No. 7 – August 6, 2012 – Henry Had Dreams

by Melinda Pillsbury-Foster

Henry Story, born in 1941, was raised here. As a small child he began to dream of places far away with an intensity which called to him.

Henry's parents, Henry Senior and Iola, came to Ohio from Arkansas in 1940's so Henry's dad could work in a war plant. 

 

After the war, the family moved to a dairy farm in Windsor, Ohio. The elder Henry began milking cows, planting oats and wheat, to be used as fodder for the cows, also raising hogs, chickens and ducks. “They did the whole deal,” as Henry, Jr. put it. 

 

Later, the family moved to East Trumbull. Home was down a dirt road a mile and a half long with no close neighbors. There was no electricity and the water came from a hand pump in the kitchen. 

 

During winter, Henry walked the mile and a half to the bus because the bus could not make it down the road through the snow. He attended school in Rock Creek. His favorite subject, then and today, is history. History takes us out of ourselves in many directions and Henry had already decided on the direction for his life. 

 

Since his earliest years Henry had experienced two dreams. The first was a shiny gold disk with wings. When young Henry saw the disk in his dream he felt himself lifting out of his body and seeing the world from very different perspectives. The second dream, which also recurred, was of a bull, which chased him. He would run, levitating himself into the tree. The disk, he later realized, was the ancient symbol of the Rosicrucian Order. He remembered a reincarnation in China and studying at the Shaolin Temple in China. 

 

Henry's study of martial arts began by watching Little Ricky on Ozzie and Harriet, after the family had a television. 

 

At age 19 Henry left Ashtabula County to study martial arts. He returned in Ashtabula in 1985 where he began sharing his mastery at the YMCA and later at the Wellness and Total Learning Center. He taught martial arts, and also his philosophy, continuing his own studies until last November, when he suffered a stroke. As he has recovered, his studies have served him well. 

 

Today he is a student in the Qi Gong class he once taught. Now nearly blind, he continues to seek wisdom and solutions which heal body, mind, and spirit.

No. 6 – August 2, 2012 – Centennial

by Melinda Pillsbury-Foster

If you ever watched, entranced, as a flower opened before your eyes on film, this year marks the centennial of the first showing of such an image. The 'premier' took place in Yosemite during a meeting of the Superintendents of the National Parks October 14-16, 1912, not in one of the burgeoning movie theaters then taking hold across the country.

The reason for the showing was not entertainment, but a man's determination to illustrate the need to preserve the multitude of species then yearly decreasing in the meadows of Yosemite.

In 1912 the oversight of Yosemite was still in the hands of the Cavalry and horses need fodder, so the meadows were routinely mowed, the flowering plants gathered and dried to nourish the hoofed transportation of the soldiers who carried out the duties mandated by the Park Service.

On that day in October, the Superintendents and other onlookers were stunned by the sight of flowers arching their faces toward the sun as they unfolded into light, performing what seemed to be a dance, before their astonished eyes.

The first nature movie had been shown in Yosemite three years previously, drawing fascinated crowds which overflowed the porch of the Studio of the Three Arrows, located in what is now the empty area between the Yosemite Chapel and the road into the Valley.

The camera used was designed and built on a shelf in the Three Arrows Studio by its owner, Arthur C. Pillsbury. Pillsbury recalled in his book, “Picturing Miracles of Plant and Animal Life,” published in 1937 by Lippincott,

In his book, Pillsbury recalled the 1912 conference writing, “I showed my pictures, talked conservation and the necessity of all parks to protect them as a very valuable asset.” Pillsbury also showed his photos of the meadows from 1895, showing the same meadows covered with flowers, waist high and the meadows as they were then, in 1912, devoid of life.

Pillsbury goes on to say, “As a result, the next day all flowers and all living things were protected in every National Park, and the mowing machine, as the people in Yosemite expressed it, “was put on the blink.”

1912 was also the year Pillsbury's images were chosen by John Muir to illustrate his newest, and last book, “The Yosemite.” Check out the First Edition.

History always holds more to be found, if we look.   Arthur C. Pillsbury Foundation

No. 5 – July 26, 2012 – The Multicultural Festival

by Melinda Pillsbury-Foster

What flags should would they display? The question came up regarding Ashtabula's Multi-Cultural Festival during preparations for their booth by members of the Wellness & Total Learning Center.

“What's your ethnicity?” is a big question, depending on how far back you look. A complete answer would take you back at least to the mitochondria studies of Bryan Sykes , author of, “The Seven Daughters of Eve,” the book which shook up assumptions about our origins when published in 2001.

DNA, ethnicity, customs, and history make us who we are.

