As It Was: Early agriculturists experimented with almond trees
Almonds are among the first trees to blossom in Oregon’s Rogue Valley, often blooming while snow still coats the surrounding hills. Ethnobotanist Donn L. Todt and anthropologist Nan Hannon have written...
View ArticleIncreasing use by elders of CBD for anxiety
Grace was living in her own home with help from caregivers, but was experiencing anxiety and agitation due to dementia. Her doctor had prescribed anti-anxiety medicine, but it only seemed to increase...
View Article5 kinds of navigators who help with aging issues
A few weeks ago, there was an event at Southern Oregon University sponsored by the Osher Life Long Leaning Institute (OLLI), on preparing for care for yourself and others. I happened to be one of the...
View ArticleAging Happens: What you need to know about guardianships
Here’s what happened with June. June’s niece, who was her health care representative, died unexpectedly. June lived in a memory care facility, had no other family, and now had no one who could be her...
View ArticleSleep apnea can lead to dementia diagnosis
“To sleep, perchance to dream” — or maybe to snore or even develop symptoms of dementia? Is this possible? Yes, as I learned recently at a seminar in Medford called the Alzheimer’s and Dementia...
View ArticleAging Happens: Good to know — A guide to 'Living with Dying'
“Living With Dying: A Complete Guide for Caregivers.” If you saw a book by this title, you might think that this is not anything you either need or want to read about. You’d be wrong on both counts,...
View ArticleInner Peace: Is the world broken? Can we fix it?
Don't worry about this world; it is not broken. And don't worry about others. You worry more about them than they do. There are people waging war; there are people on the battlefield who are more alive...
View ArticleYou are responsible for your own happiness
One of the wisest things I’ve ever said was in a group that I was leading about 45 years ago at the height of the Human Potential Movement. Most people in the group were in their 20s. I was in my 40s....
View ArticleFind ways to accept the unacceptable
At times we accept what is a profound pointer, a suggestion, easily verbalized but yet difficult to apply in one's life. Let us be honest: Severe pain, constant debilitating symptoms or a death in the...
View ArticleInner Peace: To be or not to be a Buddhist
We are told that a prince named Siddhartha Gautama, who lived around 400 BCE, left his home and family, went on a spiritual quest and became enlightened — “awake.” Buddha can be translated as “awake.”...
View ArticleInner Peace: Wisdom marries awareness with consciousness
The mind of an enlightened human being is flexible and adaptable.The mind of an ignorant person is conditioned and fixed.—Ajhan Sumedho, "Don’t take your life seriously" (Buddhist Publishing Group)A...
View ArticleOnly the closed mind is certain
To me, political polarization is the biggest challenge facing us today. Until we start bridging the divide between "left" and "right" we can't work together solving problems effectively. We’ll be stuck...
View ArticleHow the 'Killers of the Flower Moon' affected my life
What does genealogy have to do with inner peace? In my case, a great deal. It has to do with the Rogue Valley, my Osage ancestry, the Osage Reign of Terror and a current best seller, "Killers of the...
View ArticleInner Peace: Aikido is a peaceful philosophy to live by
I am a person who never studied or practiced any form of the martial arts. However, I have been intrigued by the foundational philosophy of aikido. The purpose of studying aikido is not perfection of a...
View ArticleInner Peace: Characteristics of an Enlightened Soul
"The Enlightened Soul is not one to whom the Truth has been revealed, but one who has summoned it; and not just when they’ve been driven by pain, but when life’s seas were as calm as glass."—Notes from...
View ArticleInner Peace: A single-minded look at non-duality
Non-duality, zen, advaita, meditation, enlightenment, awakening — what's it all about?It is the dissolution of every answer to that question. Waking up now to the immediacy of pure sensory experiencing...
View ArticleInner Peace: For peace, change thoughts of aversion to mercy
"All forms of government will fail because people have their hate, their need to be loved and their special interests."— Sigmund Freud (in an introductory lecture on Marxism) What Freud was saying is...
View ArticleWhy do we seek inner peace? (Part II)
Part I, “Peace is never Piecemeal,” was in the April 8 Tidings. I spoke of growing up in India and the fun of child play and how we never knew the word "peace," whether inner, outer or universal, but I...
View ArticleInner Peace: The furry path to finding inner peace
One of the surest paths to inner peace, wellness and longevity is hopping into your lap and licking your face — your dog or cat. Most households here in the Rogue Valley include furry kids, because...
View ArticleCreating a peaceful world
Creating a peaceful world begins with each of us. To enhance this idea requires knowledge of one’s true self and one’s natural contribution towards world peace. Socrates expressed the idea that an...
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