http://momentscount.com The Moments Count Journal is a weekly Internet magazine bringing worldwide change through collaboration. Thu, 17 May 2012 17:54:05 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.2 Moments Count is committed to the concept that every person has a purpose and a power to change the world. We work to create worldwide conversation. This diverse engagement energizes ideas and facilitates opportunities to take action to improve the world we all share. Visit us at http://MomentsCount.com/and tell us how you or someone you know is changing the world. The Moments Count Journal no The Moments Count Journal contactmc@momentscount.com contactmc@momentscount.com (The Moments Count Journal) Moments Count You Have Power and Purpose In Your World. moments count, brooke leigh sheldon, valli keller, positive change, create change, inspire http://momentscount.com/wp-content/uploads/powerpress/MCLogo_Tag2.jpg http://momentscount.com/topics/arts http://momentscount.com/archives/9985 http://momentscount.com/archives/9985#comments Thu, 29 Mar 2012 05:00:50 +0000 Valli Keller http://momentscount.com/?p=9985 http://momentscount.com/archives/9985/feed 2 http://momentscount.com/archives/9952 http://momentscount.com/archives/9952#comments Tue, 20 Mar 2012 05:00:35 +0000 Alexandra Wallace http://momentscount.com/?p=9952 http://momentscount.com/archives/9952/feed 0 http://momentscount.com/archives/9845 http://momentscount.com/archives/9845#comments Sat, 18 Feb 2012 06:00:21 +0000 Brooke Leigh Sheldon http://momentscount.com/?p=9845 http://momentscount.com/archives/9845/feed 8 http://momentscount.com/archives/9827 http://momentscount.com/archives/9827#comments Thu, 16 Feb 2012 06:00:10 +0000 John W Strobel III http://momentscount.com/?p=9827
Some the earliest recollections of my childhood are of watching my dad play the banjo, saxophone and drums. He and my mother were children of the 1920’s Flapper Era but, both being musicians, they adapted to swing and the syncopated jazz big band sounds of the early thirties and forties. My dad settled on drums [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/9827/feed 2 http://momentscount.com/archives/9811 http://momentscount.com/archives/9811#comments Sun, 12 Feb 2012 06:00:05 +0000 Shoot 4 Change http://momentscount.com/?p=9811
A group of American women got together with the idea of redefining the concept of beauty. Men can be blond, brown, red, white and… bald. Why not women? I photographed them in New York as they were that day and I collected their stories too. Some of them have alopecia, some have been through chemotherapy, others [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/9811/feed 1 http://momentscount.com/archives/9805 http://momentscount.com/archives/9805#comments Fri, 10 Feb 2012 06:00:40 +0000 Moments Count http://momentscount.com/?p=9805 http://momentscount.com/archives/9805/feed 2 http://momentscount.com/archives/9757 http://momentscount.com/archives/9757#comments Thu, 02 Feb 2012 06:00:00 +0000 Moments Count http://momentscount.com/?p=9757
From Robert A MacDonald for The Sun: Peggy was dying. She had battled cancer for years, but at the age of 45 she was losing her fight. A wife and stay-at-home mother of three children in Ventura, Peggy had caught the online bug and couldn’t stop writing about what was happening to her and the [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/9757/feed 0 http://momentscount.com/archives/9752 http://momentscount.com/archives/9752#comments Tue, 31 Jan 2012 06:00:12 +0000 Chris Palmer http://momentscount.com/?p=9752 http://momentscount.com/archives/9752/feed 1 http://momentscount.com/archives/9738 http://momentscount.com/archives/9738#comments Fri, 27 Jan 2012 06:00:07 +0000 Thomas Norman DeWolf http://momentscount.com/?p=9738 http://momentscount.com/archives/9738/feed 0 http://momentscount.com/archives/9681 http://momentscount.com/archives/9681#comments Sun, 15 Jan 2012 06:00:34 +0000 Alexandra Wallace http://momentscount.com/?p=9681
For the majority of early childhood, I knew who I wanted to be when I grew up: Snow White, of course. I had planned my future of adulthood to take place in an idyllic cottage, spending my afternoons singing in the middle of a forest while little birds landed on my hand. Writing it out, [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/9681/feed 1 http://momentscount.com/archives/9652 http://momentscount.com/archives/9652#comments Fri, 06 Jan 2012 06:00:11 +0000 Brooke Leigh Sheldon http://momentscount.com/?p=9652 http://momentscount.com/archives/9652/feed 2 http://momentscount.com/archives/9616 http://momentscount.com/archives/9616#comments Tue, 27 Dec 2011 06:00:58 +0000 Moments Count http://momentscount.com/?p=9616 http://momentscount.com/archives/9616/feed 0 http://momentscount.com/archives/9589 http://momentscount.com/archives/9589#comments Mon, 19 Dec 2011 06:00:58 +0000 Shoot 4 Change http://momentscount.com/?p=9589
(Text and Photos by: Isaak J. Liptzin ) I arrived in Jaipur intending to stay only for a few days, but I ended up meeting a group of people who lived in the Kathputli colony. (click to see the photogallery) I visited their home, and spoke to them about the school they were trying to [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/9589/feed 0 http://momentscount.com/archives/9508 http://momentscount.com/archives/9508#comments Wed, 07 Dec 2011 06:00:25 +0000 Thomas Norman DeWolf http://momentscount.com/?p=9508
Sharon and I both love cemeteries. One important aspect of the work we’ve committed ourselves to along our healing journey involves burial grounds. We both turn our heads to check them out when we pass them in our cars. We’ll walk through them and read headstones whether we have relatives buried there or not. Over [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/9508/feed 0 http://momentscount.com/archives/9403 http://momentscount.com/archives/9403#comments Thu, 17 Nov 2011 06:00:25 +0000 Alexandra Wallace http://momentscount.com/?p=9403
I spent more than half of my September on the road this year, traveling from bright Las Vegas to dusty Arizona, through the stunning Mesa Verde, and through corn. So. Much. Corn. The main destination of this adventure was to see my grandmother Elizabeth, or Bette, as we all know her as, for her ninety-sixth [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/9403/feed 0 http://momentscount.com/archives/9322 http://momentscount.com/archives/9322#comments Sun, 06 Nov 2011 05:00:47 +0000 Kevin Robison http://momentscount.com/?p=9322
