Related Thoughts: SOTU

As I close my eyes and drift away to a land where there is love, health, peace, and blessings. I wanted to take the time to think and reflect.

     On January 30th, 2018 we witnessed history in the making when President Trump delivered his first state of the union address. I was excited to hear what he had to say, especially after seeing all of the pictures, and media buzz. I felt a great spirit and was grateful for this, as a nice difference from the many sad stories that we hear. This spirit carried forward as I watched the speech, seeing everyone gather, regardless of party, to listen and hear what the President had to say. This was a good example of how people from differing political views can come together in a space, to listen to what another has to say. The beauty of this exchange was that this was a leader of a country, talking, and telling, how he and his party view the shaping of a nation. He was met with members of the Republican Party, his cabinet, and guests from the public. While there is criticism of moments of no applause, or not standing from the oppositional party, I think that the fact that everyone was able to listen to each other was a great accomplishment. After all there were probably many politicians that fiercely disagree with the President, and the Republican Party present at this State of the Union address. 

     It was a gathering, an example of the process of democracy. While we heard his words, the foundations and core values of the nation of America, what binds, what unites. The heart, the hope, the belief, a flag, and above all else God. All symbolizing unification, and reminders for unifications. These unifications should serve as  reminders that we must never hate or hurt one another so much so because of our political beliefs. And the unifications should also serve as reminders that yes, we are binded by these, but we also have a duty, a duty to think about how we can improve as a nation, as people, groups, populations, members of a nation, citizens, and non-citizens. The symbolic forces offer a structure for unity, regardless of differing opinions, everyone is working for the common goal, and the good for the nation of America. Points of thought include the discussion about immigration, DREAMers, the border wall, and gangs. These do require more thought and discussion, whilst we do have an obligation to protect the homeland, there is also a moral duty that is often left unspoken. These duties can be thought about in relation to the treatment of non-citizens, or immigrants particularly from the Hispanic / Latino communities entering the US from South America and minority communities. A macro narrative affects an entire nation. Everyone has a right to dream, American or non-American. 

My thoughts to share with love & kindness! :) 

Notes: These thoughts were shared on January 31st 2018. 

Congratulations to President Trump, First Lady Melania Trump, and the administration for a first State of the union address for this new presidency. I am truly feeling the great spirit, as everyone prepares. The above images were taken in Washington, which I thought to share to mark the SOTU 2018! :) 

     Congratulations to everyone who supported the sounds of music, dance, drama, and art as we witnessed 60 years of the Grammy awards, and academy in New York City, 2018. Thank you for your dedication to all that encompasses the arts, to all for your stunning performances, and beautiful dresses / gowns!!! :) A special mention to Bruno Mars, an artist in which I see the markings of Queen, Micheal Jackson, Prince, and Elvis. May your success be a blessing not only for you, but to the fans and heritages that you represent. May God preserve you and protect you. And to all our artists, thank you for supporting and congratulating all of your fellow artists, a success of one, is truly a success for all!
​Lots of love & kindness! :) 

​  Congratulations to the American Football Conference  who won the Pro Bowl 2018. This win and game was also a learning moment for me. Where I learned what the AFC and the NFC (National Football Conference)  acronyms stand for. I was delighted to realize how these teams exemplify how players from different teams around the country can come together to formulate a team, where competitive spirits can work together, and learn from the skills and attributes from each other. Congratulations athletes, cheerleaders, and everyone who supported and made this even possible! :)  

As I close my eyes and drift away to a land where there is love, health, peace, and blessings. I wanted to take the time to think and reflect.

