Happy Soul Food Friday!

Happy Soul Food Friday!

This week:
Is American Culture & Our Ecosystem at Risk!
What can you do?

VOTE!
And Help Get Out the Vote
Whatever Your Political Beliefs…

Stay safe, Well, Positive and Resilient and Continue to Invest in Your Best Self!
Reboot Your PC (Post Covid-19) Interactions -Make the Shift from Conflict Resolution to Conflict Prevention and Keep the Change for Good.
An Invitation Only Virtual Experience and Training– September 1^st 2020 at Noon PDT

HTTPS://WWW.EVENTBRITE.COM/E/116060424855

The Unraveling of America

Anthropologist Wade Davis on how COVID-19 signals the end of the American era

A super well-written but also very sobering article…

Wade Davis holds the Leadership Chair in Cultures and Ecosystems at Risk at the University of British Columbia.

https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/political-commentary/covid-19-end-of-american-era-wade-davis-1038206/

The 2020 Women’s Vote Centennial Initiative:
Together, we will ensure that the stories of the women who changed herstory are shared and celebrated throughout the US in 2020
The year 2020 marks the 100th anniversary of the passage of the 19th Amendment, guaranteeing and protecting women’s constitutional right to vote. This historic centennial offers an unparalleled opportunity to commemorate a milestone of democracy and to explore its relevance to the issues of equal rights today. The Women’s Vote Centennial Initiative, a collaboration of women-centered institutions, organizations, and scholars from across the US, works to ensure that this anniversary, and the 72-year fight to achieve it, are commemorated and celebrated throughout the United States.
https://www.2020centennial.org/

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“It Is What It Is” -Michelle Obama’s Full Speech at the Democratic National Convention 2020:
Wherever you might stand politically, this First Lady is an amazing and compelling communicator willing to put it all on the line for what she believes!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CX9CONduxJs

Tired of Labels And Stereotyping?
This Is Where I Stand with David Brooks:
The power of conservative radicalism in an age of upheaval.
The philosopher Isaiah Berlin once said he occupied the “extreme right-wing edge of the left-wing movement.” If that’s good enough for Isaiah Berlin, it’s good enough for me.
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/13/opinion/conservative-radicals.html?smid=em-share

Enough of the Madness? Bliss Out with Our Fellow Primates:
Monkey Meditations – Snow Monkeys in a Hot Spring, Japan
https://youtu.be/HOuil9N5miY

Stay Safe, Well, Positive and Resilient and Continue to Invest in Your Best Self!
Reboot Your PC (Post Covid-19) Interactions with Dr. Mehrad Nazari
Make the Shift from Conflict Resolution to Conflict Prevention and Keep the Change for Good.
An Invitation Only Virtual Experience and Training– September 1^st 2020 at Noon

To register for Reboot Your PC (Post Covid-19) Interactions

Make the Shift fromConflict Resolution to Conflict Prevention and Keep the Change for Good on Sept 1^st at noon PDT:

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/116060424855

Thanks this week go to Kurt C, Michelle O, David B and Bob C.
We will get through this and be better together…
Please pay it forward!
Love all,
Neville

“Intuition will tell the thinking mind where to look next.”

Dr. Jonas Salk

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Follow me on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nbillimoria

Happy Soul Food Friday!
This week:

How NOT To Go Extinct: (5 minute deeply thought provoking vid)

Ready for a new response to new conditions?
“Rivalrous dynamics multiplied by exponential tech self-terminate.
Exponential tech is inexorable. We cannot put it away.
So we either figure out anti-rivalry or we go extinct – the human experiment comes to a completion.”
~ Daniel Schmachtenberger

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=374450350211864&id=117609792908&sfnsn=mo&d=n&vh=e

Did That Get Your Attention? Guess We Better Start Working on Ourselves and a New Framework! Recognizing that we will likely be in this, “next normal” for the long haul, with a little help from my dear friends that are conscious leaders, whose work I know and love and learn from every time I am with them, I intend to provide virtual learning and connection opportunities for self-care and helping us care for one another every few weeks. I am intentionally picking stellar humans that “walk the talk” and are “others-focused” in their work and life purpose with specializations from fostering authentic connection, to resilience, to bringing love into our workplaces and lives, to navigating the most trying of times and more… Here are two upcoming webinars that might help us stay grounded, in the positive, and as a result help us show up with our best selves at home, in our world of work, and in our extended communities. Note: As Zoom limits participation, please sign up if they resonate…   From Grief to Grace: Transforming Grief to Grace- Leading Consciously in a Disrupted Space with Dr. Alan Daly Join our Fee Live Zoom Learning Session on August 18, 8:30 to 10am PDT, but “Must Be Present To Win”

and

Reboot Your PC (Post Covid-19) Interactions with Dr. Mehrad Nazari Make the Shift from Conflict Resolution to Conflict Prevention and Keep the Change for Good.   An Invitation Only Virtual Experience and Training– September 1^st 2020 at Noon PDT

To register for Reboot Your PC: (click link below or copy/paste link into your browser )
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/116060424855  

<Click HERE to register for this free webinar, happening next week!>

“”But try,” you urge, “the trying shall suffice; The aim, if reached or not, makes great the life: Try to be Shakespeare, leave the rest to fate!””

