Advent Calendar: Mon 7 Dec 09- The Gift of Friendship

Today on the Advent calendar we will be celebrating the gift of Friendship! The same blog post on all three blogs today since like the Ghost of Christmases Past, Present and Future I believe on this particular posting all three of my blogs swirl into ONE!

I was inspired to give this gift here on the calendar because I’ve been touched by many great acts of friendship in the blogosphere this year. And I count myself lucky enough to have been on the receiving end so many a time! To be honest I’ve been giving too but to recall the cliché here… “Self praise is no praise”. So I won’t be recalling what I’ve done but what has been done for me! But of course all great friendships aren’t about keeping score anyway. All the same I have to single out some people who have been making my blog posts all the more decorative or more inspirational all year long! And also my followers (I don’t have the application up and I don’t keep score) but I know I have a handful of people. Those who if not always at least from time to time read my posts and even comment if not on the actual blogs, perhaps on Intent where I re-post or on Facebook where I might even get a thumbs up!

But first a drum roll please for these two who have contributed directly to the creativity and or spirituality of this blog this year! Ladies and Gentlemen…Elephants and Mice! :
A big round of applause for…ADRIANA OCHOA and Brother/Deacon GREG KIRK!

Adriana is the seamstress…Oh yes! Oh yes! She is the one who has clothed my animals if you didn’t notice they now have their Santa hats…we decided to let the animals remain more au naturel after all we are not trying to be the new Disney here! And the amount of cloth it was taking to cover the Purple Elephant we decided to use some for other draping which you will see about the sites and then give the rest of the cloth to that wonderful man from India the calendar celebrated last year when we learnt about him from the Global Oneness Project …you can reminded of his lovely work here! (NOTE: This donation is only in spirit for now but if I or you are ever in India or have a way to get cloth to this lovely drive…I would do so in the material world and perhaps you should consider doing so too…)

But back to the seamstress…she is more than that…she is the one who based on my ideas for these blogs and Meady’s Musings Production breathed new life into my old Meady’s Musings Production logo and also designed my UCP-Universal Collective Prayer banner. And yes all free of charge only paid for in friendship. This given that she is a professional at her job as you can perhaps see from the great work she does displayed here. She also did the poster for my Holi blog earlier this year. If you need to reach her to create something for you email us admin@meadysmusings.com

So in a sense she is the co-mother of the Purple Elephant and his little mouse friend. Although again the Purple Elephant and the little mouse well really they have a long line of ancestral friendship you know…you can check out this story to understand a bit more about their bond…but they have also daily been working together on their personal bond…and let this be said they would lay their lives done for each other as well as either one of their mothers! :


Now speaking of cloth we come to a man of the cloth…my brother in UCP-Universal Collective Prayer…Deacon Greg Kirk! Sometimes when I speak of him or communicate with him tears comes to my eyes…and I’m not ashamed to say this…after all we are both UCPers and so unashamedly surrender onto the divine in all! However I was so excited to work on this Advent calendar with both him and my soul sister Adriana that I was in excitement and Universe inspired tears daily! If you thought the Purple Elephant was excited well you can’t imagine how it was for his mother!
So over this weekend as both animals got their clothes and thanked the seamstress and the prayers by Bro Greg had already been said…I really felt moved to sing this song of friendship…when my nieces and nephew (as we listened to it) explained to me about it…it is from the 2009 Hindi film New York…Hai Junoon! The Youtube vid comes with translations and I hope you enjoy it!

I also dedicate it to all my friends from Intent…many of whom are now part of my experimental virtual book writing café on Facebook-The Deliciously Divine Café. Also some other friends who avidly read me like Maria and Neerupa and just all my other friends who have been there for me always even if they hate to read or won’t read my blog! And for those who come and read here and in your own way forge a bond with me by reading my words, thoughts and of my deeds without making our bond known…and others who for several reasons won’t be mentioned her but are dear to the Mother of the Purple Elephant’s heart.

