While
we humans settle into a quiet quarantine, the birds are heralding in spring.
Last week Daughter
Dear saw a Bald Eagle by the pond that’s on highway 99 close to the
Eugene International Airport. Someone (the fish-stocking people) regularly add
fish to that pond, and people often fish there. Now they have a competitor.
A
man who lives in the Caribbean (lucky man) went out on his deck and a yellow
bird came to visit, followed by a hummingbird, and he said the butterflies are
swarming. He wondered if there were more of them, or if he was noticing more.
Did
you hear that during the first week of semi-quarantine, air pollution dropped
60%?
No
wonder the birds are happy, they can breathe easier.
Don’t
forget to breathe folks, a good slow deep inhale can calm the nervous system.
Now
breathe out.
I
don’t know how people are managing with businesses closed and people out of
work. It is trying times. I don’t mean to minimize the fear and danger of Covid-19,
I do, however, want to address the fear, for I know that fear is the greatest
obstacle in healing or in facing challenges.
I want to place a calming
blanket over our quivering bodies.
The
first week of the virus scare, I noticed and commented on how nice people were.
Now
I notice that with the clamp-down on the quarantine, that people are even
afraid of eye contact. You know, it doesn’t hurt, or spread the virus to smile
and greet people. Keeping distance doesn’t mean we can’t look at each other, and
acknowledge their presence. Daughter Dear said at the grocery she smiled at a
man in a motorized cart grocery store.
Angrily he said, "Why are you smiling?"
“To be friendly,” she said.
Perhaps
the distancing is wearing on people.
Come
here. Sit a spell, have some coffee and sympathy. I’d serve it, but hey, you
know how it is, you’re there, I’m here. But isn’t it great that we have this tool—the
home computer? Something unheard of 50 years ago.
Yesterday
I looked at some old blog archives and found one posted on November 3, 2018 that
seemed worth repeating. I called that one “Ow Brains and Wow Brains.”
I’ve heard that letting a positive experience settle for 20 seconds changes the
brain to be more receptive to good.
We often brush away a compliment, saying “Thank you,” and it slides off.
Three seconds—it’s gone.
Have you noticed how we remember the bad stuff, but forget the good?
I can hear you, "Oh, I remember the good stuff.”
Of course, you do, especially those moments wrought with emotion.
It’s the way our brain works.
Sitting in a Vet's office one day an elderly man asked me if I would like to see his cats.
"Sure," I said.
He showed me a picture of two dead cats.
I almost fell off my chair.
He had no malice. He genuinely needed to show me. I could see he loved those cats. Those emotionally packed hurts were emblazoned in his brain.
That’s Negativity bias.
We often brush away a compliment, saying “Thank you,” and it slides off.
Three seconds—it’s gone.
Have you noticed how we remember the bad stuff, but forget the good?
I can hear you, "Oh, I remember the good stuff.”
Of course, you do, especially those moments wrought with emotion.
It’s the way our brain works.
Sitting in a Vet's office one day an elderly man asked me if I would like to see his cats.
"Sure," I said.
He showed me a picture of two dead cats.
I almost fell off my chair.
He had no malice. He genuinely needed to show me. I could see he loved those cats. Those emotionally packed hurts were emblazoned in his brain.
That’s Negativity bias.
Too
bad those kitties will be remembered as dead when they had what 10-15-20 years
of playful antics that entertained that man.
What is negativity bias anyway?
Dwelling on negativity is a function of the brain.
Our
beautiful brain is hardwired to put more weight on the negatives. As we evolved
and faced danger, our hair-trigger reaction was to scream, “Tiger,” and run.
If we survived the event, we needed to remember it so we would never be in that situation again. And we needed to go home and tell our fellows about it.
Dr. Rick Henson, a neuropsychologist, stated in his book, Happiness: the New Brain:
“The brain is like Velcro for the negative, Teflon for the positive.”