– Robert Browning (1812 – 1889)
English poet and playwright

Thanks this week go to  Eric K, Alan D, Mehrad N & Larry H.
Stay in the positive and pay it forward.
Love,
Neville

“Challenging the meaning of life is the truest expression of the state of being human.” 
– Victor Frankl

Happy Soul Food Friday!

This week:

• Is Race Even Real?
• Self-Care: From Grief to Grace – A Live Zoom Learning Session on August 18, 8:30 to 10am PDT
• Book Sculptures: Transforming books into genuine and remarkable art forms

RACE- Are We So Different?
A short but compelling video from the American Anthropological Association
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8aaTAUAEyho

 

Is Race the Color of Your Skin? Is it the Texture of Your Hair? The Shape of Your Eyes? Is it in Your Genes?
Is Race even Real?
Race: Are We So Different? explains the origins of race and racism, and helps us understand how to deal with them in productive, enlightening ways.
https://museumofus.org/exhibits/race-are-we-so-different/

 

As it Moves Forward with Decolonizing, The Museum of Man in San Diego Gets a New Name- The Museum of US:
The shift is timely, given the nation’s unfolding social-justice reckoning, but it was years in the making.
It is both an admission that the old title had a gender problem, and a reflection of a broader effort by the cultural anthropology museum to redefine its role in the community, its stewardship of the items in its collection, and the stories it tells…
https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/story/2020-08-02/museum-of-man-name-change

 

Lessons from the Bahá’í  Faith with Alex M:
For over a century, Bahá’í Writings have raised awareness of many injustices such as social and economic inequality throughout the world and in particular Racial Injustice in the United States.
A recent letter from The Universal House of Justice is now further encouraging members of the US Bahá’í Community to join hands with all members of society and exert herculean efforts to apply spiritual solutions to this mighty challenge.
As individuals we might feel the bounty of being called upon, yet overwhelmed by the task ahead…
Following are excerpts from this recent letter. The full two-page copy can be accessed here: https://bit.ly/30RDfUy

“Racism is a profound deviation from the standard of true morality. It deprives a portion of humanity of the opportunity to cultivate and express the full range of their capability and to live a meaningful and flourishing life, while blighting the progress of the rest of humankind. It cannot be rooted out by contest and conflict. It must be supplanted by the establishment of just relationships among individuals, communities, and institutions of society that will uplift all and will not designate anyone as “other”. The change required is not merely social and economic, but above all moral and spiritual.

Ultimately, the power to transform the world is effected by love, love originating from the relationship with the divine, love ablaze among members of a community, love extended without restriction to every human being. This divine love, ignited by the Word of God, is disseminated by enkindled souls through intimate conversations that create new susceptibilities in human hearts, open minds to moral persuasion, and loosen the hold of biased norms and social systems so that they can gradually take on a new form in keeping with the requirements of humanity’s age of maturity. You are channels for this divine love; let it flow through you to all who cross your path. Infuse it into every neighborhood and social space in which you move to build capacity to canalize the society-building power of  Baháʼu’lláh’s Revelation. There can be no rest until the destined outcome is achieved.”

Making Time for Self-Care

Transforming Grief to Grace- Leading Consciously in a Disrupted Space
Join our Fee Live Zoom Learning Session on August 18, 8:30 to 10am PDT, but “Must Be Present To Win”

 

Coronavirus Vaccine Tracker:
Researchers around the world are developing more than 165 vaccines against the coronavirus, and 27 vaccines are in human trials.
Vaccines typically require years of research and testing before reaching the clinic, but scientists are racing to produce a safe and effective vaccine by next year.

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/science/coronavirus-vaccine-tracker.html

 

Stay Creative

Book Sculptures to Inspire Your Creativity:

The book serves as a tool to record historical events that transcend through the ages.
Passing  down the knowledge from generation to generation. Spanning scientific studies to artistic fields.
Today, it is more than just a recording tool, as creative artists start transforming them into genuine and remarkable art forms, generally named Book Sculptures.

 

Thanks this week go to Kurt C, Alex M, Rob M, Brenda H, Alan D, & Larry H for this week’s contributions!
Please pay it forward
Love All,
Neville

“Difference- The Only thing we have in Common”

 

Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/NevilleB108
Follow me on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nbillimoria

 

Happy Soul Food Friday!

