Category: Importance of Touch

Tony’s Parrot

Once upon a time, there was a lonely middle-aged man named Tony. He’d had several brief relationships; but for reasons unknown to him, they always ended abruptly. The women knew, however; there was an aura about him which they found very unappealing. At one point, Tony’s loneliness became so severe that he decided to purchase a parrot for company. Off he trudged to a local pet store. When he returned home with the parrot, which he named Billy Boy, he hung the birdcage on its stand in front of the television. He reasoned that Billy Boy would, thus, have something to watch while it was locked up in its cage.

None of Tony’s neighbours knew what he actually did for a living. To one, he had claimed to be a rocket scientist; to another, a health professor; and yet another, a political leader. All they knew for certain was that Tony was gone…all day long.

One day, after leaving the T.V. attuned to a non-stop business news program, he returned home and was pleasantly surprised to hear Billy Boy talking. He raced to be at his side.

“The DOW is down, the DOW is down!” squawked Billy Boy, as it shuffled side to side on its perch.

Tony was so impressed that he rewarded Billy Boy with some brown rice, his favourite food.

The next week, Tony returned home and was overjoyed when he heard Billy Boy had learned some more new words.

“The market’s going to crash! The market’s going to crash!” cawed Billy Boy.

Again, Tony rewarded Billy Boy with some more food. This time, he gave Billy Boy steamed vegetables, which he gobbled up.

The following week, Tony returned home; and before he had removed his coat, he heard Billy Boy sing, “Bitcoin’s a buy! Bitcoin’s a buy!”

With tears of joy, Tony approached Billy Boy and embraced its cage. How he loved his little bird, the partner for which he had longed.

***

If persons had heard Billy Boy spew its news about business, they might have assumed that Billy Boy was quite bright–perhaps even a business genius, trapped inside the body of a parrot. We of course, know better; for we realize that Billy Boy was just parroting what it had been programmed to repeat. There was no thinking involved.

Dare to dream (and care for one another).

With heartfelt regards,

Art

Copyright © – 2022 – R. Arthur Russell

P.S. Please share this article if you enjoyed it. If you’d like to view my latest book (This Taste of Flesh and Bones–released September 8, 2020), press here. My YouTube videos may be found through this link. May the content of either or both help you along your spiritual journey. 🙏🧡

“Thank You” & “Note to Publishers”

Amazing Grace

Many of us are familiar with a hymn entitled Amazing Grace. The poignant lyrics were inspired by an event in the life of John Newton, the hymn’s author. From online accounts, John Newton was a strong willed young man who was rebellious to authority. He was conscripted into the Royal Navy, but was soon discharged due to behavioral issues. As a result, he later served on various slave trade vessels.

During a severe storm off the coast of Ireland in 1748, John found himself crying out to God for mercy. A conversion occurred, which changed his life forever. Although he continued to work on slave ships for a few more years, he experienced a growing sense of sympathy for the slaves. After retiring from sailing, he studied Christian theology and became an abolitionist. Here is the first stanza of his transformative hymn, Amazing Grace:

“Amazing grace, how sweet the sound,
That saved a wretch like me.
I once was lost, but now am found,
Was blind but now I see.”

“Amazing Grace” ~ John Newton

The hymn relates the potent feelings that accompany the realization that we’re not who we think ourselves to be, but actually an aspect of the Creator. As long as we believe that we’re a person, we’re enslaved without realizing it. In I Am That, Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj expressed the condition this way: “To be a person is to be asleep.” We’re asleep when we’re still caught within the net of Maya (illusion) and unaware that our true Self is Universal Consciousness. To awaken, we needn’t endure a perilous sea voyage. We need only to turn our attention within, to the silent stillness of meditation. Amazing Grace will determine if we’re set free.

Dare to dream (and care for one another).

With heartfelt regards,

Art

Copyright © – 2021 – R. Arthur Russell

P.S. Please share this article if you enjoyed it. If you’d like to view my latest book (This Taste of Flesh and Bones), press here. My YouTube videos can be found at Think2wice@I-Am-Aware. May the content of either or both help you along your spiritual journey. “Thank You” & “Note to Publishers” 🙏🏻🧡

Remember When?

Remember When

This blog has taken a few twists and turns during the last four years. For almost two years, I published articles regarding the workings of the Law of Attraction. I hoped to inspire people to reach for their dreams; to share knowledge that could help them achieve their goals. I then gave the blog a rest, until Covid became the shameful and overwhelming story of the world. In response, I published an article on March 18th entitled We The Courageous (press here) in an attempt to offer support and help people dig down deep and face their fears about what was being reported.

Since that time, I’ve used various techniques–including articles regarding our true nature, the satirical antics of Dr. Phuphuey, and even a link to a recent peaceful protest in Trafalgar Square–that I hoped would help bring a degree of sanity to what appears to be collective insanity. Think of it: Did you ever believe that we would see a time when masks, physical distancing, and talk of social bubbles would be imposed upon the human race? And oddest of all, it doesn’t seem to make one whit of difference that the Corona Worldometer (as of today) continues to report that 99% of the cases present with mild symptoms. Nor does it make any difference when we hear of opposing opinions from respected doctors and experts in the field of immunology being silenced. Are we searching for a guarantee against death of the body? If so, we had better keep on looking.

The following is only my opinion, but it relates an example of one of the real victims of the human response to the story of “Covid.” The woman, “Dolores,” is eighty-four and lives in the retirement section of a nursing home. My friend, who provides footcare for the elderly, had visited this previously vibrant woman just prior to the implementation of restrictions in Canada in early March of this year. My friend, who recently treated Dolores for the first time in five months, told me that she noticed a significant decline; Dolores was both cognitively and physically slower. Yes, I admit, there is no proof that we can attribute all, or even part, of Dolore’s decline to being isolated from her family members. Dolores told my friend that there had been lots of phone calls; but, of course, visitations and shows of affections such as hugs and kisses from family members, had been deemed meaningless and prohibited by those who would save us. We, of course, are concerned with saving ourselves; that’s why we stand six-feet apart and don the pitiful masks that hide our humanity…even when our hearts are screaming that something smells about this whole thing.

The good news is that any further decline in Dolores, and the thousands of isolated persons like her, will not be covered by any media coverage; therefore, we won’t have to witness it. Nor will we know the accounts of thousands, if not millions, who have lost previously flourishing businesses. These silent but atrocious occurrences don’t make headlines; and they never will. It is up to us–the relatives and caring friends–to stand up for the current inhumanity that is sweeping the world. If we don’t, only egos will survive; and they aren’t worth saving. Remember when?

Dare to dream (and care for one another).

With heartfelt regards,

Art

Copyright © – 2020 – R. Arthur Russell

P.S. Please share this article if you enjoyed it. If you’d like to view my latest book (This Taste of Flesh and Bones–released September 8, 2020), press here. May it help you in your spiritual journey. 🙏🙏

“Thank You” & “Note to Publishers”