And I keep emphasizing that the media LOVES the negative for it gets more eyeballs.
If we survived the event, we needed to remember it so we would never be in that situation again. And we needed to go home and tell our fellows about it.
Dr. Rick Henson, a neuropsychologist, stated in his book, Happiness: the New Brain:
“The brain is like Velcro for the negative, Teflon for the positive.”
And I keep emphasizing that the media LOVES the negative for it gets more eyeballs.
The
problem is that those negative experiences—here in our “modern” age is not usually from tigers, but from financial worries, relationship problems, work-related issues,
early abuse, you get the picture. Now we are traumatized by a virus.
All that can create a bottle-neck in the brain.
When our cells are stressed, a brain chemical called cortisol pours into our cells.
All that can create a bottle-neck in the brain.
When our cells are stressed, a brain chemical called cortisol pours into our cells.
Our body gets used to the cortisol, our cells thrive on it, and want
more. The trouble is continual doses of cortisol wear down the body,
leaving it prone to disease and pain.
You see, folks, that is the reason I’m trying to promote a positive attitude—not to negate that people are suffering, but to say a positive attitude cannot help but make you healthier, up your immune system, and help you cope.When we try to put aside old patterns of negativity, it makes our cells feel ill, and they want to go back to the old way. That’s the reason that people who talk -trouble, often keep talking it over and over.
You see, folks, that is the reason I’m trying to promote a positive attitude—not to negate that people are suffering, but to say a positive attitude cannot help but make you healthier, up your immune system, and help you cope.When we try to put aside old patterns of negativity, it makes our cells feel ill, and they want to go back to the old way. That’s the reason that people who talk -trouble, often keep talking it over and over.
However,
our brains can change from Ow to Wow.
A Wow brain tends to look at life as an exciting, adventurous experience instead of a dangerous one.
Creating new thought patterns is neurolinguistic programming.
Dr. Hanson said he was a geeky kid and not well liked, but when he got to college, he made a discovery. Positive experiences create more positive experiences. If he held onto that encouragement, that compliment, that smile, wink, whatever, he began to feel better.
Thus he promotes the 20-second rule—savor that positive experience for 20 seconds and see what happens.
I noticed, however, as I was doing his process of thinking of a happy event—I choose the day I got my horse—you know I am cuckoo over horses—well at least a couple of them. As I tried to hold my happy thought about getting Boots, thoughts crept in of the day I lost him.
A Wow brain tends to look at life as an exciting, adventurous experience instead of a dangerous one.
Creating new thought patterns is neurolinguistic programming.
Dr. Hanson said he was a geeky kid and not well liked, but when he got to college, he made a discovery. Positive experiences create more positive experiences. If he held onto that encouragement, that compliment, that smile, wink, whatever, he began to feel better.
Thus he promotes the 20-second rule—savor that positive experience for 20 seconds and see what happens.
I noticed, however, as I was doing his process of thinking of a happy event—I choose the day I got my horse—you know I am cuckoo over horses—well at least a couple of them. As I tried to hold my happy thought about getting Boots, thoughts crept in of the day I lost him.
Just like the man with the kitties.
That
was Negativity bias.
Name it and let it go.
Tame the old lizard brain.
Not an easy task.
Name it and let it go.
Tame the old lizard brain.
Not an easy task.
I
was impacted by something teacher Abraham said, “People normally react to what
is, instead of focusing on what they want.
What
if we all meditated on seeing the world thriving again.
“You
can call me a dreamer, but I’m not the only one.”—John Lennon
The positive steps below may help take some of the dander out of the
old lizard brain.
Do
your own research, don’t do anything stupid before checking out if any
treatments are harmful.
When
I first heard scientists were considering a malaria treatment for the corona
virus, I remembered in old times people used quinine to treat malaria. (Quinine
side effects can be serious, even deadly, so don’t rush out and begin using it.) However, that led me to wonder if quinine, a
known anti-malarial treatment could be a treatment for the Covid-19 virus, and
I found that indeed, quinine is an ingredient in hydroxychloroquine, the
medication scientists are now testing.
