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DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20200528
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20200604
DTSTAMP:20260503T125503
CREATED:20200528T113524Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20220719T043219Z
UID:880-1590624000-1591228799@openroadpdx.com
SUMMARY:peace\, love & happiness 5/28/20
DESCRIPTION:painting by Charles Erickson \n  \nTHE OPEN ROAD \npeace\, love & happiness \nMay 28\, 2020 \n  \nIn 1681 William Penn\, an English Quaker\, was granted territory in North America by King Charles II. The land was named Pennsylvania. Penn planned to build the city of Philadelphia\, which means “brotherly love.” Before coming to America\, on August 18\, 1681\, he wrote this letter to the Native American chiefs: \n  \nMY FRIENDS\, There is a Great God and Power\, that hath made the world and all things therein\, to whom you and I and all people owe their being and well-being; and to whom you and I must one day give an account for all that we do in the world. This Great God hath written his Law in our hearts\, by which we are taught and commanded to love and help\, and do good to one another\, and not to do harm and mischief unto one another. Now this Great God hath been pleased to make me concerned in your part of the world\, and the king of the country where I live hath given me a great province therein; but I desire to enjoy it with your love and consent\, that we may always live together as neighbors and friends; else what would the Great God do to us? who hath made us not to devour and destroy one another\, but to live soberly and kindly together in the world. Now I would have you well observe that I am very sensible of the unkindness and injustice that hath been too much exercised towards you by the people of these parts of the world\, who have sought themselves\, and to make great advantages by you\, rather than to be examples of justice and goodness unto you\, which I hear hath been matter of trouble unto you\, and caused great grudgings and animosities\, sometimes to the shedding of blood\, which hath made the Great God angry. But I am not such a man\, as is well known in my own country. I have great love and regard towards you\, and I desire to win and gain your love and friendship by a kind\, just\, and peaceable life\, and the people I send are of the same mind\, and shall in all things behave themselves accordingly; and if in any thing any shall offend you or your people\, you shall have a full and speedy satisfaction for the same\, by an equal number of just men on both sides\, that by no means you may have just occasion of being offended against them. \n—William Penn (1644-1718) \n* \nAnother Seventeenth Century Englishman had this to say: \n  \n28 \nYour enjoyment of the world is never right\, till every morning you awake in Heaven; see yourself in your Father’s Palace; and look upon the skies\, the earth\, and the air as Celestial Joys: having such a reverend esteem of all\, as if you were among the Angels. The bride of a monarch\, in her husband’s chamber\, hath no such causes of delight as you.  \n  \n29 \nYou never enjoy the world aright\, till the Sea itself floweth in your veins\, till you are clothed with the heavens\, and crowned with the stars: and perceive yourself to be the sole heir of the whole world\, and more than so\, because men are in it who are every one sole heirs as well as you. Till you can sing and rejoice and delight in God\, as misers do in gold\, and Kings in sceptres\, you never enjoy the world.  \n  \n30 \nTill your spirit filleth the whole world\, and the stars are your jewels; till you are as familiar with the ways of God in all Ages as with your walk and table: till you are intimately acquainted with that shady nothing out of which the world was made: till you love men so as to desire their happiness\, with a thirst equal to the zeal of your own; till you delight in God for being good to all: you never enjoy the world. Till you more feel it than your private estate\, and are more present in the hemisphere\, considering the glories and the beauties there\, than in your own house: Till you remember how lately you were made\, and how wonderful it was when you came into it: and more rejoice in the palace of your glory\, than if it had been made to-day morning.  \n  \n31 \nYet further\, you never enjoyed the world aright\, till you so love the beauty of enjoying it\, that you are covetous and earnest to persuade others to enjoy it. And so perfectly hate the abominable corruption of men in despising it\, that you had rather suffer the flames of Hell than willingly be guilty of their error. There is so much blindness and ingratitude and damned folly in it. The world is a mirror of infinite beauty\, yet no man sees it. It is a Temple of Majesty\, yet no man regards it. It is a region of Light and Peace\, did not men disquiet it. It is the Paradise of God. \n  \n—Thomas Traherne (1636-1674) from Centuries of Meditations\, First Century\, also quoted by Aldous Huxley in The Perennial Philosophy\, pp. 67-68 \n* \nThis was written more recently: \n  \nKindness \n  \nBefore you know