Animated

A few moments of levity in the midst of a season where a bit of merriment can be of real benefit.

Attributions, Links & Resources:

“Fate and Fortune” and “Borealis” by Scott Buckley – www.scottbuckley.com.au

Covered by the Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) license

“Haim” from the album “Bazardüzü” by Dobranotch 

http://www.dobranotch.ru/english.html

“NoWay3” by PeriTune | http://peritune.com

Music promoted by https://www.free-stock-music.com

Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)

https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

“The Bare Necessities” from “The Jungle Book” soundtrack

What is referred to as the Sermon on the Mount (contained in the Gospel of Matthew chapters 5-7) is possibly the most famous speech in all of religious literature. This is Jesus Christ's “kingdom manifesto” outlining the ideal ethic to which believers should continually strive despite humbly acknowledging that they will fall short of living up to it. Many consider the message to be a continuing source of hope, challenge, inspiration, and comfort all at the same time. 

Attributions, Links & Resources:

Gospel of Matthew 5-7 as read from the NIV

Unless otherwise marked, Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®.

Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.Zondervan.com. The “NIV” and “New International Version” are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.®

“I” from the album “Parhelion” by Hakobune.

http://hakobunemusic.jp

https://hakobune.bandcamp.com

https://www.facebook.com/hakobuneongaku/

https://twitter.com/hakobunemusic

Readings from Psalms 23, 56, 91, 121, and 143 to facilitate a time of meditation and reflection to provide comfort, tranquility, and inner strength.

Attributions, Links & Resources:

“Mbr/Northbound” and “Mbr/Mbirambient” from the album “Mbira Lights 1 EP” by Ametsub

https://ametsub.bandcamp.com

Bruce Lee was far more than a movie star who was at the forefront of bringing the martial arts genre into the mainstream. He was an accomplished martial artist and philosopher whose pursuit of self-expression through the fighting arts led him to embrace a mindset characterized by the humility that makes one more flexible and adaptive. In this episode we’ll glean some insights from his approach that we can apply in all dimensions of living.

Attributions, Links & Resources:

Little, John, ed., Jeet Kune Do: Bruce Lee’s Commentaries on the Martial Arts. Boston: Tuttle Publishing, 1997.

“An Old Friend” from the album “Memento” by Echo Grid (Used by artist’s permission.)

https://www.instagram.com/echo_grid/

https://twitter.com/echo_grid

https://echogrid.bandcamp.com

“Discovery” from the album “Essence” by RRAREBEAR (Used by artist’s permission.)

http://www.instagram.com/rrarebearbeats

http://www.twitter.com/rrarebearbeats

https://soundcloud.com/rrarebearbeats

One of the wisdom sayings from the ancient Hebrew manuscript referred to as Ecclesiastes captures what it is to work smarter, not harder:

“If the axe is dull and its edge unsharpened, more strength is needed, but skill will bring success.” (Ecclesiastes 10:10)

It’s pretty obvious that the idea here is that the intensity of effort isn’t necessarily the most important factor in whether or not any undertaking is going to be a success. Are diligence, effort, discipline, determination, and grit important aspects of a successful life approach? Of course, but economy of motion and economy of energy are key in having the best go of it out there.

In this episode we'll examine ways we can sharpen our axes and look into how this applies to the tasks before us at work, school, in the home, serving the community, or in any worthwhile endeavor.

Attributions, Links & Resources:

“The grandmaster diet: How to lose weight while barely moving” by Aishwarya Kumar

https://www.espn.com/espn/story/_/id/27593253/why-grandmasters-magnus-carlsen-fabiano-caruana-lose-weight-playing-chess

“Want to Burn 3 Times the Calories? Try the Chess Grandmaster Diet (or Just Concentrate Really, Really Hard When the Stakes Are High)” by Jeff Haden

https://www.inc.com/jeff-haden/if-you-want-to-lose-weight-try-chess-grandmaster-diet-or-just-concentrate-really-really-hard-when-stakes-are-high.html

“Turns out thinking burns calories, so grab that extra donut at work” by Meredith Lepore

https://www.foxbusiness.com/personal-finance/turns-out-thinking-burns-calories-so-grab-that-extra-donut-at-work

“Top of the World” by Tubebackr

https://www.free-stock-music.com/tubebackr-top-of-the-world.html

https://www.free-stock-music.com/music/tubebackr-top-of-the-world.mp3

“Cold” from the album “Early Days” by Echo Grid (Used by artist’s permission.)

https://www.instagram.com/echo_grid/

https://twitter.com/echo_grid

https://echogrid.bandcamp.com

“Discovery” from the album “Essence” by RRAREBEAR (Used by artist’s permission.)

http://www.instagram.com/rrarebearbeats

http://www.twitter.com/rrarebearbeats

https://soundcloud.com/rrarebearbeats

Socialism, which is at its core an economic theory, is somewhat of a hot topic of discussion these days among political candidates and pundits. And it seems to be the case that some potential voters are starting to view socialism as not only not so bad, but perhaps even attractive.

