Beauty and the News

Hello Everyone

Recently I watched a TED show on What is Beauty?  TED is a nonprofit organisation devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading.  It started in 1984 as a conference bringing together people from three worlds: Technology, Entertainment, Design.   Now its medium is the internet where great ideas get incredibly quick global exposure.

In the presentation I am referring to, designer Richard Seymour asked ‘how do we tell that something is beautiful?’  and ‘Why does it matter so much to us?’

To me it matters because mainstream media, in my opinion, shows us little that is beautiful but rather accentuates the ugly.  This is rather worrying because if we agree with the saying ‘what you focus on is what you get’ then this focus disempowers us. 

We have an interesting paradox. Evidently only bad news sells yet I assert that we all have a deep yearning to be nurtured and in touch with the beauty of life.

Scientist and author Steven Pinker of the new book Better Angels of Our Nature: The Decline of Violence in History and its Causes suggests that the human brain is changing.  Evidently the parts of the brain related to stopping violence have become increasingly engaged.

Evidently the evolution of reasoning ability grew as humans started living in cities, reading literature and communicating and travelling long distance.  Higher levels of education also assisted this evolution.

Let me give you an example of how our reasoning ability impacts our ability to value beauty.   Richard Seymour showed a rather ordinary child’s drawing of a flower and a butterfly.  My initial reaction was very bland.  Then he said that this was the last action of Heidi, a five year old before she died of spinal cancer.  And then I thought ‘Oh my, that, is beautiful’. 

Similarly Seymour showed a plastic bag. This to my mind was definitely not beautiful.   Then he explained that the empty plastic bag could be placed in filthy water and by osmosis clean water would be filtered into the bag. Beautiful!!! 

So what is beauty? To me it is a deep reaction from within my inner being, a feeling of love, warmth, gratitude with a desire to stop and dwell on that feeling.

So dear reader, where in your life can you see beauty?  What would it be like for you if you sought out and dwelt on the beauty in the world?

Live! Love! Laugh!

Roz Townsend

Corporate Greed and Integrity

Hello Everyone

These last couple of weeks have seen an interesting revolt around the world.   Ordinary people from all walks of life have joined forces to protest against corporate greed and corruption.

 It seems that there is a universal lack of respect for integrity.  In fact, I wonder if most people even understand the importance of integrity for a world that work with everyone included.

The present global financial crisis is a strong indicator that what is happening in the world right now is not working.  White collar crime, nepotism, excessive corporate salaries, lack of transparency, extortion, bribery, absenteeism, presenteeism, workplace bullying and harassment are all indicators that people are not doing what they promised.   They are not valuing each other nor creating a sustainable future.

 I would like to share with you a definition of integrity that I find very useful, it comes from Landmark Education.

 
Integrity:  Nothing hidden, being truthful and honest, doing complete work, working from an empowering context, and doing very well what you do, doing it as it was meant to be done or better and without cutting corners.

In other words, HONOURING ONE’S WORD: Doing what you know to do, doing what you said you would do and on time, doing what others expect you to do even if you haven’t said that you would do it, and saying when you are not doing this as soon as you realise you won’t be doing it or won’t be doing it on time.

You can see from the above definition that integrity from this viewpoint is not about right or wrong  but what works for us individuals and communities.   You might like to consider that we would have greater workability in the world if we elevated  our integrity.

So dear reader, where in your life could you elevate your integrity?  It would not make you a better person but make your world more workable. What would it be like for you if you valued and endorsed the above definition of integrity?

Live!  Love!!  Laugh!!!

Roz Townsend

Decline in WOmen's Happiness

Hello Everyone

I have come across some interesting research and a new phrase.  The research is from the US General’s Social Survey of 46,000 people and the phrase is the ‘paradox of declining female happiness’.

There is no doubt that progress for women in many (not all) parts of the world has been remarkable.  Education levels have risen and now often surpass those of men, they have gained greater fertility control, and domestic appliances have created a level of freedom from household chores.

Despite these enormous gains in freedom Betsey Stevenson and Justin Wolfers in

‘The Paradox of Declining Female Happiness’ indicate that in the industrialised world women’s happiness has declined both absolutely and relative to men and a new gender gap is developing.

 
The questions being posed : is it possible that the changes brought by the  women’s movement may have in fact unintentionally decreased women’s happiness?
 
Is it that women might be caught up in the cycle of consumerism and comparison?  Might they be feeling that their lives are not measuring up to the ideal? Is it that they might find the complexity and increased pressure of modern lives came at the cost of happiness?

The research indicates that the saddest person in white collar jobs is a 42-year-old unmarried lawyer or doctor.  I find all of this particularly poignant as my own sister, a 45-year-old unmarried lawyer committed suicide a number of years ago. 

Evidently one of the unnecessary pressures that women face is the need to have everything  perfectly balanced.  In contrast, happier women tended to give up on ‘balance” and be OK with ‘messy’.  They go with the flow and are prepared to be more flexible and easy going.

So dear reader, it is not about having it all or doing it all in your life.  What would it be like for you if you  allowed yourself to be more flexible and ‘go with the flow?’

Live! Love! Laugh!