what kindness really is \nyou must lose things\, \nfeel the future dissolve in a moment \nlike salt in a weakened broth. \nWhat you held in your hand\, \nwhat you counted and carefully saved\, \nall this must go so you know \nhow desolate the landscape can be \nbetween the regions of kindness. \nHow you ride and ride \nthinking the bus will never stop\, \nthe passengers eating maize and chicken \nwill stare out the window forever. \nBefore you learn the tender gravity of kindness \nyou must travel where the Indian in a white poncho \nlies dead by the side of the road. \nYou must see how this could be you\, \nhow he too was someone \nwho journeyed through the night with plans \nand the simple breath that kept him alive. \nBefore you know kindness as the deepest thing inside\, \nyou must know sorrow as the other deepest thing.  \nYou must wake up with sorrow. \nYou must speak to it till your voice \ncatches the thread of all sorrows \nand you see the size of the cloth. \nThen it is only kindness that makes sense anymore\, \nonly kindness that ties your shoes \nand sends you out into the day to gaze at bread\, \nonly kindness that raises its head \nfrom the crowd of the world to say \nIt is I you have been looking for\, \nand then goes with you everywhere \nlike a shadow or a friend.    \n  \n—- Naomi Shihab Nye \n* \nHer poem reminded me of this line from Walt Whitman’s “Song of Myself”: \n  \nWhoever walks a furlong without sympathy\, walks to his own funeral dressed in his shroud. \n  \nIt’s a good line\, but he’s just getting warmed up: \n  \nAnd I or you pocketless of a dime may purchase the pick of the earth\, \nAnd to glance with an eye or show a bean in its pod confounds the learning of all times\, \nAnd there is no trade or employment but the young man following it may become a hero\, \nAnd there is no object so soft but it makes a hub for the wheeled universe\, \nAnd I say to any man or woman\, Let your soul stand cool and composed before a million universes…. \n  \nI hear and behold God in every object\, yet understand God not in the least…. \n  \nWhy should I wish to see God better than this day? \nI see something of God each hour of the twenty-four\, and each moment then\, \nIn the faces of men and women I see God\, and in my own face in the glass\, \nI find letters from God dropt in the street\, and every one is signed by God’s name\, \nAnd I leave them where they are\, for I know that wheresoe’er I go\, \nOthers will punctually come for ever and ever. \n* \n  \nWalt’s 201st birthday is this Sunday\, May 31st. We’re going to have a group reading of “Song of Myself” at 3 pm (West Coast Time). To enjoy this exhilarating event\, go to the Zoom website and click on “Join a Meeting.” The meeting ID number is 892-8123-9555. Then\, the password is 623246. I hope to see you there! \n—Johnny Stallings
URL:https://openroadpdx.com/event/peace-love-happiness-newsletter-5-28-6-3-2020/
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20200604
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20200611
DTSTAMP:20260503T125503
CREATED:20200604T160610Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250718T115606Z
UID:922-1591228800-1591833599@openroadpdx.com
SUMMARY:peace\, love & happiness  6/4/20
DESCRIPTION:THE OPEN ROAD \npeace\, love & happiness newsletter \n  \nJune 4\, 2020 \n  \nMost of the writing I’ve done in my life has been in journals and letters. I found this letter that I wrote in 2010 to a man serving time in a Texas prison. He was suffering from depression\, so I wrote this letter to him. (I have edited it slightly.) \n  \nJuly 29\, 2010 \n  \nDear E \n  \nSome thoughts on depression. \nI think a  lot of suffering comes from “bad mental habits.” I would estimate that 99% of our suffering is self-inflicted. \nIn my own life\, I find three practices very helpful. \nMeditation \nDialogue \nStudy \n  \nMeditation \nYou don’t need a meditation teacher or tradition. All you need to do is spend some time every day sitting quietly. Doing nothing. Paying attention. Watching your thoughts. Being still. Being calm. Breathing in and out. Forget about the past\, forget about the future. Forget about The Autobiography of E. \nThought and language give rise to concepts like “self” and “other.” “Inside” and “outside.” “Body” and “mind.” “Life” and “death.” In silence\, there are no such categories. In silence\, there are no problems. In silence\, there are no boundaries. \nDo not waste another minute of your precious human life in self-pity or regret. Go forward. \nCount your blessings. \nEverything you see is utterly miraculous. Your body is miraculous: your hands\, your eyes\, your brain\, your lungs\, your stomach\, your heart. \nYou are perfect. There is nothing wrong with you. You are basically good. Love\, happiness and freedom are your birthrights. \nEveryone you see around you is beautiful inside. Look for that beauty. \nWater the seeds inside you of peace\, love\, happiness and understanding. \nDo not water the seeds of fear\, anger\, regret\, sorrow\, self-pity. \nPrison is a great place to find the peace which passeth understanding. \nPrison is a great place to learn to love yourself