This week I'm sure we can all use some good reading to help distract us from 'certain things'(crypto markets!). A sumptuous feast of wonderful posts await you, as ever, from our passengers. This week we cover many topics, including Freedom, Easy Gardening, Parenting, World Hunger, Mexican Art, Organic Gardening, Matriarchy, Sustainable Living.... and more!
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Anti-Zombie: Curated Truths for the Living #2
Let's look at the world with an open mind. I am sharing posts that give you alternative opinions about the world we live in and perhaps a spark to set people free from the zombies that society can make us.
Time to step outside the box…
You are never going to change the world sat watching reruns, or waiting for change to happen. It has to come from you. @teutonium shares this motivational piece about not being afraid to voice your opinion and after reading it, you will never say 'but what can one person do?' again.
Anti-Zombie: Curated Truths for the Living #1
Let's look at the world with an open mind. I am sharing posts that give you alternative opinions about the world we live in and perhaps a spark to set people free from the zombies that society can make us.
Time to step outside the box…
Have you ever stopped to question what is freedom? What is your freedom and can you be truly free?
After reading @sircork's thoughts on Freedom, is just another word for nothing left to lose, or is it?, shouldn't we all take the red pill and see what is really down the rabbit hole?
How to Grow Your Own Microgreens | Fast and Easy Gardening
Microgreens are one of the quickest, easiest and most nutritious crop that can be grown.
They can be grown indoors in 1-2 weeks and are unbeatable in flavor.Being harvested during the early stage of plant growth, they contain the dense nutrition that was stored in the seed and are so quickly grown that they require very little care.
They are a must grow for anyone interest in healthy food.
ECHO | Solutions for Truly Ending World Hunger (Hint It's Not MONOCROPS OR GMOS), Practical Ideas for Human Evolution & Abundant, Creative Living!!!
When we hear statistics that 1 in every 9 children dies from a hunger related issue or that over 2 billion people out of the ~7.4 billion estimated to be on earth don't get even 1 meal a day while every 12 seconds a child dies of hunger related causes....
...We feel overwhelmed What could we possibly do to help this situation? Overpopulation feels drastically out of our hands as does feeing the world.
Mexican Murals – Commercial Murals for Small Businesses
Many murals are painted just for fun, to add color and life to an otherwise boring gray wall. Others are highly opinionated, raising awareness of an issue, putting things into perspective, or just express a political opinion. Still others are there for yet another purpose: to make a business more attractive, and convince potential customers to spend their money in that place.
Helping Someone Make a Buck?
Normally I would not touch commercial issues with a ten-foot pole. I try to avoid mentioning recognized brand-names or companies, who already enjoy major advantages for being so huge. No need for the extra advertising. If a business has a mural, however, that puts them in a different category: one where mass production is out of the question in the first place, as each mural has to be painted individually. And even if the company has more than one branch, no two murals would look exactly the same, making them already something unique, and thus worth the mention.
What to Eat in Mexico – Cochinita Pibil, the Buried Piglet from the Yucatan
I'm so happy that during my short stay in Mexico City I can do a post on Cochinita Pibil. This specialty from the the Yucatan is highly popular in all parts of Mexico, and is also one of my favorites. What makes me especially happy right now, is that my wife's uncle Cesar has just recently re-opened his taqueria of cochinitas, so I can introduce this delicious dish together with his eatery.
Blogging about Blogging: My Steem Journey so far
Hello to all allies and amigos! I'm back on Steem with a blog post about blogging, a meta blog!
Seriously, according to my feed its been 21 days since I last made a post, and thats a really long time. A REALLY long time. So long in fact, based on how many people have asked me, 'WILL YOU EVAR BLOG AGAIN??', I thought it time to jump back in and enscribe an update onto the blockchain.
What's that you say? I've been gone so long that you don't even remember who I am? Oh boy....
SUSTAINABLE BUILDING AND LIVING : PLEASE HELP ME PROMOTE THE KARUNA DHAM REVIVAL & EXPANSION
Please watch this short 4 minute movie I made for this cause.
Will you please support my crowd-funding efforts here on d.tube and Steemit with your up-vote because I will use ALL SBD rewards from this post to promote this crowd-funding campaign that I am leading. Right now we have no budget for promotions as we run on very minimal donations. If you understand what we are doing, please show your support in the form of an up-vote and re-steem. A small amount can help us get this message out to thousands of people!
