Monday, January 30, 2012

Ruminating on animals and the afterlife!

Every Sunday I enjoy reading “Ask the pet editor,” written by Scott Craven, in the Arizona Republic. This Sunday, January 29, 2012, a reader related his belief that after his beloved dog passed away, he’d followed his hunches and found a brand new puppy that he believes to be his old dog reincarnated. In his usual entertaining fashion, Scott assured the reader that he won’t presume to pass judgment on such a personal belief. He then invited others to share their feelings and experiences regarding pet reincarnation. Naturally, I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to share our story:


Dear Scott,

Oh, I hope you don’t regret requesting feedback on domestic animal reincarnation, especially from all the really weird cat people–like me!

My husband, Jim, and I consider ourselves to be spiritual, rather than sacerdotal, so our religious affiliation is with a progressive group that respects all beliefs and encourages independent thinking. We believe in the possibility that traditional church teachings might be wrong regarding animals and the afterlife. Though we don’t feel comfortable settling on any particular tenet in that regard, we like to imagine that if humans can look forward to an afterlife, then the spirits of our animal friends continue on after they leave this plane. That could mean they experience a series of successive material existences, as in reincarnation. Or, as western tradition says about humans, they could pass on to a paradisaical existence--‘heaven,’ if such a place exists.

By not encumbering ourselves with the doctrine of certainty, we comfort ourselves with the belief that one day we’ll again see Ditto, our precious 8-year-old black cat who succumbed on a sunny afternoon last August to a sudden respiratory infection. We also dream of the day we’ll be able to hold Ray Lee, Booger, and Clarence, who lived long and died peacefully in our arms; and Baxter, Tina, Garfield, and Boyfriend, who disappeared to unknown fates; and all the other precious pets who shared so much of their love with us during their sadly short earthly sojourns.

But do their spirits return to us before we pass on to join them? We won’t claim to know that for sure, but we have witnessed one strange phenomenon: Shortly after we say the final ‘goodbye’ to one of our fur-babies, we notice that one or more of our surviving ‘children’ seem to adopt some peculiar personality trait(s) that we enjoyed in our recently ‘late’ fur-child, trait(s) that the surviving feline never seemed to practice before.

Thus, after Ditto left us, our little black-and-white kitty, Obama--so named because he walked into our house literally off the streets at 10:00 p.m. on Tuesday, November 4, 2008--suddenly began to climb into my lap and treat me to several ‘chin bumps’ with the top of his head. He did that several times over the week following Ditto’s death, then settled down and continued to cuddle in peculiarly Obama (the feline variety) fashion.

Jim and I decided that Ditto was just trying to tell us he’s sorry he had to leave us so quickly and he’ll be waiting when we’re ready to join him!

Who knows if that’s true, but it’s nice to think about! After all, how can there be a heaven without our animal friends there with us?!

In peace,
Debbie

Thursday, January 26, 2012

Friday Peace Vigil, Casa Grande, AZ, and surrounding area:

PEACE VIGIL
CASA GRANDE, AZ
Friday, January 27, 2012
4:15 p.m. to 5:15 p.m.
N. Arizola Rd.. & W. Florence Blvd.

Tony Fasline (520-426-0070) will hold his weekly Peace Vigil this Friday, January 27, from 4:15 p.m. to 5:15 p.m., at the corner of N. Arizola Rd. & W. Florence Blvd. in Casa Grande, AZ. Tony invites anyone who is interested in showing their support for ending conflict in the world to join him. Hold out positive thoughts for that!

This week:

What a week this has been. I’ve done some preliminary editing on one video, but had to take time and energy to tape a couple of our properties that are just about ready to rent. Jim’s still got work to do on the last one, but in a few days, I hope to post the videos so people can know what they’re like. And this evening, Jim and I hope to attend the inaugural meeting of a new group here in town to kick off a campaign for another vital human rights issue. I’ll be able to share information about that as soon as I know what the plans are going to be. At any rate, it’s so great to find people here in our little town who believe in helping other people, not just being big shots and trying to get glory for themselves. It’s really refreshing!

Meanwhile, send out your positive thoughts and, for those who are believers, prayers for all the suffering souls all around the world!

Tuesday, January 24, 2012

Letter to the Editor, Casa Grande Dispatch, on peace vigils in Casa Grande

The editor of the Grande Dispatch attached my name instead of that of my peace-loving friend, Tony Fasline, to Tony’s letter which they were kind enough to print. I merely edited Tony’s draft, adding details about massive Iraqi casualties and the effects of the war on the balance of power in the region. For some reason, the editor attached my name to Tony’s work, and they forgot that Jim and I moved from Arizona City to Casa Grande in 2007. Still, we’re grateful for the opportunity to spread the word about the need to keep working for true peace and prosperity around the world.

WAR NO MORE, LET’S TRY PEACE

Every Friday afternoon from 4:15 P. M. until 5:15 P. M., when traffic is heaviest, a retired Catholic priest and Korean War veteran from Ohio stands on one of our busy street corners hoisting a peace sign, protesting war.

One of the various signs he might be holding up reads “WAR NO MORE/LET'S TRY PEACE NOW.” Recently, a motorist hollered out to him, "The war is over"!

Why does this man still stand on the corner? Is the war really over?

Borrowing from a piece written for publication by the Voice of the People, he would answer: "What did this war we just ‘won’ in Iraq accomplish? Only the overthrow of a nickel-and-dime dictator whose weapons of mass destruction we couldn’t find and whose connections to terrorist groups we couldn’t prove.

