England's Green and Pleasant Land

I was privileged to take a journey by train through the heart of England's splendid countryside this week. There is nothing like the rolling hills and pastoral landscape this side of heaven! I have lived in the USA for more than half my life, but I will always call England my home. My cell phone plays 'God Save the Queen' every time I have an incoming call! It is in my heart and my soul. Funny really for one who in their teenage years was convinced that they had been born in the wrong country! I couldn't wait to get to America, where I believed people were real and spoke the truth about themselves and how they felt.

Of course the beauty of the land and the sense of community in the towns and villages do not make up for the reality that folk from the Old World are too deferent for words and much to shy and seemingly afraid to be themselves. It is no wonder that I was attracted to a culture that seemed to put feelings first, where people did not hesitate to say what they thought. The very brashness and self promotion that turns one off the stereotypical Texas tourist at the same time attracted one who felt that a cup of tea did not cure all the problems of life, it just deferred them; one who felt restrained from speaking the truth for fear of offending the sensibilities of others.

My duality of citizenship has given me a unique perspective on the Old and the New and the truth lies somewhere in the middle of the Atlantic! It is in appreciating our oneness and interconnectedness that we best see ourselves as creatures of balance and harmony. I can be equally thrilled by a manicured English garden in Kent or the steamy French Quarter in New Orleans. By the wildness of Dartmoor or the glitter of Times Square in New York! Just as at peace on a crowded Florida beach as climbing the barren peak of Mount Snowdon in Wales. As happy to sit with my aged Uncle and Aunt over a Devonshire Cream Tea or to dance 'til dawn in an edgy Miami nightclub. Grasping the moment and living it with reckless abandon is the answer to the conflicting messages that others might use to control the experience and fullness of our lives.

I am glad that I am an Englishman and I am glad that I am an American because to be both gives me the perspective of a citizen of the world and provides the opportunity to see life from many points of view. That these worlds are different is an understatement, that they can complete each other is the value that I see. We have something to learn from every culture, not to conclude that one is right and the other wrong, but rather to see the complements so ones world view can be enlarged and expanded. If there is one lesson that I will always be grateful for it would be that the world over - and I have travelled to 44 countries in my 54 years - people all share the same desires to be known, to love and be loved and to feel part of a community. Who has the best model? None and all. By blending the spirit of each culture we can together find a way to peace on earth, English and German, American and Arab, Chinese and Israeli. We are one family, diverse and individual yet bound by our common humanity and oneness of spirit!

God Bless America and God Save the Queen!

With Love and Peace!

Geoff

There'll Always Be An England - And Other Thoughts

I am way behind with my postings. Life has been busy. After 6 months of relative calm, following my two surgeries, I have returned to life full-force! I was fortunate in the storm of this economic chaos to be rehired by my former employer at Legendary Journeys. I am grateful to him for offering to take me back even though not two months earlier he had let one quarter of his workforce go. I am back in my old department putting together the components of group packaged tours. I am happy to be there. Right now, however, I am not there - I am in England! Not on company business, but on a personal journey to support my cousin Marion as she gets married to her college beau, some forty years after they first met and then drifted apart! I was not blessed with a sister but Marion is as close to one as I could have and I am thrilled to have been given the chance to be with her for this important milestone, taking place two days before her 60th birthday. People's legendary journeys will just have to wait a couple more weeks!!

Marion and I share many things, most notably our grandparents. Special folk who made indelible marks on our characters - traits that we delight in discovering again and again. We also share England, Christianity and an unfortunate propensity to beat ourselves up, diminish our self worth and carry the guilt of the world upon our shoulders. Strange really because we were not raised Catholic or Jewish! With no desire to assign blame we take full responsibility for these flaws and I for one intend to shake these monkeys off forever. I am convinced that I have come to England for a reason this time and move forward with that belief even if I do not clearly understand what that reason might be.

If I have learned anything since I last saw my special cousin in Spain 3 years ago, a few months before the world that I had created began to crumble and break apart, it would be that I have to be honest. Honest and True. Honest about who I am, what I want, where I have been and where I hope to go. And True, to myself, my beliefs, my longings and my desires. There is nothing more self-deprecating than living ones life to another's standards. There is no question that we are called to put others before ourselves, to live to serve, to give and share from our bounty. There is great question though about letting others be the measure of our lives, allowing them to take our passion and person, and bleeding us of worth to enhance their own standing in the world. A life of service is a life of balance and openness, a life lived in the moment and a life of great happiness.

