Issue 43

In This Issue:

1) Welcome Letter by Sibyl McLendon
2) A New Sound by Michael Lynn
3) How to Get Some Peace & Quiet! by Jim M. Allen
4) Nothing Is As Good (Or As Bad) As It Seems! by Robert Taylor
5) The Power Of Music

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Welcome Letter
by Sibyl

Yá'át'ééh! And hello September! For a lot of you, I would think that
September means Fall is arriving. Around here, it means that the
temperatures will probably not get into the 100's anymore. Hopefully.
I hope that all you U.S. readers had a safe and relaxing Labor Day
weekend. And for those of you who live outside the states, Labor Day is
a holiday where we celebrate working by not working. Go figure...
I have been thinking about friends and cyberspace. The Internet is a
wondrous thing. I have made some wonderful friends cruising the
Internet. Four, especially, I am very close to and can't imagine my
life without them anymore. And I would never have met these people
without the Internet. I might easily have gone about my life and never
known what I was missing, but my life would have been a lot less fun,
and fulfilling, without them. They are like the sisters I never got in
reality. Hey, I love you guys! Anyway, treat your cyberspace friends
with the greatest of care, everyone. And take a moment to silently
thank Al Gore for the information hiway... that's a joke, by the way.
If you live outside of the U.S., ask a state-side friend to explain. Or
write to me.
I hope your week is fabulous, cool and rewarding. Take care of
yourself, a Mouse In Tucson cares what happens to each and every one of
you.
You can contact me at navajomouse@hotmail.com

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A New Sound
by Michael Lynn

A New Sound... Not unfamiliar.

Just now...a few moments ago, while moving towards the patio and another
lovely evening, I heard a sound long unheard since childhood... a sound
not heard in the desert. And for a brief moment I returned to that
childhood and felt myself at play, running once again through the
woods... for a
brief moment.

The hour of dusk was approaching quietly and a soft breeze had moved
into the valley. The first of the Night Orchestration of Light and
Sound had begun. Night life was waking as the sun slipped softly behind
the San Jacinto mountains.

At the first click of it's sound I swayed in my tracks. I WAS a child
again as a vision of summer in the country swam within the mind. There
on a slim branch of a small tree I spied a Cicada in the last throws of
slipping from it's transparent shell. The very top of the shell splits
along the back exactly down the middle and the Cicada lifts itself up
and out, much the same we humans do when changing clothes.

The body was now somehow greener than before the exodus of the old
shell, with its wings more transparent than ever and stronger in the
recognition of its ability to take flight... its latest approach to the
waiting world.

A form of life in the insect world I found fascinating. So unassuming,
non intrusive, and such a powerful sound from this small delicate being.
As a child I would climb trees to sit near Cicada now and then for
long periods of time observing... nothingness. For that's what they did
I
thought...no-thing-ness.

Now and then, however, one would break into song just before flying off.
An instant before, I would suddenly find my attention riveted to its
large eyes. Its eyes would move slightly, looking up at me, then it
would let fly with song. I was spell bound. I would not move for fear of
its early taking of flight.

Afterwards I would sit quietly for some time, unmoving, as if to remain
in the moment. Knowing it would be a while before such a moment would
present itself again and I would quietly, softly, scurry up a tree and
relive nature unfolding once more before the eyes of a child who often
wondered if she would, herself, now and then witness her own growth over
the years.

The present moment has returned and I bring to it the child who remains
to witness her own growth in her own time and space. The child who now
and then moves on into the Inner Worlds. Whose transparent wings are
battered and torn here and there, but never the less... stronger,
waiting for the time-worn imbalance within the next step in her wee
small universe to present itself in its full blown illusion. Knowing it
will.

Like a moth to the flame... the light is blinding, bringing new birth.
And with it, new illusions.

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I remember you from somewhere
Somewhere in the use to be

I remember you with someone
That someone was me

Wasn't it a sweet adventure
on a balmy summers day...
As we walked among the roses
Romance led the way

How we nestled in the moonlight
And you loved me to extremes

I remember you from somewhere
Somewhere in my dreams

~Author Unknown

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How to Get Some Peace & Quiet!
by Jim M. Allen

In this hectic, modern world of ours there is often a great need for us
to slow down, calm ourselves, and find some peace and quiet. Here are a
few ideas to get you started:
   
1. Plan daily "quiet time"

The best way to quiet down is to plan 30-minutes (or more) of daily
quiet time. Time you can spend quietly, with yourself and your
thoughts.

2. Create a noise-free zone

Designate one room of your house as a noise-free zone where family
members can go relax.