“We further accomplished the establishment of a creaky, paper-thin ‘democracy’ that will topple like a house of cards in the next few years. Sunnis and Shiites will fight a civil war, followed by the emergence from the ashes of a religious or military dictator who hates America more than Saddam Hussein did.

“We also accomplished the return of more than 4,000 coffins and the return of tens of thousands troops with wounds, missing limbs, and psychological disfigurement, not to mention the deaths and injuries of hundreds of thousands of Iraqi citizens. We also upset a delicate balance of power, leaving not only the region but the world in more danger from extremism than ever before. And for this, we paid hundreds of billions of dollars that will leave this country with stifling debt for decades to come. Meanwhile the U.S. is no safer from terrorism than it was before we started this venture.

“What did the Iraq war accomplish? Only the most massive waste of American life, money, and resources since Vietnam.

“Let's try peace now!”

Rev. Fasline wants to invite people to join the protestor in order to raise the consciousness of many others to the importance of seeking peace, rather than war. Call him at 520-426-0070 to learn of the vigil sites each week. You can also find the location of each Friday’s vigil posted by late Thursday on Debbie Jordan’s Peace Blog at imaginetheworldatpeace.blogspot.com/ or on her two Facebook pages (Debbie Jordan and The World I Imagine - end poverty and war) and Twitter account (@lady4peace).

For America and Peace,
Rev. Anthony Fasline
Debbie Jordan

Thursday, January 19, 2012

Friday Peace Vigil, Casa Grande, AZ, and surrounding area:

PEACE VIGIL
CASA GRANDE, AZ
Friday, January 20, 2012
4:15 p.m. to 5:15 p.m.
N. Peart Rd.. & W. Florence Blvd.

Tony Fasline (520-426-0070) will hold his weekly Peace Vigil this Friday, January 20, from 4:15 p.m. to 5:15 p.m., at the corner of N. Peart Rd. & W. Florence Blvd. in Casa Grande, AZ. Tony invites anyone who is interested in showing their support for ending conflict in the world to join him. Hold out positive thoughts for that!

This week:

I have a great progress report to post this week! Last night Jim and I taped my first two ‘issue’ videos, and now I’m working on the editing process. And now that I pretty much know what I’m doing with Adobe Photoshop Premiere Elements, it’s going very smoothly, so far. I’ve put together the two pieces for my first video and cut out the trash bits, those places where I had trouble saying what I wanted and had to go back and say the same thing over again. All the ‘stars’ know what that’s like. : )

Anyway, next comes adding the titles, at the beginning and the end. And finally, I have to line up the captions and a long crawl that’ll be a vital tool in the first part of the video. Once that’s all done, it’ll be ready to upload and share. Wow!

After that, I have a second video to play with almost the same way, except it’s a lot longer than the first one. So I’m going to be pretty busy through the weekend, at least. Please keep on sending out those positive thoughts, folks. They’re having a positive effect, and I really need them!

Meanwhile, send out your positive thoughts and, for those who are believers, prayers for all the suffering souls all around the world!

Thursday, January 12, 2012

Friday Peace Vigil, Casa Grande, AZ, and surrounding area:

PEACE VIGIL
CASA GRANDE, AZ
Friday, January 13, 2012
4:15 p.m. to 5:15 p.m.
N. Colorado St.. & W. Florence Blvd.

Tony Fasline (520-426-0070) will hold his weekly Peace Vigil this Friday, January 13, from 4:15 p.m. to 5:15 p.m., at the corner of N. Colorado St. and W. Florence Blvd. in Casa Grande, AZ. Tony invites anyone who is interested in showing their support for ending conflict in the world to join him. Hold out positive thoughts for that!

This week:

Last Friday evening, we finally found a local source for video information who is willing to consult when I have problems in the future. Hooray! And thank you, Lord!

This means Jim and I will be taping my for-real videos this evening, then I get to play with the video editing software for a day or two. So I could have something to post by the weekend. Again, hold onto positive thoughts. Just shows the importance of persistence and patience. One of these days, it will make a difference!

Meanwhile, send out your positive thoughts and, for those who are believers, prayers for all the suffering souls all around the world!

Thursday, January 5, 2012

Friday Peace Vigil, Casa Grande, AZ, and surrounding area:

PEACE VIGIL
CASA GRANDE, AZ
Friday, January 6, 2012
4:15 p.m. to 5:15 p.m.
N. Trekell Rd. & W. Florence Blvd.

Tony Fasline (520-426-0070) will hold his weekly Peace Vigil this Friday, January 6, from 4:15 p.m. to 5:15 p.m., at the corner of N. Trekell Rd. & W. Florence Blvd. in Casa Grande, AZ. Tony invites anyone who is interested in showing their support for ending conflict in the world to join him. Hold out positive thoughts for that!

This week:

Still trying to get the video connection between camcorder and computer to work. According to several experts, I’ve got the right equipment but the hardware still won’t work as it’s supposed to. AAARRRGGGHHH!

Anyway, I’m going to consult one more source later this morning, so I may have something positive to report soon. Please, pray, light candles, focus positive tech thoughts in my direction, and maybe something good will happen. One of these days, . . . Oh, heck! This can’t go on forever!

Meanwhile, send out your positive thoughts and, for those who are believers, prayers for all the suffering souls all around the world!