Weam Namou's Blog, page 12

An Inspiring Firefighter / Paramedic

There’s so much noise out in the world, with stories that don’t bring joy or peace. They just take space, bring along negativity, and really serve no one. Then there are stories that do the exact opposite. Like the story of Jeff Schemansky, a firefighter and paramedic at the Birmingham Fire Department. Jeff spent several years creating a free app called Emergency Medical Form to help make the world a safer place.

The call to be become a firefighter came knocking on Jeff’s door in 2005 when the house he grew up in caught on fire. Thankfully no one was hurt and the fire department was able to put the fire out in time to prevent it from spreading. However, there was a lot of smoke and water damage. A fire restoration company called Ricketts restoration fixed up and restored his house. 

“During the process, I would try and help out with what I could,” Jeff said.

After the house was restored and move in ready, the owner of Ricketts restoration offered Jeff a job to work with him and the company. While working, Jeff wanted to instead of fixing up the houses, put the fires out.

“I remember thinking to myself in high school what an awesome job a firefighter would be,” he said. “I looked into becoming a firefighter and the best chances were also to become an EMT or Paramedic.”  

With the support of his parents who helped him pay for the fire academy and his training as an EMT to paramedic, Jeff was able to work on the side with Ricketts restoration while going to school. He went to Macomb Community College and obtained his EMT and then the Macomb Fire Academy for his firefighter 1 and 2 certificates. He continued from there into the Medstar Paramedic Program and obtained his NREMT and paramedic license. After that, he had numerous opportunities to work in the fire service and medical field – from working for Universal Macomb Ambulance to working with nurses and doctors at Crittenton Hospital in the ER as an emergency department technician.

“After years of following my passion, I was offered a job as a professional firefighter for the City of Birmingham,” he said. “Throughout the process I leaned to always follow your passion and do what you believe in. I’m thankful for the learning experiences and inspiration from the people I have had the pleasure of working with along the way.”

One of his passions creating a free app called Emergency Medical Form. During every emergency medical call, first responders need in-depth information regarding medical history, medications, allergies, and contact data. Understanding the real-world challenges this presents for first responders, Jeff realized that there had to be a better way to get life-saving information from patients. The idea was simple – provide an easy way for people to fill out this vital information well in advance and allow first responders easy access through an app.

Jeff points out that when you or a loved one needs emergency medical treatment, time is of the essence. There’s a reason ambulances and fire trucks have the right to stop traffic and go through red lights. Unfortunately, no matter how quickly first responders get to the scene they are always slowed down by one process: upon arrival they must first spend critical time asking very basic questions about personal information and medical history in order to administer the correct treatment.

In certain cases, this information is difficult to attain. What if you hit your head and can’t remember your name or medications? What if you’re having a heart attack or stroke and physically can’t answer? What if you don’t speak English or have a severe allergy? The list of “What if” scenarios go on and on.

But what if your EMT knew your name, current medications, and important medical history before they arrived on the scene? Instead of wasting precious moments trying to recall your personal information, medications, and past medical issues they can be administering treatment at life-saving speed. That’s the goal of Emergency Medical Form: to prepare first responders with the critical information needed to treat a patient before they arrive on the scene.

 

“When seconds can literally be the difference between life and death, every one counts,” said Jeff. “We’re not just saving time with the Emergency Medical Form. We’re saving lives.”

Seeing his passion and his dedication, I asked Jeff what it means for him to be a firefighter/paramedic. He said, “It means to try your best and do all that you can, not just for yourself but others. It means you get to ride in a fire truck and work with some of the most amazing people in the world. There’s a saying in the fire service and it goes like ‘Living the dream’ and that’s what it is a service to the community. It’s more than just a job, it’s who we are.”

To sign up for Emergency Medical Form (it’s incredibly simple), visit https://www.emergencymedicalform.com/

and check out and like their Facebook page Emergency Medical Form

Interview with USA Today Bestselling Author

Janel Gradowski is a USA Today and Amazon #1 bestselling author who emailed me earlier this year inquiring about the Path of Consciousness spiritual and writing retreat. Checking out her website, I was impressed by her accomplishments and immediately drawn to all seven of her book covers. They portray a smart, strong and unique woman who is creative in many ways and places, including in the kitchen.

“My book covers always hint at what will happen in the story,” she later told me. “It could be the culinary competition that my main character, Amy, is competing in or events that are happening in her life. Since it’s a cozy mystery series, there’s also a skull and crossbones included somewhere on every cover. I love that my cover artist, Lyndsey Lewellen, always does a good job in conveying Amy’s confidence and creativity.”

Janel and I have several similarities: we care how women are portrayed in our books and on the book covers; we are both prolific writers; coffee is an integral part of her writing process; exploring new places and going on culinary adventures are a few of the passions that fuel our creativity.

Beyond her culinary mystery series, Janel has also had many flash fiction stories, her first writing love, published both online and in print. Her next book will be in the women’s fiction genre. The main character is a solo entrepreneur who has worked so hard to establish herself in the business world that the rest of her life has fallen apart.

