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Uncover the Outdoor Adventurer in You

As a young person you were fascinated by the articles in National Geographic magazine and you yearned to be like the individuals in the articles. Even now, as you are older, you enjoy watching Discovery channel and Animal Planet and secretly wish you were one of the characters in the show, taking part in an outdoor adventure. Despite these desires you never seem to have the outdoor adventures you yearn for.

Limited finances, pressures of work, family responsibilities are the reasons you give yourself for not being able to explore the outdoors. None of these should be reasons to prevent you from uncovering the outdoor adventurer that lies within you. Instead of seeking the big adventure you can have a series of small outdoor adventures that will fulfill the yearning for adventure

The question some may ask is where and how do I experience these smaller adventures. The opportunity for an outdoor adventure exists in every location. Every locality usually has a local hiking club and the majority of these clubs are usually happy to have non-members along for a small fee. In addition to hiking clubs there is sometimes a local field naturalist club that organises field trips that non-members can participate in. Hiking is a good way to experience nature and at the same time provide the body with valuable exercise. Some people may think that the years of sitting in front of the television will prevent them from undertaking the rigors of a strenuous hike. Most hiking clubs rate their hikes with a scale ranging from Easy to Challenging. You can start with the easy hikes and over time build to the challenging hikes.

Many hikes are day hikes so you can take one day out of your weekend to be an outdoor enthusiast and still have time for your family responsibilities. An advantage of participating with a hiking club is the safety and security of being with an organised group that knows the trails, thus preventing you from getting lost.

Another great way to experience the outdoors is kayaking. When the term kayaking is used, many immediately think of fast rushing water , navigating large boulders and the heart stopping adrenaline rush of white water kayaking. Kayaking is not however only white water, there are many slow moving rivers, large lakes and sheltered bays where a pleasurable morning or afternoon can be spent paddling. In most areas where there is a sizable body of water, local kayak shops or outfitters can be found. These kayak shops will often have boats available for rental and sometimes organize kayaking expeditions on weekends.

Some individuals are scared of kayaks because they have never used them. Learning the basics of kayaking is however very simple and can be done with a few minutes of instruction. Once the basics have been learned and equipped with a personal flotation device (life jacket) an entire realm of nature viewing is opened up along streams, in ponds and in sheltered bays.

An overnight or weekend camping trip is yet another opportunity for the outdoor enthusiast to awaken that adventurous spirit. You may think that camping requires having plenty of camping equipment, but that is not applicable in every situation. A very good article, Surviving Camping Equipment Overload – How to Manage on a Small Budget, can be found at the Outdoors Trinidad web site. A camping trip is also an opportunity to have other family members participate in your outdoor adventure.

Another opportunity for having family members participate in outdoor activities is a cycling trip. This can be a weekend trip or just a day spent cycling along country roads. One of the great things about a family cycling outing is that you proceed at your own pace. If an interesting bird or animal is seen you can stop to observe and then resume your ride.

So go ahead and organize your mini adventures and uncover the outdoor adventurer in you.

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10 Tips for Writing Better Poetry

Have you ever had trouble with writing great poetry? Are you looking to develop your craft, and become better at what you write? These ten tips can help you on the road to getting the results you want.

Tip #1.) Remember, everyone is different. Your poetry, or creative work will be different from everyone else’s. Don’t be too critical with your work, and try to avoid comparing yourself.

Tip #2.) Be honest with yourself. Do you have the ability to write great poetry? Some people are just born creative. It is completely OK to not be the next Shakespeare. If you need help in determining this, grab a buddy that you know will be honest with you, or a group of buddies.

Tip #3.) Now that see where you stand, you can hone the style that YOU have, and not styles that others have. You can develop your own hooks or styles that uniquely sets you apart from others. Say you have a way you like to express certain words. You can write that way. You could misspell words to make it edgy. Whatever you can come up with to set you apart, and not be another follower, will help you be better. Different is always better in my opinion.

Tip#4.) Write about what you are able to write about. Some people hit the bull’s-eye with writing fiction, while others are pros at non-fiction. Some people are born with left brains, and some with right brains. Yes, I do believe you can pump your right brain up with some practice, but I’d say: STICK WITH YOUR STRENGTHS! If you are left brained, figure out what left brained people are best at writing, then do that.

Tip#5.) If you are attempting to be more creative, and you have determined you have a creative mind, now we can start doing things that help to bring your creative side out more. Practice coming up with scenarios, start dreaming. Get your head in the clouds a little bit. Write down short stories, or whatever you can to get in your groove.

Tip#6.) Modify existing styles of poetry, or create your own structures of poetry. You could mix styles too!

Tip#7.) Join an online poetry website that has classes, or a body that can critique your work. I’d be careful with this one though. Yes, on one hand, people can give you great tips, however, realize that they are speaking to you from their perspective as well, and may not like your style. Some people, and some styles just do not mix well. If you get a bad review, look at their work. You may not like theirs!

Tip#8.) I’m really big on finding, and working on strengths. If you can tell a story with your poetry, do that. If you are good at teaching, maybe an informative poem might be a good idea to write. There are all different types out there, anywhere from Christian to poems from aliens from Mars. (I bet if I looked that up online, I’d probably find it LOL.) Find your niche.

Tip#9.) Find yourself an environment conductive to the style of poetry you are writing. If you are wanting to write a peaceful piece, go somewhere you can get in the zone, and become peaceful. Prepare yourself for your piece, and get in optimal surroundings.

Tip#10.) If all of these tips didn’t help flush things out, and steer you in the right direction, keep searching for ways to improve your craft from any other source you can. Talk with friends, teachers, look online and do all you can to grow. Attend seminars, and practice, practice, practice! You can do it!!