How can that be when history shows quite clearly that in practice it has an abysmal record in terms of economic performance and many other aspects related to societal and individual flourishing? What’s needed is a reality check to clarify precisely what socialism is and what it isn’t and that’s what this episode is all about.

This episode sponsored in part by:

https://www.tryguardianoil.com

Attributions, Links & Resources:

Lawson, Robert and Powell, Benjamin. Socialism Sucks: Two Economists Drink Their Way through the Unfree World. Regnery Publishing: Washington, DC, 2019.

“Economic Calculation in the Socialist Commonwealth,” by Ludwig von Mises.

https://mises.org/library/economic-calculation-socialist-commonwealth

“Discovery” from the album “Essence” by RRAREBEAR (Used by artist’s permission.)

http://www.instagram.com/rrarebearbeats

http://www.twitter.com/rrarebearbeats

https://soundcloud.com/rrarebearbeats

According to Japanese legend, a young man sought to learn the elaborate set of customs known as the Way of Tea. He went to a tea-master who tested the younger man by requesting that he tend the garden. The fellow cleaned up debris and raked the ground until it was perfect, then examined the immaculate garden. But before presenting his work to the master, he shook a cherry tree, causing a few flowers to spill randomly onto the ground. To this day, the Japanese revere the young man as one who understood the deep cultural thread known as wabi-sabi, which is the art of finding beauty in imperfection and deep insight in earthiness, of revering authenticity.

A common explanation underscores its connection to the tea ceremony with the example of a well-loved teacup made by an artist’s hands, cracked or chipped by constant use. Such traces remind the observer that nothing is permanent, everything is subject to change. Wabi-sabi acknowledges three simple realities: “Nothing lasts, nothing is finished, and nothing is perfect.” It encourages us to embrace the notion that cracks in the old teacup are assets rather than flaws; it's a different kind of looking, a different kind of mindset that encourages true acceptance of finding beauty in things as they are. And all it takes is a mind quiet enough to appreciate restrained beauty, the courage not to fear bareness, and a willingness to accept things as they are—without ornamentation. It requires a conscious effort to slow down and shift the balance from doing to being, to appreciating rather than perfecting. It's about understanding and accepting yourself—imperfections and all. It’s about being compassionate with yourself as you are, and building on whatever that is—not feverishly trying to rebuild yourself in order to pose as something else entirely.

What wabi-sabi presents is a precious store of wisdom that values tranquillity, harmony, beauty and imperfection that can strengthen your resilience in the face of the distractions and pull of  materialism that is all around us. It gently motions us to relax, slow down, step back from the hectic modern world and find enjoyment and gratitude in everything you do so you can fully embrace the perfection of being imperfectly you.

This episode sponsored in part by:

https://www.tryguardianoil.com

ATTRIBUTIONS

“Ronin” by Jantrax | https://soundcloud.com/jantr4x

Music promoted by https://www.free-stock-music.com

Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported License

https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/deed.en_US

“Yugen” by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoon

Music promoted by https://www.free-stock-music.com

Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)

https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

“Otogi 2” by PeriTune | http://peritune.com

Music promoted by https://www.free-stock-music.com

Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)

https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Few outside the academy or lab are aware of or are interested in ongoing research in the realms of biology and bio-chemistry as it relates to origin-of-life studies. That’s likely due to the fact that most would ask: “Are any of the findings relevant to how I’m supposed to approach my day-to-day life or is it just a bunch of science mumbo-jumbo best left to the grant-funded brainiacs to discuss and write about?” 

I’ll answer that question with a question: “Would I invite you into the deep end of the pool with me to discuss some mind-bending concepts if it didn’t have something to do with the animating principles that enable us to live well?” Come on in, the water’s fine!

