A friend of mine told me once that she was 'dumped' by her lover of four years through an indifferent email. Needless to say she felt acutely defenseless at that time and had plummeted into the so-called depths of despair, but after a decent mourning period now she feels like the one who has had the good riddance.

'You know Nazia', she jovially confessed, 'Some lovers live happily ever after, some live happily even after!'   Read more...

I dream about what the ultimate life experience would be if we lived in a world where every human being was emotionally conscious. I do believe that this shift in consciousness is happening right now, so hopefully my vision will come true. I thought I would share my vision here because I believe that writing and talking about visions gives them a higher probability of coming true. The whole vision may be a long way off yet, but that's okay, I will still keep talking about my dream.   Read more...

Long Hair Manifesto from B-Rilla on Vimeo.   Read more...

A quick blurb in the June/July Ode special advertising section caught my eye: United States Institute of Peace. Their website is usip.org. Their website says, “The United States Institute of Peace (USIP) provides the analysis, training and tools that help to prevent, manage and end violent international conflicts, promote stability and professionalize the field of peace-building.” Who knew there even was one?   Read more...

The subtly of Japanese behavior can be very complex. A quick glance or the hint of a frown can be pregnant with meaning. But much of that is often lost to those not brought up here. Japanese laughter, too, is one of the ongoing mysteries of this fascinating culture. What outsider can know for sure what a Japanese smile or laugh really means?   Read more...

Last June President Medvedev of Russia visited the Netherlands. During that visit he opened, together with Queen Beatrix and Prime Minister Balkenende of the Netherlands, a Dutch branch in Amsterdam of the famous Russian museum The Hermitage. On the website of The Hermitage Amsterdam is written that the museum has special attention for the cultural education of children. In fact, this museum will have the largest space dedicated to educational programmes in a museum in the Netherlands.

While President Medvedev visited Amsterdam, prime Minister Balkenende of the Netherlands lobbied for a more intensive Russian-Dutch cooperation for the winning of natural gas in the East of Russia. Nearly a week after Medvedev’s visit, Gazprom, the Russian gas-company, put Royal Dutch Shell on a shortlist of companies that can take part in a liquefied natural gas project at the Peninsula of Yamal in Russia. Royal Dutch Shell already agreed with Russia that it gets delivered 1.000.000 tons of natural gas for the European market.   Read more...

As my children get older, I find myself wondering what their teen years will be like, in terms of our relationship. They are 12 now, so one more year until they are official teenagers. We have attended 3 unschooling conferences in the past 3 years, and I love observing the teenagers while we are there. I also love hearing about the relationships that my unschooling friends have with their teenagers. It is amazing to me to see the trust and the honesty that is present in their relationships. Before finding the unschooling path, I didn’t think this was possible! Once again, I am thrust into shifting my perspective on parenting, while learning to "grow" with the flow.   Read more...

Leymah Gbowee of Monrovia, Liberia was featured in the July issue of Guideposts, that lovely little magazine about Christian faith in action. For 14 years, Liberia’s military dictatorship along with the armed rebels against it had made the country a battleground.

Ms. Gbowee’s story begins on a steamy day in Accra, Ghana, during peace talks which were rapidly disintegrating. That was the day she ran out of hope despite the fact that it was due to her efforts that these peace talks were even occurring.   Read more...

Often when my students hand write a paper, they confuse "h" and "n", "d" and "a", or "l" and "e" because of not paying attention to the differing length (of one line) between the two letters. They always act surprised when I point out this error. And sure enough the next time they inevitably make the same mistake. I have almost given up on "l" and "r" differences, knowing my own inability to distinguish short and long vowels in Japanese.

Once after a long and trying day I was thinking about the stresses at work and also wondering what I could do about my chronic dry-eye problem. My poor eyes are constantly irritated and red. I use drops and creams and go to a doctor for treatment, but am always looking for better relief in some way. Winter is a nightmare with the dry heating systems; and summer is not much better with its allergy-causing grasses and flowers. In other words, I am in year-round discomfort.   Read more...

Wat is MVO nu eigenlijk? Een nieuwe economische moraliteit? Zeker met het oog op de oorzaken van de kredietcrisis en de teruggang van de economie zou je op die manier naar MVO kunnen kijken. Onderzoek heeft uitgewezen dat MVO in ieder geval een van de pijlers onder de reputatie van een bedrijf is, naast onder meer financiële prestaties en getoond visie en leiderschap. Dat is MVO dus ook. En volgens MVO Nederland is MVO een belangrijke bron van innovatie. Meervoudig Vernieuwend Ondernemen dus. Marketeers zien MVO als onderdeel van hun instrumentarium, ondanks dat recent onderzoek onder deze groep liet zien dat ze geen geloof meer in de waarde van MVO hadden. Anderen, waaronder niet in de laatste plaats vele ondernemers, zien MVO als een nieuwe naam voor veel zaken die westerse bedrijven al heel lang normaal vinden. MVO wordt daarnaast door veel bedrijven gezien als een strategie – of in ieder geval een onderdeel daarvan of iets waar je een strategie op kunt formuleren (waarop eigenlijk niet?).   Read more...