Roz Townsend

Stuff & Spirituality

Hello Everyone

Let’s consider the word ‘away’. Where is away?  This question was posed to me when we throw rubbish away.  ‘Where is away?’  I would like to share with you some comments about where ‘away’ is and how stuff and rubbish might be considered spiritual issues.  

In David Mackay’s book; Sustainable Energy – without the hot air he writes; “One of the main sinks of energy in the ‘developed’ world is the creation of stuff. In its natural life cycle, stuff passes through three stages. First a new born stuff is displayed in shiny packaging on a shelf in a shop. At this stage, stuff is called ‘goods’.

As soon as the stuff is taken home and sheds its packaging, it undergoes a transformation from ‘goods’ to its second form, ‘clutter’.

The clutter lives with its owner for a period of months or years.  During this period, the clutter is largely ignored by its owner, who is off at the shops buying more goods. Eventually by a miracle of modern alchemy, the clutter is transformed into its final form, rubbish. To the untrained eye it can be difficult to distinguish this rubbish from the highly desirable ‘goods’ that it used to be. Nevertheless, at this stage the discerning owner pays the garbage collector to transport the stuff away.

So could it be that ‘stuff’ is a spirituality issue?

Dave Bookless in his book Planetwise commented: “Perhaps the single most effective step I have taken in terms of avoiding waste is to try to pray every time I put something in the bin. As I do so, I give thanks for the natural resources that have created the item and reflect on whether I have been a good steward.

Often my prayers end up as guilty confessions, as I ask myself did I really need this? Did I need the item with all this packaging? Sometimes my anguish is not personal so much as frustration with a culture that dictates I can’t buy things that aren’t covered in polystyrene and plastic, and I simple say sorry for what we as the human race have done in taking this world for granted.“
Perhaps if we see waste as a spiritual issue it might cause us to go back to the start of the process; buying things in the first place. Now, before buying something, consider asking ‘do I really need this?’

So dear reader, do you really need all the ‘stuff’ in your life? And if you throw it away – where is away?

Live! Love! Laugh!

Roz Townsend

The Possibility of Artificial Photosynthesis

Hello Everyone
 
Normally things that are artificial do not attract me. But one is making a big exception!

I am talking about artificial photosynthesis. Scientists are at work on capturing Global Artificial Photosynthesis.  The plan is to capture, convert and store energy from the sun, as plants do.  It is one of the most important technical challenges of the 21^st century.

According to the scientists more solar energy strikes the Earth in one hour than the energy used by all human activity in a year!

Scientists can already use solar energy to split water into oxygen and hydrogen but it is very expensive.

It will be very difficult to mimic the second stage of photosynthesis, where plants draw carbon dioxide from the atmosphere to produce carbohydrates.

Artificial photosynthesis would provide a clean source of hydrogen fuel.  It would also provide basic carbohydrates for food.  By removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere it would tackle climate change and reduce the use of fossil fuels.

Less water and fertiliser would be needed for growing crops and this would help save the environment.

Just imagine if this artificial photosynthesis took off!

Until next time,

Roz

www.roztownsend.com
Source Health & Science Section The Sydney Morning Herald August 4 2011

Conscious Choices a differences of 280 milliseconds

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Hello Everyone

I often wondered why I can be so well trained in conflict resolution and communication skills and yet get triggered.

The answer seems to be a part of our 'old' brain called the amygdala. The amygdala reacts to negative events with 20 milliseconds whereas it takes our conscious mind 300 milliseconds to react.

The amygdala is desigend to protect us by interpreting subconscious hints of danger with exceptionally fast responses. It bypasses all of our training and mature wisdom and reacts at lightening speed.

So what does this mean? It takes exceptonal skill and will-power to become aware of the response and then to delay or mediate our reaction. Taking a deep breath, a glass of water a walk - do what you can to stall for time so that the more mature you can dominate your primeval instincts.


Cheers
Roz
www.roztownsend.com

PS The amygadala has an incredible memory especially to pain and it never forgets a slight!!

 

Preview

WHat do schools value?

Hello Everyone


Al Gore likes to share this quote and I thought you might like to read it too. It comes from eminent environmentalist Dr. James "Gus" Speth :

I used to think that if we threw enough good science at the environmental problems, we could solve them. I was wrong. The main threats to the environment are not biodiversity loss, pollution, and climate change as I once thought. They are selfishness and greed and pride. And for that we need a spiritual and cultural transformation, something we scientists don't know much about.
I must admit to being a bit disheartened by that even though I felt it was true. I wondered how on earth we can get people to change their values. And then, not long after I came across some interesting information about North Sydney Girls High School. This school no longer awards prizes for first in English or maths. The girls from years 7-10 are rewarded for demonstrating perseverance, resilience, organisation and problem solving skills.
The move away from recognising academic achievement until the senior years is aimed at combating the stress of competition. The award categories are designed to promote a healthy balance in the emotional life of students: resilience, connectedness and innovation. It is no surprise that these categories are also indicators of a long happy life.
An educational transformation is on the way. The values that are required for sustainability , social justice and spiritual fulfilment are being acknowledged in schools. Young people are starting to make informed decisions about how their actions and beliefs can influence the planet.

What do you think about this?

Roz