SOOOOO GOOOOOOOD!!

I'm feelin' sooooo gooooood! (yeah, it's a Homestar reference) right now!

First of all, I just got into University of Scotland, Stirling for next semester's study abroad program. I rock. And I'm SO excited to go! I have to make sure all of my grad requirements are in order, and that we'll be able to afford the program some how, and I'm set! It's going to be so cool. I can tell.

That's all the real NEWS I have lately, so I shall supplement this post with more things I've been thinking about.

- Yesterday the Raptor Center people were flying two hawks out on the quad, and I was watching from a distance away. All of a sudden this shadow came over me, and I looked up to see a WILD red-tail land right above me on a tree limb. Apparently he (or she) had seen the new arrivals and wanted to make friends. The Raptor Center workers were a bit startled by this, but carried on anyway. I stood for a few minutes, watching the interactions between these huge birds of prey, right in the middle of the city.

- I've been reminding myself a lot of a Native American story or parable that I read a while ago. It tells about a grandson who once asked his grandfather why he spent time sitting quietly (or meditating) every day. The grandfather answered that there are two natures within us, one that is creative, and one that is destructive; one generous and one selfish; one of love and one of hate. He said that the two natures were like two wolves that fight within us for the upper hand. The grandson was a little scared, and asked which wolf would win in the end. The grandfather answered "Whichever one we feed."

- I picked up a new book at the library yesterday called "How Shall I Live My Life." It's a compilation of several interviews with people in the ecological and philosophical communities, and it's fascinating. There are a few points that I disagree with, and a couple of times I've thought "gosh, this is a little too 'conspiracy theory' for me," but there are some very good ideas and principles raised. A lot of the first chapter which I'm currently reading is about "waking up" to the world and taking a step out of culture to look at things from a different point of view.
This is my current favorite phrase:

"Compassion is the desire to remove the suffering of others, and love is the desire to reinforce and preserve their happiness. So the two are related. Anyway, by reinforcing our capacity for compassion and love, by concentrating on other people's needs rather than ourselves, we can remove the sort of energy system which creates selective inattention, which creates the capacity for self-deception. This is what the Buddhists have been saying for some two and a half thousand years: compassion and kindness and love empower reason, because you're taking away the energy that drives selfishness and the selective inattention."

I believe that all actions should spring from compassion and love. I'm working on living that out.

-I went to Tai Chi yesterday for the first time! It was a lot of fun, and we get taught by two Chinese guys who don't speak much English at all, so two of the students had to translate. It's facinating getting the meaning and explanation for the movements in the context of the culture that created them. Unfortunatly, I probably won't get to go again, since they changed the meeting time from Sunday to Tuesday, during my night class, but I got to go last night since class was canceled. I plan on working on the Yang Short Form by myself, and then joining up to practice with then again sometime.

Ah! Class time! Gotta go.

Feeling Good

Hello, everyone!

I haven't posted in a while! Here's a quicky: OneRepublic rocked SO hardcore, and they signed my stuff and I got to talk to them. They rock. Halloween at Gabe's house was a perfect time, and in fact, the whole weekend hanging with Gabe, Beth and Lyss (of course!) was awesome. I've recently gotten into baking, and I've made a TON of yummy things in the last 7 days. I've eaten Chipotle, I've had fun dressing Lyss up in new clothes with Beth, I've played around with my little Sly Boy nephiew (and his new baby brother will probably be arriving tomorrow!!), and I got to spend Tuesday exercising my right to vote and watching the results come in.

I just need to say how excited I am about what happened yesterday! While I wasn't totally invested in Obama or McCain in the beginning, I did have my preference, and I didn't realize until least night around six o'clock how much I wanted Obama to win. The more I thought about what the future of this country could be, the more sure I was that he's the one to get us where I hope we'll be by the time I have my own kids.

I, like most people, I think, was glued to CNN from 7 o'clock until midnight, and the whole thing was both facinating and excilerating. Just to know that people all over our country are standing up for their beliefs, and that WE MATTER because our government is OF THE PEOPLE. Now, I know there are some people out there who will say that votes don't count, or that there are people in Washington who are throwing out ballots by the handful in order to further their own agenda, and to that I can only say "I don't believe it." And also, as Athena Currier says in her blog, "don't give me none of that shit."

Cliche as it is, today I am proud to be an American. I have never felt that way, ever in my life. I feel like I can go to Scotland next semester and not have to be sorry for the crazy things my government is doing, because WE THE PEOPLE desire to right wrongs and fix our mistakes. That feels GREAT!

I wasn't here last night when everyone heard the news, but my roommate tells me that there were people running up and down the halls shouting the results, excited and happy. There were people outside doing cartwheels. It feels like even though we may not have voted for the same people, we can finally stand UNITED in our desire for change. No matter what changes may come to us, or that we may effect ourselves, I have a newfound trust in the democratic process in our country, and I believe that we will speak up and be heard, and we will work together to do the right thing.

“If there is anyone out there who still doubts that America is a place where all things are possible, who still wonders if the dream of our founders is alive in our time, who still questions the power of our democracy, tonight is your answer.”

“This is our time to put our people back to work and open doors of opportunity for our kids; to restore prosperity and promote the cause of peace; to reclaim the American dream and reaffirm that fundamental truth, that, out of many, we are one."