“The new story will detail how the main character will go from living only for her work to enjoying her life again,” Janel said. “I think it’s something that a lot of women can relate to, putting ourselves last in order to help everyone else.”

I definitely can relate to that. In my four-part memoir series, Healing Wisdom for a Wounded World: My Life-Changing Journey Through a Shamanic School, I share how hard I worked on myself to establish boundaries, follow my dreams, and allow myself self-care.

After a few months of emails, I met Janel in person at the spiritual and writing retreat. We connected on a deeper level. Within a matter of three weeks, we saw each other several times even though the drive to my side of town is some 90 minutes. One reason is that, outside of writing, we have a love and appreciation for a lot of similar things. In our last gathering, we barely discussed writing and yet we had a great time because, after all, there’s more to life than writing. There’s life!

I’ve often advised emerging writers that, along the writing journey, it’s important that they keep their priorities straight and have a balance rather than obsess over their writing. What’s the use of having a great book if you have a lousy life? These days especially, having a great life can easily translate into a great book.

[image error]At The Path of Consciousness Spiritual & Writing Retreat

Janel lives in rural central Michigan surrounded by farm fields and wildlife, a community that has a yearly Corn Festival. Her family consists of her husband, a son, a daughter and one golden retriever. She has a plant named Hitch. She followed her intuition, started her writing career later in life but easily succeeded. She’s into things like energy healing, aromatherapy, malas, mantras, journaling, law of attraction, manifesting, energy crystals and smudging. She loves that her hair is turning gray, says that “Silver hair rocks!” and her favorite quote is by George Eliot: “It’s never too late to be what you might have been.”

Given her personality and involvement in spiritual work, Janel and I evidently also have many similar beliefs. Janel believes that the right thing to do is not always the easiest; the more one uses their intuition, the stronger it becomes; a person is in charge of the vibes that he/she projects into the world; we get what we focus on – thoughts become reality. And my favorite belief of hers – which I learned through my shamanic apprenticeship and which I’ve been teaching for years now – is “When I change the stories I tell myself about my life, I change how I live my life.”

http://www.janelgradowski.com

The Jobs Club

I met Luther Taylor III last month when he asked me to speak at The Jobs Club, a career/support group that meets at Renaissance Unity in Warren and Unity of Royal Oak. He explained that he volunteers as a program coordinator for The Jobs Club, where he helps job seekers find work and entrepreneurs increase their business through networking. He also teaches beginners how to use LinkedIn for either their job search or for business purposes, use time management when schedule program, and much more.

The first thing I noticed about Luther is his professionalism, knowledge and a sincere compassion about helping others succeed in life. I have great respect for people who want to make a difference in the lives of individuals and in the community at large. Their stories are often so inspirational, they leave us feeling that we’ve learned and grown as a result of their experiences.  

Luther comes from a generation of workaholics on his paternal side of the family. He says, “My father was a workaholic, my grandfather was a workaholic, and his father before that was a workaholic. We always worked hard, sweated, accomplished many different tasks, and learned the true value of a dollar.”

Coming from a respectable family his mother taught his choices, and his father taught him responsibilities.

“Knowing I have to start somewhere below and work my way up, I had to soon learn to stand on my own two feet because I didn’t want my parents to carry me through forever,” he said.

After graduating from high school, he received his Associate Degree from a community college a few years later. Having a strong interest in computers, he felt it was time to enter into the workforce. He started searching for a job and found it was difficult. Back then, we didn’t have the Internet, text messengers, cell phones, iPods’, LinkedIn, Twitter, or Indeed.com. He did things the old fashioned way which was looking through the want-ads, going to job fairs, applying at different contracting companies, and spending some days at the unemployment office.

“I learned that I was now in the real world,” he said.  “I had to face rejections and disappointments like everyone else. But out of all of this I grew up some, and learned to be grateful for things I do have.”

In March 1993, he found his first temporary job, and for 10 ½ years, I worked different contracting jobs either being a fill-in or an extra. It was hard at first moving from one company to another, but after a while he grew used to it.

“Some worked out and some didn’t,” he said, “but out of each one of the temporary jobs I learned a lot on what it’s like meeting deadlines, dealing with stress, how the companies run, and how to deal with people. “

In September 2003, Luther found his first permanent job. He was grateful to have finally found a place to settle at where it paid good money and had great benefits. In June 2008, he heard about the job searchers group and sat in on one of their meetings.

“I didn’t think it was for me at first because I had a permanent job, but people looked at me and saw that this person was really into careers and life,” he said. “Then two years later in July 2010, I was surprised they asked me to take over. When I took over and renamed it Jobs Club, I didn’t think I had the leadership experience, but many people saw in me that I could do it, I can make a different in people’s lives.”

Luther says that it was hard the first few months, but with God’s help, he came up with ideas on what he needed to do to make it better and convenient for anyone that wanted to participate. It can be job seekers looking for work, entrepreneurs looking to increase their business, retirees wanting to go back to work, college graduates looking for a promising opportunity, speakers who would like to share inspiring lessons to help us on our journey, or anyone that enjoys social media.

