COMFORT

I have heard for eons now about serving your Lord. I have heard many people tell others in order to get to Heaven you have to serve me, your Lord.

Well, my children, this is another misconception. If I am everything that is, then how could you really serve? Fore you see, ‘to serve your Lord’ came from ancient times on earth, such as to serve your King, etc.

I never really gave that suggestion ‘to serve your Lord God’. What I would really rather want it to be is ‘to comfort’. Yes, to comfort, such as assist or be there for someone in need; not to serve someone.

So let’s remove this misnomer and replace it with ‘to comfort’. When you go out and comfort people you are also comforting yourself and me. So remember, let’s start comforting one another; bring peace of mind to each other. Spirituality on earth will become more evolved if you choose to comfort each other rather than to serve.

Give comfort in my name.

Guest Author Day

When one of my stories, A Pot of Panatunies, recently ran in My Daily Insights, I received a charming letter from Tamara Yakovich. She wanted to thank me for such an inspiring story and share one of her own. I enjoyed it so much that I would like to share it with you now.

The Chase

My youngest child turned seven months old yesterday. They grow so quickly, don’t they? His development is bitter-sweet, I can’t wait for him to reach that next stage, but then again I want him to stay little! He is at that point where he is about to crawl – but can’t quite do it yet. That doesn’t stop him from moving around and getting where he needs to go though! He scoots around this house as fast as he can, dragging his little body with chubby arms. I love that ‘army crawl’!

His favorite adventure the past few days has been ‘chasing the bouncy blue ball’. I watched this closely today, and this is what I saw. His whole face lights up as soon as he sees the ball, and ‘the chase’ is on! He scoots after the ball – almost gets it in his grasp – and it slips away. No matter, he squeals with delight and chases it again. He catches it the next time, rolls over on his back and holds on tight. He uses both hands and feet to keep the ball where he wants it while he ‘hugs and kisses’ the ball. He is so happy to have caught it, finally! Then he lets the ball go, he watches it roll away, perhaps wondering where it will end up, or where it will take him next. He flips himself over and takes off after it again with a big smile on his face.

He could do this all day long. Chase the ball, catch the ball, hold it and play with it joyfully for a while, then watch it roll away once more.

Does he get a little frustrated when the ball rolls away for the tenth time? Maybe a little, but he knows that half the fun, maybe even MOST of the fun, is in the chase!

How many times have you ‘almost’ had your DREAM or your GOAL in your grasp, just to watch it slip away? Do you stop the chase? Do you sit down and give up? Or – like the small child – do you realize that the fun is in ‘the chase’? Worse yet – do you ‘catch’ your dream or your goal and then hold on to it so tightly that you stop moving?

Lessons learned:

1. The FUN is in the chase!
2. If your dream/goal slips away – keep after it – you never know where ‘the chase’ might take you!
3. Once you have your dream/goal in your grasp – set a new one and start chasing again!
4. Remember – the FUN is in the chase!

Now – go out there and ‘squeal with delight’ as you chase after your dreams with a smile on your face! If you do it this way, no one will ever know that you don’t already have your dreams in your grasp!

--Tamara D Yakovich

Tamara Yakovich is a single, WAHM to four beautiful children, ages 17, 5, 3 and 7 months. She is an in-home childcare provider by day and ‘Spa Girl’ by night. She loves all of her ‘jobs’, but loves being a full-time mommy the most!

She was born and raised in Western Washington and has lived in Cincinnati, OH for 10 years. It is her goal to help women realize their potential and live the lives they love. She intends to reach as many women as possible through her BeautiControl spa business and writing short stories and words of inspiration.

You can contact her at tamaras_beauticontrol@yahoo.com.

A Special for you and my Daughter

When I originally posted this, I was talking about my daughter and her dreams to take a People to People trip next summer. But that has changed and instead she will be taking a trip to New York and DC over Spring break in 2009.

I guess it boiled down to neither of us was ready for her to be away from home, in another country, for 15 days. Hopefully she will get this opportunity again.

This is still an exciting trip though and she will be visiting the presidential monuments, Arlington National Cemetery and the Smithsonian Institution. And then in New York they will have the honor of visiting Ground Zero. The children that have visited this site have become different people.

The premise of my original post was to tell you that she has been thinking of many different ways to make money, from selling candy bars to going without Christmas this year. Well, that was actually Denise's idea and we haven't quite run it by her yet ;-).

I thought I would help her out with one of my own ideas. I would like to propose a special to anyone who would like a reading at a $25.00 reduction in the cost for an hour. That means a full hour reading for $75.00 instead of $100.00 and I will designate $25.00 of that towards her trip.

