And the nominees for Best Picture are…

"New Orleans at Dawn" is an 8x10 oil canvas that captures energies collected on my first visit to the historic city on the banks of the Mississippi River.

The year was 1972; the beginning of my Sam Cooke’s, “I Know a Change is Gonna Come,” moments. I arrived with my five month old daughter strapped to my back two weeks before Mahalia Jackson’s body arrived for burial. Although it was bitterly cold, it didn’t stop the round the clock celebration of life for the greatest gospel singer of all time. The death of Miss Jackson allowed me to take shelter with the masses from the grief of learning of my own grandmother’s death.... read more...

Dear James, There is a place, a space outside of this dark abyss that is speaking to you and offering you a hand. Neither one of us is religious so you know I am not speaking of some dogma based savior. I am speaking of hope, what can be, where this strength you get from your now greets your future and bends it to the possibilities that await you. You cannot see this now, I know. And I am asking you to trust this, this truth. ...read more...

I was talking to a piano student yesterday about practice. Although this is a typical subject frequently and repetitively discussed in piano lessons, this conversation with an adult student was different. She diligently practices. Everyday she goes through her lesson assignments at a certain time, spending at least the suggested amount of time on each component. In spite of her practice regimen, she was not improving; in fact, some techniques and difficult passages in her music were regressing.

How could this be? The answer lies in the idea of practice. In music, as well as other behaviors, habits, interests in life, we are continually practicing. I use and explain this concept when I teach. ...read more

Months ago I stumbled across an organization on Facebook whose mission statement intrigued me. Common Ground News Service wrote it 'works to resolve conflicts by publishing articles that promote mutual understanding, opportunities for dialogue, and constructive criticism.' This enlightened approach made my heart skip beats! I immediately immersed myself in the articles on its wall....(more)

By Moments Count People do not enslave other people to be mean to them.

People enslave other people for a profit.

People are not even a capital purchase item – they are an expendable commodity.

Kevin Bales, President and Co-Founder of Free the Slaves gave a TED talk in which he discusses how we can stop human trafficking if we look directly at the problem and understand how and why it exists everywhere in the world.

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Everywhere you look, all over this country, we are implementing “Zero tolerance” polices for bullying and/or intolerance. Yet the policies are being implemented and ignored. People advocate them and criticize them, demand them and reject them. But “Zero tolerance” can work and does work. Why, then, are there so many examples of it not working?
In my observation, it is because too frequently “Zero tolerance” is structured with authoritarian and dictatorial procedures. The result says to children, “I will bully you if you bully some else” or “I will be completely intolerant of you if you do not have tolerance for others.” Guess what? This is not an effective strategy. But, neither is throwing up our hands and claiming nothing can be done to stop bullying and intolerance in our schools.
Herein lies the problem. We must let children and young people know that we have “Zero tolerance” for bullying behaviors. But we must begin teaching “Zero tolerance” by role modeling for them other behaviors to replace those that are injurious and unacceptable in a society that seeks peace and freedom for all.
Children learn what we teach. Children will listen. Children will observe and imitate the example. Therefore, we must consider what we offer them as food for their consideration. ...read more

The other day I was telling my teenage daughter how odd it is (if you think about it -- which I do) that if you are having trouble with some object -- let's say a cell phone that loses it's signal -- it's considered completely normal, perfectly reasonable behavior to curse that object and treat it roughly. You might say something like "You @%&** piece of junk! Why are you doing this to me?!" You might slam it down and push it away from you in disgust. On the other hand, if you were to do the opposite -- thank the object, cradle it lovingly, and appreciate it every time it worked -- well, then people would think you were a complete lunatic. If you overheard a co-worker at their desk saying, "Good morning, dear pen. Thank you for flowing with ink every time I need to write something. I really appreciate you. I can always rely on you," you would think that person had gone completely round the bend. But if you heard that same person muttering obscenities at their slow computer, you would feel that they were just acting as any normal, sane person would if their computer were failing them at a critical moment.click to read more

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By Brooke Leigh Sheldon

It has been used for centuries by every culture, every tribe, every species as a safe space. Where, in this very busy, very crowded world, do you create your sanctuary, your cave?

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None of us is offered every perfect element to create a perfect life. Yet, we do create the most perfect version of ourselves we can with the opportunities, experiences and tools available to each of us.

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Sometimes we have a light. Sometimes we have a way to see through the darkness. But sometimes the only way to see our way through the darkness is to know within ourselves, to trust something within us knowing that we are going in the direction of the light.

On a clear, blue-sky, blue-sea day in Florida, my father and I sat in matching deck chairs overlooking an inland waterway. The early morning calm, the sea taste in the air and the sun’s gentle touch seemed to create an alchemical magic that primed us for an intriguing exchange. 'Hey, Dad,' I said unceremoniously, 'what do you think I’m going to do with my life? I mean, what could I really be good at?' Even as the words escaped my mouth, my mind became entangled with doubt and insecurity.
'The thing you will do better than everyone else,' Dad began, 'is the thing that will come to you so naturally, so easily,' he continued, with a casual flip of his hand, 'that you will write it off as valueless.' I swiveled to look at him. My brain cued to full attention.....(more)

Studies show that when something is learned by someone once, it is easier for somebody else to learn it again later! For example, in experiments, untrained rats must learn how to run or swim a maze to get to their food. And that takes them time and experience before they get it right. But… if the maze has already been learned by many earlier generations of rats from the same strain, the rats learn the maze almost immediately. In fact, in some cases, they’re BORN knowing it and can run it perfectly from birth. Just because a previous generation(s) learned it before them. If you’ve got no previous ancestors who already did it, you’ve got NO SHORT-CUTS TO FOOD. This would definitely make me wish for better ancestors.(more)

Roisin Fitzpatrick wanted to do something for people to help better the world. She asked the universe to help her live her true potential and within one week her life took a turn that many people might call disaster.

But Roisin calls it ART!

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