This may all sound like pie in the sky. Too Utopian and too Pollyanna. The fact of the matter is that we only seem to go around life once and this term is too short to deny ourselves the opportunity of true happiness. Life beyond the one we know is a mystery to all, regardless of religion, so waiting to live later is doing ourselves and humankind a great disservice. If we cannot be accepted, loved and embraced for exactly who and what we are then we must constrain ourselves to move on to a place where we can be. This is a second marriage for Marion and I wish for her that happiness that comes from owning who she is and not putting up with anything that might make her feel anything other than loved, worthy and free. As I look back to my own broken relationships I acknowledge that some of my choices have hurt others and for that I am sorry. I cannot, however, feel responsible for that hurt beyond admitting my fault. I cannot restore their souls - I never could. It is for those that I have injured to forgive - or not; to go on - or to remain in their pain. Those that truly love me, like my mum, my dad and my daughter still love me unconditionally, despite my failings and my treachery. They love like we say God loves! I hope that Ken (with whom I shared 13 years) and Rosalene (the mother of my daughter) can one day love like that too, because they have influenced my life beyond measure and for that I will be forever grateful and I will remain a part of them forever. I bless today for Marion and her fiance David, for today is where we really live! The past is gone and the future is yet to come. And I bless Peter, her love of 28 years, knowing that he will find peace and joy when he is able to bless her in return with the knowledge that love endures all things and survives beyond the twists and turns of human emotion!

May love, joy and peace follow you - all the days of your life!

Geoff

Working Mothers

I feel sorry for my daughter sometimes. She is such a wonderful mother to her two young children. She loves them with all her being and it shows all the time. She never gets impatient with them even though she may be working on her last nerve. She is true and real and constantly chooses to put others first. She is a stellar human being and I admire her tremendously.

It has not always been easy for Hannah, she is an only child of divorced parents. She grew up in a narrow environment that was loving but very judgemental of those that did not believe in the same limiting doctrine and her world view has expanded only as she has faced relationships outside of her restricted upbringing. It's the world that is the problem though, and the reason that I feel sad that we have created a society that fills it's children with false expectations about what life should be about. It is not about the accumulation of wealth to the cost of others, it's about opening our lives and our gifts to one another to the mutual benefit of all! We have lost the sense of community and sharing that defined the early Christian church and many other religious traditions too. I am sorry that she has to go to work to support her family's modest lifestyle when she is still nursing baby Hudson. I feel bad that she has this burden while seeking to raise a family. It's not that I feel she shouldn't work, just that she shouldn't have too. I am truly disheartened at our society and it's wanton consumerism. This takes a direct toll on the rest of the human family of which we are a part, it is unveiled selfishness and greed.

So how do we buck the system? Do we wait for it to crash and then lead the way in rebuilding on a purer foundation, or do we begin to show the way by changing our personal priorities and considering our choices more thoughtfully? Must we disengage ourselves from the culture we live in and create new communities of love? That may solve our personal concerns but would it change our world? Is it just a dream that we can share the wealth that is in this nation with each other and with our global relations? Senator Barack Obama is being criticized for suggesting that additional tax on the wealthy is patriotic! Well I think he's right - it is! If that's the accepted way of distributing wealth then it should be done, and heavily. Charitable giving is an opportunity to avoid heavy taxes, so give until it hurts you Wall Street executives or the IRS will give for you. 'Golden Parachutes' be damned, while the vast majority of citizens have no parachute at all! Things will not change in our country until people abandon the ethic that measures ones contribution to society in terms of fiscal productivity. Capitalism is biased to favor the few to the detriment of the many.

My daughter shouldn't have to work - she and millions like her, many with far less resources behind them. The USA is far behind the societies of Europe that make much more of an effort to help one another, even if the help is meted out by government. Isn't the principal here that our country is governed by the people, for the people? I would suggest that we look at which people our system really benefits and which people are still in need of help! Universal health care, support for all families, benefits for child care, realistic social security payments - these things and more should be the right of everyone in America. No one should have to live a lower standard than another, or stress themselves to the max just to survive. That is not the vision of Christ, or our founding fathers. Somewhere we have gone mightily astray!

May you find love and peace in your life and value only the things that last!

Geoff

The Wonder Years

This has been quite a year for me! When the Queen of England's Windsor Palace caught fire a few years back, crowning a year full of trauma and tragedy, she proclaimed it to be an "Annus Horribilis" - roughly translated from the Latin as "One hell of a ride!" I get where she was coming from, but am grateful that through it all I have learned much that will make the future more likely to be termed "Anni Mirabiles" - The Wonder Years!

I am full of wonder! Today I returned to my old job at the travel company 'Legendary Journeys' that I left, as life as I knew it began to disintegrate, last summer. I was received with enthusiasm and gratitude - and the feelings were mutual. Since that day that I handed in my resignation at lunch and did not return to my desk I have ended a 13 year relationship, seen my home foreclosed on, gone through Chapter 7 bankruptcy, experienced a radical prostatectomy due to advanced cancer, suffered a hernia repair, had my car repossessed and lost my close friend and mentor in a move to Texas! Through it all my parents and my extended family have stood by me, supported and encouraged me and never made me feel anything other than a winner!

What have I won, you might ask? The truth is very simple. I have won way more than I have lost because I have learned what really counts. That material things do not matter, that good health is a gift and the only thing that has value in this life is sharing love with others! I am at peace with myself, my parents are happy and healthy, my daughter and her family have moved back to Sarasota, I have an unbreakable bond with my little granddaughter Haley Grace, I have found real purpose in service through my church, I have started to write, my cousin Shawn is growing out of the troubles that have dogged his life for so long, I live in a cute 1920's cottage that is truly a 'house of refuge', I am going home to England for my cousins wedding next month, and now to crown it all I am back working in a place that really values me and my potential contribution to the organization. So how should I look back at this year - I'll stick with wonder any day! After all it's only today that counts and today is good! Let the year's worry about themselves!