Will you join me and learn the 8 Brocades in just 3 minutes, because it might just be the thing you need today! Part 4 of 8
If you are leading a stressful life, which most people are, then I encourage you to try the 8 brocades. I have split the practice up into 8 parts, with each part focusing on one brocade. By the end you will have learned all 8 movements, and can easily practice it every day. The whole 8 parts takes just over 20 minutes, and you can do it almost anywhere. If you have tried yoga but found it too difficult to continue, then the 8 brocades might be for you. The movements are so simple, and so gentle that almost anyone can do this. Even though Qi Gong is one of the most gentle forms, it is a powerful healer and balancer.
Organic Sikkim
During my first trip to India in 1992 I also visited Sikkim, a small Indian state north of Darjeeling, with its beautiful Buddhist monasteries and forest areas.
The region renowned for its natural beauty, dominated by Kanchenjunga, the world´s third highest mountain, has now become famous for being a state with 100% organic agriculture since 2016.
This vision was perceived and realized by Shri Parawan Chamling, a farm boy from Sikkim, who, after a stellar political career, became chief minister of Sikkim in 1994, is now in his fifth term and has been named "India´s greenest chief minister".
Life After Life Story. My entry to to Steemit Vision Quest - Week 8: Life After Life.
I have never been in this place before. It looks like a bit bright library that keeps a lot of books. I walk down the hall and see that there is an open book lies on the shelf in front of me. It triggers my interest. I know that it has a lot of stories in it and I am tempted to have a look. I have so many questions, so many stories that I would like to know. I'm attracted to all the secrets that it keeps. I am concerned about the issues that arise in it. I'm interested in people who are the protagonists of these stories. And most of all I wonder if there is a place for me in all of this stories?
Meet 
and learn how PLANTS and TREES PLAY MUSIC and it profound effect on educating and healing people
In my life, there are always a lot of "coincidences" that I do not consider as such. For me, they are a kind of road signs on my road of Life that help me navigate through it. Last weekone more of such 'coincidence' gave me one of the new directions to follow.
I was thinking of going to Damanhur - an amazing art and spiritual community of people in Italy that I visited several times and even wrote two articles about: Damanhur - con te * The 8 Miracle of the World or the amazing art and eco-community in Piedmont, Italy [Part 1]and Damanhur - 8th Wonder of the World or an amazing art and eco-community in Italy [Part 2]. I had this though going back over and over again and since we are in Europe now it would not be that hard to organise. So it was pretty much just athoughth until one day I suddenly read a message from @yvesoler or Tigrilla Gardenia - a resident of Damanhur, who left a comment under one of my articles about Damanhur. What a nice coincidence, right? Bear with me and you will see the full picture.
Make Me Smile Challenge- My Son and His Innocent, Witty and Smart Answers
By now, a lot of you do know that I am a super-huge fan of my son. Hahaha, I am super crazy about him and I could go on and on about how he makes me happy and makes me smile a lot! There are many other things that make me smile too, but for now I'd like to talk about my son.
My son, Faateh, who turned 4 on 31st october, 2017 is a super-smart, sensitive, witty and innocent boy. He is extremely observant and pays attention to detail. He is quite innocent and often appears to be quite naive too, but sometimes his answers, replies and suggestions are so striking and witty that I feel as if I am talking to an adult. Whatever his response to something is- innocent or witty, he is one person who makes me smile a lot! The photo below is from when he just turned 1.
Shary's Writing Prompt Contest- Results of Contest #3
https://steemitimages.com/0x0/https://ipfs.busy.org/ipfs/QmaEFiNyPpLwAUjBaj3E28T75tj5TDSKL1hMtoXd9aM1fn
Hey everyone. Hope all of you are good. I was supposed to announce the results of the fourth contest about 3 days back, but I was just so occupied with somethings and so overwhelmed with everything that I decided to go slow. Sorry about the delay guys. Let's just cut the chase and get to the point.
Winner of Contest #4
This time I did receive a lot of entries- 9 to be precise which is the maximum number of entries I have gotten so far on a contest. I believe this is because of the help by my good friend @mariannewest who included my contest in her list of contests in the #freewrite challenge posts she does. I am thankful to her and really happy with the response I received this time.
What's the Best Thing a Child Has Taught You??
If you follow me or have read a few of my blogposts, you would know how big of a fan I am of my son and how I keep reiterating that he is the biggest and the most important influence as well as teacher in my life. Undoubtedly, he has taught me many important lessons and literally, every day this beautiful, amazing and compassionate 4 year old boy teaches me a new and beautiful lesson.
Little Teachers
Kids really get a raw deal. Most people just assume they're ignorant because they don't speak properly, stumble often, and are confused by the confusing rules of the adult world. Then at the same time, they're expected to get everything right, keep their incredibly powerful emotions in check, be quiet for large chunks of time in the midst of such an amazing world, and all kinds of other crazy stuff like eat foods they don't like. Can you imagine treating a friend this way? And yet we love them so much. And despite how much amazing wisdom we believe we are showering them with about colors and numbers and letters, they teach us so much more. Fresh from the factory, I always say. They have a deep and perfect understanding of a lot of important things. If you've never asked a child about spiritual matters, I highly recommend it. They also understand love, why grass and mud are totally amazing, that angels are everywhere, and the perfect beauty of being read to.