and everyone else\, without exception. \nPrison is a great place to learn how to stop making yourself miserable and be happy. \nPrison is a great place to be free. \n  \nDialogue \nWe need each other more than we know. \nDialogue is a way of breaking out of our isolation\, getting out of our rut\, connecting with others. \nYou said that there is one person who you can have a really good conversation with\, and that he has helped you to see things in a better perspective. \nTake good care of that relationship. Honor it. Spend time with him. \nThere are other guys in prison whom you can have meaningful dialogue with if you are patient and make an effort. \nThe trick is to get below the superficial level where most conversation takes place and down to stuff that is more meaningful. \nMy prison dialogue group has taught me that everyone hungers for meaningful dialogue\, even if they don’t know it. \nWe all need to learn the art of giving expression to who we are below the surface\, and to eliciting that from others. \nI know that in prison especially people tend to “do their own time\,” and obviously you don’t want to naïvely open yourself up to someone who would take advantage of your openness in some way\, but the cost of not communicating authentically with others is loneliness and isolation. So\, it’s worth the effort. \nIt’s important to speak and to be heard\, to see and be seen\, and ultimately to love and be loved. \nIf we talk about the weather or about sports\, neither of us will learn anything that we don’t already know\, but if you ask “What is your story?” and really listen you will find that this other person is just as interesting as you are. You will learn things you didn’t know. \nNot just “Where did you go to high school?\,” but “Have you ever loved a woman?” Not “What are you in for?\,” but “What is your heart’s desire?” \nSo\, now I will ask you that question\, as par of our ongoing dialogue. \nWhat is your heart’s desire? \n  \nStudy \nI hated school. I don’t think it is an exaggeration to say that school felt like a prison to me. I spent the whole time looking out the window\, dreaming of escape. \nI feel like precious years of my life were stolen from me. I’m still angry at the world of adults that locked me up like that. \nWhat was my crime? \nMy parents expected me to go to college after high school\, but I dropped out after half a year. \nAt that point my education began. I started reading things I wanted to read\, following my curiosity. I never stopped doing that. \nI think that if I was in prison\, I would do my best to pretend that it was my monastery\, my university. \nPart of my approach to reading is that I mostly read things that I expect will change me\, open my heart or my mind\, or both. Of course sometimes I read for pure entertainment. Books that are funny lighten our mood. Stories feed our imagination. \nMostly\, I read to gain a better understanding of us human beings and the world in which we live. For me\, this kind of reading can be tremendously exciting and make my life more meaningful. It enlarges my world. \nHere are some of the books I have discovered on my lifelong reading journey: \nFirst of all\, there are foundational books. These are the classics—the books that have been most important to humanity—that people have read and re-read. Millions of people have used the spiritual classics as a guide to their lives. The spiritual classics include the Bible\, the Qur’an\, Bhagavad Gita\, Tao Te Ching\, I Ching\, Dhammapada\, and Buddhist sutras. \nIn addition to those basic spiritual texts\, there are the classics of literature\, from the Odyssey of Homer to Ulysses by James Joyce. The literary critic Harold Bloom puts William Shakespeare at the center of what he calls the Western Canon. \nI find I am especially nourished by the writings and sayings of various saints\, yogis\, prophets\, mystics\, poets\, and spiritual geniuses\, ancient and modern. What they all have in common is something that might be called “depth.” It’s a long list but here are some of my favorites: \nLao Tzu\, Seng Ts’an\, Han Shan\, Hafiz\, Shakespeare\, Traherne\, Blake\, Emerson\, Thoreau\, Whitman\, Dostoevsky\, Narayana Guru\, Ramana Maharshi\, R.H. Blyth\, J. Krishnamurti\, Shunryu Suzuki\, Martin Luther King\, Alan Watts\, Joseph Campbell\, Susan Griffin\, Wendell Berry and Thich Nhat Hanh. \nThese people—along with my close personal friends—profoundly affected the way I see\, experience and understand my life\, the world\, and their inseparability. \nI have more I want to write about books\, but I have to do some stuff right now\, so I think I’ll save it for another letter and get this in the mail to you. \npeace & love \nJohnny
URL:https://openroadpdx.com/event/peace-love-happiness-6-4-20-6-10-20/
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20200607
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20200608
DTSTAMP:20260503T125503
CREATED:20200603T191633Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20240616T193251Z
UID:901-1591488000-1591574399@openroadpdx.com
SUMMARY:Bibliophiles Unanimous!: the Open Road Literary Salon