It’s been one of those summers. You think things are going one way, then suddenly life throws a curve, and then a curve back, and all of the sudden you feel like you are on an endless slalom. The ride can be fun, but when you find yourself passing very big trees at a very [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/9322/feed 1 http://momentscount.com/archives/9326 http://momentscount.com/archives/9326#comments Sat, 29 Oct 2011 05:00:11 +0000 Brooke Leigh Sheldon http://momentscount.com/?p=9326
The season is upon us. The time for spiders (Don’t ya’ hate walking through a spider web, ewwwww, creepola!!!) and bats (They mine bat poop (guano)…. Who knew?!), ghosts (See, I told you to get out in the sun a little more!!!) and werewolves (They leave me howling!). Let’s not forget vampires (They’re the ones [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/9326/feed 6 http://momentscount.com/archives/9123 http://momentscount.com/archives/9123#comments Thu, 06 Oct 2011 05:00:49 +0000 Alexandra Wallace http://momentscount.com/?p=9123
  My grandmother turned 96 years old today, Sept 19, 2011, and we were here in Michigan to celebrate with her. Please share this story!]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/9123/feed 1 http://momentscount.com/archives/9016 http://momentscount.com/archives/9016#comments Mon, 12 Sep 2011 05:00:10 +0000 Alexandra Wallace http://momentscount.com/?p=9016
Taken as a part my [three-six-five] project (the photographer’s challenge of taking a photograph a day for an entire year), this pair of photos was captured in March during a night’s getaway in downtown Santa Barbara. My love, Chris Lambert, and I discovered The Agave Inn while on tour last summer, and the sun-soaked atmosphere [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/9016/feed 0 http://momentscount.com/archives/8983 http://momentscount.com/archives/8983#comments Thu, 08 Sep 2011 05:00:24 +0000 John W Strobel III http://momentscount.com/?p=8983 http://momentscount.com/archives/8983/feed 3 http://momentscount.com/archives/8910 http://momentscount.com/archives/8910#comments Wed, 31 Aug 2011 05:00:20 +0000 Alexandra Wallace http://momentscount.com/?p=8910
Editor’s Note:  This is the debut offering from an extraordinary find:  Alexandra Wallace.  To label her a photographer doesn’t begin to do justice to her creative talents. To listen to the songs that inspired these Music and Lyrics pieces click below: For It Haunts Me by Chris Lambert I know some amazing people. And the [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/8910/feed 0 http://momentscount.com/archives/8791 http://momentscount.com/archives/8791#comments Sat, 13 Aug 2011 05:00:51 +0000 Shoot 4 Change http://momentscount.com/?p=8791
- A story told by Yelena Posniak/S4C New York City – I recently had the honor to interview Supei Liu and Diana Mao, the co-founding members of the Nomi Network based in New York City. By utilizing their knowledge of fashion design, marketing, business and with great creativity, Nomi Network is making a tremendous difference [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/8791/feed 0 http://momentscount.com/archives/8730 http://momentscount.com/archives/8730#comments Fri, 05 Aug 2011 05:00:49 +0000 Thomas Norman DeWolf http://momentscount.com/?p=8730 http://momentscount.com/archives/8730/feed 1 http://momentscount.com/archives/8436 http://momentscount.com/archives/8436#comments Thu, 14 Jul 2011 06:46:03 +0000 Shoot 4 Change http://momentscount.com/?p=8436
In May we reported on Shoot 4 Change’s project “Next Generation.”  We are pleased to bring you an update on the success they are finding with this project in Rome. …Moments Count How do you teach photography to those who have it already inside? How do you make love photography those who see it daily [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/8436/feed 0 http://momentscount.com/archives/2569 http://momentscount.com/archives/2569#comments Thu, 14 Jul 2011 06:45:42 +0000 Brooke Leigh Sheldon http://momentscount.com/?p=2569
On one hand, it is arrogant for us to think we are the caretakers of this planet. On another hand, we are the species that has the greatest control over the management of it. And as such, we have undeniable responsibilities. I won’t begin to list those responsibilities here. That subject is too vast for [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/2569/feed 5 http://momentscount.com/archives/8310 http://momentscount.com/archives/8310#comments Thu, 07 Jul 2011 05:01:29 +0000 Adele Caulfield Schiller http://momentscount.com/?p=8310
This is how it begins. You’re driving down the road, sunroof open, most alluring sunglasses in place, and it’s a beautiful summer day! The only thing missing is music…so, you reach to turn on the radio. It’s already set to your favorite music station…you know…the one that plays such a great variety of songs from [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/8310/feed 2 http://momentscount.com/archives/8267 http://momentscount.com/archives/8267#comments Thu, 30 Jun 2011 05:03:31 +0000 Thomas Norman DeWolf http://momentscount.com/?p=8267
White man with a guitar leans on black man playing a saxophone. Both are dressed in black and white clothes. White album cover. Everything about the Born to Run album cover is black and white. Very little about Bruce Springsteen and Clarence Clemons was. They didn’t make an issue over a black man playing in [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/8267/feed 2 http://momentscount.com/archives/8251 http://momentscount.com/archives/8251#comments Thu, 30 Jun 2011 05:01:58 +0000 Catherine Ryan Hyde http://momentscount.com/?p=8251
Finally, the truth of my relationship with the Princess Lamballe. Well, right off the bat, I must admit we can’t have known each other terribly well. She was a contemporary of Marie Antoinette. She died in 1792. But I must be quite the expert on her life and death. Because, according to just about every [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/8251/feed 1 http://momentscount.com/archives/8155 http://momentscount.com/archives/8155#comments Thu, 16 Jun 2011 05:04:05 +0000 National Geographic http://momentscount.com/?p=8155