“With me having come a long way, and being blessed, I want to give and show with my expertise that they themselves are blessed,” he said. “They can do anything if they have a plan, have patience, and the support they need.”

The Jobs Club is for anyone who wants to find a career or to start their own dream business.

“We all have stories to share, and we need to support one another,” he said. “Many people are now saying that Jobs Club is an awesome group, and people are not just getting jobs, but they’re also getting hope, motivation, happiness, and learning experiences.”

People are able to network, share ideas, meet new people, and plan for a better tomorrow.

“I guess I proved to myself I can really accomplish something,” said Luther.

He sure did!

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The Ageless Wisdom Teachings

Last Christmas, David Zimmerman hosted a Christmas party for the Edgar Casey group. I attending the party through a mutual friend, Marie Gibbons, and much enjoyed a lecture David presented for his guests prior to dinner. He talked about several interesting topics, providing us with new insights suitable for our time and setting us up emotionally and spiritually for the New Year. I had never met David before but by the time I left his home, I learned quite a bit about him.  

David is a retired GM executive and a Vietnam War Veteran. He studied Art at the Fort Wayne Art Institute which is now the art department for Indian University, is a graduate of Claregate College of England, and a lifelong student of The Ageless Wisdom Teachings. He’s also a lecturer, producer and generous supporter of educational DVD’s and writings on esoteric subjects throughout the United States, England, Australia, Europe, and South Africa.

The Ageless Wisdom Teachings, which has been handed down from generation to generation, refers to an ancient body of teachings regarding the nature of our cosmos, how it devolved from an energetic unity known as the One Life, the laws by which it operates, and humanity’s evolutionary role within it. It is the source of all spiritual teachings and religious traditions. Its primary focus is on the energetic structure of the universe, the evolution of consciousness, the spiritual reality of our lives as humans, and the development of “right human relations.”

According to the website http://www.esotericstudies.net, The Ageless Wisdom Teachings’ emphasis on all life as energy is being confirmed by the current work in cosmology and quantum physics. No student of the Ageless Wisdom is expected to accept any of the teachings without testing them. As the Tibetan says, “If the teaching conveyed calls forth a response from the illumined mind of the worker in the world, and brings a flashing forth of intuition, then let that teaching be accepted. But not otherwise.” 

As for Claregate College of England, the idea was first started by Dr. Douglas Baker who established a college in the United States in 1972. The college was the first of its kind to offer a systematized course in the Esoteric Sciences. The venture proved very popular and soon enabled a college to be opened in England. Claregate College was thus founded in Potters Bar, Hertfordshire in 1977. Hundreds of students attended the college for weekend seminars and evening classes; the college attracted groups from America who came for summer seminars and was the base for Dr. Baker’s extensive lecture tours around England. The college also served as a research center, where information was gathered from various projects involved in the effects of magnetism, color, sound, radionics and flower remedies on the human organism.

Due to expensive travel and time delay, many people later found it difficult to undertake a systematic course of studies which requires attendance and an educational institution.  It was in response to these needs that The Claregate Correspondence Course was inaugurated, thereby giving people all over the world the opportunity to study the fascinating field of the Esoteric Sciences.

David’s educational background and experiences in life make him a sought after lecturer and an interesting conversationalist. During my interview with him, he talked about the Lost City of Atlantis. It was the Greek philosopher Plato who told the story of Atlantis around 360 B.C. He said that the founders of Atlantis were half-god and half-human who created a utopian civilization and became a great naval power. The story goes that there was a catastrophic destruction of this ancient civilization which some say was fictional and others believe is true. Regardless, this place reminds me a lot of ancient Mesopotamia and conversations like this allow for a person to think, to imagine, to perhaps learn something new.

David recently shared two paintings with me to share with my readers: one is by his friend and artist Don Kruse, who like David happens to be a Theosophist. This famous American folk tale has a universal mythological significance. The fox, known as Brer Foxin in the story, was always at odds with the wile rabbit and desperately wanted to catch him. One day the fox had an idea of just how to catch the rabbit. He decided to make a doll baby out of tar. The rabbit who was a very curious creature indeed, would jet stick to the tar baby and wouldn’t be able to get unstuck and the fox would then catch him. And so it was, the rabbit by his curiosity got stuck to the tar baby and the fox caught him.

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The wile rabbit not wanting to be eaten by the fox devised a plan to trick the fox into releasing him, when he said, “Now Brer Fox, you caught me fair and square and I know you want to eat me, but I also know how much you hate me and the worst thing you can do to me, is to throw me into that Briar Patch over there.” Brer Fox thought about it and decided he would do just that, and so he did throw the rabbit into the briar patch. The rabbit was able to escape through the briar patch which he knew all too well.

David added that “This picture also includes in its symbolism the picture of many Buddhists and the Halo Nimbus of both the Buddha and The Christ. The great esoteric significance of this tale is this: When students of Buddhism graduate from their training, they are told in order to prove the teachings to be accurate and correct they must put themselves in the service of people who make the difficult situations of life, like the rabbit in the briar patch. ‘The Briar Patches of Life’ will prove the Wisdom Teachings of The Christ and Lord Buddha and by using this Wisdom correctly you will be able to navigate the difficulties of life.”