With Love and Peace! Geoff

Great Is Thy Faithfulness

Today is my mum's 77th birthday! It seems beyond the realm of possibility that this could be true. Was it not just a little while ago that I brought her a china tea set (that she still has) with my first paycheck from a summer job? Today all I could manage was some English 'treats' and my time. For as long as I can remember I have tried to run away from spending time. Since I was just a young teen I have felt that the things that were the core of me were things that I could not happily share. I was always leaving so that I could go and 'be myself'. I think I developed this state of mind because the religion that I was raised in told me that I was not right, not only was I a sinner like everyone else, but I was sin incarnate. My very being had to change in order to be right with the God that we worshipped. This was the cross that I had to bear. Not the struggle to rid myself of the dark blot of sin that consumed my life, but the struggle to believe that I was loved in spite of my affliction. Being gay in the 1960's was anything but 'gay'. Men that found love with other men were pitied and criminalized. They were given no hope of a happy life, no opportunity for authenticity and no chance to live in the freedom that other citizens enjoyed. Into this culture came a young man who desperately wanted to live, who yearned for acceptance and validation, who more than anything wanted to feel that he was living fully to the incredible potential that was seen in him by the one who loved him most - his mum.

Today I felt that. As I sat with my mum and talked and laughed about the journey of life I felt at peace. I have long been conscious of her acceptance of my sexuality, but until recently I have still felt that I was seen as one who needed to repent and come back to God. For many years I have struggled with my Christian faith because so much of Christendom still condemns me to hell and my mum and dad have been party to that way of thinking. It has taken a tremendous effort on the part of God to convince me that is not true. "Great is your faithfulness, Oh God. Morning by morning new mercies I see!" So now, as I sit with my mum I feel not only whole, but complete. I am able to share my perspective and am comfortable with the knowledge that my journey and my faith is as real and valid as hers . . . and I continue life, growing into that potential for good that has always been a part of who I am.

I may not be changing the world right now, in fact I am about to return to full time work with my old travel company. Someone there says that my coming back is an answer to her prayers. This confirms to me that I am on the right path, that my destiny is on track and that the part that I have to play is right for me - at this time and in this place. To know that is to know peace. I often felt that unless my life was influencing many then it's mission was not accomplished. I now know that as my life touches one person at a time the ripple effect can have unfathomable repercussions and it also helps to keep me humble! To have a mum that stands beside me and encourages me along the way is a blessing that cannot be measured! Her faith in me inspires me to higher ground and her faith in God has given me the foundation on which I have built my life. "Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow! Great is your faithfulness, Oh God - to me!"

Happy Birthday Mum!

With Love and Peace, Geoff

Chasing Your Dreams

I just read an awesome book called The Alchemist by author Paulo Coelho. It is one of those fables. full of allegory, that are both ageless and timeless. The story, set in medieval Spain, tells of a young shepherd boy who heeds his dreams and is guided on an exotic journey by becoming conscious of omens and signs. His destination is ultimately reached where it is revealed that the treasure, for which he had been seeking, was . . . but I can't say more! The book is tremendously inspiring and reminds me that whatever our path has been it is not too late to follow our hearts and seek fulfillment of our deepest dreams.

That is the journey that I am on. I have a deep sense that life, as I know it, will not remain as comfortable and easy as it may seem today, and that I am being awakened to heed the warnings and to respond to the signs that are being shown to me. I must remain alert and awake and most of all conscious of the present moment, preparing myself for what I might be called to do.

Throughout history spiritual leaders have taught the ways of meditation and prayer in order to allow ordinary people a chance to connect directly and personally with God. That modern day religious folk are more inclined to let the pastor tell them what to think and how to act, is a clear sign that spiritual revival is in order. For our faith and hope to be authentic it has to resonate deeply within our hearts. Like with the dreams of the shepherd boy, people around the globe are being awakened to a new sense of connection to Spirit. True connection is like cable service, but for most of us it is more like rabbit ears! The signal comes and goes, and in order for us to tune in and prove the source we must seek it out again and again. It is not enough to merely espouse a religion, one's faith can only can help, when our world as we know it crumbles, when it is hardwired and grounded in the love that can not only comfort, but lead and guide on the mystical journey toward the treasure!

Our 'Spirit Cafe' group has recently been considering the fruit that is born in a life that is rooted and grounded in the Spirit of Love. The resulting experiences provide hard evidence of the reality of an authentic connection that goes far beyond the surface of things normally known.

Love’s tender fruit grows, making whole
A life that’s grounded, deep in Thee.
Love, Joy, Peace, Gentleness of soul,
Brings Kindness, Goodness, Self Control,
While Faith flowers Patiently!

These are the depths that I must pursue, for today is the day, and now is the time, when longings are to become reality!

Love and Peace - Geoff

America - The Land of the 'Waiting To Be Free'

This is my son-in-law. Drew is an intrepid guy and I love him! I am so happy that he chose to be a part of my family - his marriage to my daughter is a source of great joy to me as I watch them both grow in sharing a life's journey together.

