Expansion Encounters - with Dusty
"We will shine in 2009!"
Thank you to all of you who continue to support Life Now and our ventures!
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You can read archive issues of "Expansion Encounters" at Expansion Encounters and now at New Expansion Encounters 2009
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We're at that time of year again! We need a healthy phrase for 2010. Send your phrases (as many as you'd like) to Life Now EE Contest and our judges will decide which phrase will appear in each issue of Expansion Encounters through next year. We will even create a Winner's Page at the Life Now site that will offer a referral to your site if you have one. Contest ends December 31, 2009.
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Here is the holiday greeting I wish for each of you!
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Waiting for the First Snow Fall
By Dusty Reed
For those who live in snow country, the sight of the first few flakes is often anticipated. There is appreciation of sheer beauty in watching the sparkling, crystal particles falling through the air.
Why is it, then, by the second snowfall, many are already wishing for spring to arrive?
Each change in climate provides a rhythm and if one attunes to this rhythm, he can experience a fullness of life. There is beauty in spring, summer, autumn and winter, no matter how long each season lasts.
Winter brings the refreshing blanket of sparkling beauty for those who take a few moments to see it. Children squealing as they play in the snow, watching skaters on an icy pond, looking forward, with gratitude, to the holidays, even with all of their frenzy, for the meaning they hold. It may take a bit of extra effort to find this goodness but, be assured, it is there.
If one braves the cold, bundles up a bit, the thrill of making a snowman or playing fox and geese or having a good snowball fight with grandchildren can be an interlude of healthy togetherness with family. It provides good memories, too, for everyone involved. Even watching from inside one's cozy home can offer a gift of surprise! Old and young alike can enjoy watching the cardinal couples in their bright red or gold coats, the little black-capped chicadees, blue jays and other birds as they nibble from a bird feeder, maybe with a squirrel coming in to take a share.
Winter can be biting and seemingly cruel but the blanket of snow also gives the earth the necessary restoration so it can produce the new life that spring offers. It is obvious that snow offers moisture for the earth, just as drinking water provides it as a necessity for humanity. The regions of the country that expect snow will be hurting next summer if it is minimal through the winter. The freezing temperatures are also necessary to give Mother Nature its slumber.
Shorter days and longer evenings encourage snuggling in and keeping warm indoors, which can provide time for introspection, for contemplation. It is the season of rest.
Yes, gazing out the dining room window, sipping my morning cup of coffee, I observe the bare branches of the honey locust tree across the street in contrast to the full green branches of the pine tree next to it. It is a cloudy, windy and cold morning. I am waiting for the first snow fall.
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Vibrant Treasure
By Dusty Reed
A child opens a package
filled with vibrancy.
He quickly tries it on
for others to see.
He is willing to share
the gift,
a vibrant treasure,
as he opens
another package.
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Binding the Bond
By Dusty Reed
Bonding the kindred spirit is important to most families. How do we do it? How do we know when we succeed? Is it a matter of attitude? Does it come through gratitude or communication? When is discipline necessary?
I had dreams of raising our son the way I was raised. In reality, that just doesn't happen.
My husband used to call me Pollyanna but he has learned that my attitude and philosophy that there is only goodness that does work. It is a natural part of my being to focus on the Lord's goodness, maybe from practice through the years? Our son sees this, too. He knows within that all is good, has expressed it and reminds me of such, many times.
In a moped accident when he was in high school, our son required some surgery. His attitude of gratitude to the doctors, nurses, and even the receptionists provided a step toward healing. Another step was when he expressed gratitude to the Lord for still having his eyesight, no other broken bones, no concussion, and that he was still alive. He never once complained. Another step in that healing process was his gratitude for others praying for him. With a healthy spirit and mind, his body healed quickly. He continues to teach me about life.