So you win and she wins.

She is such a super kid and we truly believe that she deserves this trip. She's a straight A student, volunteers at the local animal shelter and has a true love for learning. We believe this would be a life changing opportunity for her.

I am going to let this special run from now until March of 2009 with the mention of this blog. Universal Insight

Thanks for listening again to a proud papa and giving me the opportunity to help you and her. You can reach me at universalinsight@icehouse.net

A Pot of Panatunies

As many times before, my gardening rituals brought about some thoughts. The other day I learned a lesson; but not one of which I didn’t know about already. The lesson just became clearer because of my hands-on experience.

We have a large pot of panatunies growing in our back yard. You might ask, “What are panatunies?” When our daughter was about 3 years old she proclaimed the name of our petunias by combining the name pansies and petunias. We have used that name ever since to describe our petunias.

Just like roses, if you want more blooms to occur on your petunias, you need to snap off the dried up buds. I don’t mind at all dead-heading petunias or roses; in fact it’s rather relaxing. But here I was working with this big pot of petunias which are a beautiful deep purple. As I was standing on one side of the pot I picked all the dead ones I could see, and thought I was through. However as I began to move around the pot I began to see more and more of them. For awhile I thought I would never finish. I began to lift up the stems to discover more underneath.

The result I am always trying to bring about is to help maintain a nice looking pot of panatunies. This work always rewards me with new blooms. A few days of laziness had got me to this place and I was paying the price.

The thought that came to me is that if we procrastinate, we pay a price or even worse. We may have to do something over and over to keep the beauty of what we want to accomplish.

In other words, change your perception, your view. Heck, stand at a different spot if you have to. There are times (sometimes many) that you feel you’re going around in circles picking off old dried blooms, but what you are really doing is clearing up old negative garbage and being persistent trying out new ideas.

If you want your life to look and feel great there are times that you may have to do something over and over while you’re looking under your old beliefs and picking them off to bring forth new and vibrant ones.

Ideas with right action equal a great life, but if you don’t feel you’re there yet then go back to the pot of panatunies and start over again. You will then find your life enriched with new vibrant blooms.

Introduction to another Masiello

A few months ago I was contacted by a woman in New York who asked if we might be related. I never knew my father as he left before I was born, so who knows how many siblings or cousins I may have out there. Irene and I exchanged emails and pictures and enjoy any resemblances we may have. At this point who really cares if we are truly related, we call each other 'cousin' anyway.

As I got to know her better, I was intrigued about the new book she had written, Paradise Costs. This book came about because of how her father had suffered at the hands of neighbors in another state. She did not want her father's death to be in vain and took it upon herself to write his story.

The American Psychological Association estimates that approximately 2.1 million senior citizens are victims of physical and psychological neglect and abuse every year.

Anyone who is or will be dealing with an elderly parent must read this book. It will not only help you now with your loved ones but might possibly save YOU as you get older. I'm very proud to introduce my new 'cousin', Irene Masiello. Please take a few moments to read her message to you.

In addition, she would like you to read a poem in memory of her brother Martin. Silent majority-In God we trust.

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To me, spirituality is understanding that everything is perfect just as it is.
It means accepting those things in life that seem tragic and using them as stepping stones for deeper spiritual development. It means that crisis's are opportunities to apply faith, develop insight, gain evolvement and apply spiritual principals.

That's what I did in my walk of my talk. I have no right to offer anyone empty words I cannot and have not lived by. It was not easy...however the easy way out is rarely the spiritual way out.

Paradise Costs--A Victim's Daughter Fights Back against Elder Abuse is a proactive, one-of-a-kind book offering babyboomers a story that defines elder abuse and exploitation. There's a lot of confusion about the topic. Most people believe that is violence however it is so much more and often times so subtle it escapes notice.

However, ALL elder abuse are crimes.

Paradise Costs offers readers much. It has extensive listings of red flag behaviors that EVERYONE needs to know; we have 25 of them. We have profiled elder exploiters. We have given tips for hiring aides. We have almost 30 heads up pointers identifying high risk seniors, what to look for, what to do and how to do it.

Bennett Blum, MD, an internationally recognized forensic and geriatric psychiatrist, has contributed his incredible pioneering professional assessment tools for recognizing impaired and diminishing capacity "coincidentally" identified are PARADISE-2 (a Synchronicity!). Also, his acronym IDEAL demonstrates how to document undue influence.

This amazing effort has been collaborated by professionals who volunteered their time and talents to help boomers, the most powerful and influential generation ever, to STOP elder abuse now. This group included lawyers, social workers, a federal agent, nurses, writers, editors, webmasters, artists, etc.