I hate that moniker though, preferring to think of him as an adopted son - for once you become part of my family you're an in-love, not an in-law. I don't really see what the law has to do with it at all. We marry because we want to declare to the world that our chosen partner is the one whom we intend to spend our living days with. Hopefully that declaration goes for the physical, spiritual, emotional and intellectual parts of us, although the notion that the full satisfaction of all those entities can be found in a single human being is dangerous and unrealistic. Why the government has to have a stake in that relationship is beyond me.

That it wants to legislate who can and who cannot form these partnerships leaves me dumbfounded!

This nation, the supposed beacon of liberty to the world, is attempting to delineate the confines of a 'legal' marriage. For what purpose, one might ask? What right does the government have to limit my marriage choices? Surely a good libertarian or republican would baulk at any intrusion of the secular government into his personal affairs. Yet today a presumed majority of Americans still support the withholding of human rights by legislators wanting to define the word marriage in a authoritarian fashion.

Marriage is a Christian sacrament, not a legal institution. For decades the Roman Church refused to marry outside it's communion. Let them continue to set their own standards. That's the essence of freedom of religion and the separation of church and state! If a wedding was proclaimed by the participants alone, the government's only role would be to recognize the partnership and confer the universal benefits and responsibilities occasioned by the arrangement. The end.

The word marriage, as with any other word, is defined by usage not by law. Let's face it, if the government authored the dictionary then the words 'for the people, by the people' would quickly have the originally intended interpretation replaced! If gay people choose to declare a permanent alliance in communities of faith and fellowship that support such arrangements then the government's role must be simply to accept that right with respect and let them name it as they wish.

To all people, of all political parties I say: Let the people declare who they want to share their lives with and let the people claim the inalienable rights that are guaranteed by the constitution - and thankfully still documented by Webster! Whoever you are, if you believe in liberty and justice for all, vote NO on Florida's Amendment 2 this fall. Do not abdicate to a secular body the power to dictate the boundaries of a spiritual union. Unfortunately voting 'no' will not permit the State's recognition of committed gay relationships but it will prevent new obstacles to their future acceptance. At this time such rights are already 'verboten' in this bastion of faux-freedom that we live in.

Many more years of discrimination are likely until Florida and these United States finally reenact the tenets of our forefathers who declared that our inalienable rights included equality and the pursuit of happiness! My friends Bruce and John, who just celebrated 50 years of unacceptable fidelity, are holding out hope for future generations - they will likely live and die as illegals even after a lifetime of public service to America - the land of the 'Waiting To Be' Free.

With love and peace - Geoff

Do You See What I See?

It would not be untypical of me to go overboard with ideas and actions! It is a trait that has served me well for most of my life as it infuses all I do with contagious enthusiasm and has, on many occasions, helped those who find it hard to muster such energy for themselves! On the other hand . . . and this is the core of what I mean to share today . . . on the other hand, there are two sides to every argument! Perhaps even more than two sides!

Just recently I witnessed a car hit a bicyclist at a red light. I was the one who called 911 and I was the only driver who apparently, from three lanes of traffic lined up waiting for the light to change, actually saw what happened. In my enthusiasm for the truth I told the policeman that the light had turned green when the offending car began to move into it's right turn. This claim seemed to put the driver in the right and the bicyclist in the wrong. After giving my statement and contact information I drove off. Immediately I began to question myself to the point that by the time I got home I was unable to clearly state the same position. To be honest, I was not really sure if the light was red or green at that moment and hope that I do not have to support my original claim!

This serves to illustrate the truism stated above. I have been extremely excited about the possibility of a new kind of leadership for our country and have posted what appears, in retrospect, to be clear endorsements of my favorite. Although my perspective has remained value based (with love and forgiveness at the heart) I have begun to see that I may be more narrow in my judgements than I believe myself to be and hence run the danger of being the kind of hypocrite that I rail against inside!

I read a well reasoned article the other day that laid out very concisely why direct negotiations between leaders of enemy powers have not always brought the intended results. Not that I don't still believe direct negotiation to be the ideal, in any circumstance of life, it's just that I have been opened to the possibility that, at least historically, it's rate of success is suspect. Hence I am now able to understand why others may oppose such an approach as primary.

I have always been a renegade, maverick and a rebel. Strange really, because I have spent the bulk of my life's energies defining my identity. The problem is, it is always changing! These days that's disdainfully called flip-flopping. I don't see what is so wrong with that. The issues behind my 'identity defining' relate to the peculiar gift of being able to see every ones point of view. It's not because I am so magnanimous, it is for me almost unavoidable. Give me a good explanation and I'll see it your way. If someone else comes along with a passionate argument for the opposite I can see that too. Consequently some feel that I am high on the empathy scale and low on convictions! One of my favorite snippets of the bible is Paul's claim that 'all things are lawful, but not all things are expedient'. And I get that! I am definitely not black or white, I'm not even grey. I am more like a chess board - every other square!! I think I get the rebel from my mum and the chess board from my dad! Of course, they might think I get it all from my own messy brain!

