This is a very interesting project and web site working towards world peace via conflict resolution. The stories are deeply personal and really have an effect as you read them.

Money is something that most everyone worries about at one time or another. It can be the sole reason you go to work, or can be an excuse not to do something you really want to do. Or you can start to feel like the universe is abundant and that you can always create what you really want in life. That’s the premise of Creating Money, a really great book that will change your whole outlook on money.

But first you have to get past the fact that it’s written by Orin and DaBen, two spirit guides who speak through their human authors. And the 70s-esque cover which I’m not going to even put on this website because it’s just too cheesy. But if you can suspend the little voice inside you saying “these guys are crazy hippies and this is all too out there for me” you’ll really get a lot out of this book.

According to the book trusting in yourself and the universe, and putting that energy out there, is what will bring you more abundance. Worrying about money and feeling like there’s never enough will just keep you in a place where you won’t attract something better. And following your dreams, even if it seems like it won’t pay off financially at first, will always bring you more money and success than staying in a safe job or situation that isn’t right for you.

John O’Donohue is an amazing author of books which explore celtic pre-christian notions of spirituality. His works are a real antidote to our fast-paced consumerism culture. My favorite of his is Anam Cara, which means soul friend in Gaelic. He talks about the importance of friendship, deep and intense friendships which develop over a lifetime. And he really encourages the reader to be true to their own buried yearnings and to know themselves better. He feels that the highest purpose for us is to be creative. A really inspiring read.

“A friend is a loved one who awakens your life in order to free the wild possibilities within you.” John O’Donohue, Anam Cara

There’s a huge disconnect between what many Americans think of as Irish and what it really means to be Irish. I think a lot of the disconnect stems from the fact that our immigrant ancestors came here from abject poverty and terrible conditions. A lot of them never wanted to go back to Ireland again and wanted to forget all about it. My grandmother on my father’s side called it the “Veil of Tears” and never wanted my dad and aunts and uncles to learn gaelic. She wanted them to totally assimilate into American culture.

The end result is that I think a lot of us Irish Americans are missing a vital part of our background, the language, the pagean religion…a lot that was not only taken from us with so many invasions of the island of Ireland but also that we let go ourselves over the years.

So, what does it mean to be Irish? I’m not entirely sure yet. I ended up marrying an Irish guy who moved here 6 years ago, and in getting to know his family, I’m starting to understand a little bit. First off, you have to own land. Gone With the Wind was very true to that theme, with Scarlett O’Hara hanging on for dear life to her Tara home. My husband was obsessed with buying a house. His grandmother has been instilling the virtues of owning property in him for his whole life. It makes sense if you think about Irish history why it would be important to own land.

The other thing I’ve learned is that there is Irish curry. And you don’t eat it with rice, you can only eat it with chips (french fries). And for some bizarre reason in Ireland you can only get it in a chinese place! Happy St. Patrick’s Day.

And if there ever is gonna be healing
There has to be remembering
And then grieving
So that there then can be forgiving
There has to be knowledge and understanding

–Sinead O’Connor, Famine

My Lobotomy is such a fascinating radio program I heard on NPR once, about a man named Howard Dully who had a lobotomy at a very young age, and when he got older, decided to do some research and talk to his family to find out more about it. He always felt different, as if something had been taken away from him, and his family never spoke of the incident. It’s really sad that this barbaric practice went on for so long, in the face of so much evidence that it’s success rate was spotty at best. And so many people’s lives were destroyed by it, usually poor people or people in a bad position without the means to advocate for themselves. And so amazing that in the end Howard was able to find some peace and healing by producing this radio documentary and talking to other victims, and his father.

In art therapy materials class we made a representation of our families out of non-hardening clay. I used Crayola clay. My family ended up all melding together, their clay bodies that is, and there was a little nest with eggs in it. It’s meant to be a healing way of expressing how you feel in your family dynamic. I took it home where it sat on the kitchen table and my husband said, “What the hell is that? That’s just scary.” I laughed and said, “It’s my family, and you’re that blue being melting into me.”

My family — detail

Just watched Born Into Brothels, what a great film. It follows a photographer, Zana Briski, as she lives in the red light district of Calcutta documenting life there. She becomes very attached to the children who live in the brothels and teaches them how to take photographs. The children are totally transformed from the experience, finding a great deal of joy in making art. The film really showed the power of art to heal and to change lives. It’s a really touching and bittersweet film.

Just finished reading The Dance of Fear by one of my favorite authors Harriet Lerner. Her ideas about how to deal with other people and our own anxieties are really practical and make a lot of common sense.

I loved the section on workplace anxiety. She takes systems theory and applies it to the workplace, making the point that someone is always going to dump anxiety on you, and you can either pass it along or make it stop with you.

Also she doesn’t say that you should get over or move beyond your fear, but that you should recognize it, feel it, and that it can be a sign. It’s important to recognize your intuition, which women are often taught to ignore, and watch out for danger in many cases. But in others, it’s a sign that you need to do the thing that scares you because it will help you grow. And next time you probably won’t be as scared.