This week:

Together, You Can Redeem the Soul of Our Nation:

Though I am gone, I urge you to answer the highest calling of your heart and stand up for what you truly believe
John Lewis wrote this essay shortly before his death, to be published upon the day of his funeral…

“Ordinary people with extraordinary vision can redeem the soul of America by getting in what I call good trouble, necessary trouble.

Voting and participating in the democratic process are key. The vote is the most powerful nonviolent change agent you have in a democratic society. You must use it because it is not guaranteed. You can lose it.”

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/07/30/opinion/john-lewis-civil-rights-america.html

 

President Obama Calls for Voter Protections in Fiery John Lewis Eulogy:
Former Presidents Barack Obama, George W. Bush and Bill Clinton gave speeches on Thursday at the funeral for Rep. John Lewis, revered civil rights leader and Democratic congressman from Georgia who died earlier this month…
https://news.yahoo.com/obama-calls-for-voter-protections-in-fiery-john-lewis-eulogy-191131999.html

 

And Now for Something Lighter:

(Back by popular demand)

Time to stop watching the “news” and enjoy Mother Nature.

Beautiful pictures help us balance against the bad things going

 

Thanks this week go to all conscious leaders like the great John Lewis, and that same conscious leader that lives within you!
Please help get out the VOTE!
Love,
Neville

 

“The opposite of love is not hate, it’s indifference.
The opposite of art is not ugliness, it’s indifference.
The opposite of faith is not heresy, it’s indifference.
And the opposite of life is not death, it’s indifference.”

                                                                       –Elie Wiesel

Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/NevilleB108
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Happy Soul Food Friday!

This week: Be An Upstander
Upstander– a person who speaks or acts in support of an individual or cause, particularly someone who intervenes on behalf of a person being attacked or bullied.

Your Personal Invitation to: “Looking For LOVE in All the Right Places-Keeping the Good Changes This Pandemic Has Spread In Our Lives”- Zoom Webinar: Thurs July 30th 2020 @ Noon to 1:30pm (Limited Spaces So Registration Is Required)

 “When you are feeling blessed you can’t be stressed”

Last Call for: “Looking For LOVE in All the Right Places-Keeping the Good Changes This Pandemic Has Spread In Our Lives”

Let’s discern and keep the good changes that this pandemic has manifested, so we can regain our joy, re-energize our spirit, and grow our love in support of our loved ones, community and ourselves…

Why: Most of us- even the most stress-hardened- are emotionally and spiritually fatigued from months of adjusting to life in a Covid world.

Now: In lieu of a summer vacation to distant places, or even a spa day or retreat, can we give ourselves a mini-stay-cation, with a little help from our friends, to reframe our current circumstance and recharge our spirit (yes even on another zoom call!)?

In Spite of Everything, Can We Find the Gift in THIS Moment?.
What: Join Moshe and Neville as they create the space for us to get real, get clear, and get on, with how we would like to show up in the Covid world.
Together we will explore the current conditions we find ourselves in as well as our habituated responses to them.
In a brave, safe and even sacred space, we will gently challenge our beliefs, reactions and responses so we move into and stay in the growth zone together.
And yes, LOVE has everything to do with it!

We will:

• Shift from Life is happening TO ME to Life is happening THROUGH ME.
• Reclaim your Passion, Purpose, and Priorities as you release yourself from the grip of this Pandemic.
• Practice Straight “A” Gift Giving to someone in your life:  Acknowledgment / Attention / Appreciation and rise up by lifting others

Click HERE to Register for this Free Webinar!

Or, copy/paste the link into your browser: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/113162796972
Note: Attendance is limited, so please sign up soon if you care to join, so we don’t cause any unintended disappointment.

Love All,
Moshe and Neville

“Sometimes your joy is the source of your smile.  
But sometimes your smile is the source of your joy.”
-Thich Nhat Hanh

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Remembering Our Non-Violent Freedom Fighters:

John Lewis, Towering Figure of Civil Rights Era, Dies at 80

Images of his beating at Sema shocked the nation and led to swift passage of the 1965 Voting Rights Act. He was later called the conscience of the Congress.

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/07/17/us/john-lewis-dead.html

 

C.T. Vivian, Martin Luther King’s Field General, Dies at 95

A disciplined advocate of nonviolence, he was on the front lines in the 1960s movement for racial justice.

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/07/17/us/ct-vivian-dead.html

 

Good Cops Changing the Culture and System with a “Duty to Intervene”

Duty To Intervene Policies Aim To Prevent Officers From Using Excessive Force:

https://www.wbur.org/hereandnow/2020/07/20/duty-to-intervene-police-force

 

(HU)-Man UP!