My daughter delights in the personal idiosyncrasies that we share. Not that these were taught - they just are. Like the fact that we both figuratively masticate our paper napkins, rendering them into ripped, stained and wrinkled strings with our constant finger wiping before our table mates have hardly picked theirs up! You can't teach that! It's part of our DNA. So it is with my mum. She was raised as a Peculiar Person. Peculiar is one of those words that has meanings on 'both sides of the coin'. It can be both usual, and unusual - depending on the context. For example it would be peculiar (unusual, unexpected) to see kangaroos outside of a zoo in England. On the flip side kangaroos are peculiar to Australia (usual, expected). That's what I am too - I'm a peculiar person, and it's in my genes! It was the name of the church that my mum was raised in and that name intimates a specialness and perhaps the individuality of its members.

For me I am peculiar because I am one of a kind. And so are you! We are peculiar because we are both individual and special. Every last one of us on the face of the earth! That we are different is something that the world must come to terms with in order to move forward into becoming a global family. Acceptance is not adoption, that we are all treated equally is the only demand. We must continue to give people the opportunity to see life from a different perspective and the way forward is to remain authentic and connected and grounded spiritually so that we can live out our own truth with liberty and allow others the same opportunity!

My poem on the side bar illustrates this notion quite well. Do you see what I see? Unlikely. Can you see what I see? Possibly. Will you (choose to) see what I see? That remains to be seen!

Seeing things from other points of view is paramount to the creation of a global community. It is not necessary for us to give up our own leanings and convictions about how we should live our own lives for the sake of unity, it is only necessary for us to accept the fact that differences exist and not only exist but are both right. This is a hard one for most of us! That capitalism and communism are at once both right and wrong depends entirely on your perspective.

My mum earned her rebel stripes at church meetings! We were a part of a conservative, nonconformist protestant church and, as is often typical with microcosms of the greater society, there were those who usually led and those that usually followed. Sheep and shepherds. When controversial issues arose, especially issues that ran counter to my mums more liberal world view, she would be the brave one to get up and challenge the erstwhile authority with a question. She rarely argued a point, rather choosing to couch her opposition in the form of one of those questions that forces people to think again. Very smart of her that was, for she was not branded as either a rebel or a renegade because she maintained respect but still forced the issue! Today we would call that 'brilliant'. Why she never rose to be Prime Minister I will never know. It was probably because she needed to focus her attentions on the little rebel that was growing up in her household - one that once would have been less likely to be so kind to those whose actions and beliefs were narrow and outdated (to put it nicely)!

My dad, on the other hand, was a deacon of the church and was held by all in high regard as a man of kindness, gentleness and above all fairness. Out of respect for dear old dad my mum must have bit her tongue a thousand times! Dad was the observer of the meetings who, near the conclusion of contentious or varied discussion, was able to summarize what had been said around the table in an empathetic way and then put it all together into a statement or resolution that the majority was usually able to buy into. The ultimate peace maker and consensus taker. So, hey, I didn't stand a chance! The funny thing is my brother has turned out the same way. He is a keen observer of life and a fair critic of inequities. Although his personal views are very real to him he has developed a unmitigated tolerance for those that believe otherwise, as long as they do so with impunity! Watch out hypocrites - for then the wrath will come, sarcasm and all!

It is with a more humble attitude that I approach today. Not that I do not wish for change, not that I will not still hope for ignorance to cease. But I will remember that there are reasons why folk don't always see things my way and I will go forward, undaunted, to continue to spread my peculiar message of hope that comes from the acceptance of diversity!

Forgiveness is the 'new' WMD

I want to fast forward to November 4th! I know that I shouldn't be wishing my life away so glibly, but it's just that the challenges we face in the next 2 months seem too hard to bear. The circus that is the American General Election process is getting into high gear and unfortunately the losers are going to be folks like you and me! Nowhere on earth is so much empty rhetoric bandied about in such a short space of time. Much of it is plain bunk, designed to poison ones opinion of the perceived opposition rather than enlightening a point of view.

We all see the world differently. If you don't believe me ask your family, neighbors, church friends and co-workers. No two people think alike, and if they do then one of them probably isn't thinking! The challenge today is to discern who is best suited to inspire a troubled nation to take charge of it's future and live up to it's former reputation in the global community, one of respect and admiration. We cannot remain a nation that is self absorbed and fundamentally selfish. We must reclaim our heritage that offers liberty and justice for all and is based on the much espoused, but rarely practiced, Christian principles of love, compassion, justice and inclusiveness. For all the talk about family values who among us really values the global family?

It is unreasonable to continue in the delusion that the USA can sustain it's world leadership position if it's international posture remains confrontational and arrogant. It is irresponsible to endlessly pour tens of billions of dollars of taxpayers money each month into the prosecution of a war that was not ours to fight, while millions of people are starving around the globe - including at home in America. Reasonable men and women are outraged that Americans have been led on a wild goose chase for oil while government policies have inched closer to fascism than at any time in our nations history. Hitler assumed his dictatorial role by hoodwinking the people into believing that certain groups were intent on destroying the fabric of German life. It does not take much intelligence to see that Americans have been cajoled into thinking that the whole of Islam is bent on the destruction of the West and the fear 'mongered up' by such talk allows for the rise of politicians for whom the concept of global family is anathema.

