Follow the yellow brick road, follow the yellow brick road….

Indeed, do follow the yellow brick road, but first make sure that it’s strong and healthy or, else, who knows where you’ll end up. The Wizard of Oz is chock full of symbols, just one symbol after another, even in places where you think they aren’t. And the yellow brick road represents your 3rd chakra, your gut instinct….and you do want a strong 3rd chakra (if you don’t know about the chakras, just trust me, for I am trustworthy)…otherwise, you’ll end up like me…a sad, frightened lunatic, a puppet on many strings.

Dorothy begins her trip.

Other examples of symbols include:

1. the tornado: a symbol of chaos that lands in everyone’s life from time to time
2. Toto, the dog: “toto” is Latin for “everything”; that is, we have everything we need with us at all times, no matter what material possessions we lose.
3. The Wizard of Oz: after the long, arduous trip to Oz, Dorothy and her friends find out that he’s a fraud; that is, because we have everything, all of the answers are within us, we shouldn’t  look to experts to solve our problems…they can help (if they’re good), but we need to do the (internal) work.

If you do want to learn more about all the symbols, you might want to listen to a free audio workshop by Caroline Myss (my very own Wizard…a good one)…it’s fascinating….just scroll all the way down and then scroll all the way down again, under “Free Streaming Audio and Video” to “Taking the Yellow Brick Road”.

Peter Pan and Wendy by J.M. Barrie

Look at what I found in the laundry room:

It’s a 1969 edition of Peter Pan. I just love the look of it. It looks old  and beautiful and comforting, which is why I’m putting it up here. New books just don’t have this look (or very rarely, if at all).

Haven’t read it yet. (Since childhood, I knew that a boy not interested in growing up spelled trouble.) But, we could watch Disney’s version of the story, here.

Defy Gravity by Caroline Myss

I will be upfront with you. I LOVE Caroline Myss. I believe just about every word she utters. I first read her book, “Anatomy of the Spirit”, during a difficult time, years ago, and it helped. I read it a few times over. I will read it again.

I read her latest book, “Defy Gravity”, a few weeks ago…..

Caroline Myss in conversation with a workshop participant

In this book, Caroline writes that people cannot heal through reason or emotions, only through the soul. Grace (which is accessed through prayer) is the conduit for that healing.

Unfortunately, we are locked in our control-driven ego, which is terrified of how our life would change, how justice would not be served, should we enter a state of grace.

How do we begin to get from here to there? Let go of fear and forgive (ie. surrender). And that is also done through the power of prayer and the grace that it brings.

A few of Caroline’s thoughts:

On prayer:

“The transformative link that drew a person “out of the mind” and into an altered state of consciousness, however slight and however brief, [is] prayer.”

On forgiveness:

“Forgiveness is your release from the hell of wanting to know what cannot be known and from wanting to see others suffer because they have hurt you.”

Caroline Myss teaching a workshop.
Photo: courtesy of Connie Morain Baker

On releasing fear:

“If you were to shed the fears that burden you ego, what would remain would be a clear intuitive soul that would effortlessly respond to others.”

On why things happen as they do:

“People’s actions are driven by forces that have nothing to do with you, even though you might get harmed if you stand in their way. Or you might hurt those who stand in your way – even if you care deeply for them.”

If you love Caroline too or you’re simply curious, you’re in luck. She is hosting a free, live, online event about sacred contracts….the contracts we signed before our incarnation concerning  who we signed up to be, who we signed up to meet, and what we signed up to experience. This event takes place on May 7, 7:30 -9:00 p.m..

Back to the Laundry Room…

…it’s another beautiful day in the laundry room…the sun is shining warmly, the machines are humming, people are chatting. It’s very much a meeting place, which is why Frankie comes here often ( and, like me, he comes to see if there are any new books).

Sometimes, I run into him in the hallways, but in the  laundry room there’s always time to talk. We talk about wars Canada has been involved in, politics, news in the building…

Today, he told me the following joke:

Grandson: “Grandpa, can you say ‘ribbit’?”

Grandpa: “Why?”

Grandson: “Grandma said that after you croak she’ll take us to Disneyland.”

Well, I thought it was funny.

The Thing About Photos…

As I’ve observed other blogs, it has occurred to me that this blog is destined to suffer from a lack of super-awesome photos:

1. it’s a book blog
2. I hardly ever have an opportunity to get out

So, I’ve decided to commit myself to, once in a blue moon, when I get my hands on some original, super-awesome (or even just moderately awesome or somewhat cool) photos, posting them here for no apparent reason at all. THAT should spruce things up.

In the meantime, here are pictures of a goose and a squirrel (aaaawsommme!) that I took with my wimpy camera during a walk down the block.

Canada Writes

Have you been secretly writing great poetry? Or even if you don’t think it’s that great, why not let a panel of judges decide? The Canada Council for the Arts is running it’s annual poetry contest. You can submit your original, unpublished, poem or poetry collection here. But don’t think or write for too long, the contest closes May 1, 2012.

“The Incredible Hulk Comes to Town” or “Comic Books are Books Too”

My own experience with comic books doesn’t go beyond a few Archie Comics that I read in grade 6. (My friend had STACKS of them at his house.)

But, you don’t even have to be a comic book fan to appreciate Comiccon 2012 in Ottawa. Imagine The Incredible Hulk and Captain Jean-Luc Picard in the same room! (I certainly watched those shows.)

Needless to say, there will be many stars of the comic book world at this conference.

Comiccon will take place from May 12 -13 at the CE Centre, 4899 Uplands Drive, Ottawa. Tickets are $25 for a Saturday pass, $20 for a Sunday pass, $35 for a weekend pass.

There’s a Wocket in My Pocket by Dr.Seuss

Today, I went to visit a dear friend of mine and her one-year-old daughter, who LOVES her books. So, I thought, I’d say a few words about one of her favourites…

The full title of this little book is: “There’s a Wocket in My Pocket: Dr. Seuss’s Book of Ridiculous Rhymes” and that about describes the book as well as provides an example of the types of rhymes it contains.

My personal favourite rhymes is: “But that Nooth Grush on my toothbrush … well, some are nice, but he is not.”

And so the rhymes go until (and beyond) the exciting climax towards the end of the book concerning who all is in the cellar.

It’s a delightful book for pre-schoolers that you won’t mind reading over and over and over.

I have a follower! Thank you, Rosamond Bain. Wooohoo!

The Dalai Lama will be in Ottawa on April 28

…which is why I thought it may be a good time to look at “Emotional Awareness: Overcoming The Obstacles to Psychological Balance and Compassion”, a book that I’ve been keeping in my pile of books to read.

The book is an account of conversations between Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th Dalai Lama, and Paul Ekman, PhD., who discuss emotions, from various perspectives, such as philosophy, science, spirituality and ethics. Focus is given to topics that address issues such as managing emotions, anger and forgiveness and, most of all, compassion. Here’s an audio excerpt  from those conversations.

The book has a certain level of organization based on polarities such as East vs. West, biology vs. spirituality, destruction vs. construction and anger vs. compassion. And although I have a philosophical bend to my mind and respect the level of knowledge of both of these men, I found that you need to be really interested in the nitty-gritty of the topics discussed and that, often, points that were being made were left wide open, questions were raised and not quite answered.

This book has much to offer, but will not likely be enjoyed by the layman.