OK so now I’m sounding like if I’m getting an Academy Award or something…(do I need to put the little copyright symbol when I write that?) LOL! But really I should also name some others dear to me…I know how it goes you name some and leave out others and then….TROUBLE even if your readership is not that large at all! But you know I love you all…after all one of these here blogs is UCP-Universal Collective Prayer so it encompasses the one in the all and the all in the one! But before I cue Hai Junoon! I must bow and then shout out too to some other marvelous Intenters and Deliciously Divine Café goers…

Ruch- You always seem like a partner in crime…perhaps we might be the real life purple elephant and mouse!

Grandpa Ed- Enough said…I mean you are my new Grandpa now since all my blood related grandparents are out of the material plane. Your wit and metaphysical talks…your walks in the English countryside…I hope you one day meet Winnie the Pooh!

Noreen- Your Irish accent so breath taking…you are a quiet listener…always the supporter…a deliciously divine tea drinker indeed!

Garima and Shweta- Like new found sisters…


Tim- The ever present and eternal supporter…thumbs up to you too my friend!

So many more…Yogi Rajesh, Vashi, Brother Dom, Mr. Philip Zeuner, Danes and Raj Aurora. Glad to make your acquaintance Sirs!

Elspeth- not an Intenter nor in the virtual café but we have exchanged many a thought and gift and I’m delighted that in this international mix of Delicious Divinity there is at least one other Trini face! Of course I’m sure there are more to be found…but for sure you would have been one of those faces that made me see that also a Trini can blog like this you see! And thank you for the Freedom speech at the local candle4tibet event last year which as you will know was one of the events that led to the creation of the blog UCP!

And My Fairy Godmother was Sarah now Kara we all so miss you!

And just like those Academy Award winning speeches I’m sure I’ve left out many…and of course as I said there are some that I’ve not mentioned here on purpose but the connection and thankfulness is understood…after all just like the three ghosts swirl into one…sometimes when one is so close they are not distinct from you when giving praise as to give praise to them would be the same as that tricky self praise business…so I’m sure you guys know who you are! ;)

Luckily unlike the Academy Awards I can cue my music whenever I like but let me cue it now…Ladies, Gentlemen, Elephants and Mice…Beings on the Material plane and those in the Spirit world too…here it is my Friendship song to you…Hai Junoon!

Advent Calendar:Sat 5 and Sun 6 Dec 09-Trees and Elephants for Christmas!

This week on Meady's Musings Production's Advent Calendar we gave the gift of trees and elephants. So as we relax on the weekend let's have some music! Join us dancing and singing to some of our odes to trees and elephants for our Christmas fun! :)

Advent Calendar: 4 Dec 09-The Gift that are Elephants!

Picture re-used from this site
Today on the Advent calendar we will be celebrating (yes, you got that right)…elephants! Of course my purple elephant has been calling up his elephant friends world wide to come read the story on The Purple Elephant’s Advent calendar here so the elephant world is all abuzz! You see my purple elephant is a dear friend and a few lunches ago earlier this week I was aghast to hear someone say that at some resort they had elephant meat!

I felt a big blow in the stomach for my purple elephant …I have to tell you….I explained about how elephants have feelings…they are very sentient beings (I mean just look at my purple elephant if you don’t believe me) and I had read once in National Geographic that they have funeral rites and rituals and stuff and scientist believe they mourn and grieve for their dead. The individual more went on about how elephants are attacking! Well of course they are wouldn’t you defend your home and family if people came to kill you!? My purple elephant has had many a pink, green and grey elephant cousin killed!

Why if it’s OK to eat elephants well what’s the biggy with eating people too…I mean elephants are really sensitive creatures…I was pretty irritated that the individual then went on to claim elephants have small brains compared to their size when well they had no scientific evidence to back it up…in fact I understand elephants are quite smart...but apart from my personal relationship with my lovely purple elephant here are some scientific facts out there…

Read what Marc Bekoff, a professor in the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at the University of Colorado in Boulder has to say in his commentary Do Elephants Cry? By clicking on this link here.