There is no doubt that the future will bring much trouble for America. We have created a multitude of enemies by our self interested meddling into the affairs of the world. We do need a change. We need to let go, once and for all, of our incessant need to be always right. It has been said that everything we need to know we learned in kindergarten! Perhaps the lessons of the sandbox that say "share everything, don't hit anyone and forgive anyone who hits you first", should be practiced by leaders of governments too! Forgiveness in the face of assault is the only way to lasting peace. Violence is never an option.

What would have happened, for example, if Bush had extended the arms of forgiveness toward those who attacked New York in 2001? Where might we be today if we admitted that we have wronged the world, that we are too greedy and self centered, that we do not really care about other nations internal struggles unless they affect our economic interests? Why is it that so many Christians have bought into the lie that the 'Right' is right when the deepest of Christian values - love, forgiveness, grace, mercy, peace, justice have been ignored for divisive issues of pharisaic legalism? Passionate opinions about abortion and gay marriage have blinded otherwise reasonable Americans from the real purpose of government which is to orchestrate the kind of support on a global level that we all expect to give and receive from our own families and group of friends. We must lead by example. An example that is loving, joyful, peaceful, patient, kind, good, faithful, gentle and moderated by self-control.

So bring it on Barack Obama - mobilize your people and inspire this nation once again to live the fulfillment of our forefathers dreams and to sacrifice for one another so that all people will eventually live in peace, lacking nothing. Unleash a new Weapon of Mass Destruction upon a waiting world by conquering fear with the power of unconditional love for all humankind! Even though it will cost us now - it will guarantee a secure future for our children!

With Hope for Love and Peace! Geoff

21st Century Trust

Today was an exciting day! Ever since I saw my aunt off at London's Heathrow airport - bound for Africa - in the 1960's, I have been seduced by the romance of travel! I took my first flight in 1972 when I was 18 years old. It was a big deal! I was the first one in my immediate family to fly. People took a boat, train or bus - but they didn't just hop on plane!

I think that is why I can identify with the philosophy that life is a journey, and that it is as important as the destination itself! My former partner used to complain that the travelling days were lost days on a vacation. I felt the opposite; consequently, although we left the house together and came back together, my vacations were always longer by a few days! The last minute packing and the hurried nights sleep before. The mad rush to the airport and the interminable queues. Security and baggage, waiting, watching people scurrying here and there. Timetables and scrolling destination boards. And then the meals! Ahh . . . . !! Of course I am usually a little hyper and often need to remind myself to pay attention to the moment, before it passes, but travel days are exciting - especially flying ones!

Today's excitment was in meeting my folks at the Tampa airport. British Airways was the carrier and as I watched the huge Airbus literally float out of the sky and skim onto the runway I was in awe. That an aluminium tube could transport my mum and dad over 3500 miles across the foreboding Atlantic Ocean is something that we just seem to take for granted these days! I watched planes dip out of the sky and line up like surfers waiting for a wave before gracefully gliding down to earth, one after the other. Then I thought of how many airplanes were doing just that, effortlessly, around the globe, that minute, that hour, that day. And I said thank you! Thank you to the laws of nature, the determination of generations of scientists and engineers and the tenacity of human beings who have created the opportunity for anyone who can raise a couple of hundred dollars to share in this modern day adventure!

It is humbling too, for we take so much for granted. Air travel, as with any mass transit system, is an impossibility of we do not work together as a society. It is a privilege, not a right. An individual might by himself be able to build a cart for a horse to pull, but it would be impossible to construst, for ones own use, a conveyance that can take you from your home in Florida and drop you in London within a half a day! For sure, there are issues with customer service in the airline industry these days but hold on before you start a boycott! How else can you get to Europe and back for less than 12 tanks of gas? At the current average MPG you couldn't even make it one way to England - and it would take you more than a week! Affordable international air travel has made the world accessible to anyone who chooses to take the journey and will continue to unite our global family in the decades ahead. The awareness that travel is a privilege is not lost on me. I have been fortunate enough to visit 44 of the 200+ countries on our globe. many of them by air. This has provided me an opportunity to experience how small the world really is and how interconnected we all are. For this awareness I am grateful. It helps me to think globally while I am acting locally!

I am looking forward to my travel day on October 11th when my cousin Marion will fly me to London for her wedding. I said it would take a miracle for me to be able to go this year! The miracle is two-fold! Not only am I being gifted a ticket, but I will put my trust in some big shiny hollow metallic bullet that has been scheduled to pick me up and deposit me five time zones away before dinner! Wow! I relish that moment and am giddy with anticipation! My vacation will begin as I get up that morning and will not end until I flop into my own bed 12 days later. It's all about the journey and I can't wait to see what I shall see!!

Love and Peace - Geoff

Obama? Unsure? Then Pray About It!

My daughter, Hannah, has been a Republican for most of her life. This was her milieu, surrounded by good people who thought that was the Christian thing to be. While a political science student at a Christian University she experienced the issues from a different point of view and consequently registered as an Independent. Today she is a Democrat! Not for any of the little reasons, but for the big ones! The issues that have to do with real Christian values!