DESCRIPTION:  \n  \n \n  \n“The real joy of a book lies in reading it over and over again\, and always finding it different\, coming upon another meaning\, another level of meaning.” \n–from Apocalypse by D. H. Lawrence \n  \n¡Beloved Bibliophiles! \n  \nOn June 16th\, our topic will be Books That Give You Something New Every Time You Read Them. \n  \nHere’s the Zoom link:  \n  \nhttps://us02web.zoom.us/j/87614013058 \n  \n  \nI hope to see you there!  \n  \npeace\, love & happiness  \nJohnny \n  \n  \n \n  \nFrom the back cover: \n  \nIf you know Johnny\, you will love this book. If you don’t\, after reading\, you will want to meet him—by reading this book. Who else can provide such a good-humored\, big-hearted\, modern Socratic quest into the nature of human happiness\, and the myriad paths to finding joy? Johnny lived in India—and in the remote Eastern Oregon town of Ashwood. He’s spent years in prison—as a generous visitor creating dialog circles to bring lively thought to shadowed lives. And all the time he was writing these zesty morsels of insight\, poem\, story\, meditation\, and manifesto just for you. \n  \n—Kim Stafford\, author of As the Sky Begins to Change  \n  \n  \n\n\n\nIf you missed our 2021 Valentine’s Day Special\, you can enjoy the poems we read by clicking on this phrase: Valentine’s Day Special! LOVE POEMS. Or you could get inspiration from the STORY POEMS we shared on Sunday\, March 28th. Or: MYSTICAL POETRY & PROSE from Animist\, Polytheist\, Hindu\, Taoist\, Buddhist\, Jewish\, Christian & Muslim mystics (4/11/21). Or Poetry (9/25/22). Or American Indian Authors and Culture (11/20/22).\n\n\n  \nWe had a lovely group reading on Zoom of Walt Whitman’s “Song of Myself” on his birthday (May 31\, 2020)\, and have been carrying on a lively literary salon ever since on Sunday afternoons at 3 p.m. You’re invited! \nI know that in our busy world not everyone can come every week\, or stay for the whole thing\, but if this sounds like fun to you\, please join us this Sunday or some other Sunday. \nDon’t worry\, this is not a college class! It’s non-competitive. There’s no homework. No one is expected to know anything\, learn anything or improve in any way. It’s just a way to get together and enjoy each other’s company–a locus for the Nonstop Love-In that is happening always and everywhere. \n  \nHere’s the a list of the topics we’ve used so far: \n  \n\nPoetry Corner (favorite poems old and new) 6/7/20\nCan a book change the way you see and experience the world? (give examples) 6/14\nThe Quintessential Hippie Library (you could start with the Whole Earth Catalog and The Teachings of Don Juan by Carlos Castaneda and go from there—some of you surely know what I’m talking about) 6/21\nWhat are your five all-time favorite novels? or six? or whatever? 6/28\nReligion and Spirituality (what sacred-mystic-poetic texts have most enriched your life?) 7/5\nWhat writers taught you most about the way the world works—sociologically\, politically\, economically\, ecologically\, philosophically\, mythologically\, psychologically\, anthropologically\, scientifically\, aesthetically\, fundamentally? 7/12\nBooks With Pictures in Them (this would include art books as well as illustrated books and children’s books) (another question: what are the most gorgeous books you own\, or wish you owned?) 7/19\nfeatured poet: William Blake  7/26\nOddball Books (books found off the beaten path\, books the other people probably haven’t heard of\, books that are unlike other books\, books that explore non-mainstream ways of seeing and understanding the world\, y’know: oddball books)  8/2\nIdea Books (nonfiction books that you learned something from that has stayed with you)  8/9\nWell-Written Books (what writers write in a way that thrills you?)  8/16 \nBooks About Books (literary criticism\, books about reading\, writing\, writers\, words\, the alphabet\, libraries\, et cetera) 8/23 \nFilms Based on Books: which are the best?  8/30\nPoetry Corner. Read us poems you’ve written\, or some of your favorites from other writers.  9/6\nMulticultural. Books not written in English and/or not written by white guys. Fiction or nonfiction  9/13\nGuest Author: Ashley Lucas.  This was a Special Event–a Virtual Book Tour. Ashley’s new book\, Prison Theatre and the Global Crisis of Incarceration had just been published. Ashley (in Michigan) read from her book\, answered questions and hosted a conversation. Howard joined us from New York\, Al and Nick from Seattle\, lots of Oregonians\, and Carlos from Peru! You might want to read this Interview with Ashley Lucas.  9/20\nNature\, Ecology & the Environmental Crisis. 9/27\nNo Bibliophiles Unanimous on 10/4.\nPositive Futures\, Utopian Visions. Mainly thinking nonfiction here\, but novels that give a positive vision of the future would also be good (if there are any.)  10/11\nThe Bible. What does this book mean to you? What have you learned from it? What is its role in our society? What is its role in Western Literature? Considered as a myth (sacred story)\, what does it say about us\, our world\, and our relationship to the Divine?  10/18\nShakespeare.  