The more I think about it, the antidote for much of the injustice we see in this world is fostering a cultural shift that eliminates bystanding from the norm, regardless of who is being marginalized, downtrodden, and especially those who are unable to stand up for themselves.
This goes far beyond race relations and includes gender disparity particularly violence against women.
Here is a presentation I created some time ago on how men could be allies with no more bystanding.
It has applications in many aspects of the equity, diversity and inclusion conversation and systemic changes that include personal responsibility for all.
Liberty and Justice for all will require accountability from more of us to make these positive changes stick!

 

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Standing Up for What You Value @ Work:

Mission Fed has always been committed to diversity, equity and inclusion for our members, employees, community partners and the communities we serve. This commitment is core to our Mission: Earning trust, investing in our membership’s success, and caring for our community.

Dedicated to the credit union foundational principle of ‘people helping people’ and ‘serving the underserved’, both financial performance and social purpose are priorities. We are committed to creating financial inclusion and financial autonomy for ALL San Diegans. We pledge to being part of the solution for our member-owners and extended community by providing financial literacy, education, and empowerment. We are committed to listening, learning and modeling actions that create positive change in our local communities.

With respect to our employee base, we are reflective and representative of the diversity within our local San Diego community. We purposefully seek out, support and partner with nonprofit organizations that share Mission Fed’s purpose-driven commitment in the community.

We recognize there is much more to be done, both internally as a not-for-profit organization, and externally within our community, to advance a more just and equitable society. We all have accountability and responsibility to end social and racial injustice. Together, we can co-create a better world that serves everyone equally.

Mission Fed is a firm believer that a kinder world is possible, and we’re here to make it happen.

By uplifting our community and sharing good to one another, we are spreading the much-needed positive message via our new television spots.

Spot #1: Lift Up San Diego

Over the past few months, we’ve learned a lot together, including the power of community. Let us continue to lift up each other up to lift up our San Diego community.

View spot here: https://youtu.be/OOe044P1NMI

Spot #2: Kindness Costs Nothing

Kindness costs nothing but means everything. Mission Fed is here for our members and the San Diego community. Let’s continue to work together to help our community.

View spot here: https://youtu.be/vNe_ZMNl8ns

I remain proud to work in an industry that focuses on people over profits and for an organization where “people helping people” is more than just a nice phrase, it is the mindset for everything we do.

 

Thanks this week go to Steve S, Moshe E, the Mission Fed Team and Upstanders Like You Everywhere!
Please pay it forward.
Love,
Neville

“The opposite of love is not hate, it’s indifference.

The opposite of art is not ugliness, it’s indifference.

The opposite of faith is not heresy, it’s indifference.

And the opposite of life is not death, it’s indifference.”

–Elie Wiesel

 

Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/NevilleB108
Follow me on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nbillimoria

 

Happy Soul Food Friday!

This week:

• 3 Reasons I Wear My Mask
• 10 Signs of a Highly Evolving Person
• Your Personal Invitation to “Looking For LOVE in All the Right Places-Keeping the Good Changes This Pandemic Has Spread In Our Lives”- Zoom Webinar Thurs July 30th 2020 @ Noon PST: How to Discern and Keep the Good Changes that this Pandemic has Spread in our Lives, so We can Regain our Joy, Re-energize our Spirit, and Grow the Love.
• Spotlight On the Community: What We Are Doing As An Organization to Serve Our San Diego Brethren

10 Signs of a Highly Evolved Person:
Can You Relate to Any of Them?
Being an evolved person in our society doesn’t mean you just live according to social expectations.
If you are committed to becoming an evolved person, here are some things that suggest you’re making substantial progress in this life-long process.
https://www.learning-mind.com/highly-evolved-person/

                                         

Your Personal Invitation to “Looking For LOVE in All the Right Places-Keeping the Good Changes This Pandemic Has Spread In Our Lives”
Zoom Webinar: Thurs July 30th 2020 @ Noon PST with Moshe and Moi:
How to discern and keep the good changes that this pandemic has spread in our lives, so we can regain our joy, re-energize our spirit, and grow the love.

Most of us, even the most stress-hardened are emotionally and spiritually fatigued from months of adjusting to life in a Covid world.

In lieu of a summer vacation to distant places, or even a spa day or retreat, can we give ourselves a mini-stay-cation, with a little help from our friends, to reframe our current circumstance and recharge our spirit (yes even on another zoom call!)?

Of course we can!
Let’s find the gift in this moment.

Join Moshe and Neville as they create the space for us to get real, get clear, and get on, with how we would like to show up in the Covid world.