I was thrilled tonight by the spectacle at Mile High Stadium in Denver. Not only did Barack Obama inspire an unprecedented convention crowd of 84,000 people. He inspired my daughter, he inspired her mother, he inspired me, and he inspired a nation!

As people of faith we must seek true guidance that is not limited by human opinion or party line. We must pray that our country elects the leader that will be right for America and right for the world! We must pray that we have the courage and the insight to vote according to who is meant to be the one to lead this country forward through the difficult days, at home and abroad, that lie ahead.

Tonight we heard a speech from a man who feels called to be that leader, a man who is willing to risk himself and his family to serve the greater good, a man of faith, a man who has proven that he can cross party lines and inspire a nation to work together to bring change. He believes in the values that every American holds dear. Let's abandon our soapboxes and take a moment to look at this historic moment from a new perspective. May we all commit to work together, hand in hand, to recreate the America that was the dream of those who have given their lives to protect it. Still not convinced? Then pray about it my friend! And remember to listen for an answer!

May God Bless America and Shed His Grace on Thee!

Love and Peace - Geoff

Another Point Of View

Once in a while someone comes along to challenge all you have ever thought you believed! What a disguised blessing that can turn out to be!

When I told my pastor the other day that I was writing a book intended to inspire young gay and lesbian people to seek a spiritual connection, her immediate retort was "Great! So who is helping to keep your message real?" That person is pictured above, my cousin and dear friend, Shawn Stout.

It is true that in order to share your beliefs with others you have to be convinced of their validity. Beliefs and values are nothing if they are not authentic and real, if they are not proven in your experience. Hypocrisy is rampant in our culture as people hide who they really are in order to support an image. I have spent the majority of my life hiding the truth about me from various parties important to my life, most notably my parents and my daughter. It seemed easier to put on a false front than to live the truth about myself with honesty.

Shawn has given me the greatest of gifts, something that I can never repay. He has given me myself! As I have opened up and listened to him; as I have struggled with perceived rejection and distance; as I have given time, hope, support and encouragement - I have learned about love. I have learned that unconditional love has always been there for me from my family - I was just too fearful to accept it. I have learned that acceptance was mine from the beginning - I was just afraid to embrace it. I learned these things by not giving up, by believing in Shawn when I could not believe in myself. By accepting his weaknesses without judgement even while I was unable to accept my own, and by examining and reclaiming my own spiritual faith while sharing openly without shame. This process has liberated and set me free.

The end result has been astounding. My relationship with my family, especially my mum, dad and brother has never been more satisfying. The connection I have with my daughter is now on par with my dreams! I am a grateful and happy man. The key to all of this has been the chance that I have had to walk some miles in another's shoes! My perspective has been enlarged, I have seen my life from another point of view, I am truly on purpose!

It is said so often that we grow through adversity. If this relationship has been adversity then I say bring it on again! Yes there have been sacrifices and cost, but the growth that Shawn and I have experienced in our lives is worth more than anything, absolutely anything! I do not wish to consider where I might be today if Shawn had not come into my life. Things may happen for a reason, but it takes being aware of that fact for any value to come out of it! I am now richer in spirit than at any time in my life. I am back on track and I can't wait for tomorrow! Thanks to you all for walking beside me through these days!

Love and Peace - Geoff

The Politics Of Love

The Summer Olympic Games in Beijing have come to an end and so has the amazing display of global unity! Reality is that we are still very divided along political and geographical lines, not to mention social and economic ones! The heartwarming experiences of the last two weeks though serve to remind us all that we are indeed one global family.

One of the most interesting sidebars from NBC's pundits recounted the story of an American ping pong player , Glenn Cowan, who broke the rules at a World Championship in Japan in 1971 and found himself alone with the Communist Chinese team, on the wrong bus to the stadium! Thanks to the Chinese penchant for hospitality, forbidden conversations took place leading to gift exchanges, press coverage and ultimately an invitation to play ping pong in China issued on the instruction of Chairman Mao himself! This action of a maverick US ping pong player directly led to the restoration of relationship between the US and China after more than 20 years of complete international isolation! Because of this single exchange the possibility of a Beijing Olympic Games became a reality!

J K Rowling, author of the Harry Potter books writes this: "One of the many things I learned studying classics at the age of 18, in search of something I could not then define, was this, written by the Greek author Plutarch: 'What we achieve inwardly will change outer reality.' This astonishing statement expresses, in part, our inescapable connection with the outside world, the fact that we touch other people's lives simply by existing. We do not need magic to change the world. We carry all the power we need inside ourselves already!"

We now find ourselves in the midst of a momentous struggle to elect a new President of the US. No matter what your political viewpoint and background, think of politics as the vehicle by which the values of love and forgiveness, healing and charity are dispensed to our nation and the world. Unless we elect politicians that truly believe that we are a global family. Unless we work with all our might to share the wealth and privilege that many in the West enjoy. Unless we put love and forgiveness first in our dealings with one another both here and abroad then we can just forget about a bright and safe future for our children and grandchildren. Love is the only way, the right way, the way forward. May we set aside religion, partisan politics and self serving agendas and take the risk of putting ourselves out there to change the world - one person at a time. Thinking globally, and acting locally, let us reach out with love, compassion and forgiveness to our friends, family and neighbors - those we know and those we don't. We are all one family, one nation and one world!