Last week we ran the 20 most extreme, hair-raising, legendary adventures on the planet, daunting even for the world’s elite athletes. If you’ve got the mettle, add these to your lifetime to-do list. Not quite ready? Check out this list of the 20 next-best adventures—and start planning. Explore your own adventures with National Geographic Expeditions. [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/8155/feed 1 http://momentscount.com/archives/7868 http://momentscount.com/archives/7868#comments Thu, 26 May 2011 05:05:27 +0000 John W Strobel III http://momentscount.com/?p=7868
I lived during that time when old men were young… John William Strobel III I guess it’s not fair to talk so much about the “good old days” today. Those of you who were not around then are probably feeling a little left out, and well you should. There is a special recognition that goes [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/7868/feed 6 http://momentscount.com/archives/7852 http://momentscount.com/archives/7852#comments Thu, 26 May 2011 05:03:36 +0000 Thomas Norman DeWolf http://momentscount.com/?p=7852
“We have a fuel leak on the right side of the plane. We need to evacuate.” The pilot’s voice got everyone’s attention. I heard the word “evacuate” but wasn’t sure about the rest of what he said through the distortion in the sound system. I turned toward the man and woman sitting next to me [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/7852/feed 8 http://momentscount.com/archives/7847 http://momentscount.com/archives/7847#comments Thu, 26 May 2011 05:02:42 +0000 Shoot 4 Change http://momentscount.com/?p=7847
Do you have an old camera sitting around that you don’t know what to do with?? Here is your chance to donate it to a great cause! S4C NEXT GENERATION is a global initiative to bring photography to children worldwide. S4C photographers created a program that will unite children from remote villages in Costa Rica [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/7847/feed 1 http://momentscount.com/archives/7881 http://momentscount.com/archives/7881#comments Thu, 26 May 2011 05:00:43 +0000 Brooke Leigh Sheldon http://momentscount.com/?p=7881
Our lives are finite.  They may be long, short, or somewhere in between.  Jonathan Larson could not know he would live just until the day before his Broadway hit, Rent, premiered.  But, without knowing just how limited they were, he made the moments he had count.   Visit Brooke’s website here. Please share this story!]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/7881/feed 0 life path,moments count,possibilities,rent,value of life Our lives are finite.  They may be long, short, or somewhere in between.  Jonathan Larson could not know he would live just until the day before his Broadway hit, Rent, premiered.  But, without knowing just how limited they were, (http://momentscount.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/JonathanLarson-300x246.gif)Our lives are finite.  They may be long, short, or somewhere in between.  Jonathan Larson could not know he would live just until the day before his Broadway hit, Rent, premiered.  But, without knowing just how limited they were, he made the moments he had count.   Visit Brooke's website here (http://brookeleighsheldon.com). Brooke Leigh Sheldon no 5:20 http://momentscount.com/archives/7341 http://momentscount.com/archives/7341#comments Thu, 19 May 2011 05:04:16 +0000 Sandi Severson http://momentscount.com/?p=7341
“He Who Can, Does: He Who Can Not, Teaches”– George Bernard Shaw, 1903. Really? But I thought, “It takes a village to raise a child”– Hillary Rodham Clinton, 1996. Teaching is certainly part of raising a human being. 93 transformative years and the opposite sex separate these quotes. Followed by “No Child Left Behind”– George [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/7341/feed 27 http://momentscount.com/archives/7113 http://momentscount.com/archives/7113#comments Thu, 12 May 2011 05:02:58 +0000 Gale Madyun http://momentscount.com/?p=7113
“Waking Up,” giving many thanks to Alice Walker for the powerful voice she used to coax the early-before-day-morning radio audience to learn the names of our ancestors. Many decades ago, in continuous whispers, hushes and a rush she urged we learn the name Yemaya. Yemaya is the orisa who symbolizes all the oceans and the [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/7113/feed 31 http://momentscount.com/archives/7267 http://momentscount.com/archives/7267#comments Thu, 12 May 2011 05:01:43 +0000 Adam J Pearson http://momentscount.com/?p=7267
Finally free from enclosure in my own fears and worries, I can truly see you, not as an object or a means to my ends, but a genuine person with unique concerns, thoughts, feelings, and values. I can appreciate you as having as much importance and value as my own self. I can relate to [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/7267/feed 2 http://momentscount.com/archives/7021 http://momentscount.com/archives/7021#comments Thu, 14 Apr 2011 05:36:24 +0000 Brooke Leigh Sheldon http://momentscount.com/?p=7021
Hey, what if I were to catch you in your happiest of moments and whisper to you…… “What’s the music you hear?” You’d probably glance over at me and say, “What music?!” Then I’d say, “That music….”, and point at you. Whereupon, you’d probably eye me as if you were looking for something, likely my [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/7021/feed 25 http://momentscount.com/archives/6967 http://momentscount.com/archives/6967#comments Thu, 14 Apr 2011 05:03:07 +0000 Shoot 4 Change http://momentscount.com/?p=6967
This is a photo essay from Shoot 4 Change. Click this link or the links below to see the entire photo essay. There are almost constant sounds inside the Hospital. Nurses rush in and out, forced by the unstoppable rhythm of the Children’s floor. But when the trolley used for the Music Therapy comes closer [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/6967/feed 1 http://momentscount.com/archives/6633 http://momentscount.com/archives/6633#comments Thu, 24 Mar 2011 05:01:33 +0000 John W Strobel III http://momentscount.com/?p=6633