The quick poll taken among the group identified lineage not mentioned already on the Festival site . These were Cherokee, Celtic, subgroups of Celtic, for Welsh and Scots, and the cultural groups of Puritan, Quaker, and Appalachian.

How would these cultural and ethnic roots be honored?

The four main cultural groups present in the colonies before the Revolution were Puritan, Quaker, Chesapeake (second and third sons of English nobility), and Scots, displaced by English policy beginning in the 16^th Century, which began the movement of Scots to the colonies. Scots at this point viewed themselves as members of clans, not necessarily seeing themselves as a 'nation.' They were denied the right to display their clan tartans by act of parliament in 1746.

The Welsh managed to keep their land, though they were conquered by England, no mass emigrations took place from Wales.

Puritans, relocating to the colonies, did so as part of a faith-based belief they were the chosen people of God, destined to establish a society where all were equal.

The Quaker colony of Pennsylvania began with 1670 trial of William Penn. The refusal of the jury to find Penn guilty of preaching beliefs not in agreement with the state religion of England, set up a chain of causality eventually affirmed in the 1735 trial of John Peter Zangar in New York The First, Fifth, Sixth, and Eighth Amendments to the Constitution are examples of the importance of the Zenger Trial, which hinged on the precedent and memory of Penn.

By the early 1800s, Cherokees, had adopted Western customs. The Trail of Tears used state power to steal lands the Cherokee had occupied for at least centuries. Gold had been discovered on those lands.

What should we remember and honor? The answer which emerged did not include flags, but will be displayed at their booth.

No. 4 - July 20, 2012 – Murder in the Night

by Melinda Pillsbury-Foster

The Demonstration for Biofeedback Group met Wednesday night at the Wellness Center to be interviewed, on camera. The three individuals included the owner and operator for an online website which serves 1,500,000 users every month, with 50,000,000 hits, monthly. The events which caused Raye Smith's Post Traumatic Stress Disorder began in 1989. From then until 1996 she survived seven attempts to kill her. Raye especially recounted listening, late one night, to the sound of glass being cut. Raye chambered her 9 millimeter, the sound ringing in the darkness, as the would-be assassins retreated.

Today, Raye still cannot sleep, she is still listening for sounds of murder in the night.

The second participant is Arthur Foster. Arthur recounted being thrown 300 feet, 20 feet into the air and skidding along the highway. After months in the hospital he went home to discover his Traumatic Brain Injury made his previous life impossible. His depression deepened when his father, then estranged from his mother, told him he could never be happy. Arthur took a 25 caliber Baretta and shot himself through the palate, into the brain.

Not expected to live, he returned to a life far worse than the one which already depressed him. Today he has found God but still struggles with extreme depression.

Then the cameraman sat down for his interview. Carl Feather is a journalist at the Star Beacon, but struggles with depression every day. As with many of us, he has found himself working harder, getting less, wondering what the future holds as the ground continues to sink out from under him. Optimizing his abilities and alleviating the ever-present depression, is a way out because it holds promise of a way forward with his life.

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder is endemic in America today. It is hitting those losing their jobs, losing their homes, losing the lives they thought were guaranteed to them. PTSD constricts our ability to act, hampers judgment, freezes us into inactivity when we need to be most vigilant and active.

Participants begin being treated on Monday. They will again be interviewed half way through their sessions and after they are finished.

Biofeedback helps fighter pilots, successful athletes and wealthy financiers to optimize performance. 

 

PTSD, and the related symptoms, is a problem not limited to returning vets, it is a problem for many, many of us. Solutions begin by recognizing the problem.

No. 3 – July 12, 2012 – Many Paths to Healing

by Melinda Pillsbury-Foster

The use of Biofeedback and its enhanced brother, NeuroFeedback are increasing in usage across America today, but few are aware of the history of usage within American's military. There, these optimized the performance of the top level of pilots and other critical personnel.

Such technologies came into use by the United States Military at West Point over thirty years ago, under the supervision of Col. Louis S Csoka as head of the Center for Enhanced Performance at the Military Academy.

Used in this way, the techniques provide an edge for performance which allows already skilled and mentally gifted individuals to hone their reactions and skills to a fine edge. The last two generations of American's finest benefited from these technologies as part of their training.

Then, use began to move into other arenas, this process amplified by the opening of Apex Performance by retired Col, Csoka who founded Apex Performance The Edge in Excellence, located in Charlotte, North Carolina. Csoka uses these same technologies to assist athletes, top level businesspeople, and those in government, seeking to enhance their performance in their areas of specialization.

The benefits reported by users and advertised on the Peak site include strengthening for adaptive and agile thinking, “ the ability to control and direct your thoughts and self-talk on command in order to maintain a positive and effective mind-set that leads to applying creative solutions to complex problems in a timely manner.” These boil down to self-confidence, lack of anxiety, ability to work without being impacted by stress, along with the ability to focus.

