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Tangled Threads and Cultural Beliefs that Damage the Quilt of Humanity
Part of the process of repairing the quilt of humanity involves mending the damage caused by such things as racism, sexism, heterosexism and classism, to name just a few. To be effective in this mending process, we need to recognize that the threads of races, gender, sexual orientation, and class in particular are tangled up together in such a way that they can only be untangled and repaired together. In her book, where we stand: Class Matters,bell hooks speaks directly about this:
“To challenge racism or sexism without linking [my italics] these systems to economic structures of exploitation and our collective participation in the upholding and maintenance of such structures, however marginal that engagement may be, is ultimately to betray a vision of justice for all.” (p. 161)
Everything’s Connected
Table of contents for Change, Transition and Transformation
Part 7 in the Change, Transition, and Transformation Series
When my neck was in pain, I knew that my muscles had tightened up and locked into place. According to Dr. Lou, my chiropractor, the massage had not been effective because my muscles were not the source of misalignment. Rather, the muscles had tightened up in response to the misalignment of my vertebrae.
I continued to see Dr. Lou so he could make adjustments to realign my spine. But, in between visits, my back would become misaligned again and the pain would return. Interestingly, the muscles were so used to being in a tightened, resistance mode, they would fall back into the familiar role by force of habit, pulling my spine out of alignment in the process. The muscles, rather than supporting the adjustments, were working against them.
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Balance, Alignment, and Support
Table of contents for Change, Transition and Transformation
Part 9 in the Change, Transition, and Transformation Series
As James Baldwin stated:
“Any real change implies the breakup of the world as one has always known it, the loss of all that gave one an identity, the end of safety.” As we undergo change, even desired change, we do temporarily lose ourselves – we lose the identity that we knew and that was familiar to us. As a result, we end up feeling unsafe, uncertain, and off balance.
As is clear from my earlier posts, being able to move through change and transition and successfully come out transformed on the other side is about balance and alignment. Read more
Stories as a Mean to Enhance Mutual Understanding
Since stories are the way we make sense of our lives, story telling is an important vehicle for gaining mutual understanding. It is by telling our stories and hearing and understanding their differences that we can begin to create larger more inclusive and fully integrated stories. Like quilters, story-tellers piece together what is otherwise unconnected. Read more
The Power of Stories to Build Connections and Create Change
In the book, The Lemon Tree: An Arab, A Jew, and the Heart of the Middle East, Sandy Tolan artfully tells the story of two individuals who grew up with dramatically different cultural “stories.”
Bashir Khairi, a Palestinian man, was six years old in 1948, when his family was expelled from the home his father built by Jewish Zionists trying to create a “national the Jewish people.” When the Israeli soldiers approached al-Ramla, the Khairi family’s village, the Arab civilian defenders were no match for the Israeli army. Read more
The Magic of an Apology
One of the worst consequences of our increasingly litigious society in the United States is the growing obsolescence of apologies. Many people live and act from a fear of being sued, leading them to take actions to cover up their mistakes rather than take responsibility for them, apologize and try to help in the healing process of those who have been harmed. Read more
The Impact of Individual Actions
We often underestimate the power of our own individual actions. We may not realize how much impact we have on others. An experience a good friend of mine shared with me illustrates this perfectly. Read more
“Growing Young”
In Japan, when a person turns 60 years old, it is believed that they then begin their second childhood. This is because they are old enough to have been around the Chinese zodiac calendar with its 12 animal years (rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, Read more
We Need Healing that Works
I’ve been reading Deepak Chopra’s book, Quantum Healing: Exploring the Frontiers of Mind/Body Medicine, in which he talks about the body’s capacity for healing itself. It’s interesting how what he says about healing cancer rings true for healing nations. Read more
Structural Integration Therapy and Deep Tissue Massage
For more information about structural integration therapy and deep tissue massage or to make an appointment with Scott, you can contact him by phone at: 646-246-1146 or by email at: scott.baker1@att.net. Tell him Deb sent you. 
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For information about Deb's book, The Quilt of Humanity: A Metaphor for Healing and Reparation, click here