Elizabeth “Liz” Taylor dead at 79!!! That headline greeted me as I awoke on Wednesday March 23, 2011. It immediately brought back memories of that wonderful lady and our short time together. She was a world renowned actress while I was a lowly journalist trying to make a living in the fledgling television news industry [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/6633/feed 7 http://momentscount.com/archives/6214 http://momentscount.com/archives/6214#comments Thu, 03 Mar 2011 06:06:01 +0000 National Geographic http://momentscount.com/?p=6214
Writing in Cosmopolitan in 1911—then a general-interest magazine— U.S. inventor, Thomas Edison, predicted what the future would bring. He was spot on about some things, such as speedy airplanes, but “absolutely wrong” on others, said Paul Israel, director and general editor of the Thomas A. Edison Papers Project at Rutgers University in New Jersey.  Here [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/6214/feed 26 http://momentscount.com/archives/6298 http://momentscount.com/archives/6298#comments Thu, 03 Mar 2011 06:02:07 +0000 Shoot 4 Change http://momentscount.com/?p=6298
                  S4C is still in Dakar, Senegal at the World Social Forum 2011 with Antonio Marcello. We are here with our partner, Stefano Scialotti, founder of the project KIDZDREAM . Stefano is travelling the World mapping kids dreams as a way to open new communication channels with [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/6298/feed 2 http://momentscount.com/archives/6083 http://momentscount.com/archives/6083#comments Thu, 24 Feb 2011 06:01:03 +0000 Greenpeace http://momentscount.com/?p=6083 http://momentscount.com/archives/6083/feed 0 http://momentscount.com/archives/5987 http://momentscount.com/archives/5987#comments Thu, 17 Feb 2011 06:01:43 +0000 Shoot 4 Change http://momentscount.com/?p=5987
                    It’s a great pleasure to introduce Manuel Meszarovits a french professional photographer with a strong focus on social issues (together with and professional wedding photography and portraits activity). He highlights his social and humanitarian reports by accompanying the work of associations throughout the world and [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/5987/feed 6 http://momentscount.com/archives/5812 http://momentscount.com/archives/5812#comments Thu, 10 Feb 2011 06:05:06 +0000 Shoot 4 Change http://momentscount.com/?p=5812
Nicola Sacco met with the photographer Fabio De Benedettis on the occasion of his joining Shoot4Change (S4C) (and we are all happy and honored!) and exchanged with him a few thoughts on photography and social commitment. Fabio reminisced, “When I was 11 I received my first camera with which I loved portraying people’s faces, their [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/5812/feed 0 http://momentscount.com/archives/5800 http://momentscount.com/archives/5800#comments Thu, 10 Feb 2011 06:04:45 +0000 Thomas Norman DeWolf http://momentscount.com/?p=5800
Mark Twain defined a “classic” book as one “which people praise and don’t read.” He should know. How many of you have read Huckleberry Finn? This “classic” has been condemned, banned, or people attempted to ban it, in a variety of locations, and for various reasons, since it was first published in 1885. Back then [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/5800/feed 1 http://momentscount.com/archives/5601 http://momentscount.com/archives/5601#comments Thu, 03 Feb 2011 07:56:14 +0000 Thomas Norman DeWolf http://momentscount.com/?p=5601
Comments on the book, The Hemingses of Montecello by Annette Gordon-Reed It turns out that the stories about Thomas Jefferson I learned while growing up don’t exactly tell the whole story. Funny how that happens with “history” sometimes… lots of times. Thomas Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence, was the third president of the United [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/5601/feed 1 http://momentscount.com/archives/5658 http://momentscount.com/archives/5658#comments Thu, 03 Feb 2011 03:47:54 +0000 Gale Madyun http://momentscount.com/?p=5658
For me, problem solving for an important life lesson is often a Liberation Legs activity. These six whimsical ink and water color drawings celebrate the liberation of breath into action and truth into power and woman into warrior as a swing of the legs into windows of reflections. Nancy Sinatra’s These Boots are Made for [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/5658/feed 4 http://momentscount.com/archives/5340 http://momentscount.com/archives/5340#comments Wed, 19 Jan 2011 02:54:58 +0000 Catherine Ryan Hyde http://momentscount.com/?p=5340
In my new young adult novel Jumpstart the World, Frank, my transgender character, tells Elle,”The world doesn’t always play by its own rules.” He says we all agree that there should be equality for everyone. But of course there isn’t. And we just let it slide. He says, “That’s why there’s such a thing as [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/5340/feed 0 http://momentscount.com/archives/5265 http://momentscount.com/archives/5265#comments Thu, 23 Dec 2010 04:41:08 +0000 John W Strobel III http://momentscount.com/?p=5265
It was sometime in the spring or early summer of 1966. I was News Director for KAFY Radio in Bakersfield and doing special reports for Television station KBAK in Bakersfield. As News Director I was tasked with all sorts of strange duties by the general manager of KAFY, Mike Thomas. Mike and I had moved [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/5265/feed 0 http://momentscount.com/archives/5086 http://momentscount.com/archives/5086#comments Thu, 09 Dec 2010 06:00:48 +0000 Catherine Ryan Hyde http://momentscount.com/?p=5086
I get a lot of questions about this one. Q: What did I think of the movie version of Pay It Forward? A: I thought the book was better. Then again, I would, wouldn’t I? When I say that, just about everybody says the same thing: “Oh, the book is always better than the movie.” [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/5086/feed 1 http://momentscount.com/archives/5138 http://momentscount.com/archives/5138#comments Thu, 09 Dec 2010 06:00:22 +0000 Thomas Norman DeWolf http://momentscount.com/?p=5138
