Be The Change

Having just completing John Perkins book, Shape Shifting, I was left with some mixed impressions. Predominate in this book are his interactions with shamans of tribes in the Amazon in Ecuador. I realize now that he crystallized in my thinking of why these indigenous tribes are being taken over by materialism and the loss of the rainforests.

There are two tribes Perkins visited and these tribes were enemies and have been known to be headhunters. It sounds primitive, yet these tribal people are in tune with nature and have a great reverence for her. In their shape shifting, they can become anything they focus on with intent. It sounds pretty wonderful. However, from my impression it is primarily the men who shape shift and who are the tribal elders. Where are the women? They are in the ‘kitchen’ preparing food and drink for the visitors and the men.

One of the tribal chiefs made a profound statement. The demise of the tribal way of life and the rainforests didn’t happen until after the white man’s religions and medical treatments were introduced. Today religion and the pharmaceutical companies contribute the most to the de-evolution of mankind. It is not my intent to say Perkins’ book isn’t worth reading. I highly recommend it because it gives a great description of shape shifting and that with intent and focus it can be accomplished by anyone.

The tribes in the Amazon are not evolving because even though they have a great understanding of nature, their lives are status quo. They also have enemies and kill them. They are not contributing to healthy change.

There have been many books giving reverence to Tibet, the lamas and the Dalai Lama. What is not noticeable in these attitudes of reverence is that these men do not work for their food. It is the villagers who feed them and predominately these villagers are women. Has there ever been a female Dalai Lama? If a woman becomes a Buddhist, she enters a female monastery and that is the same as the Catholic religion.

There was one interesting piece of information in Perkins’ book where he tells of the evangelist Billy Graham. Graham was heard to say that he would never ride in a car with a woman who wasn’t his wife. Not even his secretary. The implication was that he would be tempted to have a sexual attraction with them. It goes all the way back to Eve tempting Adam in the Garden of Eden - meaning women were the seducers.

I have been asked a number of times, how can we heal the Earth? We can’t until the Earth feminine and the physical feminine (woman) are honored and treated with respect and with equality. In the United States there are women in high government positions, however they strive to emulate the man and therefore demean themselves and women. These women are not shining examples. The shining examples are the ones we rarely hear about. In the present U.S. government, there are no high ranking powerful women who speak out against the war, take a stand for being pro-environment or represent us in Congress except perhaps for Barbara Boxer and Nancy Pelosi. What I am realizing is that for the Earth and the status to evolve into equality, there must be a major shift in awareness.

In the Western world and this goes for the East also, outwardly there appears to be evolution with the advance of technology. However this evolution is in reality de-evolution because it is not contributing to the Earth or women.

Women, by their nature are natural nurturers and now is the time for women to nurture themselves. This does not mean that women should become selfish and ignore or leave their families. I suggest that women stop putting their dreams on a shelf and after awhile the dreams become covered with the dust of time. I suggest that women be the change they want to see. If shamans have a mastery of shape shifting through focus and intent, then we women can develop our focus and intent to fulfill our dreams and we can still have a husband and children or a career.

I can speak from experience because I have had a number of dreams that I put on a shelf and I also allowed someone to almost quench the fire I had within. I have now taken my major dream off of the shelf and dusted it off. I love to write and I have two published books with another soon to be released. I also have a 13 year old granddaughter living with me that I am care-giving together with my single parent son. It really comes down to loving who we are and to know that each of us have value and choices. Happiness is only a choice away.

If we take time for our self and this also includes men, we can be inspirations to our children, our mate and our employer/employees. We cannot live someone else's dream. Sacrifice is a demeaning term. Women were sacrificed during the medieval times by being burned at the stake for being intuitive and healers. I have observed too many women caught up in trivial pursuits such as watching soap operas, gossiping, living in the past by holding on to anger, resentment and never taking responsibility for their lives. This is what I call 'self-sacrifice.'

I cannot change the world. I can only change myself and be the change I want. It is all a choice.