Now I know this is an Advent calendar and my objective of it is to bring fun, comfort and joy. So I’m not going to go on about the gory details of the pain that my purple elephant and his relatives can be subjected to…instead I’m going to celebrate the purple elephant and his kind…it is what the purple elephant wants too…he really just wants to live in peace and harmony with other beings in the universe…and for his family it’s Christmas time too…so here is how we are going to celebrate the Purple Elephant and Elephants at large and their gifts today on the Advent Calendar.

- Meady’s Musings-Some scientific facts that show the loveliness of the nature of the elephant…their ability to show love and compassion for each other and even for species other than their own!
- UCP-Elephants have long been revered in Hinduism and Buddhism…and we will explore that…
- Books and Films Corner-Many movies and books have been made about elephants we will talk about one of my favourite elephantine characters!

ELEPHANT ON FILM

OK so he is supposedly an ancient ancestor of the Asian elephant and not really an elephant per say but for sure elephantine …so my favourite mammoth on film…Manny from Ice age!

Manny for sure displays the emotions described on the Meady’s Musings blog post today. He is kind, caring and compassionate…to his wife (companion), his child (as born in Ice Age 3) and to all his goofy friends and yes of different species (making him just like that mother elephant who insisted on helping the baby rhino despite its mother!)

Advent Calendar: Wed 3 Dec 09-The Gift of Trees!

Meady’s Musings Production is always celebrating the trees and you can expect to see many references to them as this year’s Advent calendar progresses. Today on the calendar we’d like to feature trees on each of the blogs in this manner:

- Meady’s Musings-The beauty of trees
- UCP-The spirit that can be found in trees
- Books and Films Corner-Yes we kill trees to make books but hopefully it is a willing or worthy sacrifice and may blogs, kindle downloads and e-books be the books of the future so we can save them trees! But for now we will celebrate some poetry about trees!

THE POEM ALFIE-THE CHRISTMAS TREE BY JOHN DENVER

Every Christmas Meady’s Musings Production and that Purple Elephant can’t wait to sing and dance with John Denver and the Mumpets and be sure that we will be featuring much of his music as this year’s Advent calendar unfolds. However today we celebrate the words of his poetry as he celebrates Alfie which I consider to be the most bringing a broad smile to a tree lover like me poem ever written! And every time I hear the words of this poem written as a song I always realize why John Denver was once the Poet Laureate of Colorado.

Merry Christmas wherever you are John and thank you for these beautiful words:
Alfie the Christmas Tree by John Denver
Did you ever hear the story of the Christmas tree
Who just didn’t want to change the show
He liked living in the woods and playing with squirrels
He liked icicles and snow
He liked wolves and eagles and grizzly bears
And critters and creatures that crawled
Why bugs were some of his very best friends
Spiders and ants and all
Now that’s not to say that he ever looked down
On a vision of twinkled lights
Or on mirrored bubbles and peppermint canes
And a thousand other delights
And he often had dreams of tiny reindeer
And a jolly old man in a sleigh
Full of toys and presents and wonderful things
And a story of Christmas Day
Oh, Alfie believed in Christmas alright
He was full of Christmas cheer
All of each and every day
And all throughout the year
To him it was more than a special time
Much more than a special day
It was more than a special story; it was more than a beautiful story
It was a special kind of way
You see some folks have never heard a jingle bell ring
And they’ve never heard of Santa Claus
They’ve never heard the story of the Son of God
That made Alfie pause
Did that mean that they’d never know of peace on Earth
Or the Brotherhood of Man
Or know how to love, or know how to give
If they can’t no one can
You see, life is a very special kind of thing
Not just for a chosen few
But for each and every living, breathing thing
Not just me and you
So when you’re at Christmas prayers this year
Alfie asked me if I’d ask you
Say a prayer for the wind and the water and the wood
And those who live there too

Advent Calendar 2nd Dec 09-Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol: The Ghosts of Past, Present and Future.

Since the beginning of the Meady’s Musings blog we’ve been exploring themes like reincarnation and parallel worlds…things metaphysical as a whole. Today as part of the Advent calendar I felt it would be interesting and exciting to explore the concept of the ghost of Christmas Past, Present and Future as featured in the Dickensian classic- ‘A Christmas Carol’ with a Meady’s Musings slant! As a result I will discuss it as follows:

- On Meady’s Musings- the metaphysics of it.
- On UCP- a certain metaphysical being whom I’ve been a big fan of since the inception of that blog whom I believe has the whole past-present-future concept down pat!
- On Books and Films Corner- I will keep true to the name of the blog and
just celebrate some of the potent quotes said by the ghosts in the Classic
itself.