Together we will explore the current conditions we find ourselves in and our habituated responses to them.
In a brave, safe and even sacred space we will gently challenge our beliefs, reactions and responses so we can grow together.
And yes, LOVE has everything to do with it!
We will:

• Shift from Life is happening TO ME to Life is happening THROUGH ME.
• Reclaim your Passion, Purpose, and Priorities as you release from the grip of this Pandemic.
• Practice Straight “A” Gift Giving to someone in your life:  Acknowledgment / Attention / Appreciation and rise up by lifting others                                                   

To Register: Click HERE
Or copy and paste this link to your browser: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/113162796972

 

Your Mission Is Our Mission:

Here is an interview with “yours truly” about how we as an organization are supporting our hyperlocal San Diego community, including generating over $400,000 (the equivalent of 2 million meals) by and for our fellow San Diegans with the San Diego Food Bank

https://cloudcast.us/drew-schlosbergs-spotlight-on-the-community/mission-federal-ramps-up-community-outreach-during-covid-19/

Thanks this week go to Dan L, Peter D, Drew S and every one of you helping others in these challenging times…

Please stay safe, well and resilient!
Love,
Neville

Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/NevilleB108
Follow me on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nbillimoria

“Each morning we are born again. What we do today is what matters most.” ~Buddha

 

 

Welcome Back to This Week’s Edition of Soul Food Friday!

This week:
Let’s inspire (breathe life into), encourage (put courage into) & enthuse (fill with the divine) one another every day!

“You rise by lifting others.” –Robert Green Ingersoll

 

We Can ALL Use Some Help Over the Finish Line from Time to Time:

Now these are real champions of the human spirit and I wept with the profundity of their ability to keep their eye on the prize!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5OOjME8SoU0

“When you are feeling blessed you can’t be stressed”

Can We help?
Save the Date- Your Personal Invitation to “Looking For LOVE in All the Right Places-Keeping the Good Changes This Pandemic Has Spread In Our Lives”- Zoom Webinar: Thurs July 30th 2020 @ Noon Looking For Love in All the Right Places
How to discern and keep the good changes that this pandemic has spread in our lives, so we can regain our joy, re-energize our spirit, and grow the love.

Most of us, even the most stress-hardened are emotionally and spiritually fatigued from months of adjusting to life in a Covid world.

In lieu of a summer vacation to distant places, or even a spa day or retreat, can we give ourselves a mini-stay-cation, with a little help from our friends, to reframe our current circumstance and recharge our spirit (yes even on another zoom call!)?

Of course we can!
Find the gift in this moment.

Join Moshe and Neville as they create the space for us to get real, get clear, and get on, with how we would like to show up in the Covid world.

Together we will explore the current conditions we find ourselves in and our habituated responses to them.
In a brave, safe and even sacred space we will gently challenge our beliefs, reactions and responses so we can grow together.
And yes, LOVE has everything to do with it!
We will:

• Shift from Life is happening TO ME to Life is happening THROUGH ME.
• Reclaim your Passion, Purpose, and Priorities as you release from the grip of this Pandemic.
• Practice Straight “A” Gift Giving to someone in your life:  Acknowledgment / Attention / Appreciation and rise up by lifting others

 

Registration details next week…                                                                                                                                                            “Sometimes your joy is the source of your smile.

 But sometimes your smile is the source of your joy.”

– Thich Nhat Hanh

OXYGEN FOR YOUR SOUL:

Truett Cathy asked, “How do you know if a man or woman needs encouragement?”
He answered, “If they are breathing.”

With so many suffocating in pessimism today we need encouragement, optimism and faith to provide us with oxygen for our souls.

The word encourage means “To put courage into.”

We all need to encourage and put courage into ourselves and others.

Today let’s:

Attack This Day with Enthusiasm – The word enthusiasm comes from the root word “entheos” which means filled with the divine. Let’s tap into a greater power and strength to keep going. Faith in God doesn’t make life easier. It makes you stronger.

Feed the Positive and Weed the Negative – Your mind is like a garden. You need to weed the negative and feed the positive each day to create a fertile environment that produces amazing fruit. The more you feed yourself with the positive the more you can feed others. If you don’t have it, you can’t share it. Weed, Feed, Share!

Be Thankful – You can’t be stressed and thankful at the same time. When you are feeling blessed you can’t be stressed. Think about what you are thankful for right now. Write it down. Think about it throughout the day.

Talk to Yourself instead of Listen to Yourself – Don’t listen to the fear and negative thoughts that fill your mind with Doubt and Discouragement (two of the 5 D’s). They are lies that try to hold you back and keep you from living your destiny and purpose. Instead speak truth to the lies. The truth is you are here for a reason. You are here to do great things and you have greatness inside of you. The truth is you will prevail through this time.

Live and Look Forward – Your vision is greater thank your circumstances and your purpose is greater than your challenges. Stop looking backwards. Your life isn’t there anymore. You can’t change the past, but you can find focus, optimism and peace in the present to create your future. Stop looking at the negativity on the screen and look up to the heavens. Then look out into your future and think about what you truly want to create. If you can see it you can create it. If you have a vision you also have the power to make it happen.

Someone told Zig Ziglar that motivation doesn’t last to which he replied, “Neither does bathing. It’s why you have to do it each day.”