Communication with family is one of my highest priorities. My husband's and my convictions toward our family relationship, fragranced with thirty-five years of marriage, has provided this healthy result. My family is one of the most important parts of my life. As I take time to feel the overall love our family experiences, I continue to offer gratitude. There is only goodness!
Some of the communication techniques we have put to good use include asking ourselves, "have we taken a serious look at the personalities in our immediate and extended family? Have we watered and fed our part of a relationship? Can we taste the love?"
There are many types of communication we can share to develop a fragrant relationship with family members. Each relationship is unique and has special features. We may choose to share special interaction with specific members of the family. The extended family is also important.
1. With whom can I sit and discuss deep feelings about my goals in life?
2. With whom am I willing to sit and listen to for an extended period of time?
3. With whom can I give an honest response when I disagree with the input?
4. With whom can I say, "Thank you. I love you!"
Can we share ourselves fully and allow members of the family to do the same? It sometimes takes practice. It sometimes takes time to taste the fruits of our labor.
A friend told of discouragement and frustration because she had not been able to have personal discussions with her brother. She decided to write him a love note and put it on his pillow. She told him, in the note, how much it meant to have a special brother. She expressed her desire to have him as a friend with whom she could talk over personal matters. She also told him that she loved him. After he read the note, he began to take new interest and concern toward her.
They were soon openly discussing problems and good happenings. Their discussions became very involved and other members of the family received invitations to join them. Family communications grew to new heights and a deeper relationship evolved for the entire family.
Another friend is a mother who has raised her family from a wheelchair. The children knew that home was safe. They were free to discuss any personal concerns with their parents, knowing they wouldn't scream or keel over in shock. Every afternoon they sat at the foot of her bed and had an after-school discussion. The entire family continues to have respect and love for one another that projects a sweet aroma of love.
Children are wise. They are learning more by our actions than by what we preach. What are they feeling? Do they see and hear our trust in their decisions? Are we allowing them to take responsibility with more of their decisions as they grow?
For different generations, the phrase, "cut loose," can express various intentions. It may mean for a parent that it is time to "cut the apron string." It provides opportunity to know when that time is appropriate. It may mean for the child that they've been held back or disciplined too severely and they are ready to cut loose and "get wild."
It is also a time of self-examination to see if we are holding too tightly when we feel that our children still need substantial guidance. We are not ready to loosen that special touch with them.
I am sure it is not a parent's preference to have a child rebel and cut loose. With understanding and love, the ties can loosen as necessary.
Each child requires a unique communication with a parent. Being attentive to what lies beneath the surface for the child will offer guidance for the parent in knowing when they can begin cutting loose without the child cutting loose!
"Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it" - Proverbs 22:6.
Life is a learning experience. Enjoying the journey requires a continuous education from the school of communication, understanding and wisdom.
By following the Lord's guidance, through prayer and Bible study, we will provide the bonding through our attitudes, expression of gratitude, communication and discipline with our children.
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Some sites I recommend:
Carol of the Chins
It took me a whole year to realize these are people's faces, upside down, thus Carol of the CHINS!
Nordic Santa Tracker
God-Mind Books
Neave Planetarium
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It is my joy to share with you that I continue to add new rose drawings and some photographs available at art.com! You can view them at Roses.
I now have some of my rose drawings at an auction site, Art By Us
And, I have a page with note cards (for sale) with some of my rose drawings. You can check it out by going to Rose Note Cards.
I have been posting most of my other drawings now at Dusty's Gallery
and at
Dusty's Art
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And, for anyone who enjoys playing at ebay, lots of goodies (records, books & post cards - occasionally some nic nacs) are available at Dusty's eBay
You are welcome to forward this newsletter to friends who might be interested! If they would like to subscribe (at no cost), they can write to me at With Expansion Encounters as Subject. Thanx muchly!
Working toward consideration and to better humanity, we want to encourage free enterprise, free speech. We are Life Now, a spiritual happening on and off the Internet.
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Pathway
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Life Now
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Enjoy every moment!
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