When I was a child television news in our home meant Walter Cronkite. In junior high school history class we watched his “You Are There” series of historical reenactments. There were reasons he was the most trusted man in America; why President Johnson once said, “If I’ve lost Cronkite, I’ve lost middle America” and became [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/5138/feed 1 http://momentscount.com/archives/4956 http://momentscount.com/archives/4956#comments Thu, 02 Dec 2010 05:00:12 +0000 Gale Madyun http://momentscount.com/?p=4956
The four Beautiful Big Bottomed Women in this series are a celebration of women birthed in sensual soul-earth memory. All four women, naked-to-the-wind in voluptuous curves, shapes, and colors are confident in sensual earth-flesh-spirit expansions. Briefly, they each give pause to wave out to the winds which beckon across the horizon. So primordial are the [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/4956/feed 25 http://momentscount.com/archives/4699 http://momentscount.com/archives/4699#comments Thu, 18 Nov 2010 04:50:37 +0000 Catherine Ryan Hyde http://momentscount.com/?p=4699
My first true mentor was author Jean Brody (Gideon’s House, A Coven of Women, Cleo). I met her when I first had the guts to join the Cambria Writers Workshop and read my work out loud (picture if you will: hands trembling as they try to hold the printout; hammering heart; much pausing for life-giving [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/4699/feed 2 http://momentscount.com/archives/4682 http://momentscount.com/archives/4682#comments Thu, 18 Nov 2010 04:50:08 +0000 Thomas Norman DeWolf http://momentscount.com/?p=4682
Dr. Joy DeGruy (formerly Dr. Joy DeGruy Leary), author of Post Traumatic Slave Syndrome: America’s Legacy of Enduring Injury and Healing, is a member of the Bahá’í faith community. Understanding this context breathes deeper meaning into Dr. DeGruy’s work than I would have had without this knowledge. I recently spent a week with a family [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/4682/feed 1 http://momentscount.com/archives/4705 http://momentscount.com/archives/4705#comments Thu, 18 Nov 2010 04:50:03 +0000 Valli Keller http://momentscount.com/?p=4705
Never has the world seemed so completely united-in the form of communication, commerce, and culture-and so savagely torn apart-in the form of war, financial meltdown, global warming, and even the migration of diseases. No matter how much we put our minds to the task of meeting the challenges of a rapidly globalizing world, the human [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/4705/feed 2 http://momentscount.com/archives/4411 http://momentscount.com/archives/4411#comments Thu, 04 Nov 2010 06:29:29 +0000 Adimu Madyun http://momentscount.com/?p=4411
Editorial Note: This video trailer for the film Operation Small Axe is a follow-up to the article last week from Adimu Madyun. Adimu has followed events in Oakland for years and has created this documentary film to bring a picture of apparently ingrained police racism and rising community resistance to the idea of continuing victimhood. [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/4411/feed 0 http://momentscount.com/archives/4231 http://momentscount.com/archives/4231#comments Thu, 28 Oct 2010 05:17:18 +0000 Adele Caulfield Schiller http://momentscount.com/?p=4231
                  If I were to ask what frightens you, what would you say? Would it be something like a snake or a mouse or maybe a spider? Or are you more afraid of things like fire or roller coasters, or heights? I have a daughter who is [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/4231/feed 5 http://momentscount.com/archives/4283 http://momentscount.com/archives/4283#comments Thu, 28 Oct 2010 05:16:37 +0000 Elizabeth Wescott http://momentscount.com/?p=4283
One of the nice things about writing beyond the wisdom I live is that at times when my thinking has gotten all messed up I have my own words in some file, here or there on my computer, to help put me back on track. It is odd, yet wonderful. I wrote this piece this [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/4283/feed 4 http://momentscount.com/archives/4257 http://momentscount.com/archives/4257#comments Thu, 28 Oct 2010 05:12:57 +0000 Catherine Ryan Hyde http://momentscount.com/?p=4257
In my new young adult novel Jumpstart the World, Frank, my transgender character, tells Elle,”The world doesn’t always play by its own rules.” He says we all agree that there should be equality for everyone. But of course there isn’t. And we just let it slide. He says, “That’s why there’s such a thing as [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/4257/feed 0 http://momentscount.com/archives/3900 http://momentscount.com/archives/3900#comments Thu, 21 Oct 2010 08:57:47 +0000 Adele Caulfield Schiller http://momentscount.com/?p=3900 http://momentscount.com/archives/3900/feed 4 http://momentscount.com/archives/3622 http://momentscount.com/archives/3622#comments Tue, 05 Oct 2010 22:09:04 +0000 Donna Morask http://momentscount.com/?p=3622
                I have had two very difficult blows dealt me while social networking on Facebook. One day I logged on as usual and ran through my live feed. I stopped and read a good friend’s status which said, “RIP Dan, you will be missed” I read a second [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/3622/feed 2 http://momentscount.com/archives/3484 http://momentscount.com/archives/3484#comments Wed, 29 Sep 2010 18:03:26 +0000 Sandi Severson http://momentscount.com/?p=3484 http://momentscount.com/archives/3484/feed 8 http://momentscount.com/archives/3364 http://momentscount.com/archives/3364#comments Wed, 22 Sep 2010 22:31:38 +0000 Gale Madyun http://momentscount.com/?p=3364
“Strolls Lake Merritt” is an 9×12 ink and water color print of a magical nanosecond encounter with an elderly Vietnamese woman. She seamlessly maneuvers between pedestrians and picture-perfect twisted tree limbs along the street and dirt paths of the lake, while pushing a rickety, rusty cart of neat piles of groceries and clothes. On top [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/3364/feed 22 http://momentscount.com/archives/3276 http://momentscount.com/archives/3276#comments Fri, 17 Sep 2010 21:43:22 +0000 Thomas Norman DeWolf http://momentscount.com/?p=3276