Encouragement works the same way. We are facing a difficult time. There’s a lot of pain and suffering. The struggle is real but so is your power to overcome.

Remember to encourage and put courage into yourself and others each day. Don’t worry about the future. Just encourage yourself daily and give your soul the oxygen it needs to be fully alive and thrive.

Stay Positive!

 

Red, White And The Blues (1A NPR):

The blues grew out of the Black experience in the American South. It generated jazz, R&B, rock and roll, rap – virtually every piece of modern music.

We’re spotlighting blues recordings selected by the Library of Congress for preservation in the National Recording Registry. These recordings have been chosen for their historic, aesthetic or cultural importance to American society.

On this holiday weekend, we celebrate America’s birthday with music from John Lee Hooker, Howlin’ Wolf, Memphis Minnie, Jimi Hendrix and others.

And we hear from legends like BB King, Angela Davis, Dan Aykroyd, Maria Muldaur, Vernon Reid and many more.

https://the1a.org/segments/red-white-and-the-blues/

 

Thanks this week go to Isabelle A, Moshe E,  Larry H, and our NPR stations for getting me over the finish line this week!

Pay it forward with Purpose.
Love,
Neville

Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/NevilleB108
Follow me on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nbillimoria

“If you treat an individual as s/he is, s/he will remain how s/he is. But if you treat one as if s/he were what s/he ought to be and could be, s/he will become what s/he ought to be and could be.” Goethe

 

cj2

Happy Independence Day Weekend!

“Character is like a tree and reputation like a shadow.

The shadow is what we think of it; the tree is the real thing.” ~ Abraham Lincoln

Here we are in 2020, with the World struggling, America hurting, and many Souls suffering.

As we celebrate the character of our nation, expressed in our independence and liberties- inalienable rights we hold sacrosanct- we might want to also attend to our immutable responsibilities to one another.

Liberty and Justice
Liberty AND Justice for all
INDIVISIBLE- with liberty and justice for ALL

This one vid emotionally captures the best reflections of the American Spirit.

 

Enjoy your independence AND perhaps take a moment to reflect on our interdependence.
We need each other!

“Justice is what Love looks like in Public“

“Cooperation is the thorough conviction that nobody can get there unless everybody gets there“–Virginia Burden

Thanks to Larry H for the link, pay it forward and Love ALL!
Neville

Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/NevilleB108
Follow me on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nbillimoria

“An investment in knowledge pays the best interest.”— Benjamin Franklin

 

 

 

 

Isn’t she awesome?  And she’s only 7.

Welcome to this week’s Soul Food Friday!

THE 5 D’S THAT WILL DEFEAT YOU AND YOUR TEAM AND WHAT YOU CAN DO ABOUT THEM c/o Larry H:

Turn on the news. Look around. Read your social media feed. We all know the country is increasingly divided. People are fighting. Marriages are ending. Suicide attempts have increased substantially. Too many have lost hope and are giving up. Why is this happening and what can we do about it?

1. Doubt – Instead of trust we have a lot of doubt and fear. We see the world through the media headlines instead of through the lens of faith, hope and love. Ultimately the enemy’s goal is to plant seeds of doubt that God can’t be trusted. The enemy knows if you don’t trust God you will believe his lies and if you believe his lies you won’t trust God. It’s a game of deception.

 

2. Distort – Evil creates doubt by distorting truth with lies. These lies come to you in the form of thoughts that your future is hopeless, that our country will never recover from this, that you don’t have what it takes to succeed, that it’s going to be like this forever, that the worst is yet to come. When negative thoughts like these come into your mind, you need to know that they aren’t coming from you. After all, who would ever choose to have a negative thought? When you are sleeping and dreaming or having a nightmare are you choosing your thoughts? When a thought pops into your head are you choosing it? Thoughts are spiritual. Your negative thoughts are lies and fear is a liar.

 

3. Discourage– Evil creates doubt and distorts truth with lies in order to discourage you. The enemy knows it can’t beat you on its own. So it tries to discourage you so you beat yourself and give up. We don’t give up because it’s hard. We give up because we get discouraged. To many are believing the lies, getting discouraged and giving up.

 

4. Distract – You know the saying, “If the devil won’t make you bad, he’ll make you busy.” He’ll get you to focus on all the things that don’t matter so you don’t invest in what does matter. He tries to distract you from your core purpose and mission. Right now, social media and the 24/7 news is distracting a lot of people and causing them to be their worst, not their best. Too many are taking the bait of hate and being distracted.

 

5. Divide– The word “anxious” literally means divided. There is so much anxiety because we feel divided from God, from each other and from ourselves. Evil’s ultimate goal is to divide us from God and from each other. Right now evil is doing a great job of dividing this country politically, racially and physically. “Social distancing” “Quarantine” “Isolation” “Pick a side”. When we are divided, we lose the battle.

