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The New Millennium!

-= THE NEW MILLENNIUM! =-




mil-len-ni-um (n.) - A span of one thousand years.

The end of the second millennium
and the beginning of the third was reached
on January 1, 2001.

This date,
based on a calendar created in Rome,
in 526 Anno Domini (A.D.),
is now recognized globally.
Rather than starting with the year zero,
the calendar begins with the date January 1, 1 A.D.

Consequently, our present millennium
was officially reached on January 1, 2001.

New Millennium Resolution:

To Learn from the Mistakes of This Past Millennium
So that It's Follies will Never Again Be Repeated...
For the Sake of Humanity.

Everyone has the dark side within,
so there's a constant struggle to do the right thing.
The good side is compassion & caring about other people,
the dark side is greed and self-centeredness.

- George Lucas -
Director - Star Wars

LEST WE FORGET...

The Nazi Holocaust occurred when Hitler's "Third Reich"
sought to exterminate all of those "undesirables"
from the earth, who were not of the pure
German Aryan race.

This involved the deliberate massacre of
11-million human beings, including:
6-million Jews, 500,000 homosexuals,
& equally large numbers of other groups, including:
philosophers, mathematicians, Catholics,
clergymen, teachers, Jehovah's Witnesses, actors,
painters, composers, merchants, gypsies,
Russians, Poles, liberals, Social Democrats,
white-collar workers, & the handicapped -
all considered non-conformists to strict Nazi ideologies.

All were moved to the Death Camps at Auschwitz,
Dachau, Buchenwald, Bergen Belsen, & elsewhere
to be gased, electrocuted, or killed by Phenol injection,
flamethrower, or hand grenade.

They came for the Jews,
and I didn't speak up because I was not a Jew.

Then they came for the Trade Unionists,
and I didn't speak up because I didn't practice a Trade.

Then they came for the Catholics,
and I was a Protestant, so I didn't speak up.

Then they came for me...
by that time there was no one left to speak up.

- Martin Niemoeller -
(1892 - 1984)

With clear intent, let us gather the leaves of yesterday,
bless the seeds of futuristic human potential
and with nurturing hearts, flower the 21st century
with spiritual vision, creative education,
mystical inspiration, and practical devotion
to the God of all nations through unity, diversity,
expansiveness, and commitment
to inner and thus outer peace.

- Reverend A. James Hillelson -
New World Educational Foundation

I am convinced that human nature is basically gentle,
not aggressive. And every one of us
has a responsibility to act as if all
our thoughts, words, and deeds matter.
For, really, they do.
Our lives have both purpose and meaning.

- His Holiness The Dalai Lama -
Ethics For The New Millennium
- Winner of "The Nobel Peace Prize" -

= FIVE QUESTIONS =

A group visiting the Dalai Lama
focused on what they believed to be

- The Five Most-Important Questions -
facing the World in the New Millennium:

1) How do we Address the Widening Gap
between the Rich & the Poor?

2) How do we Protect The Earth?

3) How do we Educate Our Children?

4) How do we Help Tibet
& Other Oppressed
Countries & Peoples of the World?

5) How do we Bring Spirituality
- Deep Caring For One Another -
Through All Disciplines of Life?

The Dalai Lama relayed that All Five Questions
Fall Under the Last One.

If We Have True Compassion In Our Hearts
Then Our Children Will Be Educated Wisely,
We Will Care For The Earth,
& Those Who "Have Not" Will Be Cared For.

The group then asked the Dalai Lama
"Do You Think Loving On The Planet
Is Increasing Or Staying The Same?"

His Response:
"My Experience Leads Me To Believe
That Love IS Increasing."

He shared a simple practice with them
that will Increase Love & Compassion In The World.

He Asked Everyone In The Group
To Return Home & Share It
With As Many People As They Can.

THE PRACTICE:

1) Spend 5-Minutes at the Beginning of Each Day
Remembering that We All Want The Same Things
(To Be Happy & To Be Loved)
And That We Are All Connected To Each Other.

2) Spend 5-Minutes - Breathing In - Cherishing Yourself;
& Breathing Out - Cherishing Others.
If You Think About People You Have Difficulty Cherishing,
Extend Your Cherishing To Them Anyway.

3) During The Day Extend That Attitude
To Everyone You Meet.
Practice Cherishing The Simplest Person
(Clerks, Attendants, etc.)
As Well As The "Important" People in Your Life;
Cherish The People You Love & The People You Dislike.

4) Continue This Practice No Matter What Happens
Or What Anyone Does To You.

I find these thoughts of the Dalai Lama
to be simple, inspiring, & helpful.

You'll find the practice of cherishing
can be taken very deep if done wordlessly.
Just allow yourself to feel the love & appreciation
that is already there in your heart.

= SLOW DANCE =

Have you ever watched kids on a merry-go-round
Or listened to the rain slapping on the ground?

Ever follow a butterfly's erratic flight
Or gazed at the sun into the fading night?

You better slow down
Don't dance so fast
Time is short
The music won't last

Do you run through each day on the fly
When you ask "How are you?"
Do you hear the reply?

When the day is done, do you lie in bed
With the next hundred chores
running through your head?

You'd better slow down, don't dance so fast
Time is short, the music won't last.

Ever told your child, we'll do it tomorrow
And in your haste, not see his sorrow?

Ever lost touch, let a good friendship die
'Cause you never had time to call & say "Hi"?

You'd better slow down, don't dance so fast
Time is short, the music won't last

When you run so fast to get somewhere
You miss half the fun of getting there.
When you worry & hurry through your day,
It is like an unopened gift...
Thrown away...

Life is not a race.
Take it slower
Hear the music
Before the song is over.

= SMILE =

She smiled at a sorrowful stranger

The smile seemed to make him feel better.

He remembered past kindness' of a friend

And wrote him a thank you letter.

The friend was so pleased with the thank you

That he left a large tip after lunch.

The waitress, surprised by the size of the tip,

Bet the whole thing on a hunch.

The next day she picked up her winnings,

And gave part to a man on the street.

The man on the street was grateful;

For two-days he'd had nothing to eat.

After he finished his dinner,

He left for his small, dingy room.

He didn't know at that moment

That he might be facing his doom.

On the way he picked up a shivering puppy

And took it home to get warm.

The puppy was very grateful

To be in, out of the storm.

That night the house caught fire

The puppy barked the alarm.

He barked 'til he woke the whole household

And saved everybody from harm.

One of the boys that he rescued

Grew up to be President.

All this because of a simple smile

That hadn't cost a cent.

Whoever saves one person,
saves the world entire.

- The Talmud -
(And featured in the film "Schindler's List")

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Email:adventur@midwest.net