SOME POTENT QUOTES FROM THE GHOSTS IN THE CLASSIC TALE


"There are some upon this earth of yours," returned the Spirit, "who lay claim to know us, and who do their deeds of passion, pride, ill-will, hatred, envy, bigotry, and selfishness in our name, who are as strange to us and all out kith and kin, as if they had never lived. Remember that, and charge their doings on themselves, not us."
- A Christmas Carol, Charles Dickens

"It is required of every man," the ghost returned, "that the spirit within him should walk abroad among his fellow-men, and travel far and wide; and, if that spirit goes not forth in life, it is condemned to do so after death."
- A Christmas Carol, Charles Dickens

"The school is not quite deserted," said the Ghost. "A solitary child, neglected by his friends, is left there still."
- A Christmas Carol, Charles Dickens

"I am the Ghost of Christmas Present," said the Spirit. "Look upon me!"
- A Christmas Carol, Charles Dickens

"Again the Ghost sped on, above the black and heaving sea--on, on--until, being far away, as he told Scrooge, from any shore, they lighted on a ship. They stood beside the helmsman at the wheel, the look-out in the bow, the officers who had the watch; dark, ghostly figures in their several stations; but every man among them hummed a Christmas tune, or had a Christmas thought, or spoke below his breath to his companion of some bygone Christmas Day, with homeward hopes belonging to it. And every man on board, waking or sleeping, good or bad, had had a kinder word for another on that day than on any day in the year; and had shared to some extent in its festivities; and had remembered those he cared for at a distance, and had known that they delighted to remember him."
- A Christmas Carol, Charles Dickens

The Grand Opening of Meady's Musings Production's Advent Calendar 2009!

It gives me much glee to kick off Meady’s Musings Production's Advent calendar today on all three blogs…yes indeed I’m resurrecting the Books and Films Corner blog too…although I’ve not posted on it since Feb of this year…thought it would be a good thing to do…and it might leave the year in good cheer! So here it is! The Purple Elephant plans to put on a Santa suit or some sort of Christmasy wear and he is such a gracious and giving elephant has even sprung some gold coins to get an outfit for his little mouse too! However he is still waiting on the seamstress you see as she has never sown for an elephant before and it’s taking cloth beyond compare! Also a nativity scene is being created for the UCP blog but again carpenters are so hard to find even in this economy but hopefully it will be created soon! Who knows it might even be created by the magic carpenter overnight perhaps the same one who worked on that miraculous staircase UCP visited earlier this year in New Mexico!

But Here ye! Here ye! Let’s call it to order in prayer! And for that I have asked my brother in UCP-Universal Collective Prayer Bro Greg as I call him but in his official capacity a Deacon. So here it is the lovely opening words of prayer by Deacon Greg Kirk:
“Divine One:

The dawning of Advent beckons people everywhere to enter into the Silence, the Silence you inhabit and pervade. In the Silence, we rediscover the gift of Your Love, enfolding us and emboldening us to live with gratitude for your Spirit, expressed in all we have been, all we are and all we will become.

Christ consciousness is the core of our being. The Light of Christ Consciousness is wisdom, love and peace. They permeate the deepest part of who we are. Journey with us during these coming Advent days. Be our Light, guide us to a deeper and richer experience of the lasting peace that lives within us and support us as we grow from seeds to trees, reflecting your Essence and offering shelter to all.

In the midst of the darkness and challenges of these times, something new is emerging, something new is being born: the possibility of community, unity and divinity. One will come to bring the fulfillment of this promise. This One includes your people everywhere. May we become one, together, in the wonder and Oneness of You.

Amen”

AND MAY WE ALL BE GUIDED TO THAT PERFECT LIGHT! Sung of course by those Three Wise Men that I’ve been waiting all year long to dance with!