[image error]Head of Minerva

 

Book Lovers’ Best Kept Secret

On April 20, 1972, a group of book enthusiasts representing various Detroit organizations met in the Detroit News building on Lafayette Boulevard to create the Metro Detroit Book & Author Society (MDBA) for the sole purpose of presenting a luncheon that featured major national authors. Five months later they held their first luncheon in the Grand Ballroom of Sheraton-Cadillac Hotel in Detroit. Tickets were $5.95 and the author line-up included Richard Bach, Helen Hayes, Anita Loos and Marjorie Holmes. By 1973, the society was presenting two luncheons, in the spring and the fall, and that has continued until today.

The luncheons, considered as one of the largest and best one-day author events in the country, aimed to present top national authors in a comfortable, casual setting, with an opportunity to buy signed books and meet the authors. Guest authors have included Steven King, James Patterson, Mary Higgins Clark, and Barbara Taylor Bradford. Celebrity authors have included Cokie Roberts, Jane Seymour, Gladys Knight, Lee Iococca, Tim Russert and Dan Rather.

I attended my first luncheon a few years ago and not long afterward, through an invite by Robin Gaines, became a board member. Both Robin and I are board members representing Detroit Working Writers, and more recently for me, also Authors Guild of America (Detroit Chapter). The luncheon was at Burton Manor Banquet and Conference Center in Livonia and I was impressed by the number of attendees, which I later learned could range anywhere from 900 to 1600 people.  

“How did I not know about this event?” I asked Robin

Robin said what other members often say, that “It’s Metro Detroit best kept secret.”

I thought, this shouldn’t be kept a secret. This is proof that the death of books is really exaggerated. Metro Detroit Book and Author Society luncheons are a nice way to connect with other book lovers, and while enjoying your lunch, listen to authors share their stories, then later have them sign your books. So interviewed MDBA’s vice president, Joan Elmouchi. Joan is a retired public library director who works part-time as fiction librarian for the Southfield Public Library. Originally from New Jersey, she has lived in Michigan since 1975, attended Rutgers University and the University of Michigan and has been on the Book & Author board for almost 20 years! 

This year’s fall luncheon, the 93rd luncheon, is Monday, October 15 at Burton Manor. Here’s a list of guest authors and to learn more, visit their website https://www.bookandauthor.org/

Lisa Unger is the award-winning New York Times and international bestselling author of sixteen novels, including her newest, “Under My Skin,” a twisting, spellbinding thriller. Her books are published in 26 languages worldwide, have sold millions of copies, and have been named “Best of the Year” or top picks by The Today Show, Good Morning America, Entertainment Weekly, Amazon, and Goodreads, to name a few. Combining knowledge of the human psyche and an understanding of fear, readers and critics alike call her one of the top writers of psychological thrillers today.

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Mark Leibovich is the New York Times Magazine’s chief national correspondent and is a lifelong New England Patriot’s fan. He tried for years to profile quarterback Tom Brady, and in 2014, Brady finally agreed. Then came the infamous “deflategate” controversy. Now, when pro football is being attacked on many fronts, Leibovich has taken a fascinating in-depth look at where the sport is going in his new book “Big Game: The NFL in Dangerous Times.” He is also the author of the scathing 2013 best-selling Washington expose “This Town: Two Parties and a Funeral — Plus, Plenty of Valet Parking! — in America’s Gilded Capital.”

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Anne Ford, great-granddaughter of Henry Ford and daughter of Henry Ford II, became a well-known writer and advocate for people with learning disabilities after her daughter Allegra was diagnosed with learning problems. She has written several books on the subject, including her latest, “The Stigmatized Child: Helping Parents Overcome the Stigma Attached to Learning Disabilities, ADHD and Lack of Social Skills.” Ford served as Chairman of the Board of the National Center for Learning  Disabilities from 1989 to 2001 and has received many honors for her work and has lectured widely on LD and ADHD issues.

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Dr. Rana Awdish was a young critical care physician near the end of her medical training at Wayne State University in Detroit when she suddenly became a patient fighting for her own life. In her critically acclaimed best-selling book, “In Shock: My Journey from Death to Recovery and the Redemptive Power of Hope,” she reveals how her troubling experiences exposed her to flaws in today’s care standards and how to better embrace the emotional bond between doctor and patient. Today she serves as Medical Director of Care Experience for the entire Henry Ford Medical Group.

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Anna Clark is an award-winning Michigan journalist whose work has appeared in Elle Magazine, the New York Times, Politico, and others. Like many people, she began to take notice when the residents of Flint began to complain that something was very wrong with the water coming out of their taps. Clark, who has covered the story from the beginning, has written the first full account of the Flint water scandal and its broader implications for pollution and America’s communities in her new book “The Poisoned City: Flint’s Water and the American Urban Tragedy.” An excerpt from her book appeared in the Detroit Sunday Free Press in July.