 

It’s a spiritual battle and many are losing the battle because they have no idea they are in a battle. If your enemy knows you are in a battle and you don’t, you surely will lose. Once you know you are in a battle and see how the 5 D’s is the enemy’s only game plan then you can counter it and win it.

I know this isn’t politically correctly to share. It’s easier and safer to ignore this topic. But most have no idea they are in a battle because too many are afraid to share what’s going on. But I can’t let people continue to lose the battle when I know how they can win it. If I didn’t share this with you then I would be keeping the winning plan from you.

So here goes! This is how you Win:

1. Trust instead of doubt. Don’t let the seeds of doubt take root. Instead plant seeds of hope and faith and trust. Trust in God. Have faith even when the circumstances aren’t positive.

 

2. Don’t believe the lies. Instead speak truth to the lies. The truth is you are here for a reason. There is a plan for your life. Your vision and purpose is greater than your circumstances. No matter what happens you have the power to overcome your situation. You have greatness inside of you and you are here to do great things. No matter what happened in your past you are capable of creating a great future right now. The truth is we will overcome this challenging time and we will be better and stronger for it.

 

3. 3. Instead of feeling discouraged make time to encourage yourself and others each day. Your team needs encouragement. Your family needs encouragement. The more you trust and speak words of encouragement to yourself and others you will overcome the discouragement that defeats you.

 

4. Instead of letting distractions get in the way focus on what matters most. Stop watching the news and invest in your relationships. Stop buying the doom and gloom and focus on building your business. Stop arguing on social media and start loving people.

 

5. Instead of division focus on uniting. Unite with your team. Connect and unite with your friends. Find ways to bring people together instead of creating separation. Unite with God spiritually. Make time for prayer, meditation and gratitude. You were meant to be one with God, not divided. When you experience this oneness you feel more love, peace and joy. When we are united with ourselves, with God and with each other we will win the battle.

There’s a reason why Star Wars, Harry Potter, Superman, Black Panther, Wonder Woman, etc. are about the battle of good and evil. It’s because it’s the major narrative of our existence and one that exists deep within our soul. It resonates with us because this is the battle we all face and one that we are facing together right now.  If you have been thinking to yourself, “this sure is a strange time and something weird is going on” now you know what’s behind the challenges we are facing.

 

Wishing you a Wonderful Summer and Celebrating the Solstice!

Stay in Tune With Your Inner and Outer Nature!

Summer Solstice by Billy S:
Solstice means…standing-still-sun.
A time when the sun seems to stand still in the sky,
The Summer Solstice is the longest day and the shortest night in our year.
When the North Pole is pointed sunward and the Sun is at its greatest distance from the equator.

The sun also now sets the farthest north on the horizon.

At this time of the year, the days are warm, all the plants are energized by the sun and the land is filled with rich new growth.
Summer is truly a celebration of the primal creative force of nature……fertile and blooming with abundance.
Humans for many millenniums have marked this sacred time in the yearly cycle of life.
Celebrating the solstice can be a beautiful reminder that our lives are part of a larger order, always changing always renewing.

The beginning of summer represents a time for purification and renewed energy.
This is a time of cutting through resistance and obstacles, using the Sun energy to illuminate and light your way upon your path.
Fire is especially important, symbolizing the light, heat and power of the sun.
Into a fire, you can throw a piece of paper with written goals to achieve and anything you want to release.

The Summer Solstice is:
A time for reflection and renewal.
A time for feeding the spirit and nurturing the soul.
Plant a seed for a more intuitive, simpler and natural lifestyle.

Some rarities this around this year’s Summer Solstice follow…

Rare ‘Ring of Fire’ Solar Eclipse on the Longest Day of the Year:
https://www.usnews.com/news/world/articles/2020-06-21/rare-ring-of-fire-solar-eclipse-on-the-longest-day-of-the-year

Summer Solstice 2020 Combines with Solar Eclipse at New Moon:
https://www.birminghammail.co.uk/news/uk-news/summer-solstice-2020-midsummer-eclipse-18448013

Vast Neolithic circle of deep shafts found near Stonehenge:
Exclusive: prehistoric structure spanning 1.2 miles in diameter is masterpiece of engineering, say archaeologists
A timely solstice find!
https://www.theguardian.com/science/2020/jun/22/vast-neolithic-circle-of-deep-shafts-found-near-stonehenge?CMP=oth_b-aplnews_d-1

I only went out for a walk and finally concluded to stay out till sundown,
for going out, I found, was really going in…
— John Muir

Choose Love with Eric K:
From many hours in conversations with execs, I know that your attention is being hijacked.
Specifically, and I feel this too, by the constant flood of anger, and fear from cruelty, racism, and animosity!

These fear/hate attention grabbers are materially weakening your life, leadership, and relationships.
Wherever our attention goes, our energy goes. And wherever our energy goes determines what we have, who we are, how we lead, and how we live.