10/25\nKids Books. For Children of All Ages. Bring kids’ books to read. Bring kids if you can. What were your favorites when you were a kid?  11/1\nIrish Writers  11/8\nEconomics  11/15  Know of any well-written books that have helped to illuminate this arcane subject for you?\nRead any good books lately? A favorite question of bibliophiles  11/22\nMythology with Will Hornyak. Any authors\, books\, articles that have drawn you closer to the world of myth? What myths do you live by? 12/6\nPoetry’s Task with Kim Stafford.  12/20/20\nFavorite Women Poets with Deborah Buchanan & Katie Radditz. 1/3/21\nSPECIAL EVENT!!!: A Play Reading with Howard Thoresen\, Alan Benditt & Andrew Larkin. This is gonna be F-U-N! Contact Johnny for details.  1/17/21\nIdentity & Mythos: The Stories We Tell Ourselves.  1/31/21\nValentine’s Day Special! LOVE POEMS.  1/14/21\nFACTORY by Antler. Group Poetry Reading!  2/28/21\nPoems & Books About Work. We’ll talk about Antler’s poem “Factory\,” share poems about work\, talk about books on the subject of work\, and regale each other with some of our own work experiences.  3/14/21\nStory Poems. Homer\, Dante\, Shakespeare\, Edward Lear\, Robert Service–y’know\, Story Poems. Poems that tell a story.  3/28/21\nMYSTICAL POETRY & PROSE from Animist\, Polytheist\, Hindu\, Taoist\, Buddhist\, Jewish\, Christian & Muslim mystics.  4/11/21\nSHAKESPEARE’S 457th BIRTHDAY!!! Bring along some of your favorite passages from the Immortal Bard.  4/25/21\nALL THINGS GREEK. Stratis Panourios\, our hierophant\, from Athens\, led a dialogos about Greek drama. 5/16/21\nAnnual Group Reading of SONG OF MYSELF to celebrate Walt Whitman’s 202nd birthday!  5/30/21\nBloomsday Celebration!  6/13/21\nPLAYS!: Plays you’ve read\, plays you’ve seen\, plays you’ve performed.  6/27/21\nWhat are your favorite 50 books from the past 50 years?  (Books published since 1971.)  7/11/21\nWhat are Your Favorite Documentary Films?  7/25/21\nPoetry Corner!  8/8/21\nWhat Do You Read?\, How Do You Read? & Why Do You Read?  8/22/21\nWomen’s Liberation!  9/5/21\nBooks With Pictures In Them with Special Guest Professor Andrew D. Larkin  9/19/21\nLooking Glass Bookstore with Special Guests Bill Kloster and Katie Radditz  10/3/21\nPoems That Are Funny  10/17/21\nNature  10/31/21\nNature Poetry  11/14/21\nMythology  11/28/21\nGroup Reading of “A Christmas Carol” 12/12/21\nRead Any Good Books Lately?  1/9/22\nFavorite Fictional Characters  2/27/22\nFor Women’s History Month: Women Writers and Characters  3/13/22\nWar & Peace & Spring!  3/27/22\nGary Snyder & Friends  4/10/22\nOf Strange Shadows: TheMysteries of Shakespeare’s Sonnets with Keith Scales (Celebrating William Shakespeare’s 458th Birthday)  4/24/22\nWhat Shaped Your Worldview (Including Books)?  5/8/22\nAnnual Group Reading of Walt Whitman’s “Song of Myself”  5/29/22\nBloomsday Celebration  6/16/22\nA Conversation With Susan Griffin  6/26/22\nAuthors & Writings That Make You Happy!  7/10/22\nAuthors & Writings That Make You Happy!  7/24/22\nRead Any Good Books Lately?  8/28/22\nRead Something You Wrote  9/11/22\nPOETRY  9/25/22\nMore Poems  10/9/22\nNeruda\, Mistral\, García Márquez\, et cetera  11/6/22\nAmerican Indian Authors and Culture  11/20/22\nSilence  12/4/22\nAnnual Group Reading of A Christmas Carol  12/18/22\nSong Lyrics1/1/2023\nHope  1/15/23\nKeith Scales Reads T. S. Eliot’s “Four Quartets  1/29/23\nValentine’s Day Special: “What have you learned about love from books & plays & poems?” 2/12/23\nSnowed In! 2/26/23\nMemorize a Poem!  3/12/23\n“sweet spring…  4/9/23\nShakespeare’s Birthday Extravaganza!!!  4/23/23\nPsychology  5/7/23\nFavorite Women Authors  5/21/23\nPoetry Reading: Featured Poets are Elizabeth Domike & Alex Tretbar  6/4/23\nVisions of Utopia & Paradise  6/18/23\nWhat’s Going On?  7/30/23\nWhat Are Your Top Ten (or Fifteen) Favorite Novels of All Time? 8/13/23\nMother Goose & Friends  9/10/23\nBlack Elk’s Vision  9/24/23\nSPECIAL EVENT!: Mythic Ireland with Will Hornyak  10/8/23\nPeace & War  10/22/23\nWisdom  12/3/23\nA Child’s Christmas in Wales read by Keith Scales  12/17/23\nWhat are the best books you read in 2023 & what books are you looking forward to reading in 2024?  12/31/23\nHistories!  1/14/23\nWho do you admire\, and why?  2/25/24\nWorld Literature  3/10/24 \nBook Launch for The Nonstop Love-In by Johnny Stallings  3/23/24\nMysteries!  4/7/24\nSci-Fi!  5/5/24\nOld Poems!  5/19/24\nSong of Myself  6/2/24\n102.  Books That Give You Something New Every Time You Read Them  6/16/24\n\n\n  \nI hope to see you at our next Sunday Zoom gathering! \npeace & love \nJohnny \n 
URL:https://openroadpdx.com/event/bibliophiles-unanimous/
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20200611
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20200618
DTSTAMP:20260503T125503
CREATED:20200611T175044Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250718T115733Z
UID:935-1591833600-1592438399@openroadpdx.com
SUMMARY:peace\, love & happiness 6/11/20