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To buy tickets, visit https://www.bookandauthor.org/tickets/

 

Devoted to Art

I learned about Qais Al Sindy, a renowned artist, some four years ago when I was working on a book called Iraqi Americans: The Lives of the Artists. He lived in California so I was only able to interview him over the phone. This year he made his first visit to Michigan and we had the chance to meet in person.   

What I admired about Qais was not only his artwork but also his work ethics. He’s very disciplined, with a confidence that nourishes his talents and enables him to succeed and therefore sustain himself by being a full time artist. This is despite having come to the United States a little over a decade ago.  

The following is an excerpt from Iraqi Americans: The Lives of the Artists which highlights Qais Al Sindy and 15 other Iraqi American artists. 

Qais was born in Baghdad, Iraq, in 1967 and started painting when he was about fourteen years old. At his teacher’s suggestion, he made reproductions of master painters such as seventeenth century Diego Velasquez, Vermeer and Raphael. In college, he studied engineering at the University of Baghdad. He excelled in his studies, but he soon discovered that this field was not for him.

After graduation in 1989, he applied to the Academy of Fine Arts. He told the administration, “If you force me to be a Baathist, I will study outside this country and you will lose me.” 

They made an exception to his non-Baathist affiliation and enrolled him. In 2002, he attained a diploma in French language from the Cultural French Center in Baghdad and in 2004, he graduated with an MFA from the Academy of Fine Arts. His thesis was about Christian paintings from all over Iraq. This led him to take a big tour of Iraq, to visit all the monasteries and different cities from Zakho (in the Kurdisan region) to al-Faw (marshy region in the extreme southeast of Iraq).

“It was dangerous to travel, especially since I did not have a sponsor,” he said. “I paid from my own pockets and drove my own car. Because I speak English very well, I managed well at American checkpoints. I received harassment from the insurgents and extremists, but at that time, it wasn’t very severe. I managed, but I did leave the country shortly after graduating.”

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Qais has held art exhibits all over the world, his artwork drawing so much attention that nearly a dozen books have been published about it by various venues, including Kuwait Cultural Center and Iraqi Cultural Center in Washington, DC.  As I mentioned earlier, he lives in California where he has no other profession than that of an artist.

“I don’t do anything else in this world except for art,” he said. “If you are able to do the art that you like and find a way to sell it, this means that you believe in yourself.”

Qais says that when he paints, he tries to get his resources from overseas, his homeland. He is also known to engage audiences in his artwork. An example of this is in his Mamdooh series.

“After I left Iraq, I lived in Jordan, where I taught art for the students in the architectural department,” he said. “One day I heard that one of my dearest friends in Iraq, a talented portrait artist named Mamdooh suffered injuries as a result of a car explosion that injured and killed many people. He was transferred to the hospital where he struggled against death for one week, then died.”  

This led Qais to do a series of four paintings. The first one, he did a portrait of Mamdooh, using an expressionist style that focuses on his appearance. The second painting is a ghostly figure with transparency like his character, full of hue colors. It is the moment which Mamdooh suffers and dies. In the third painting, he brought some ashes and charcoal from the ruins of the car that exploded and drew Mamdooh using those ashes. That means Mamdooh is gone. The fourth painting is a pure blank canvas.

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“Everyone is well aware that it’s prohibited to touch the art works in galleries and in museums,” he said. “But in this artwork, I came up with something new to complete the fourth painting.  I asked the viewers to wipe their hands on painting number three. Of course, now their hands are stained with charcoal and ashes. They want to clean their hands, but I ask the crowd to wipe their hands on the blank canvas, on painting number four. The fingerprints on the canvas mean that you’re a participant of this crime in Iraq.”

Qais says that this was his way of asking his audience to live this moment as a kind of sharing and participating to the message that he wanted to deliver.  He wants to tell people that it is up to us to make this world the best place to live in.

He showed this series in more than ten countries, and people insisted on participating in the artwork. So when you see the fourth one, you see more than a thousand people’s fingerprints.

“Everyone wants to show that they are responsible for us not having peace in this world,” he said. “The frames are cracked and damaged because they toured many many countries. I kept it as it is.”

Qais’ biggest challenge is having to do everything himself. He even made an eleven minute documentary about the burning of the Iraqi library, called Letters Don’t Burn. Projects that he works on today have more of a humanitarian theme. They don’t only encompass the Iraqi subject, because he wants to do something for our globe, not just for Iraq. One of the projects he did was called the Bridge. It showcased the work of forty seven premier and emerging Arab, Persian and Jewish visual artists around the theme of what “bridges” us to each other.

Qais’ synopsis was to collect stones and bricks and, instead of hitting each other with stones and bricks, to build a bridge out of them that would start a cultural dialogue between different countries.

“This would help create love,” he said, “because if I love you I will not fight you. If I love you, then I will put my hands with your hands and we will build something together. All the problems in this universe are the result of us not loving each other. People’s desires for opportunism, greed, for looking out for themselves and not each other, are the reasons we don’t have universal peace.”  