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The Emerging Culture of Light: Anthropology for the Golden Age

Intro: The Evolution of Anthropology

The technological revolution has produced a number of noticeable shifts in the way humans operate on the planet today. One of the most subtle shifts, yet potentially most profound, is the self-awareness that has been created through the complete accessibility of all information via the internet and various media devices. Today people everywhere can instantly find out everything they want to know about “other”, which creates the automatic feedback loop of one re-examining their own sense of self. Who am I really? Who are all these people around me? Why am I here? What is my true purpose?

While 20th century Anthropology was essentially founded through Western academics studying global indigenous cultures, the Anthropological discipline has reached a climax of what it can accomplish in the field of knowledge, as there are truly only a handful of native cultures on the planet that haven’t been heavily westernized or completely categorized and studied by industrious, adventuring intellectuals. For these reason, 21st century Anthropology has been more focused on activism and application rather than the assimilation of information on indigenous cultures or the human experience in general.

The Cutting-Edge of Emergent Culture

There is, however, one last bastion of culture to be fully documented, understood, and experienced: The Emerging Culture of Light. This Culture goes beyond religious dogma and national borders. It transcends attachment to specific rites and rituals, or the need to completely identify with a specific family, tribe, or ethnic background. It is a made up of young and old, as well as people of all colors, genders, and Socioeconomic backgrounds.

The Culture of Light can be found and recognized all over the planet, and their identity, message, and mission in the World is very simple: Love. They are normal people allowing Love into themselves, their families, their communities, and the whole World. They are working everyday towards the healing of People and Planet, and their tools are many:

Yoga, meditation, prayer, medicinal movement, and various self-awareness practices; Permaculture, Ancient & Modern nutrition, Sound Healing, and an endless list of appropriate technologies for optimal elegance and well-being in our inner and outer environments; dozens of modalities for communicating in a loving way (NVC, RC, etc), or for understanding how one is programmed (NLP, Landmark, Theta healing, etc.); and of course the many innovations being made in our understanding and application of media, commerce, and social and political organization, from compassionate documentaries, to gift economies, to Spiritual communities.

One could really list for thousands of pages the innovations that are occurring on every level. The purpose of this article is more focused on presenting the phenomenon of the emergent Culture of Light within an Anthropological context, as well as the impetus for understanding, experiencing, and becoming a part of this inevitable, unstoppable movement of beautiful beings committed to bringing Heaven on Earth.

Characteristics of the Culture of Light

You can find them in urban and suburban yoga studios; on farms and in Eco-Spiritual communities. They are available to give you loving attention as they run down the beach, hitchhike to their day job, or sip a smoothie in a live-food restaurant. You see them riding hand-built bicycles, wearing clothes covered in Sacred Geometry, and holding potlucks and ceremonies to bring about thriving community. They are devotional singers, festival organizers, and technology wizards constructing free-energy devices in their garages.

The emerging Culture of Light, though it can often be seen far outside the mainstream, is much more about how things are done rather than what things are done. These beings act from love, with a calm, present demeanor and steady nervous system. Whether it be a dance Goddess leading a contact improvisation class, or a web-designer absorbing himself in the love of his work–It’s not the what but the how. Everything becomes an exercise in self-mastery. You can see these light-beings living in monasteries, working for telephone companies and billion-dollar businesses, or practicing simple trades like plumbing and carpentry! They are everywhere, living and breathing in every imaginable circumstance.

Some call members of this emergent culture “hippies, cultural creatives, rainbow beings, or just green.” They have also been known through soul-group, astrological lingo as “crystal” or “indigo children”, “star-beings”, or simply star-seeds: beings that have incarnated on Earth from advanced galactic consciousness in order to bring about a Golden Age–a time akin to our Edenic origins, where all walk in perfection and loving connection.

There are many cultural traditions that foretell of the army of God that will arise during the height of the dark times. The Hopi people tell of the Rainbow Warrior of Light that would come to heal all people and planet. And the Tibetans spoke in their Shambhala prophesy of a group of beings that would magnetize all negative forces and re-unite all people on the path of loving kindness. A truly staggering number of saints and visionaries have also spoken of this time on Earth now, and the people who would guide and lead the world towards peace. Paramahansa Yogananda, Baba Sawan Singh, and Edgar Cayce (just to name a few generally well received and respected Super-Beings) all spoke of the unification of East and West, rising Cities of Light, as well as World Brotherhood communities that would lead humanity to an era of greater consciousness.

Though there are many obvious characteristics to note about the Culture of Light externally, there is again only One unifying principle, One State of Being that brings them all together: Love. That place in their Hearts, in our Hearts, in the Heart of the Earth that is emerging today. It is a place at the core of all things that longs again to be One, to share, to have deep compassion, and to be of Service whether things are chaotic or flowing perfectly.

Answering the Call of the Hero

To join this Emerging Culture of Light, it takes courage, humility, equanimity, and surrender. It may ask us to relax our beliefs, be vulnerable, or quit the job that is sucking the life out of us. To join this Culture of Light, it may require cleansing, fasting, and persistent, vigilant attention to our physical, and emotional, or mental health. Everyone’s medicine will be suited to their needs.

One thing is certain, however: The Time to join is Now! The state of the World and all its passengers asks that we take a leap of faith and do whatever it takes to find that unshakable place of Loving kindness within each and every one us. And when we do find it, and it becomes strong, we reach out and touch the lives of those in need, of those in deep distress. And in this way, the whole planet will be safe for One and All to express their deepest Love, and the Culture of Light will bring health and wellness to All beings.

Blessings!