Every time I’m tempted to believe I’ve encountered a model of healing that will work for people who have been seriously damaged by oppression I’m slapped upside the head by a reminder of just how difficult healing is. In Ireland during the 1970′s, Catholics and Protestants were attacking and killing each other. People were dying [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/3276/feed 0 http://momentscount.com/archives/3183 http://momentscount.com/archives/3183#comments Thu, 09 Sep 2010 07:33:31 +0000 Thomas Norman DeWolf http://momentscount.com/?p=3183
Book Review: Are We Born Racist?: New Insights from Neuroscience and Positive Psychology By Jason Marsh, Jeremy Adam Smith, Rodolfo Mendoza-Denton Much of the research I’ve done (and classes I’ve taken through the Center for Justice and Peacebuilding at Eastern Mennonite University over the past few years) to help me understand the history, legacy, and [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/3183/feed 0 http://momentscount.com/archives/3138 http://momentscount.com/archives/3138#comments Wed, 08 Sep 2010 02:12:37 +0000 Kevin Robison http://momentscount.com/?p=3138
It was on a Sunday morning that a hundred members of the Gay Men's Chorus of Los Angeles poured into the cabin of a jetliner at LAX. Just as we were settling into our tight quarters, a large group of young Mormon men, dressed in their trademark white shirts and dark pants, boarded the plane. No one in the chorus said a word. ]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/3138/feed 1 http://momentscount.com/archives/2763 http://momentscount.com/archives/2763#comments Sun, 01 Aug 2010 06:24:14 +0000 Thomas Norman DeWolf http://momentscount.com/?p=2763
When I was a child in the early 1960′s I received a polio vaccine, as did my sister and most everyone I knew. What I did not know until recently is that the person we have to thank for this gift of the virtual eradication of a horrible disease is a black woman from rural [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/2763/feed 2 http://momentscount.com/archives/2772 http://momentscount.com/archives/2772#comments Sun, 01 Aug 2010 06:19:42 +0000 Brooke Leigh Sheldon http://momentscount.com/?p=2772
iPhones use download link to listen “The lights are much brighter there, you can forget all your troubles; forget all your cares, and go Downtown.” But, what does going “Downtown” mean to you? Where do you go to step away from the problems that surround you to gain a new perspective? Now, maybe the lights [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/2772/feed 0 moment count, the moments count journal, brooke leigh sheldon, valli keller, downtown, petula clark, christine lavin, perspective, take a break Downtown iPhones use download link to listen "The lights are much brighter there, you can forget all your troubles; forget all your cares, and go Downtown." But, what does going "Downtown" mean to you? Where do you go to step away from the problems that surround you to gain a new perspective? Now, maybe the lights are brighter or there are movie shows, or little places that never close, or maybe there's the wind's breath through the trees or the pounding of water falling from a steep cliff ledge.... but, you know what? Wherever you find your "Downtown", how can you lose? After all, everything's waiting for you... so maybe I'll see you there..... Music Credits: Downtown #1: Petula Clark (http://click.linksynergy.com/fs-bin/click?id=dV/IJmmXELM&subid=&offerid=146261.1&type=10&tmpid=3909&RD_PARM1=http%3A%2F%2Fitunes.apple.com%2Fus%2Falbum%2Fdowntown%2Fid253598702%3Fi%3D253598722) Downtown #2: Christine Lavin and Livingston Taylor (http://click.linksynergy.com/fs-bin/click?id=dV/IJmmXELM&subid=&offerid=146261.1&type=10&tmpid=3909&RD_PARM1=http%3A%2F%2Fitunes.apple.com%2Fus%2Falbum%2Fdowntown%2Fid2556227%3Fi%3D2556213) Painting Credit: (http://momentscount.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/downtownlights.jpg)Oil Painting: Downtown Lights by Leonid Afremov (http://www.afremov.com/) (available for sale) Brooke Leigh Sheldon no 6:13 http://momentscount.com/archives/2683 http://momentscount.com/archives/2683#comments Thu, 15 Jul 2010 07:01:40 +0000 Gale Madyun http://momentscount.com/?p=2683
I knew at that moment the reality of my life for the past several years. The consequences of my past actions and alliances crushed me in sorrow. I painted "New Orleans at Dawn" in the fall of that year. It is a celebration of my introduction and renewal of spirit connections to the council and spirit of the grandmothers and their confidence that I was on a path they believed to be the equitable resolution for the consequences of my past behavior.]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/2683/feed 48 http://momentscount.com/archives/2584 http://momentscount.com/archives/2584#comments Fri, 02 Jul 2010 20:13:29 +0000 Sandi Severson http://momentscount.com/?p=2584
To attain goals in music, business, love, diet, exercise, finance, or to overcome obstacles the first step is to slow down. Choose attainable goals. I suggested my student work on just a couple of measures (small segments) at a slow enough speed that she could stay mindful. ]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/2584/feed 4 http://momentscount.com/archives/2514 http://momentscount.com/archives/2514#comments Sun, 20 Jun 2010 18:02:55 +0000 Brooke Leigh Sheldon http://momentscount.com/?p=2514
The first time a father shares his deepest thoughts with his children on the curious mystery called “love” can be memorable or mundane. In this recorded podcast, Brooke Leigh Sheldon shares with you the story of John Steinbeck’s wise offerings to his son, Thom. Please share this story!]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/2514/feed 0 moment count, the moments count journal, brooke leigh sheldon, valli keller, john steinbeck, thomas steinbeck, father's day, love letter, father's advice The first time a father shares his deepest thoughts with his children on the curious mystery called "love" can be memorable or mundane. In this recorded podcast, Brooke Leigh Sheldon shares with you the story of John Steinbeck's wise offerings to his s... The first time a father shares his deepest thoughts with his children on the curious mystery called "love" can be memorable or mundane. In this recorded podcast, Brooke Leigh Sheldon shares with you the story of John Steinbeck's wise offerings to his son, Thom. Brooke Leigh Sheldon no 6:08 http://momentscount.com/archives/2355 http://momentscount.com/archives/2355#comments Thu, 13 May 2010 05:50:55 +0000 Brooke Leigh Sheldon http://momentscount.com/?p=2355