A Jewish leader moved to a Midwestern town and soon began to be harassed by a physically handicapped KKK Grand Dragon. The threats were hateful and violent. After reminding the perpetrator that his Nazi idols went after physical disabilities even before they began ethnic cleansing, he began to extend love and compassion in response to the continual onslaught of hate. After some tense and fearful times for his family the Jew invited the Clansman into his home when he became too ill to care for himself. He stayed there until his death, embracing his new brother and renouncing hatred. This one man was able to effect a change of heart of one most would consider beyond redemption! Love won out!

Let us, as individuals, families, cities and nations extend ourselves with love and tap into the essence of the universe and the one way to sure success - even though the cost may be great! Robert Kennedy said: "Each time a person stands up for an ideal, or acts to improve the lot of others — he sends forth a tiny ripple of hope. And crossing each other from a million different centers of energy and daring, those ripples build a current that can sweep down the mightiest walls of oppression and resistance."

Let us join the fight and change the world - one ripple of love at a time!!

Love and Peace - Geoff

Family First

Today I met my granddaughter at the public library. We both love books! This picture of her, taken at 6 months, has graced my laptop as wallpaper for the past two years. She is aptly named Haley Grace. It is because of grace that I even know her. Grace - that amazing meld of unconditional love and uncompromised forgiveness - has been a key force in my life, grace both given and received! To hear the spontaneous and unsolicited words: "I love you Pop-pop", as she cuddled up next to me at lunch, really brought that home!

Haley seems to grasp the concept that Hannah is my daughter as well as her mother - no small accomplishment for someone who has not yet turned three! It is the time that Hannah was about Haley's age that keeps coming up for me . . . for it was then that I began my torturous exit from our home and, for a time, from her daily life. Thanks to grace I get another chance, though it would be many years and many deposits into her 'emotional bank account' (as defined by Stephen Covey in his book 'The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People') until Hannah and I could know again what Haley and I know now. Today Hannah is willing to trust me in building a relationship with her own daughter and I am in awe!

Since July, Haley Grace has been in Sarasota! Her family moved back here from rural Georgia, and what they lost in small town charm and community they have gained in grandparents! Our family is the single most influential life connection that we will ever have. Not that it's always a good thing - it just is! Most of the internal struggles that we go through - of identity, value, confidence, image and purpose - are full of familial fuel, energy that can be simultaneously positive and negative.

Grace, that positive energy that wells up from roots firmly connected to the source of unconditional love that is the essence of the universe, is at work in my life. It has restored my soul and leads me on paths of authentic living. It allows me unfettered connection to the lives of my daughter and her child. Faith that we, as humankind, are connected to one another and all that is has been the greatest comfort and inspiration to me as I face the challenges of living my life with honesty in the 21st Century.

Faith is no good unless it is your own. It cannot be adopted from another or assimilated by osmosis or taught with a ruler! It has to be personally experienced if it is to provide strength in times of trial, failure and defeat. Defined as 'the evidence of things unseen' it is , to me, the foundation on which I build the rest of my life. I know that I am not alone. I know that my journey of life is inextricably bound up with the journeys of others and for that awareness, as for the rest of my present circumstances, I am exceedingly thankful!

Will I spoil Haley Grace? Impossible! Genuine, unconditional love will put up with anything, always believe the best and never give up! It will not be selfish or judgemental. It will be full of grace and it will always put others - we are all one family - first!

I am so grateful for the opportunity to be an enduring influence in the life of Haley Grace! May we always be thankful for those that come into our lives and may we give grace as much, and more, as we are aware of it being given to us!

Love and Peace - Geoff

Something Good is About to Happen!

Today I am published! With one inspirational lesson from my author brother Derek - pictured on the left - I became a blogger and so a published author myself! Wow! I am on the right of the picture.

My brother is one special guy. One very authentic guy. I haven't always felt that way, but - thank God - I have grown. Now I can truly appreciate who he has become and I now know he respects and appreciates me. It's not about the accomplishments in our lives that has brought this mutual love and respect, it is about our honesty. That it has taken us to our midlife to come to these terms and 'get real' with each other is both laudable and sad. Laudable because we have made it! Sad, perhaps, because we have missed much of the true grit of each other's journeys. The reality is that many families fail to ever arrive at the position that we find ourselves in today. Many individuals fail to grow, so I am one grateful guy!

The man in the middle is our Dad. He just turned 80 (really!) and is the reason that we are together in this picture - literally in every sense. We are standing on the bow of an ocean liner in the Bay of Alaska. Time with one another was even more valuable than the magnificent scenery we encountered on this full-family vacation! Time and yes, honesty, are keys to building relationships that can weather the storms of life.

As for me, at the beginning of a new journey that I will be sharing with you, I am glad I am who I am, and I am grateful that my family is too!

Love and Peace - Geoff