3. Turn off the television/radio

Do you leave your t.v. or radio on as "background noise?" If so, try
turning them off.

4. Turn off your telephone, especially at night

Nothing is more disturbing than the shrill ring of a telephone when you
are trying to relax. Turn off your phone's ringer. Let the answering
machine or voicemail system get a message.

5. Turn off your cel phone

In fact, leave it at home. After a while you may find that you don't
even need it.

6. Turn off your beeper

Do you *really* need to be contactable every minute of every day?

7. Turn off your computer

Today, we receive as much information in a single day as a person did in
an entire year in the early 1900 's. A large portion of that wave of
information comes from our daily contact with the computer... so turn it
off. Check your email tomorrow. Give your mind a rest.

8. Get away from the kids, the pets, etc.

Ask a friend or family member to babysit/petsit for you for a day or
two. (Then help them get some quiet time and return the favor.)

9. Take a nap

We are much more sensitive to the stress noise creates when we are
lacking sleep. So take a nap and recharge your batteries.

10. Take a hike!

Literally. If you're going to surround yourself with noise, then
surround yourself with the noise of nature. Reconnect with yourself and
with the natural world around you, stroll around your favorite park or
recreation area.
        ____

Jim Allen is a professional life coach, speaker, and writer. Get more
great
ideas in you email every week by subscribing to Jim's weekly newsletter,
THE
BIG IDEA, by sending a blank email to: <mailto:Subsc-@CoachJim.com>;
(©2001
Jim Allen & CoachJim.com ALL RIGHTS RESERVED)

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Nothing Is As Good (Or As Bad) As It Seems!
by Robert Taylor

We often think it would be good to win or inherit several
million dollars. Why? For starters, we could pay off all
our debts, travel around the world, purchase that
magnificent mansion we have always wanted, acquire the
automobiles of our dreams and obtain just about anything
else money can buy.

Would it really be a good thing for us? I dare say it could
be very bad for us unless we knew and had learned certain
things. The foremost would be just how this type of
lifestyle would affect our character and personality. How
would it change the way in which you treated everyone with
whom you came in contact?

Would you treat your spouse and children the same as always,
or would you have a totally different relationship with
them? Would you keep all of your old friends or dump them
and find a different class of people with whom to associate?

You would find that in the long run great wealth does not
change you or other people. It only magnifies what is
already there. If you are a kind and generous person, you
become kinder and more giving. Should you be grumpy and
stingy, you become grumpier and tighter with your
possessions.

Sudden wealth can be good for us so long as we know how to
manage it. We can pay off our debts and gain that much
peace of mind. We can have more time for self-development
and improvement. Our living conditions can be much
improved. We can be more generous to our favorite
charities. We could spend more time with our families and
our favorite hobbies or pastimes.

Or, we can do as many people would who have suddenly come
into great sums of money and run out and purchase everything
under the sun. They wind up (temporarily) with a
magnificent home and automobiles, fancy clothes and jewelry,
travel the world and go on a spending binge.

It is too late when reality strikes. The money is almost
gone and now they are faced with the upkeep of the fancy
home and cars and lifestyle which they so rapidly adopted.
It becomes only a matter of time until they are worse off
financially than before they came into this great amount of
money.

Is the loss of your job and income good or bad? Depends on
how you look at it. The loss is bad because you can no
longer pay your bills or purchase essential items for you
and your family. The loss can be very good because it
forces you to find another job, which will probably provide
either more income or satisfaction than the old one.

This same concept of good and bad can be applied to just
about everything you will encounter in your journey through
life on this earth. It is your perception of it that makes
it good or bad (and gives it the power it may have over
you).

I believe it was Shakespeare who said, "Nothing is either
good or bad, but that thinking makes it so." Something to
thoroughly explore.

Copyright 2001 by Robert Taylor
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The Power Of Music

Written By Elton John
Lyrics By Tim Rice
From The Soundtrack Of The Lion King

From the day we arrive on the planet
And blinking, step into the sun
There's more to be seen than can ever be seen
More to do than can ever be done

Some say eat or be eaten
Some say live and let live
But all are agreed as they join the stampede
You should never take more than you give

It's the circle of life
It's the wheel of fortune
It's the leap of faith
It's the band of hope
Till we find our place
On the path unwinding
In the circle, the circle of life

Some of us fall by the wayside
And some of us soar to the stars
And some of us sail through our troubles
And some have to live with the scars

There's far too much to take in here
More to find than can ever be found
But the sun rolling high
Through the sapphire sky
Keeps great and small on the endless round

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