We cherish the leader. We lionize the one who steps forward, who grabs the flag running ahead yelling “Follow me!”. However, if no one follows the mission is never accomplished, the goal is never met, the victory is never won. The leader is successful because of the leaders that step forward to follow! Please share [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/2355/feed 0 http://momentscount.com/archives/2298 http://momentscount.com/archives/2298#comments Sat, 08 May 2010 18:09:28 +0000 Valli Keller http://momentscount.com/?p=2298
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! Meet Roisin Fitzpatrick, Artist of the Light [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q0XAiaiUOII[/youtube] Roisin is speaking [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/2298/feed 0 http://momentscount.com/archives/2266 http://momentscount.com/archives/2266#comments Fri, 30 Apr 2010 17:01:23 +0000 Valli Keller http://momentscount.com/?p=2266 http://momentscount.com/archives/2266/feed 4 http://momentscount.com/archives/2034 http://momentscount.com/archives/2034#comments Thu, 01 Apr 2010 05:19:32 +0000 Michael Faraday http://momentscount.com/?p=2034
Considerations We speak of Consciousness, yet what do we do; We live in the Moment, yet plan future Events; We share the Dream, yet are we fully Awakened; We pray to our Ancestors, yet forget to love the Children; We learn from our Friends, yet where is the Unity; We acknowledge the Importance, yet fail [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/2034/feed 3 http://momentscount.com/archives/1996 http://momentscount.com/archives/1996#comments Mon, 22 Mar 2010 07:33:25 +0000 Brooke Leigh Sheldon http://momentscount.com/?p=1996
Will Rogers said, “We can't all be heroes, because somebody has to sit on the curb and applaud when they go by.” And, while I think Will had a valid point, Holly Near’s song “Change of Heart” offers a perceptive I believe Will would agree with, to paraphrase it: Our hearts and minds change when we participate in empowering the lives of those around us. In addition, when we observe others acts of kindness we are further inspired. So, I believe Will would agree with me when I say the two roles, hero and curb sitter, in his statement shift and revolve many times in the cycles of our lives.]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/1996/feed 0 change,choice,courage,harmony,hero,intention,leadership,sharing Will Rogers said, “We can't all be heroes, because somebody has to sit on the curb and applaud when they go by.” And, while I think Will had a valid point, Holly Near’s song “Change of Heart” offers a perceptive I believ... iPhones use the download link to listen (http://www.momentscount.com/images/hollynear.jpg) Music Credit:  Holly Near (http://www.hollynear.com/) Will Rogers (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Will_rogers) said, "We can't all be heroes, because somebody has to sit on the curb and applaud when they go by." And, while I think Will had a valid point, Holly Near (http://www.hollynear.com)'s song "Change of Heart" offers a perception I believe Will would agree with. To paraphrase it: Our hearts and minds change when we participate in empowering the lives of those around us. In addition, when we observe others' acts of kindness, we are further inspired. So I believe Will would agree with me when I say the two roles, hero and curb sitter, in his statement, shift and revolve many times in the cycle of our lives. Sometimes we are the curb sitters, applauding loudly and enthusiastically for the brave ones who take the chances and change the lives of others with action or deed. Other times it is we who are the ones heralded, noted and admired for the valor or voice we have demonstrated. Yet at our fingertips is the opportunity to make our energy felt, for a platform as accessible as Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/?ref=home#!/pages/Moments-Count/199251575880?ref=ts) makes it possible for any of us to stand wherever we wish in Will's rumination, and to grab the mantle of impactful engagement to which Holly inspires us to in her song. So, whichever part you are now playing in your performance of this magnificent human showcase, execute your role with intention and it will be guaranteed to be significant. Are you ready for a change of heart? Download Change of Heart (http://click.linksynergy.com/fs-bin/click?id=dV/IJmmXELM&subid=&offerid=146261.1&type=10&tmpid=3909&RD_PARM1=http%3A%2F%2Fitunes.apple.com%2Fus%2Falbum%2Fchange-of-heart%2Fid302163627%3Fi%3D302164276) from iTunes Download Change of Heart (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001QSQR20?ie=UTF8&tag=javahousejour-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B001QSQR20)(http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=javahousejour-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B001QSQR20) from Amazon Brooke Leigh Sheldon no http://momentscount.com/archives/1984 http://momentscount.com/archives/1984#comments Fri, 19 Mar 2010 21:04:35 +0000 Moments Count http://momentscount.com/?p=1984 http://momentscount.com/archives/1984/feed 2 http://momentscount.com/archives/1980 http://momentscount.com/archives/1980#comments Wed, 17 Mar 2010 07:38:39 +0000 Brooke Leigh Sheldon http://momentscount.com/?p=1980
We all know those times when something really hits the spot and we want “seconds”. Well, apparently this post hit the spot for a lot of you, because a whole bunch of you requested we repost it.  So, in honor of St. Patrick’s Day, and to let you know we’re always listening, we lay this [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/1980/feed 0 http://momentscount.com/archives/1936 http://momentscount.com/archives/1936#comments Sat, 13 Mar 2010 18:49:25 +0000 Moments Count http://momentscount.com/?p=1936 http://momentscount.com/archives/1936/feed 0 http://momentscount.com/archives/1914 http://momentscount.com/archives/1914#comments Mon, 08 Mar 2010 17:00:50 +0000 Brooke Leigh Sheldon http://momentscount.com/?p=1914