DESCRIPTION:painting of George Floyd by Lukas Carlson \n  \nTHE OPEN ROAD \npeace\, love & happiness newsletter \n  \n  \nJune 11\, 2020 \n  \nThe black revolution is much more than a struggle for the rights of Negroes. It is forcing America to face all its interrelated flaws—racism\, poverty\, militarism\, and materialism. It is exposing the evils that are rooted deeply in the whole structure of our society. It reveals systemic rather than superficial flaws and suggests that radical reconstruction of society itself is the real issue to be faced. \n  \n—Martin Luther King\, Jr. \n* \n  \nI recently posted this on my FaceBook page: \n  \nAt the root of racism\, injustice and violence are ignorance\, fear\, and a lack of imagination and love. \n  \nMay all people be happy. \nMay we live in love. \n* \n  \nI also posted a link to Martin Luther King’s sermon “Loving Your Enemies” (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=522wcqUlS0Y)\, along with these “comments”: \n  \nLove is creative understanding goodwill for all men. \n  \n—from Martin Luther King’s sermon “Loving Your Enemies” \n* \n  \nIn this world\, \nhate never yet dispelled hate. \nOnly love dispels hate. \nThis is the law\, \nancient and inexhaustible. \n  \n—Buddha\, from the Dhammapada \n* \n  \nWho loves not\, knows not God; for God is love. \n  \n1 John 4:8 \n* \n  \nLove to faults is always blind\, \nAlways is to joy inclin’d\, \nLawless\, wing’d & unconfin’d\, \nAnd breaks all chains from every mind. \n  \n—William Blake \n* \n  \nBlake also said: \n  \nEvery thing that lives is Holy \n  \nand: \n  \nChildren of the future Age \nReading this indignant page\, \nKnow that in a former time \nLove! sweet Love! was thought a crime. \n  \nand: \n  \nArt Degraded Imagination Denied War Governed the Nations \n* \n  \nHere are some more thoughts: \nthere is one human family \nwe all belong \nwe need each other more than we know \nwe came here to love and be loved \nat the core of every human being is something radiantly beautiful \nThich Nhat Han speaks of “interbeing” \nat the most fundamental level\, we are not separate from each other \nor from the flowing river of life \n  \nAgain\, Blake: \n  \nCan I see another’s woe \nAnd not be in sorrow too? \nCan I see another’s grief\, \nAnd not seek for kind relief?…. \nNo no never can it be\, \nNever\, never can it be. \n* \n  \nIn 1855\, Walt Whitman said: \n  \nOf every hue and caste am I\, of every rank and religion…. \n  \nIn all people I see myself\, none more\, and not one a barley-corn less…. \n  \nI speak the password primeval\, I give the sign of democracy\, \nBy God! I will accept nothing which all cannot have their counterpart of on the same terms. \n  \n—from “Song of Myself” \n* \n  \nOne of the best books I’ve read in recent years is Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates. Written as a letter to his son\, it’s powerful and poignant. Highly recommended! If you’d like to learn more about the racist dimension of our society\, especially in relation to the criminal justice system\, you might read The New Jim Crow by Michelle Alexander and watch the documentary “13th\,” by Ava DuVernay.  \nHere’s a link to Cornel West speaking about love and justice:  \n  \nhttps://www.cnn.com/videos/us/2020/06/10/cornel-west-george-floyd-cooper-ac360-vpx.cnn \n  \nI’ll close this issue with passages from Martin Luther King’s sermon “Loving Your Enemies”: \n  \nWe must discover the power of love\, the power\, the redemptive power of love. And when we discover that\, we will be able to make of this old world a new world. We will be able to make men better. Love is the only way…. \nSo this morning\, as I look into your eyes\, and into the eyes of all my brothers in Alabama and all over America and over the world\, I say to you\, “I love you. I would rather die than hate you.” And I’m foolish enough to believe that through the power of this love somewhere\, men of the most recalcitrant bent will be transformed. And then we will be in God’s kingdom. \n  \n—delivered at Dexter Avenue Baptist Church\, Montgomery Alabama\, November 17\, 1957\, from the book A Knock at Midnight
URL:https://openroadpdx.com/event/peace-love-happiness-6-11-6-17-2020/
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DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20200618
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20200625
DTSTAMP:20260503T125503
CREATED:20200618T153659Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250718T115824Z
UID:964-1592438400-1593043199@openroadpdx.com
SUMMARY:peace\, love & happiness  6/18/20
DESCRIPTION:When the Morning Stars Sang Together by William Blake \n  \nTHE OPEN ROAD \npeace\, love & happiness newsletter \n  \n  \nJune 18\, 2020 \n  \nThe tree which moves some to tears of joy is in the eyes of others only a green thing which stands in the way. \n  \n—from William Blake’s letter to John Trusler\, August 16\, 1799 \n* \n  \n“I always say to myself: What is the most important thing we can think about at this extraordinary moment?” \n  \n—R. Buckminster Fuller\, from I Seem To Be a Verb \n* \n  \nNancy and I have been worrying about the men and women who are in prisons and jails at this difficult time. I was telling Kim about a conversation I had with Rocky Hutchinson—that I was touched to learn that Rocky was worrying about us. The next day\, while my coffee buddies and I were having Zoom fellowship\, this poem from Kim arrived in my email box: \n  \nInmate Calls Home  \n  \nMom\, I been all night worried— \nthis virus thing\, they say it gets everywhere. \nSo don’t go out\, okay? Get food\, sit tight. \nRead. Just read. You like that. Make calls.  \nNot great\, I know. You love those friends.  \nNights\, I hear you tell them things.  \nMom\, I been worried—cabin fever. Yeah\,  \non the inside we’re used to that. Lots of practice. \nTime just turns like a silly dancer\, you watch it. \nBut Mom\, what you gonna do with all that time?  \nNo visits\, no go where you want\, no bench \nin that park you like.   \nNights\, Mom\, no worry. No worry\, \nokay? Me\, I’m good. I’m so good. \n  \n—Kim Stafford \n* \n  \nHoward Thoresen sent a couple of poems: \n  \nLife-and-Death \n  \nWater isn’t formed by being ladled  \ninto a bucket \nSimply the water of the whole Universe has been ladled \nInto a bucket \nThe water does not disappear because it has been \nScattered over the ground \nIt is only that the water of the whole Universe \nHas been emptied into the whole Universe  \nLife is not born because a person is born \nThe life of the whole Universe has been ladled \nInto the hardened “idea” called “I” \nLife does not disappear because a person dies \nSimply\, the life of the whole Universe has \nBeen poured out of this hardened “idea” of “I” \nback into the Universe. \n  \n—Uchiyama Roshi   \n* \n  \nIt Is I Who Must Begin \n  \nIt is I who must begin. \nOnce I begin\, once I try — \nhere and now\, \nright where I am\, \nnot excusing myself \nby saying things \nwould be easier elsewhere\, \nwithout grand speeches and \nostentatious gestures\, \nbut all the more persistently \n— to live in harmony \nwith the “voice of Being\,” as I \nunderstand it within myself \n— as soon as I begin that\, \nI suddenly discover\, \nto my surprise\, that \nI am neither the only one\, \nnor the first\, \nnor the most important one \nto have set out \nupon that road. \nWhether all is really lost \nor not depends entirely on \nwhether or not I am lost. \n   \n— Václav Havel  \n* \n  \nReminders from Walt: \n  \nI…peruse manifold objects\, no two alike and every one good\, \nThe earth good and the stars good and their adjuncts all good…. \n  \nDazzling and tremendous how quick the sun-rise would kill me\, \nIf I could not now and always send sun-rise out of me. \n  \n—from “Song of Myself by Walt Whitman \n* \n  \nAnd a very short story: \n  \nA woman went to see her therapist\, who was also a woman.  “I have a problem\,” she began.   \n“Yes?” the therapist said\, in that way that therapists do.   \n“It’s my husband\,” the woman said.   \n“I don’t see your husband here\,” said the therapist.   \n“He’s not here\,” said the woman.   \n“Where is your problem?” asked the therapist.   \n“In my mind\,” the woman said\, and suddenly realized highest perfect enlightenment. \n  \n—Johnny Stallings
URL:https://openroadpdx.com/event/peace-love-happiness-6-18-6-24-20/
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DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20200625
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20200702
DTSTAMP:20260503T125503
CREATED:20200625T153328Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250718T115933Z
UID:984-1593043200-1593647999@openroadpdx.com
SUMMARY:peace\, love\, happiness & understanding  6/25/20
DESCRIPTION:THE OPEN ROAD \npeace\, love\, happiness & understanding \n  \nJune 25\, 2020 \n  \nJon Roush sent this poem: \n  \nIf I can stop one Heart from breaking \nI shall not live in vain \nIf I can ease one Life the Aching \nOr cool one Pain \n  \nOr help one fainting Robin \nUnto his Nest again \nI shall not live in Vain. \n  \n—Emily Dickinson \n* \n  \nA short time after I got the poem from Jon\, I got a letter from Josh Underhill (5/30/20). He seems to be thinking along the same lines as Emily. After some preliminaries\, here’s what he had to say: \n  \nI am not sure if I agree with your words “I don’t feel like I have much influence on the world\, but I create my world…” I do however agree each of us lives and creates our world from moment to moment and we choose whether or not to live in hell or paradise. Because I believe that\, and you seem to also\, our own moment to moments\, and our own choice in living in hell or paradise I believe influences the world. Everything we do from moment to moment\, our hell or paradise\, all has a ripple effect in the world. Even a smile to someone passing on the sidewalk may transform their day\, causing them to not flip-off the car that cuts them off that would have ended up in a road rage and loss of life. You can not say you haven’t changed our lives in Group Dialogue\, changed our world\, and in that changed the way we address the world\, in turn changing the world of those around us\, our friends and families. The ripple effect. I have something on this subject that I’ll see if I can find to include with this letter\, which maybe you can put in an upcoming newsletter. We all on this world are connected\, interdependent of one another and without others around us changing the world\, our world withers and dies. So see\, everything you do influences