Malaria is
caused by a parasite, Covid-19 is a virus, but scientists think that the
anti-malaria medication hydroxychloroquine could possibly stop the virus
from invading the cells. and yes, it is quinine based.
A study in
France published on March 20 in the International Journal of Antimicrobial Agents described the treatment of 42 patients hospitalized with
COVID-19, 26 of whom received a version of chloroquine called hydroxychloroquine and 16 of
whom received routine care. Of the 20 patients who took the antimalarial and
16 of whom received routine care. Of the 20 patients who took the antimalarial
and completed the study, six also received azithromycin, an antibiotic.
All six of these patients were free of SARS-CoV-2 by the fifth day
post-treatment, while seven of 14 patients who took hydroxychloroquine alone
were negative for the virus, and two of 16 control patients were no longer
infected.
Keep the
faith. There is HOPE for the future.
If you are
someone who believes live people can talk to dead people, here is one such
person’s conversation with Jonas Salk, the Doctor who developed the Polio
vaccine. He asked Salk what sort of treatments could be used for the
coronavirus. Salk said, “Acai berry, elderberry and aloe vera.” (These do not
have the side effects of quinine, and probably they would help the strengthen
the immune system.)
Could Thieves
essential oil mixture help?
I happen to have a little bottle of Thieves essential
oil, so I moistened a cotton ball with the oil and put it in the car. We have a very fragrant car.
So the
story goes…a long time ago (1413) during the Black-death plague, four thieves
were charged with stealing from the dead and dying, however, they never
contracted the disease. A judge said he would spare them (he lied) if they told
their secret.
Their
secret was that they wore a particular mixture of oils that they applied it to
their hats, hands, temple, and a mask they wore over their nose and mouth. No
claim here folks, just relaying information. (A few drops in your face mask
might be a good idea.
I put some
on my temple and it stung, until I rubbed a smidgen of olive oil on it and the
sting went away. So, remember if you use it on your skin, dilute it with a tiny
amount of other oil.
Here is a
list of ingredients in Thieves from Young Living Essential Oils: Thieves® essential oil blend is a powerful combination of
Clove, Lemon, Cinnamon Bark, Eucalyptus Radiata, and Rosemary essential oils
Hand
Sanitizers:
As you know,
the shelves are bare where hand sanitizers used to be. Here are two recipes you
can make at home provided you have the ingredients or can find them. Washing
our hands with soap and water is the best, but if you’re out and want a quick
sanitizing, use the hand sanitizers. Scrub hands together for 30 seconds and
let air dry. Remember to sterilize all equipment when making the sanitizers.
The
Quick (Gel) Recipe
Mix 3 parts isopropyl alcohol to 1-part aloe vera gel. Add
a few drops of tea tree oil to give it a pleasant scent.
The
Better (Spray) Recipe
Remember, the
alcohol content must be at least 3/4 of the ingredients.
Daughter Dear provides
Home Care for invalids, and the company she works for sent the agents a thank
you and suggestions:
1. Limit your time watching the news.
2. Journal or keep a gratitude journal. (Gratitude? I didn’t
know they were into that sort of thing.)
3. Have a support system—I wonder about this. You either have
one or you don’t. Sitting around and saying “ain’t it awful,” isn’t support.
Let’s say we will get through this waving the flag of
victory.
A Buddhist saying:
Do not think lightly of good—saying it will not come to me.
Drop by drop does the water pot fill.
Likewise, the wise one gathering little by little fills themselves with good.
Be happy. Think good thoughts. I love you,
Joyce
Do not think lightly of good—saying it will not come to me.
Drop by drop does the water pot fill.
Likewise, the wise one gathering little by little fills themselves with good.
Be happy. Think good thoughts. I love you,
Joyce