Athletes who have benefited from the Peak Program include Billy Cundiff, NFL Kicker Baltimore Ravens and Chad Pennington, NFL Quarterback Miami Dolphins. Their goals became achievable.

Sometimes returning to 'normal' is a goal which seems unachievable. This does not have to be the case.

In 2011 Staff Sgt. Justin Roberts, suffering PTSD so severe he said, “I’d sleep for two hours, and then go without sleep for two days.” He returned home in 2009, “a zombie,” by his report. After treatment with Neurofeedback by Major Michael Villanueva, Roberts said, “It made me closer to normal than I ever dreamed I’d be,” Roberts said. “I’m the biggest believer in this treatment.”

The use of these technologies began in war. They can also bring peace within us and our families.

No. 2 – July 5, 2012 - The 4th is over. Moving the mission forward

by Melinda Pillsbury-Foster

“The 4^th” is now over. We are all sated, filled with hotdogs, picking corn-on-the-cob out of our teeth, and remembering the glorious sight of darkened skies lit up with the blaze of fireworks and children laughing. 

 

But there is probably one tradition you overlooked. 

 

The 4^th of July was originally intended as the day people gathered to hear the reading of the document which was, effectively, the mission statement for governance for 13 very different colonies. 

 

The Battle of Lexington Concord had occurred April 19, 1775.The war had already begun in 1776. 

 

It ended formally with the Treaty of Paris September 3, 1783. 

 

We celebrate on the 4^th, forgetting how the world looked to them, July 4, 1776. 

 

The prospects for freedom were dark when Jefferson penned the words. War against the greatest power on earth, the British Empire, was deemed to be a lost cause, an impossible battle for untrained farmers. Hardened, professional soldiers were stationed in various parts of their homeland.

The Declaration of Independence, written in short, and precise language, is still admired for its elegance, power and truth. It was approved by men who understood the reality they faced. They signed, accepting the consequences of their actions. 

 

In towns across America, tiny and large, people gathered to listen as the news arrived. The Declaration was read in its entirety. Silence prevailed as the words rang out. These were people whose lives were often harsh. They faced war with no illusions. No end was in sight. The task facing them was far more daunting than what faces us today. 

 

The Declaration defined the mission which brought people together, willing to work, fight or die, as needed.

They were people used to governing themselves. Many dreamed of justice and freedom for everyone. We still hold this vision today; a people who truly govern themselves locally.

After the Declaration was passed on July 2^nd and read in Philadelphia on the 4^th, it took a long time for copies to be transported and read throughout the colonies, now each a sovereign state. 

 

July 4^th is one day. Read the Declaration often. Though our oppressor is no longer located in Buckingham Palace the mission enunciated in this, the foundation of our government, remains to be realized. 

 

Read it carefully. Consider your actions in the months to come. Choose wisely.

LINK

No. 1 – June 26, 2012 - Will Ashtabula be the first to become a Drone-Free Zone?

If we think traffic cameras are bad, witness the Measure 54 victory, what about drones? Here in Ashtabula we can call the question now.

Drones, now taking to the air around the country, are expected to explode in number over the next several years. They are costly, threaten our privacy, and bring with them the threat of further law enforcement which does not increase our security, but instead augments the flow of funds to government using our tax dollars.

The burgeoning drone industry, now worth billions, is taking to the air as law enforcement at all levels, local to federal, rush to buy the units supplied through war contractors. The FAA has streamlined the process for usage by agencies. Applications are being expedited though an online process, according to Bloomberg.com. There is money to be made and it is we who will pay in multiple ways.

Americans have seen the evidence of how the units can, and are used in Afghanistan and elsewhere by the military. Today Americans have also learned drones can be hacked, security is not guaranteed.

As the hum of drones fades in Afghanistan it begins to rise, here in America.

The companies who produced drones as weapons and surveillance systems for the military, are now eying the far more lucrative law enforcement functions within the United States. The Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International reports more than 2,100 members, anxious for sales. Industry figures indicate a present market of $5.9 billion, this expected to double in the next decade.

With billions to be made we can expect a flood of well-oiled arguments on why we have no Constitutionally protected right to privacy if a hovering drone can edge into our private space, photographing us without our consent, especially if operated by law enforcement.

Becoming the first Drone-Free Zone is therefore a question of our security, financial, physical, and spiritual. Money is tight. Our privacy is precious to us. We know how we feel about this kind of intrusion.

The proposed ordinance is one page and easy to understand. http://www.knowdrones.com/ORDINANCE-1.pdf

Police should spend their time keeping the peace, not looking at photos of us going about our business in these times of economic trauma.

We can be first. With one act we can secure our peace of mind and lead the way for others.