ATTRIBUTIONS

Marshall, Perry. Evolution 2.0: Breaking the Deadlock Between Darwin and Design. Dallas, TX: BenBella Books, 2015.

https://www.perrymarshall.com

https://www.herox.com/evolution2.0

Leisola, Matti. Heretic: One Scientist's Journey from Darwin to Design. Seattle: Discovery Institute Press, 2018.

“Milo” by Kazukii (Used by artist’s permission.)

https://www.instagram.com/ohthatkazuki/

https://twitter.com/Ohthatkazuki

https://soundcloud.com/ohthatkazuki

“Through Mist” from the album “Haze” by Echo Grid (Used by artist’s permission.)

https://www.instagram.com/echo_grid/

https://twitter.com/echo_grid

https://echogrid.bandcamp.com

“Discovery” from the album “Essence” by RRAREBEAR (Used by artist’s permission.)

http://www.instagram.com/rrarebearbeats

http://www.twitter.com/rrarebearbeats

https://soundcloud.com/rrarebearbeats

Is there an existential threat to the human race in the form of an epidemic wreaking havoc on a mass scale this very moment? Indeed there is but you might be surprised to hear that it isn’t Ebola or the coronavirus working its way around the Pacific Rim and spreading, as potentially devastating as those can be or might one day become.

In this episode we take a look at the main threat to humanity, which has to do with and is directly tied to decisions people make concerning their health. And since much about our decision-making in these areas can be affected by cravings and negative thoughts one of the key issues becomes how best to deal with these aspects of our mental lives.

When faced with these challenges our natural inclination, and what has been typical of clinical approaches, can be characterized as avoidance and distraction. But is there a better way?

In his book, ACT made simple: An Easy-to-Read Primer on Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, Russ Harris outlines an approach to behavioral therapy that challenges the ground-rules of most Western psychology. This model assumes that quality of life is primarily dependent upon mindful, values-guided action, and this is possible regardless of how many symptoms you have—provided that you respond to your symptoms with the proper mindfulness.

ACT leverages the notion that the best manner in which to deal with the cravings and negative thought patterns that can take us off the path of living well is to:

And it helps to load up on that AMO to hit the target of a life lived well.

Awareness

Mindfulness

Openness

ATTRIBUTIONS

“Machina” and “Borealis” by Scott Buckley | https://soundcloud.com/scottbuckley - Music promoted by https://www.free-stock-music.com - Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

“23-32” from the album “Transmissions” by Echo Grid (Used by artist’s permission.)

https://www.instagram.com/echo_grid/

https://twitter.com/echo_grid

https://echogrid.bandcamp.com

“Discovery” from the album “Essence” by RRAREBEAR (Used by artist’s permission.)

http://www.instagram.com/rrarebearbeats

http://www.twitter.com/rrarebearbeats

https://soundcloud.com/rrarebearbeats

ACT Made Simple: An Easy-to-Read Primer on Acceptance and Commitment Therapy by Russ Harris (New Harbinger Publications)

On April 3, 1963 in the city of Birmingham, AL a nonviolent campaign consisting of coordinated marches and sit-ins against racism and racial segregation was launched by the Alabama Christian Movement for Human Rights (ACMHR) and Dr. King’s Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC). On April 10, a Circuit Judge issued a blanket injunction against “parading, demonstrating, boycotting, trespassing and picketing.” Leaders of the campaign announced they would disobey the ruling and on April 12th Dr. King was arrested.

On April 16, Dr. King penned an open letter defending the strategy of nonviolent resistance to racism. In it he outlines why it is that people have a moral responsibility to break unjust laws and to take direct action rather than simply waiting indefinitely for justice to come through the courts. This letter became widely published, was a critical text for the American Civil Rights Movement, is an important artifact of one of the most important movements in modern history, and something every person should read. The following link provides a reproduction of the letter in its entirety:

https://www.africa.upenn.edu/Articles_Gen/Letter_Birmingham.html)

In this brief episode we will put a practical spin on an element from one portion of the letter as Dr. King so brilliantly articulates a set of animating principles worth striving to apply as we relate to everyone with whom we come into contact.

ATTRIBUTIONS

“Changes” by Kazukii (Used by artist’s permission.)

https://www.instagram.com/ohthatkazuki/

https://twitter.com/Ohthatkazuki

https://soundcloud.com/ohthatkazuki

“Discovery” from the album “Essence” by RRAREBEAR (Used by artist’s permission.)

http://www.instagram.com/rrarebearbeats

http://www.twitter.com/rrarebearbeats

https://soundcloud.com/rrarebearbeats