Some of the Movies I've Loved and Not for 2008-On Oscar Track ...Who Cares?

I've meant to do a lot of movie reviews on here over the last six months and never got about to doing them! So on Oscar night whether they are on the Oscar track or not here are some of the movies I've loved recently and the ones I've not and even a mention of the ones I refused to go see and the ones that I did see and was pleasantly surprised!:)

So in alphabetical order here are some of them I can remember!

AUSTRALIA
Loved it! And no it wasn't just cause Hugh Jackman of my We Three Kings! fun and fame was in it! I loved it and unexpectedly so...because I just decided to go see it to meet up with some people and we figured it was the most passable thing on in cinema. I thought I was going to see before me a sweeping love saga unfold. And yes it was indeed a love story...but it was about Australia! I couldn't get the idea of 'dreaming' out of my head after I saw the film. It made me think about aboriginal peoples all around the world and how they really could have such a feel for the land...so much so that they become intuitive...it made me think of myself...I searched within...it made me realise that although I had never visited India I knew it because that was what Hinduism was...it was a tapestry of India...an ode to its rivers and valleys...its plants and flowers....and I feel the South Indians the Saivites were the ones who really were the aboriginal peoples of their they really knew the lady...it is why I celebrate that Hippy Master Shiv today! :)And it made me wonder of the land I now live in Trinidad. What do I know of it? Well it's aboriginal peoples...we have practically wiped them out and their voice here...well the Europeans did and we were the peoples they brought from another time when people still thought they could own each other...but what about now? It is almost impossible to gather much of the original peoples of Trinidad information...it is pretty much lost...but I could at least try to adapt the approach I know from Hinduism here in this land...and it was what I had been doing anyway...but Australia inspired me to keep on Dreaming....

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Well they say it was just made from an idea in a book by F. Scott Fitzgerald but whoever wrote this script made me want to read the book...or wonder how the book would read...the writing was just so rich...the story so wondrous and sweepingly epic. It also rang through that life is really only what we choose to make it...and that each one of us come here for a very unique point and purpose and we should just do it! Made me kinda recall this one of my posts.

The Tale of Despereaux
I kept meaning to write this review and say Gotta See Despereaux! or Gotta Love Despereaux! :) He was so cute...such a pretty, pretty, cute mouse as my mummy put it!:) Cute enough just to watch the film for! :) But again a film about living your purpose and not just going with the masses...where one mouse dared to go! It was also interesting the whole inherently deep spirituality in it like all good children tales! About the light and the dark and the sea faring rat and the ones from the sewer and the mouse who was suppose to be afraid but was not. And the kindness in that sea faring rat's eyes and his voice...aaawwww...what a sweetly made film!:) It still remains with me! :) I have to buy this film you know! And then there was soup! And I just love soup! Mmmmmm....who can not love soup! Well the sea faring rat for sure would agree!:) Everyone should see Despereaux! Gotta see Despereaux!

And really those were the three films I really had fun with in 2008. I saw Seven Pounds and was so so disappointed! Oprah your review and having Will on the show just didn't ring through! It wasn't the acting... that was fine even good at times...it was just the whole concept of the film and the whole idea in the end...geez...a man killing himself to give his organs....come on now! I wrote my rant on that film in response to my blogging friend Matt Welsh's post on spiritual media blog...here.

Also there is Slumdog Millionaire...it never released on the island and I'm not a bootleg copy watching kinda girl plus Matt Welsh has posted here said it was very gory and I just not worth watching if you can't take that even though it is to show reality perhaps...I know it is true but I go to the cinema to be inspired not come out blue! So...it is why I didn't go to the darkness that was Dark Knight (Batman) even though everyone said it was so good and it wasn't just cause Joker was being played by a now dead man! And no it is not just going to be a cult classic for his fans? I don't know...I just didn't go!

But on the night of the Oscars as I pray to Shiv I say I hope AR Rahman fears well as I've always loved his music. I've heard Jai Ho! and I know it's not his best for sure. But the 'white people' are now being exposed and that's great for sure! I wish him all the best and I say although I love his music he could not ever with Ismail Darbar contest! :)