Recently I had a lengthy discussion with a group of people (strangers) that happened to be waiting with me for a Toastmasters meeting. The topic somehow managed to turn to “superstitions” and I stood there listening contently as it was a somewhat bizarre topic to come up amongst a bunch of strangers.

What I found interesting about these people was the fact that they each gave so much power to superstitions.   Read more...

I’ve just finished reading an insightful TimesOnline article entitled Madonna: Sexual and Proud, in which India Knight comments on the public’s reaction to the controversial celebrity’s recent fling with a man less than half her age.

All I can say is hats off to both the star and the columnist: Madonna for being who she is (and not being afraid to flaunt it), and Knight for getting to the core of what makes some people uncomfortable with “older” women expressing their sexuality (and not being afraid to write about it). The sad truth is that there’s a great deal of discomfort in most cultures with women of any age expressing their sexuality. As Knight observes:   Read more...

We’re happy to announce Ode has been awarded a Maggie, the Western Publishing Association's annual award for excellence in publishing. Ode won in the Politics and Social Issues category, outdoing Mother Jones, Reason and Sierra.

"We’re very proud to receive this Maggie," says Managing Editor Marco Visscher, who attended the ceremony Friday in Los Angeles to receive the award, "especially since we had competition from long-standing, reputable magazines like Mother Jones, in a category that traditionally shows more appreciation for the hard-hitting, bad news. It’s absolutely great to see that our message of hope and optimism is being welcomed in the industry with so much appreciation."   Read more...

This month, the Casa do Caminho Language Centre was officially opened in Rio de Janeiro.

What is the so special about this language centre? It’s been created and managed entirely by volunteers and all revenues go to the orphanage Casa do Caminho; only the teachers are being paid for their services. Foreigners can learn Portuguese and ‘Cariocas’ (as the inhabitants of Rio are called) can learn English or Spanish. The centre is located in Ipanema, one of the most safe and affluent areas of the city and only 3 blocks from the beach.   Read more...

Op 21 maart 2009 is mijn boek gepubliceerd, De Paarse Panda. In dit boek schrijf ik hoe het voelt om longkanker te hebben en ongeneeslijk ziek te zijn verklaard. Het boek barst van geluk, positiviteit, liefde, creativiteit, levenslust, verwondering en optimisme maar dat laatste brokkelt heel langzaam af door teleurstellingen en het moeten verleggen van grenzen. De subtitel, Ongeneeslijk ziek, nou en? is niet om te shockeren maar meer om te benadrukken hoe ik ermee omga.   Read more...

Imagine a world where leaders’ decisions are heartfelt and guided by conscious thoughtfulness; a world where societies benefit from intuitive, collective wisdom and where scientific discovery and technological innovation is derived from heart-centered minds. If this vision resonates with your soul, you are not alone. For the past nineteen years, ISSEEEM has united healers, teachers, researchers and pioneers seeking to bridge science and spirit.   Read more...

Zeven vertegenwoordigers van Westerse spirituele groeperingen anno 2009 zullen in dit symposium een nieuwe geestelijke impuls voor de eenentwintigste eeuw vertolken.   Read more...

Juliette dreams of someday marrying a nice man. One unlike the monster who poured acid on her in a jealous rage in July 2007. We are sitting with this young woman, just 19 years old, on a porch near a church in Kampala, Uganda. Juliette is beautiful on the side of her face that she shows to the world. Her eyes are bright and she has a radiant smile. The other side of her face she covers with long braids. It prevents the fearful looks from those who pass her by. It covers the half of her face that was destroyed in the brutal acid attack that sent her to the hospital for five months and disfigured her for life. “I open?” she asks. She lifts her hair to show what remains and tells her story.   Read more...

Senta Yamada was born in Fukuoka Japan in 1924, and he is the founder of Kikusui Kai. He studied Judo with its founder, Dr. Jigaro Kano, who sent him to study Aikido with its founder. Recently I had the pleasure and honor of meeting Senta Yamada sensei for the first time. What follows is a loose translation of Yamada sensei's words, embroidered by the larger picture I sensed he was pointing toward. Uncharacteristically for a Japanese person, he moved his hands as he spoke, to portray the movements he perceived as inherent in the mind of Aikido and the mind of water. You might try doing the same as you read the words that follow. Take your time, breathe freely and move your body so as to feel the movement and mind that the words suggest.   Read more...

Het Holland Festival is sinds het aantreden van Pierre Audi als directeur in 2005 weer terug bij zijn wortels: een mix van alle podiumkunsten, grote namen en gedurfde experimenten. Audi wil de bezoekers een ‘caleidoscopisch venster op de wereld’ bieden. Ook dit jaar brengt het festival, onder het thema Serenity & Anxiety, voorstellingen uit alle windstreken naar Amsterdam. Esmee Meertens, perschef van Holland Festival: ‘Het thema staat voor rust en angst. Rust in de zin van “overpeinzingen” en angst in de zin van “gedrevenheid” en “op een felle manier omgaan met de problemen in de wereld”. Bij dit thema zijn voorstellingen gezocht. En met name de voorstelling Orfeus van de Zuid-Afrikaanse theatermaker Brett Bailey sluit hier mooi bij aan.’   Read more...