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To learn more about Qais Al Sindy and his exhibits, visit his website: http://www.qaissindy.com/

The Importance of Handwriting

Earlier this year, I led a journaling workshop at the Theosophical Society. Robert E. Haskins attended this workshop and when it was over, he asked if he could take a look at my handwriting. Observing the few lines I’d written, he began to describe my character, state of mind, emotions, skills, and some of the blocks preventing me from moving forward. I listened with amusement to his accuracy, wondering how he could know such a great deal of information about a stranger by only reading a few lines.

Robert explained that he’s a master handwriting analyst, graphotherapist, herbalist, and homeopathic practitioner who uses a holistic health care approach to early detection and treatment for various issues such as stress, depression, ADHD, PTSD, and many more. He’d studied in various universities including Bowling Green State, University of Tubingen in Germany, and Wayne State University. He said, “My objective is to highlight the personality and character traits of each person: emotional disposition, aspiration level, sensitivity, goal setting abilities, one’s spirituality, benevolence, manic depressive conditions, self-blame, suicidal tendencies…”

The list went on and on and it was impressive, given his analysis of my handwriting which stayed with me long after we departed. I learned quite a bit from what he said and for the next several months used the analysis to release some old patterns. One thing Robert said about me is that I’m quick to listen. We all get messages throughout the day to guide us through our lives, but how many of us really listen to them? Oftentimes, it’s not because we’re so hard-headed that we ignore these messages, it’s because our world has too many distractions. Our mind is filled with noise, our heart with fear.

Robert quoted Socrates; “An unexamined life is not worth living.” Socrates believed that philosophy, the love of wisdom, was the most important pursuit above all else. Wisdom is different than knowledge in that wisdom is generally considered to be morally good. Albert Einstein once said, “Wisdom is not a product of schooling but of the lifelong attempt to acquire it.” Knowledge is watching and reading about a certain people and culture, maybe visiting them as a tourist. Wisdom is experiencing that people and culture by living among them.

Most people seek knowledge and few gain wisdom. That’s because the love of wisdom is not on their high priority list, although if it was, it would transform their lives and humanity in general. In my interview with Robert, he talked about trying to prevent bullying in schools by helping children and adults bring their body back in balance. But he discovered that the school system did not yet embrace his expertise.

One day, I’m sure they will. They will realize what my Native American teacher often said, “The definition of insanity is doing the same thing, expecting different results.” Sadhguru, an Indian yoga, mystic and New York Times bestselling author, says, “There is no such thing as modern world and ancient world. At every time in society there is a certain set of people who are trapped in their own logic.”

Sadhguru adds that people have a “constipated intelligence and over-used intellect” where they find frivolous things profound yet discount the profound intelligence of, for instance, the plant that produces a fragrant flower.

“There is more intelligence in the air around you than in your brains,” said Sadhguru. His message is to employ our intelligence without the limitation of our intellect.

Graphotherapy may be applied in multiple situations. It can improve one’s ability for concentration, memory, school performance with the subsequent improvement in self-confidence and self-esteem in children. It is a tool for parents to get to know their children, monitor them and guide them in the right path.

It is useful for rehabilitation after brain damage, dysgraphia, dyslexia and Parkinson. In Psychiatry, it’s used to study mental disorders, different types of stress, lack of will, concentration and attention, behavior disorders, obsessions, disorganization and disorder in general, self-esteem issues and personal insecurities, among others

Robert says that he highlights positive and negative personality and character traits on initial contact with anyone, adding, “Keep in mind, there are no universal formulas for self help, in that, each person is different and must be dealt with this understanding in mind. However, once he is reintroduced to his ‘subconscious being,’ we can help him consciously see himself from a new perspective. Once he is exposed and then acknowledges his latent personality and character traits, he can respond to situations rather than react to situations and rationalize too quickly.”

To contact Robert E. Haskins, call (248) 541-4412 or email edwardohas@att.net

The Scriptorium, a Place for Writing

About a year ago, I heard a good rumor that a new bookshop, The Scriptorium, was opening in Clawson, Michigan. What made it unique was its goal to serve the Michigan literary community by carrying new titles released by Michigan authors. Its owner, Diana Kathryn Plopa, was already quite active in the writing community as the associate publisher, editor-in-chief and a writing coach at Grey Wolfe Publishing, LLC, an independent publishing house. The author of six books of various genres, she had previously led writing and critique groups at Panera Bread.

“I focus on mentoring other writers and supporting their dreams of publication,” she’d once said. 

Diana spent time as a features writer for a Detroit newspaper, and for several years she wrote copy part-time for a popular local radio program. She holds a degree in English, with a concentration on creative composition, as well as a certification in early childhood development.

“Writing and a sincere love for the written word are passions that have followed me since early childhood,” she said. “Whether poetry, fiction, memoir or any other genre; my words create worlds to step into with enthusiasm and wonder. I don’t write because it’s necessary fun – although it truly is – I write because like breathing, if I don’t do it, I would die!”

Her Muse, Drake, a duck her son gifted her long ago, helps her with the tough stuff, quacking inspiration in her ear whenever necessary.