Our site offers readers a way to take instant action. We are seeking volunteers around the country to demonstrate what people of good will can do to combat one of the Seven Deadly Sins...GREED and an American pandemic. Please see our site.

Please help and lets spread the word to protect our beloved aging; this effects everyone as the Journal of the American Medical Association states it will be 30 to 40 years before AWARENESS of elder abuse acquires the level that child abuse has now. It's estimated that 25 million boomers will be victims. The ratio is between 1-in-3 and 1-in-6 will succumb to any numbers of abuses, exploitation or neglect.

I vowed at my father's death bed to not allow the loss of his life to be in vain. What about YOUR father, mother, aunt, uncle....children?

STOP ELDER ABUSE NOW...

Become aware....
get informed...
and
TAKE ACTION...

the life you save may be your own.

Thank you,
Irene A. Masiello


Re-release of Paradise Costs-A Victim's Daughter Fights Back
Against Elder Abuse Marks International Elder Awareness Day;
June 15, 2008
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NEW YORK, NY: Bennett Blum, M.D., internationally acclaimed forensic and geriatric psychiatrist and an expert in undue influence, has added his pioneering work to that of author Irene A. Masiello in Paradise Costs-A Victim's Daughter Fights Back Against Elder Abuse, the heart-wrenching story of an infirm, 80-year-old man with Alzheimer's who was taken from his family, stripped of his assets and exploited despite the pleas of his next of kin.

Driven by grim statistics from national elder advocacy groups indicating there may be more than 25 million cases of elder exploitation in America, Dr. Blum and Ms. Masiello have joined forces to inform readers via a compelling true story while providing professional assessment guidelines that are used internationally.

Masiello supports her father's tragic story with his suspicious forensic report exemplifying a terrifying reality facing the elderly in America today. Mario Masiello, a hearing-impaired, honorably discharged, World War II veteran, retired from the NYC Transit Authority and relocated to the quaint town of Walterboro, SC. Twenty years later, his blissful life was ravaged by the death of his wife and by several illnesses including diabetes, Alzheimer's and depression. Paradise Costs tells the chilling true story of the last years of his life when he was "grandpa-napped" from his family by neighbors and "friends."

The American Psychological Association estimates that approximately 2.1 million senior citizens are victims of physical and psychological neglect and abuse every year. Many cases go unreported. Ms. Masiello's objective is to provide a voice to the millions of silent or ignored victims. "I never thought this type of betrayal and brutality could happen in my family," says his daughter. "My experience has made me realize how little people know about the deadly American pandemic that is elder abuse."

Created in a workbook format, Paradise Costs shows Americans how to take action in support of federal legislation to stop elder abuse now. The sample letters and petitions (which are also available at www.ParadiseCosts.com) are designed to help readers voice their concerns to federal officials.

"I'm urging participation via our interactive book and web site to lobby legislators to pass the Elder Justice Act now on the floor of both Houses of Congress," says the author. "Hopefully, others will be spared the suffering my father was forced to endure, and their families will not have to look on helplessly in horror as mine did."

Dr. Blum states, "Paradise Costs is a tragic, true-life tale. Unfortunately, the behaviors depicted in this book are all too common. No one knows how often criminals, 'brand new best friends' or family members exploit the elderly…Money has always been associated with the worst of human behavior. Elder financial abuse is no exception. Some of those taking assets from the elderly have been tied to gang violence, prostitution and drug trafficking. Their elderly victims are often subjected to physical abuse, neglect, abandonment, sexual abuse and murder."

Recognizing the difficulty of the aftermath of this tragedy, Ms. Masiello is determined not to let her father's death be in vain. "My goal now is to take my story to the nation and raise awareness of this deplorable social ill that's plaguing America," she says.
---------
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 12, 2008, 2:45PM, NY,
NY CONTACT: Irene A. Masiello
IreneAMasiello@cs.com
www.ParadiseCosts.com
CONTACT: Bennett Blum, M.D.
BennettBlum@aol.com
www.BennettBlumMD.com
============

I Will Share Your Bird

Today I am so excited to feature a guest writer----my wife Denise. I am so jealous that she can hammer something like this out in a half-an-hour. It's the first thing she's ever written and I hope it won't be the last.
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I first met Bebe almost three years ago. After advertising at my church for my in-home care services, her daughter had taken Bebe my card. Sitting in her living room I saw a petite soft spoken lady looking much younger than her years. She explained what she needed on a daily basis but the job was only to be as a fill in for her other helper while she was on vacation. Well, OK I thought, I can do that. I didn’t hear back from Bebe for a few months and at the end of my first day she asked me when I could come back. I inquired if it would only be one more time and she said no, it would be permanent. I was overjoyed!