     The other day I tweeted: "Math is important." Math is important. If you are a mathematician, scientist, physicist, or involved with any work that is directly linked to math, you will know the heavy reliance upon numbers, and that your work is dependant upon the math skills that you have acquired. When you think of an artist, or the dancer, you don't think about a direct scientific or any mathematical relationships, that are involved in their work. However, this is not the case. The arts will require some sort of mathematical calculations. We can think about the writing of music, or the dance moves, and how the body works in synchronicity with the self, and with others to form patterns of movement. The patterns are also a form of math. The patterns allow us to find the mathematical relationships, or how any thing is connected to another thing. Math and science have always been connected to the arts, and vice versa. This relationship is not surfaced or revealed to the extent of math connected to science, technology, or engineering. I am cognizant of the missing A in the acronym STEM, that stands for Science, Technology, Engineering and Math. The A stands for Art. There are groups who have identified themselves with the acronym of STEAM, which have included the arts, with STEM subjects. But why did I tweet about math and am writing about the arts?

American Mathematical Society - Weblink

Dance Fundamentals - Bartineff

Dance Fundamentals - Bartineff

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     Math is generally perceived as a subject where males excel greater than females. There is a historical bias, when it comes to who is good at math, and who is not good at math. Not to put any pressure upon anyone, because everyone has their strengths and weaknesses. But I want to open a conversation as to how we can reduce, or even eliminate gender bias when it comes to who is good at what or not. The bias places a preconceived notion upon boys or girls to say that one gender is better at math, than the other. I would also argue that it is not only the bias, but it is culture that molds our ways of thinking and knowing, Culture is a powerful and dynamic force that shapes our thinking, weather we are aware of this or not. Culture can also shape the tendencies of who is perceived to excel at a topic or not. Culture is one factor, there are many others such as: social class, socio-economic, financial, or environment. 

​     The beauty of arriving at this knowingness is that once you can look above and beyond the biases, pre-conceived notions that are formulated through culture and other factors, then it is simply a case of becoming limitless. Because the only really barriers that we have or possess are the ones within the mind, because we have arrived at a state of awareness. Once the mind / brain becomes free, and learns to beautifully control the reins, adjusting speed and pace, anything and everything becomes possible, and for this to happen the real requirement is the internal work of the brain or mind. Correct you mind / brain; change your life.

My thoughts to share with love & kindness! :) 

Notes: These thoughts were originally hand-written on January 29th, 2018.
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As I close my eyes and drift away to a land where there is love, health, peace, and blessings. I wanted to take the time to think and reflect.

     President Trump and the American delegation arrived in Davos, Switzerland for the World Economic Forum. I was pleasantly delighted with a speech that was truly a praise of the nation of America, and the people, individuals, and citizens who are working each, and every day to collectively ensure the breadth, health, and success of this nation. I found it very fitting for President Trump's presence at Davos because of his business background and expertise. While he may not have a political background, what his experiences bring, are a value added addition to the political arena. Because the economic health of a nation is highly important. Investments, trade, and growth are essential to the financial success, and health of any nation. With his expertise we can and are seeing that President Trump's strengths will, and should work in favour of the nation of America, and any country, or companies that decide to invest in America. 

     We can also think about the comments he made that were related to the human aspects, because any person in the business field will know that relationships are key. To build wealth, a healthy economy takes people, individuals, teams, groups, companies, but in order to ensure investments, it is not about treating others as objects to gain from, or to just engage in a transactional relationship. It is about cultivating relationships that are proposed for investments, but are humanized through reciprocity. Below are some quotes which represent my thoughts:  

     As I took the time to listen, and think about these words, I also heard the many critics and voices from the news media. I wondered what their responses would be. I thought about the impact of news media. Some questions that I thought of are as follows: How would the public perceive President Trump's presidency if they focused on the positives aspects? I also thought about the idea of fake news. How can we decipher fake news from real news? Having said all of this, I wondered if the press even picked up on words such as love, heart, loyalty, or gratitude? Because it is words such as these, that we need to hear more. The world or economic lens should not be viewed as a capitalist machine, but a humanized world, that desires economic prosperity, in a congruency with human prosperity. 