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During the summer, I visited The Scriptorium and learned that it also offers a wide variety of used books by national bestselling authors, writing workshops, writing groups, critique groups, book clubs, children’s literary adventures and a host of other bookish events. When you walk into the bookstore, you’ll immediately notice that they have a special space set aside for writers to focus on their work.

I went in one Wednesday evening to meet Diana when I noticed several tables getting filled with writers, their laptops, coffee cups, and even their dinner of sushi or whatever else. Diana explained that unless the space is temporarily being used for an event, you’ll always be able to find a table and an outlet to comfortably add energy and creativity to your works-in-progress. They even provide hot beverages, bottled water, and snacks (supported by donations) to help fuel one’s enthusiasm because, Diana says, “Our imaginations are fueled by the abundance of hot cocoa whenever we write together.”  

The warmth of the atmosphere and the fact that there was coffee available to energize me, I decided to take out my pen and journal and join the writing group. It was a productive two hours, from 7 pm – 9 pm, so I returned the following week. Now that my children are back in school and I lead a Girl Scout Troop with a conflicting schedule, I haven’t been able to go much, though it still lives nicely in my memory. Not just the writing space, but the spirit of the place and its people.

Diana lives with her husband, Dave, and their two dogs, Alex and Finnigan in Birmingham, Michigan. She enjoys writing, sailing, kayaking, escaping to their cabin in mid-Michigan to write and spend time with the family, especially her son Zachary. Wolfe Cub: The Inspiring Story of a Woman who Made the Conscious Choice to Raise her Child as a Single Parent is the story of Diana’s Wolfe Cub, Zachary, and how together, they re-imagined their limitless American Family. Diana writes about how she raised her son as a single parent not by death of a spouse or by divorce, but by choice. She made a plan to raise her son with intelligent love, reasonable boundaries and lots of patience.

Throughout the years of raising her son, she found many creative ways to support her family. She has spent time in the theater as a technical director and lighting designer, worked as a nanny, a preschool computer teacher, and a medical transcriptionist. During Zachary’s teenage years, she opened a website design company called Wolfe Technologies, Inc. In her free-time, she writes with enthusiastic abandon. She’s currently working on a number of books.

“My personal goal is to write one book in each of the major genres,” she said, “and then choose a favorite – if that’s possible.”

Check out Diana Kathryn Plopa’s website to learn more about her work http://www.dianakathrynplopa.com/

Here’s a link to the Scriptorium Bookshop https://www.thescriptoriumbookshop.com/

Link to Grey Wolfe Publishing http://www.greywolfepublishing.com/

A Story’s Moral Meaning

For decades, Stanley Williams, PhD, has been helping writers in the art of storytelling.  Many of his teachings are based on his book The Moral Premise: Harnessing Virtue and Vice for Box Office Success, which Will Smith called “the most important tool in his tool kit.” Stan has consulted with Will and his team on over a dozen motion picture projects, which have totaled over 1 billion dollars at the worldwide box office.

Stan was my screenwriting instructor at the Motion Picture Institute of Michigan (MPI). Over the years, he was supportive of my work by attending, sometimes with his lovely wife, my events and giving me advice on my first feature documentary, The Great American Family. In January of this year, I invited Stan as my first guest on my TV show. Earlier this month, he invited me as his first guest on a podcast he’s starting called, “VERISIMILITUDE, Conversations with Storytellers: How the narrative arts reveal what is good, true and beautiful.” To listen to the interview, click here To listen to the interview, click here.

We met one Saturday morning at a nearby park where, we learned, there were some renovations being done. From the start of the interview, the topic of Gone with the Wind surfaced. I read that novel at the age of nine, while living in Amman, Jordan and awaiting a visa to come with my family to the United States. The novel was in Arabic and it grabbed my interest to the point where my family had difficulty getting me to the breakfast, lunch, and dinner table. I felt such a connection to the character of Scarlet O’Hara and her tribe that I didn’t want to separate from them.

Imagine a nine-year-old girl from the Middle East being able to relate to a Southern teenage girl from Georgia. The two were worlds apart, but the author’s storytelling transcended their differences through the common human traits we all have of love, fear, family, and desire. Margaret Mitchell knew how to tell a story, and won the hearts of many people with her storytelling abilities. She took readers on a journey and, despite the trials the characters faced, she didn’t let us feel hopeless.

What I didn’t realize then is that the story also formed a foundation for the type of woman I looked up to. Scarlet was a confident girl who didn’t let her tribe’s limiting beliefs, criticism, or her gender to stand in the way of what she wanted. Her courage helped her pursue her dreams as well as defend her home. Also what I didn’t realize was that Atlanta, Georgia in the 1800s was not Detroit, Michigan in the 1980s. I was disappointed not to see the horse carriages and puffy dresses in the streets as we drove through the highway to our new home in the suburbs.

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I believe that artists, whether they’re writers, filmmakers, or painters, have a responsibility to society, to unearth the truth of things but also to help shift consciousness. We see with our brains and our perception, not our eyes, and so, whether we know it or not, the words and images that we use, and the actions we participate in, have a great impact in the world.  