the world. \nThe thing that scares me about this belief is those things done in wrong or hurt\, what many of us are guilty of\, and has sent some to prison for. Those things we each have done\, what ripple effect did it have on the world? That is something I will not get into right now\, and in some ways don’t want to think about. Guess that’s the choice of living in hell or paradise. \n  \nJosh appended this quote to his letter: \n  \nThe life that I touch for good or ill will touch another life\, and that in turn another\, until who knows where the trembling stops or in what far place and time my touch will be felt. \n  \n—Frederick Buechner \n* \n  \nAfter reading Josh’s letter\, I wondered what exactly I had written to him (4/20/20). Here are a few excerpts: \n  \nIt’s a beautiful Spring day today. We have bright yellow goldfinches and bright red house finches flying around our back yard. I enjoyed your quote from Mr. Shin about being present to what you are doing in the moment. Moments are important. We are so busy thinking about the past and imagining the future that we need to be reminded to pay attention to where we are and to what’s happening within us and around us…. \nFor me\, meditation and mindfulness have been very helpful for my well-being. My mind is not as noisy as it once was. I can easily find my way to what I call “The Golden World….” \nHave you finished reading Ishmael yet? The stories we tell ourselves shape the world in which we live. This is true individually and collectively. When we change our stories\, we change our world—and to some extent we even change the world. I don’t feel like I have much influence on “the world\,” but I create “my world” from moment to moment\, and whether I live in a paradise or in a hell is more-or-less up to me. Outside factors impinge on my happiness\, but how I process my experience and knowledge makes a big difference in whether I am enjoying my life or am miserable. \nIshmael is about the stories we have been telling ourselves collectively that have brought us to a situation where we are destroying the ecological health of our beautiful planet. In order to live in ways that are not so destructive\, we will need new stories. \nWilliam Blake said: “every thing that lives is Holy.” That’s a good start. \nMay all people be happy. \nMay we be peaceful and at ease. \nMay we be well in body and mind. \nMay we live in love. \n* \nWhen I wrote to Josh to ask his permission to publish excerpts from our exchange of letters in this newsletter\, he said “yes\,” and asked me to also include some things I wrote (6/9/20) in reply to his letter. I’m including a couple sentences in square brackets\, although Josh\, who is modest\, didn’t ask me to : \n  \nEverything has a ripple effect—good things and bad things. The Big World—what I was calling “the world”—has a LOT of forces in play. I think there are way more good deeds than bad deeds being done right now everywhere in the world. Basically\, people are good and want to be helpful to each other. The good deeds are often subtle\, like the example you gave\, of smiling at someone as you pass on the sidewalk. But the wrong and hurtful things that you mention in your letter sometimes create more of a wave than a ripple…. \nA man in our dialogue group who was serving a life sentence once said that he could never undo the deed or make amends to the loved ones of the person he killed. He said he hoped that by living a good life\, he would be able to help so many people that in the balance\, at the end of his life\, the good would outweigh the bad…. \nI think it is wise of you not to dwell on the negative ripples that went out from what you’ve done in the past…. Shame and guilt don’t help you or anyone else…. \n[You have nurtured and strengthened what is best in you—your kindness and generosity\, your thoughtfulness toward others. You are living the life of a good man\, and that not only benefits others with a ripple effect\, it benefits you every hour of every day of your life….] \nBe kind to yourself. Don’t engage in negative self-talk. Don’t put yourself down or belittle yourself. Don’t engage with shame or guilt. Don’t dwell in the past. Love everyone!—including Josh Underhill. That beautiful innocent person you were when you were three years old is still who you are in essence. You are worthy to love and be loved. \nYes\, there are ripple effects that result from our negative thoughts and actions. But your job and my job is to:  \nAccentuate the positive\,  \nEliminate the negative\,  \nLatch on to the affirmative\, \nAnd don’t mess with Mr. In-Between! \n* \n  \n(Note: Josh and I and other actors sang this Johnny Mercer song together after one of the plays we did at Two Rivers prison.)  \n  \nLet’s close with more Emily: \n  \nA letter is a joy of Earth — \nIt is denied the Gods — \n  \n& \n  \nThe Infinite a sudden Guest \nHas been assumed to be — \nBut how can that stupendous come \nWhich never went away? \n  \n  \n—This issue was co-edited by Josh Underhill & Johnny Stallings
URL:https://openroadpdx.com/event/peace-love-happiness-understanding-6-25-20/
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