Love
:)
Heart

I take the time to thank the leaders and community of the World Economic Forum for welcoming President Trump and America with such pride. My thoughts to share with love & Kindness! :) 

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As I close my eyes and drift away to a land where there is love, health, peace, and blessings. I wanted to take the time to think and reflect. 

     On New Years Eve in New York City, the crowds gathered for the New Years eve celebrations, and also for the historic New York Times ball drop. This structure reminded me of the Geodesic domes that were designed by Buckminister Fuller, who was also known as Bucky. Anyone who knows of Fuller will know that he was, and is included as one of those thinkers who was way above, and ahead of his time. His dome structures are similar to the New York Times ball, as they are created with the use of triangles, symmetrically designed to created the final structure. 

     
     Fuller was a person who believed in the accrual of knowledge from many subject areas. I can probably agree with him here, as when we have an array of knowledge from the fields of the arts, humanities, sciences, or technology we are able to formulate a good base / foundation, and use this knowledge to create new knowledge, problem solve, be creative, and innovate. Fuller did not advocate for the idea of a specialist, because he felt that the idea of a specialist will always be limited to the field of speciality. While I do agree with the building of a good foundation with various subject, I also think that there has to be room for the specialists, because specialists are the ones who teach the subjects, that not only teach the speciality, but are integral to building the foundation.

     At a time where a variety of skill levels are in demand, we should continue to include the need for specialists. Even if we have a foundation that is accrued from many subject areas, we'll possess and gain a varied lens, are able to shift and provide varied perspectives, but we still need to find a focus. It is the focus that will allow us to flourish. We can attain a wealth of knowledge, but eventually a focal point must be found, and built upon. I actually think that those who do find their focal point early are lucky, and even at an advantage, because they can begin to build their skills, and seek knowledge, earn their credentials, and build connections early. Some may be desiring a profession where they have to follow a specific course of study, while others found their passion, and decided to start a business, or become entrepreneurs. 

    The bottom line is that to begin to think about a purpose, you have to find a focus, what is it that interests you? What are you passionate about? There might be a variety of interests, or that you are not able to decide. But we should remember that the meanders are also a part of the process, because sometimes what you think is your focus, what is best for you, might not actually be what you thought it would. In a sense we learn through every experience, and even for those who desire to continue to seek knowledge, the path is long, it is not linear, you know your focus. It just takes longer to get there.   

My thoughts to share with love & Kindness! :) 

​Notes: These thoughts were originally hand-written on January 25th, 2018.
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On January 23rd, 2018 we heard about another tragic school shooting. It is very sad and unfortunate that these shootings occur, and the fact that I have used the word "another" simply signifies that there is a tone of school shootings becoming somewhat normalized. They shouldn't, and if there was, or is any attempt to normalize these, this is the major danger point. As they should never happen. Children / students should never have to go to school feeling fearful. As I have been reflecting upon this tragedy, I want to wish every one who has been affected thoughts of condolences to family, friends, and loved ones. And words of love, hope, peace for everyone who in this community, and everyone who is supporting the school community. 

As I close my eyes and drift away to a land where there is love, health, peace, and blessings. I wanted to take the time to think and reflect. 

     The truth is that I was taking the time to think about the words disability and mental health. Anyone who knows me, or has read my previous thoughts will know that I have a problem with these words. Yes! No more working around my attitude to these words - I have a problem with them. These words or labels need to be changed. The words mental or mental, associated with health is used to describe the mental state of human beings. But what arrives with the word mental, are many other connotations, labels, symbols, and inferences. These inferences are deeply tied to history,  because mental health was viewed as someone who was not categorized as "normal." While we do see the many great initiatives that are taking place today. The service workers, care givers are deeply invested in the care of individuals with "mental" health care, these efforts become stale because of the word "mental". 

     So let's talk about it. What are some of the words that people will infer with the word "Mental"? The following is a chart that was produced from a study to investigate the stigma that people associate with mental health.

