discern what, if any of this, fits for you or into your belief system and values.

Mitakuye Oyasin,
A Guardian and Servant of Spirit,

Silver Eagle

Food for Thought

Some time back, before I started this present employment, I wrote of a series of visions and dreams that appeared to affect the south central portion of the United States.

My Visions: The Indictment

Monday, September 19, 2005I Waited To all of those who waitedand for those still waiting...



"He is your friend, your partner, your defender, your dog. You are his life, his love, his leader. He will be yours, faithful and true, to the last beat of his heart. You owe it to him to be worthy of such devotion."

I Waited

I waited with you while the news of the storm began. You patted my head and told me not to worry, let’s wait and see.

I waited while you packed up what you could from the house and put away all the belongings.

You told me to wait just a while, let’s watch the TV.

I waited for you to say let’s go when they said we all had to leave.

I waited when they told you I couldn’t go with you. I sat and watched you go.

I waited from the window while I saw you drive away, you looked back at me and said “Wait out the storm, I’ll be back.”

I waited.

I was so thirsty I drank only the water that was there waiting for me, rising above me.

I waited while boats and people and helicopters went by and asked if there was anyone waiting to be saved.

I did not reply. I knew others like you were waiting longer than me.

I waited while my stomach grew thin and sore longing for food and full of toxins but hoping any moment that someone would stop ....and tell me that you were waiting for me.

I waited while I heard others like me... wailing, swimming in dark waters or tied up burning in the hot sun.

I dreamt someone would bring me to you, waiting for me.

I waited. ..While my aches grow to pain beyond recognition but I wanted you to know I was waiting for you.

I tremble and wait for death now because anything else would be too much to bear.

But I will wait for you forever.

I will wait for you in Heaven.

Our deepest sympathy goes out to the many Americans devastated by Hurricane Katrina who have lost family and friends. They are all in our thoughts and prayers.posted by Mystical Me @ 9:56 PM 5 comments

As I read the blog and then watched the associated web page with the music "I will remember you" The forgotten ones... I couldn't help but think of the last quote I believe that was on the web page from Ghandi, about how you can tell about a nation, a people, an individual, by how well they take care of their pets, or animals in general.

The devastation of "Katrina" was and still is beyond normal comprehension. Yet today, September 23rd, "Rita" is knocking on New Orleans' side door, and getting ready to pound down the southwest Louisanna and north Texas coast door with a battering punch.

Having personally experienced 2004's Charlie, Frances and Jeannie within 15 miles of the storms center, I can to a lesser extent relate to what has happened elsewhere with Ivan last year, Dennis, Katrina and now Rita this year.

I'm sad to say that while I'm proud to be an American, I'm disappointed in the materialistic nature that American society has progressed to. Watching the looting in New Orleans after Katrina of items that need electricity to work (TVs, stereos, etc), taking more clothes than one could possibly wear in a month, more worried about our $40,000 SUV than our pets, the elderly in nursing and assisted living facilities,...right now we suck!

Today as northeast Texas and southwest Louisiana make final preparations for "Rita" I can only hope that the core of society in those areas are of considerably different moral fibre than was witnessed in New Orleans.

When "Katrina" crossed south Florida, she fooled even the professionals at the NHC by turning southwest away from the forecasted track through south-central Florida. Now, today, "Rita" has made a slight drift or turn to the right and no longer has the area between Corpus Christi and Galveston in her sights, but instead between Galveston and Port Arthur. I wonder how many idiots who were subject to the mandatory evacuations will turn around and try to sue the State of Texas because the storm turned and they didn't need to evacuate.

In closing, the subject post is awesome, and cuts to the heart of our society. 10:10 AM

As I consider the course of human events surrounding Hurricane Katrina and now Hurricane Rita, it really forces me to acknowledge that I am right where I am supposed to be in my life at this moment in time. It solidifies my beliefs in almost all “religions” and the basic premise of “Harm No One”, which to my understanding includes all forms of life, and that all life is truly sacred.
As I have written many times about General Douglas MacArthur’s speech from the U.S.S. Missouri on September 2, 1945 in Tokyo Harbor, "It must be of the Spirit, if we are to save the flesh."
Those words at the end of General MacArthur's address from the deck of the U.S.S. Missouri at the end of World War II in the Pacific could not be truer of the condition of mankind. For it is the heart, the soul, t he spirit, the psyche of our make up that defines not only who we are, but also how we face each new day of the gift of life. Having witnessed the effects of the 2004 hurricanes in Central Florida, the devastation of Hurricane Katrina, I am sad to say, That with all our “technical” advances in American society, that our moral and spiritual character is deficient and flawed.
Many I am sure will question my position and I welcome it. They will say that hurricanes are an act of nature or an act of God or some other vague or inane statement. Hurricanes are a natural series of events associated with weather and climate around the globe. For so many years, we Americans, and for that matter all nations, have ignored the cumulative effect of our human actions, . . . Air pollution . . . Water pollution . . . Pollution of the entire Earth through sewage dumping, nuclear wastes, toxic chemicals and more. For years now, since I graduated from high school in 1975 I have heard about and read about the cause and effects of global warming.

Silver Eagle