In his book, The Moral Premise, Stan writes,“A Moral Premise describes a story’s moral meaning. The moral meaning of messages is the cornerstone of historical and popular narrative and is the reason stories, in general, are so important to us as human beings… Whether we look at the novel, television, or film, moral messages are everywhere. For instance, A Time to Kill, as a book and as a film, is about how ‘faithfulness leads to justice for both the innocent and the guilty’ or how ‘unjust hatred leads to a just death.’”

I try, through my writing, to infuse my stories with love, life, culture, humor, and authentic people who make my real world interesting. Some of my role models, Margaret Mitchell, Jane Austen, Henry James, and Lynn V. Andrews, have this romance with their stories give us timeless lovers, heroines and cunning social satire.  

Link to Stan interviewing me on his new podcast

Below is the half-hour interview with Stan (Jan 2018)

Stan’s book:

Spiritual and Writing Labyrinth

 

In my fourth year apprenticeship in Lynn V. Andrews’ shamanic school, our group walked with our mentors to a desert area in Arizona and set our pipe bags on a sitting bench with a table. We unwrapped the items in the bags, like tobacco, sweet grass, a lighter, and began the ceremony. Afterward, we went to the labyrinth nearby. One of the apprentices brought her flute, others brought their rattles. The woman with the flute led the group. She played charmingly, reminding me of when my Native American teacher played his flute. 

I had nothing to hold and was last in line. The moment my feet touched the sand, I felt myself walking as a child in the streets of Baghdad, on the way to school, dressed in a uniform, silk ribbons tied around my braids and ponytails. The memory caught me off guard. How did I get here?

The flute and rattle sounds kept bringing everything to the surface, the wide boulevards, the grassy traffic circles, but mostly, the vast desert oasis with unpaved roads, some of which I had heard have the biggest and best types of hawks and an abundance of rare birds. By the time we left the labyrinth, I fell into utter silence. I couldn’t speak. The next day, my teacher, Lynn, did a healing ceremony with me which took years and years back and then brought to the present moment, to full circle.

I wrote about my experience in Lynn’s school through a four-part memoir series which chronicles the teachings of each year. The books are called Healing Wisdom for a Wounded World: My Life-Changing Journey Through a Shamanic School and the labyrinth experience is in Book 4. Prior to this, I’d never known the spiritual or historical context of a labyrinth which has been known to the human race for well over 4000 years.

[image error]The Labyrinth I walked in Arizona

The word labyrinth comes from the Greek labyrinthos and describes any maze-like structure with a single path. That’s what differentiates it from a maze which has multiple paths. A labyrinth is unicursal and the way in is the way out. It can be found in ancient cultures, traditions and countries including China, Ireland, India, England, Scandinavia, France, Crete and others.

One of the best known legends is the story of Theseus, who with six Greek youths and seven maidens was sent into the Cretan labyrinth to face the terrible Minotaur. He killed the monster, but would have been unable to find his way out of the innumerable twisting passages of the labyrinth had not Ariadne given him a skein of thread to unwind as he entered. The great labyrinth of Egypt, which Herodotus considered more marvelous than the Pyramids, was long ago torn to pieces, but its site can still be traced. The massive temple complex was said to contain 3,000 rooms full of hieroglyphs and paintings and it’s said that perhaps it holds the key to mankind’s history.

Prehistoric labyrinths may have served as traps for malevolent spirits or as paths for ritual dances. Many Roman and Christian labyrinths appear at the entrances of buildings, suggesting that they may have served a similar apoptotic purpose. The oldest existing Christian labyrinth is probably the one in the fourth-century basilica of Reparatus, Orleansville, Algeria. It was a time when pilgrimages were popular. Christians used labyrinths that were built on pre-Christian site and modeled their own after ones used by earlier cultures. For Christians who could not take the long hard pilgrimage journey, the labyrinth served as an alternative form for prayer. Its path of seven circles was shaped like a Cross. Gradually it became one of the central symbols in the Christian tradition.

Labyrinth has long been used as a meditation and prayer tool. In recent years, there has been a rebirth of interest in it as it is a physical representation of the journey of your life, including experiences, changes, discoveries and challenges. As you walk the path you are invited to remember the story of your life. The center can represent Heaven, God, self-discovery or a personal goal. There is no right or wrong way to walk the labyrinth. It is a sacred experience for everyone who takes the time to journey its circular paths.

In an interview, Lisa Argo, second level Reiki practitioner and a student of the Center of Enlightenment Ministry program, shares her recent experience walking the labyrinth. Lisa serves the congregation as a certified Medium of spiritual messages and Spiritual Healer. She is a nanny and is working on a series of children’s books centered on a group of boys and their spiritual and emotional growth. 

Lisa will be leading a workshop at the Path of Consciousness spiritual and writing retreat called “Spiritual and Writing Labyrinth.” Upon entering the labyrinth, there’s only one path to follow – same with the writing path. You need to trust that you are exactly where you need to be, surrender to the process of writing, and allow it to take you where you need to go. There’s something about the mindfulness required to navigate the gently winding path that makes the cares of the world drop away.

For more info, visit http://www.thepathofconsciousness.com