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Monday 28 October 2019

Back to school

Last week on Friday I went back to school - no, not as a student but as a substitute teacher. I have been appointed in that position at the Saint Johnsbury Academy, a prestigious 9 to 12-grade high school in the Northeast Kingdom - the far Northeast portion of Vermont, bordering the Canadian border.


This change so late in my life comes as a result of several different circumstances. Liz and I recently took ownership of a ranch-style house just five minutes from the Academy but frankly, I have become bored with being at home every day, and when the opportunity came up of being able to spend some time helping out at the Academy, I jumped at it. 



At the time of writing, I have sat in on two hour-long sessions of Grade 11 American History,
tow of Grade 12 English and two of Grade 11 English. The students are mostly American, but with a smattering of Chinese and other nationalities. 



The Academy offers a wide range of subjects and has a particularly wide range of the Arts, including  Visual Arts Courses comprising Foundations of Drawing and Painting, Anatomy and Figure Drawing, Printmaking, Photography, Fashion Design, Filmmaking, Digital Design, Clay, Sculpture, Water-based Painting, Oil Painting, Portfolio, AP Art, and Visual Art Capstone.



The Academy also offers Performing Arts Courses comprising Acting, Stagecraft, Popular Dance, Dance, Band, Jazz Band, Chorus, Strings, Guitar, Music Appreciation/Theory, and AP Music. I believe that the coming year will certainly not be boring,  

Saturday 12 October 2019

The power of Positive Thinking



Much has been written in the past by many authors about Positive Thinking, and I would like to add my small contribution.  Does Positive Thinking actually work? Can your life be bettered by practicing it? The answer is “Yes, it can and it does”. I believe that Positive Thinking is directly related to the Quantum Theory – for the uninformed that is the science of physics, but at a sub-atomic level. You are probably unaware that millions of dollars are spent every year on Quantum Physics research, that there have been major breakthroughs in recent years in such subjects as c and in Quantum Computing.UU

The Quantum Theory is said to be linked to or responsible for a number of common phenomena. These include extrasensory perception, telepathy, telekinesis, and similar phenomena. It has also been theorized to have links to near-death experience, ghosts, the afterlife and more recently with UFOs. There is also a school of thought that hypothesizes that consciousness is a quantum event that takes place in the brain. Have you ever been thinking of something only to find out that a loved one has been having exactly the same thoughts at the same time? That is a quantum event, and it is more common than you may think.

What has this got to do with Positive Thinking? One of the principles of the Quantum Theory is that everything in the Universe is interconnected at a sub-atomic level. It is a proven fact that, at a quantum level, information can be transferred from one point to another instantaneously, no matter what the distance is between them. This can account for two people thousands of miles apart thinking the same thoughts at the same time.

Your mind is a very powerful weapon that has been encoded throughout your life by your memories, experiences, and environment. All of these memories are buried deep in your brain and are the reason for your present state of mind and self-esteem. Many people have developed a low frame of mind because of their jobs or the kind of environment they exist in, one of extreme negativity. But low self-esteem can be countered and turned around. There are a number of recognizable signs that will tell you that you are suffering from low self-esteem. Typically these are depression and possibly, in the extreme, suicidal thoughts.  People suffering from low self-esteem frequently turn to drugs.

It is important that you recognize that you are suffering from low self-worth in order to reverse the process. If you find yourself in such a position, if you think that you are stuck in a rut. Once you have made up your mind to do something about it, all it needs is a little positive thinking. To drag yourself out of that rut you have to make a determined effort to employ the use of positive thinking. One way is by using the Law of Attraction, one of the spin-offs of Quantum Theory.

Most people unconsciously allow outside influences to control their lives. In order to change this, you have to let your inner thoughts do the job, not outside influences. This calls for serious positive thinking. When you concentrate your mind on positive things, then positive things will happen. Let me give you an example. If you think all the time of having no money, guess what – you will never have money because that is a negative thought. Rather think positively and use visualization and you will attract the positive.

The Law of Attraction states that whatever you concentrate your thoughts on will be attracted to you. This law works for everyone all of the time. It works for rich and poor, young and old, and for all races and religions. By getting rid of your negativity and concentrating on the positive, you will put yourself onto a pathway that leads to abundance and contentment.