Comin’ in from the cold…

Spring has begun (for those of you with four seasons)…it is a time for planting the seeds of our imaginations, understanding what we wish to manifest in the coming months and taking the necessary action to see our intentions materialize in the world…As the rivers thaw and the trees begin to bloom…so too it is time for us to allow our winter dreams to melt, and blossom into our lives.
Each and every year we go through a process of renaissance, we awaken from our winter slumber with fresh ideas, seeds of vision to be planted in the fertile grounds of our reality…it is important to take this time to remember your passions, discarding what is no longer useful to you, creating the space necessary for new growth.
After time spent in hibernation we awake from our cold slumber to find the world around us beginning to show the signs of rebirth, so too is that a signal for us to begin our process of rebirth…a garden full of weeds will not yield our desired harvest...careful attention, wise discretion, gentle nurturing, and continued persistence are what is needed to make the garden of our dreams grow.

Plant your seeds today for the fruits of your tomorrow!

“Seems I can’t deny…some days just don’t feel right…but I think I feel, I feel much better…”

I believe very strongly that one will only fall ill when their spirit is weak…my spirit has been weak these last few days. I have been ill for over a week now and am only beginning to feel better. I’m not quite sure my spirit was strong enough for Freetown…I am being tested; given strength through my weakness I have no doubt, each moment presenting me with a challenge…from the constant heat of the day and the mosquitoes in the night (oohhh…they love my blood) to the lack of variety/nutrition in my diet and the overwhelming crowds of people ever present anywhere you go…it has been tough on me, spoiled western girl that I am.
However, one must know down to know up. My warrior self is being tested and I am feeling stronger and more determined moment by moment – my first month here has shown me beauty and potential, as well as conflict and struggle…to leave one of the richest countries in the world and land in one of the poorest is a journey on the flipside - of course my spirit became weak – you cannot prepare for a journey like this, you can only live it and that’s what I have chosen to do – LIVE IT.
This is a journey I asked to walk, each step…taking me further away from my original vision, each step…taking me closer to unimagined destinations…I do not know where this path leads and I choose not to ask knowing that as I walk each step I am leading myself into my future…a world of unlimited potentials! These moments of weakness my spirit feels…will become my strength.

Stuck somewhere between Babylon and Zion…

“These streets remind me of quicksand…when your running you keep going down, and there is no one to hold on to and there is no one to pull you out – you keep on falling, no one can hear you calling…so you end up self-destructing” – Living in the Ghetto

A week no water, no electricity, and a fuel shortage meaning no power for the generator– a luxury item around these parts and our only ‘reliable’ source of electricity run nightly for about 3 hours. Boys fighting at a local football game and a public ‘flogging’- a community supported and encouraged beating (by the local authorities) of a youth caught stealing…not to mention the ‘flogging’ of children in schools as a tool of discipline…reality here - in the ‘ghetto’.

Numerous accusations of ‘jinni’ – dark magic frequently used in Sierra Leone particularly between competing wives and girlfriends…uneducated young women as economic refugees to their older unappreciative husbands…a man having more wives and children than he can care for properly making it near impossible to feed and school them adequately.

An attitude that encourages dishonest dealings, sneaky behaviour and the belief that you must take all you can before anyone else gets it…creating a culture of selfishness, corruption, and paranoia. Discipline through fear and order through chaos – a society that believes more in darkness then in light where the emphasis is on waiting to be saved, rather than seeking salvation from within.

Life in Sierra Leone will not change until the minds of the people change. ‘Reality’ is what we think it is…as Buddha states “with our thoughts alone we can change the world” until this is understood, this ‘ghetto’ will continue to be stuck somewhere between Babylon and Zion.