iPhones use the DOWNLOAD link to listen The magic of excitement brews as the lights going down in the theater. The swell of the music fills our ears. Then, on the screen, rushing colors and images fly by. We become mesmerized, hypnotized by the expanse before us. A great film is compelling. It captivates us. [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/1914/feed 10 moments count, brooke leigh sheldon, valli keller, movie awards, best actor actress, best picture, best life, your best life, standing ovation iPhones use the DOWNLOAD link to listen The magic of excitement brews as the lights going down in the theater. The swell of the music fills our ears. Then, on the screen, rushing colors and images fly by. We become mesmerized, The magic of excitement brews as the lights going down in the theater. The swell of the music fills our ears. Then, on the screen, rushing colors and images fly by. We become mesmerized, hypnotized by the expanse before us. A great film is compelling. It captivates us. A great film is never an accident. Will you come with me into the theater for a few minutes and watch the film? Are you ready to find out what happens in there? Brooke Leigh Sheldon no 9:00 http://momentscount.com/archives/1896 http://momentscount.com/archives/1896#comments Wed, 03 Mar 2010 07:53:31 +0000 Brooke Leigh Sheldon http://momentscount.com/?p=1896
John O’Donohue did much in his short life to popularize and demystify the history and lore of Celtic tradition and spirituality. His gifted authorship captures me in its reflection of his own inspired living. O’Donohue’s focus was on Celtic wisdom’s teaching that within each of us is a world of possibilities and that we must [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/1896/feed 2 http://momentscount.com/archives/1670 http://momentscount.com/archives/1670#comments Sat, 16 Jan 2010 07:10:23 +0000 Brooke Leigh Sheldon http://momentscount.com/?p=1670
In 1996, the composer and playwright Jonathan Larson gave the world a song which alters the course of lives, and will continue to alter the course of lives yet to come, around this globe. And, the day before his intense and thoughtfully powerful play, which includes this song of dynamic reflection, was to premiere – [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/1670/feed 2 http://momentscount.com/archives/1576 http://momentscount.com/archives/1576#comments Sat, 19 Dec 2009 00:56:31 +0000 Brooke Leigh Sheldon http://momentscount.com/?p=1576
Somewhere in you is an artist. Somewhere in your life is an artist that you can appreciate and support. What is always important is that we take the opportunity to express the artist within and to understand and support the artists in our lives. And when we make the choice to criticize we need to be honest enough with ourselves to understand from where the criticism arises. For the art that is created is an expression of the interior landscape of the person who created the art and there is no criticism of that expression that does not become a criticism of the human being.]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/1576/feed 0 Moments Count, Brooke Leigh Sheldon, Valli Keller, vincent van gogh, creativity, genius, art, artist, painting, Vincent Somewhere in you is an artist. Somewhere in your life is an artist that you can appreciate and support. What is always important is that we take the opportunity to express the artist within and to understand and support the artists in our lives. And when we make the choice to criticize we need to be honest enough with ourselves to understand from where the criticism arises. For the art that is created is an expression of the interior landscape of the person who created the art and there is no criticism of that expression that does not become a criticism of the human being. Brooke Leigh Sheldon no 13:42 http://momentscount.com/archives/1330 http://momentscount.com/archives/1330#comments Sun, 08 Nov 2009 05:44:04 +0000 Brooke Leigh Sheldon http://momentscount.com/?p=1330
Paranormal Activity…..is it true? Here I go again, true confession happens here a whole bunch. C’mon, let’s face it, I can’t ask you to be honest with yourself if I don’t start the conversation with my own honesty, right? Well, at least that’s the way I see it. So let’s jog back to the question. [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/1330/feed 0 http://momentscount.com/archives/1218 http://momentscount.com/archives/1218#comments Sat, 31 Oct 2009 22:02:09 +0000 Brooke Leigh Sheldon http://momentscount.com/?p=1218
At what age do we take responsibility for our actions? When do we become accountable for our decisions? I learned a critical life lesson when I decided to use John Steinbeck’s East of Eden for a class assignment. I was 15. I haven’t forgotten the book – or what it taught me about myself. Brooke [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/1218/feed 0 http://momentscount.com/archives/1028 http://momentscount.com/archives/1028#comments Tue, 13 Oct 2009 17:18:41 +0000 Brooke Leigh Sheldon http://momentscount.com/?p=1028
The three of us wander aimlessly along the path next to Mission Creek in San Luis Obispo. Surrounded by the gracefully clumsy sounds of tumbling water and the flutter of October’s cool easy breeze ruffling leaves beside me, we amble. Smiling, I silently remind myself “if I don’t look where I’m going I’m gonna fall [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/1028/feed 2 http://momentscount.com/archives/301 http://momentscount.com/archives/301#comments Fri, 04 Sep 2009 22:00:57 +0000 Brooke Leigh Sheldon http://momentscount.com/?p=301
Okay, okay!! Truth’s out!! I’m one of those people who turn their music up really loud in the car. No, I mean REALLY loud!! Yup! I won’t lie to ya’. Make note of that. I won’t lie to you. But, back to the topic at hand, playing the music in my car, it’s reeeaaallllly loud! [...]]]> http://momentscount.com/archives/301/feed 0