According to this study - the researchers believe that the stigma towards "mental" health also acts as a barrier for individuals to actually go out and seek help for "mental" health needs. This example reveals the implication of language, and how words are attached to meanings that are outside of the actual word.

The same can be said for the word "disability", as with the word "mental", I also have a problem with this word. Below is a definition of the word: 

     If we deconstruct the word, we can read it as "dis", and "ability." The first half of the word which is "dis" implies that something has been taken away, lost, or cannot be retrieved. So when we attach the "dis" to the word ability - as the definition says, some type of ability has been lost or limited. This word comes with negative inferences, and also stigma. Which is why I also think that this word needs to be changed, to convey, or place an emphasis upon ability. While there may be special care required in both cases, instead of thinking of these as limitations, why not think in terms of being limitless? Depending on individual or severity of cases, in general terms, we can say that human beings that require mind / brain care, or loss of any ability, don't loose their internal or innate desires to survive. The desire to survive, or create will act so that human beings will surpass and see beyond limitations, and will even gain superior abilities, because they can tap into other senses, and probably will gain access to insights, foresight to life, living, that the average human being might over look on a day to day basis.

     We can think of the blind person, or someone with lower eye sight. They will use other senses such as touch, smell, hearing, and it is much more likely that the sense will develop more. Or we can think of someone who has a mind / health care related needs, instead of seeking regular prescription drugs, might decide to use meditative techniques, and exercise. The meditation and exercises will help to develop or maintain cognitive functioning, focus, and even the ability to tap in to other senses, such as the intuition.  

Conclusion
Whilst I have only focused on two words, these thoughts can be transferred to any words that are viewed as problematic, out-dated, or need to be re-thought. Mind / brain health is just like any other ailment that requires care. Loss or reduced ability requires adjustments so that day to day living, as well as goal. aspirations can be achieved. While I have thought about these words in very simplistic terms, there is much depth and team efforts that are required for care, but it is the care that is also in effect being harmed, because of the stigma. 

Inspiration: I was very inspired when I read the word ReelAbilites. This word instantly gave me hope, and a burst of happiness. My reaction exemplifies how a single word can create a multiplicity of meanings. My thoughts to share with love & kindness! :) 

Notes: These thoughts were written on January 24th, 2018. Link to the paper is embedded in this thought post. Please note that these thoughts are written on a general level, and do not refer to any specific case or individual. 
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Related Reading
Who's Responsible?
​Let's Flip It
The Core: Face To Face 
​Learning vs. Mentorship

As I close my eyes and drift away to a land where there is love, health, peace, and blessings. I wanted to take the time to think and reflect.

     The truth is that my previous thoughts this week were focused upon ideas related to mentorship, its value, importance, as well as distinguishing the mentorship process from learning. Below is a chart, that acts as a summary of my thoughts. 

     As much as I have placed a value and importance on these ideas through a collectivist lens, I also wanted to take these thoughts to the level of the individual and self. As Human beings we have experienced life, made mistakes, learned from these, and continue to grow. Mistakes or negative experiences should never define us, but to act as mechanisms for improvement. Ultimately human beings have to persevere. "Love has to learn how to persevere." If you are lucky enough there will be educators, individuals, parents, family, and loved ones who support you. But the one who really has the ability to desire progress is you, yourself. Without your own self determination, desire to succeed, make good positive changes, nothing changes. In this sense what I am saying is that external sources are integral to our learning, development, and growth, but we ourselves must, regardless of what the situation or circumstance, must possess the ability to claim, and say - I am the owner of my life. And with this claim know that you are worthy enough to seek your goals, and worth enough to external support from people who believe in your worthiness to live, and flourish.  

​Dedication: The words of this human being are dedicated to all beings. Everyone is worthy, you are worth it. You Matter, sending love & kindness! :)

​Notes: These thoughts were originally hand written on January 20th, 2018.