We got into a familiar routine twice a week; trips to the hairdresser, grocery store, doctor appointments and fabric stores.

But mostly she talked, about many things. For a long time I felt guilty that my day was spent sitting instead of ‘working’. But then I realized that I was doing what she needed and I began to relax and enjoy my ‘work’.

I heard great stories about her and her husband’s (lovingly called L.A.D.) many trips with family and friends which included square dancing, bird-watching, and visits to destinations rich in history. Many stories were from her youth, including the antics of her brothers and sisters. And I laughed at the time when she and her husband raised baby crows which terrorized the neighborhood looking for shiny objects to steal.

The things she spoke most of were her bird-watching adventures. She had a great window seat at her table where many birds came to visit. The past few years she has seen wild birds diminishing and local sparrows taking over. “Dumb brown birds”, she called them.

One sparrow she talked about fondly was a fox sparrow, she named Foxy. This particular bird was off its beaten path for the 17 years it came to visit every winter. Although a member of Audubon, she didn’t want to advertise the presence of this bird too much as it would bring a lot of unwanted traffic that may scare Foxy off. This bird was spotted and photographed by a local Audubon member so she and he knew that she had the real deal right in her back yard.

At the end of winter last year she felt that Foxy had been taken by one of the hawks that also frequented the neighborhood. Before that though, I had happened to take one of the last pictures of him. After she felt that he was truly gone I framed that picture and gave it to her for her birthday. I saw the tears in her eyes and knew we had connected.

Occasionally in the past Foxy had traveled with another fox sparrow and Bebe had hoped that this other one would come back this past winter. We both watched as the weather became cooler. One day he appeared in late fall. She was so excited that she would have another fox sparrow visiting for many years to come. This one she named Smudge as the dark spot on his chest was slightly smudged as if someone has smeared a freshly painted spot.

Now, I am the opposite of a professional birder. I throw out bread on the lawn; no elaborate feeding station for me. But this winter I went a little further and threw some seed out on a covered patio. It was a rough winter and even the ‘dumb brown birds’ needed food.

One morning I was up early and looked out and saw a solitary bird, darker in color, larger, stripes on its chest, with that unmistakable dark spot where the stripes meet.

“No way”, I thought. It can’t be; a fox sparrow visiting a non birder, eating my meager offerings from my patio floor? But yes it was, right there in front of me. I grabbed my camera and took the best picture I could. I looked for him again in the evening as is their trait, to come in early and late in the day. He came back! I took more pictures. I needed proof before I took my speculations to Bebe. I brought my camera to her house and could hardly contain my excitement as I explained what I saw. I put the camera in front of her and as I zoomed in on the bird in the dark background I saw her face begin to light up.

“You got one!” She exclaimed.

The day was sparked with excited talk of this little bird. She seemed to think that possibly there was more than one fox sparrow visiting our area which was a good sign for the species. But personally I liked to think that we were sharing the same bird and that he followed me home because of our connection over him. I made two batches of suet this past winter to make sure our fox had plenty to eat. All winter long we talked about our mutual visits and I saw him as often at her house as I did at mine. It was like we had a little secret between us.

My husband and daughter even got caught up in the excitement of our new friend. Every day they would ask “Did you see the fox?” We took turns peeking out the window as not to disturb him. And my day felt complete if I had at least one sighting of him a day.

You just never know what kind of a connection you will find with a person and what joy that can bring both of you. I miss his visits now as spring is approaching and he left a few weeks ago.

But if I am lucky, next winter Bebe and I will be watching together for the return of Our Bird.

Self Help

There are books upon books on self help. You could probably find enough that if you stacked them up 20 feel square it would be taller than the Empire State Building.

These self help books are a good concept. If you read the information they provide, you will be taught how to help yourself to all your desires.

Let’s take a closer look at the word S E L F. It pertains to ownership of individuality. Now, lets look at the word H E L P. It means to receive assistance when someone gives it. What all of this is missing is the concept of improvement.

Instead of self help, let’s go with self improvement, such as improve your attitude, work on your ego, work on your self esteem, etc. That’s what the concept would be, self improvement. Because when you self help, what you are saying to the Creator’s Universe is that you don’t want any assistance.

Fore I say unto you, whenever you say self help; you leave out the most important part. And that is allowing help and assistance from the Greatest helper of all.

So my children, don’t self help; improve self.