So Glad for Steemit: Solarsupermama's Slightly Different Etiquette Rules
It's been one of those days. You know, one of those days I had to walk out the door and down the road into the jungle to avoid biting off the head of someone I actually love in real life. I've just had it with a whole host of crap that has nothing to do with any of them, but when they start trying to beat each other with hard plastic on top of the rest of the madness, sometimes I just can't hold it together. Now my kids all know, even the little ones, that when I go out the door for a walk without them, I am a potential explosion hazard. Moving my body, listening to the rustling of animals in the jungle, looking at all the massive and beautiful trees, and feeling the intense heat of the sun are all very good for me. It makes a big difference.
Freedom Challenge #4 Wrap Up + Winners Announced!
Announcing the winners of the 4rd Freedom Challenge: "If you lived in a free world how would your life be different?"
And yet here we are decisive and optimistic about the change we can make and are taking part of. In part thanks to this amazing platform steemit and most especially to the people that are coming together, sharing from their heart and connecting together in healing, learning and living. As different as we all are there are so many ways that we can relate and this expression is helping to bring us together in our quest for freedom.
Steemit Vision Quest - Life After Life
@cabelindsay, thank you for hosting the Steemit Vision Quest #8!
I am honored to participate in this quest prompt. Thank you for encouraging me to share my thoughts on Life After Life.
With Great Spirit, we bring you Steemit Vision Quest - Week 8. A Vision Quest is a dedicated search for inspiration. In this way, we bring our collective Visions into focus, prompted by the question: What Does My Higher Self See?
I was prompted to ask myself "What does my higher self see?" and to document my process.
I chose to write a poem to explore a thought I had while meditating the other night. I was following my breath as it moved, slowed and continued over and over. The breath is a place I often spend time with during a meditation. It is a sacred space.
If I lived in a free world how would my life be different?
If there was no gravity in this world my body would be free from its pull. I wonder if I were completely free, would I dissolve and be carried off into space like a flower's pollen on the wind? Swirling to and fro and twisting into eternity.
This is my unofficial response to Freedom Challenge #4: If you lived in a free world how would your life be different?. There are just two days left to enter!
Today I was hiking in the woods and on my way up a dirt road, on the side of the road I saw that someone had done their business there. I didn't see their business but the papers left behind had clues on them.
UTOPIA .. An Adventure Story .. Part 3 .. 'The House of the Four Mothers'
Randell the plastic trader was on his way back to the Valley of the Caves from the ancient landfill, swinging old plastic containers tied together with hemp twine and singing a simple tune. There, out of the corner of his eye he spotted a slight movement in a shadowy crevice in the cliff face above him. Suddenly alert, he stopped humming the tune he'd been composing and stood stock still in the shadow of a fig tree.
All was silent in the narrow, steep sided gully, but for the buzzing of flies in the noonday heat. Randell stood and watched for another sign of movement. After some minutes, there was a clattering of falling pebbles and then the head of a boy, pale and frightened peeked out from the crack in the rock face. It was young Barak, who'd escaped the pack of wolves three nights earlier and who had been hiding there ever since. At first Randell didn't recognise his young brother Barak - so pale and covered with dust was he.
Fighting with your mom, does it do you any good?
Fighting with your mom, does it do you any good?
Trick question.
I must admit I just wrote a user manual for myself in how to handle my mom, the title says: 'Read this before talking to your mom.' So that I won't fall in to the same trap again and again. By trap I mean my own trap.
My own traps are: ( They've got a lot to do with wanting things from her)
Wanting her to understand me
Wanting her to have the right ideas about me ( My right ones, not her right ones, right? 😉)
Wanting her to respect my choices
Wanting her to STOP trying to convince me to do things her way.
Portuguese Bullfights
As you know, I'm born and raised a bit south of the Douro River, in Portugal. It's a beautiful city, check @portugalcoin's posts for some great photos of this place! And also this new channel @portoc! I can't say my bedroom view was exactly this one, but here's a small photo of Porto:
One of the most ancient traditions we have in this country is bullfights. Some days ago I was reading about how bullfighting had a huge decline in this town since the XVIII century, regardless of numerous attempts to restart them. Tauromaquic companies put efforts by building arenas and promoting the events but the population just thought they were cruel and showed their disapproval and repudiation. Most companies went bankrupt within some years and all arenas simply disappeared.
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