So, to counterbalance hate and fear, we need to place our attention on love.
Yup, love.
All too often it’s excluded from our professional vocabulary.
Just last night a colleague countered that I should speak of kindness, or compassion, but that love has no room in business.
I disagree. It has a place anywhere that humans work together.

I offer for your consideration a brief and beautiful riff on love from Barbara Fredrickson, writing in Love 2.0
“Beyond feeling good, a micro-moment of love, like other positive emotions, literally changes your mind. It expands your awareness of your surroundings, even your sense of self. The boundaries between you and not-you—what lies beyond your skin—relax and become more permeable.

While infused with love you see fewer distinctions between you and others. Indeed, your ability to see others—really see them, wholeheartedly—springs open. Love can even give you a palpable sense of oneness and connection, a transcendence that makes you feel part of something far larger than yourself.”
It’s worth reading the above quote again.
And as you digest this idea and perspective of love, it’s clear that love isn’t a “nice to have” part of conscious leadership, but a “must have” essential aspect of it.

And a bit more from Barbara Fredrickson.
“Perhaps counterintuitively, love is far more ubiquitous than you ever thought possible for the simple fact that love is connection … Love blossoms virtually anytime two or more people—even strangers—connect over a shared positive emotion, be it mild or strong.”

We can choose love. It really is a choice.
Sometimes it’s a difficult choice, but so is choosing to think strategically, make hard decisions, and ask questions instead of giving answers.
Love is a feeling, yes, and it’s also a verb – its action.

So, in a world flooded with fear and hate, with racism and marginalization, I urge you to choose love.

In the spirit of leading and learning and loving.
Eric

 

Speaking of In Tune…

OBSERVATIONS ON LIFE:

Experience Moving Music from “Schindler’s List” in the largest European synagogue in Budapest

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iFGrooN6YDc

 

Where Do You Find Yourself On The Cultural Competency Scale?
Implicit Bias and Cultural Competency Training Might Just Save Us!

Thanks this week go to Larry H, Billy S, Eric K, as well as Cathy and Dani that help me get Soul Food out every week!
Please pay it forward.
Love
Neville

Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/NevilleB108
Follow me on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nbillimoria

“If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor” – Archbishop Desmond Tutu:

 

It’s Soul Food Friday for

 

Business Leaders Unite:
Join us for So Cal’s Largest Virtual Mixer June 25, 2020 @ 4pm
Join us again for one of the LARGEST virtual mixers that include members from Business Executives Council (BEC), Connected Women of Influence (CWI), Conscious Capitalism, SPIRE (formerly Corporate Alliance), Sales & Marketing Leadership Alliance (SMLA), TiE South Coast San Diego, Chamber of Purpose and more!
To register: http://tiny.cc/BLUJune25

This week:
Greenwood, 1921: One of the Worst Race Massacres In American History (60 Minutes Episode)
The death of George Floyd, in the hands of Minneapolis police, came on Memorial Day. Ninety-nine years before, that same week, black Americans suffered a massacre. In the days after World War I, a neighborhood in Tulsa, Oklahoma, called Greenwood was among the wealthiest black communities. Oil made Greenwood rich, but jealousy made it suffer. In 1921, a white mob, with incendiary rage, burned Greenwood to ash. Even memories were murdered when the dead were dropped into unmarked graves. Last December, before the pandemic, we found Tulsa preparing to embrace a reckoning, with a plan to exhume the truth and raise the dead.
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/greenwood-massacre-tulsa-oklahoma-1921-race-riot-60-minutes-2020-06-14/

Let’s Get Real:
What is Systemic Racism?
Here’s What it Means and How You Can Help Dismantle It
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2020/06/15/systemic-racism-what-does-mean/5343549002/

 

We Are All Entitled to our Own Opinions But Not to our Own Facts:
How Big is the Racial Wealth Gap?
Though there is a lot of focus on the social inequalities occurring in the U.S., we should also take a deeper look at the economic inequalities as well.
Many of the social issues experienced by people of color throughout America would be greatly mitigated if they had more economic power.
https://ofdollarsanddata.com/racial-wealth-gap/

 

Listen to Understand, Don’t Listen for Rebuttal
Neil deGrasse Tyson’s Life Advice:
It is not where do I find meaning in life, but how do I create meaning!
An adult scientist is a kid who hasn’t lost their curiosity…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JtahB1-MNvk&feature=share

Ray Roberts Speaks His Truth As A Black American
https://omny.fm/shows/danny-and-gallant/ray-roberts-speaks-his-truth-as-a-black-american

 

 Interested in Rehabilitating the US Police System?
Here is something you can do:
https://www.change.org/p/state-governers-rehabilitating-the-us-police-system-4039795f-3757-4ae7-ad8d-9b205660f39c?utm_source=share_petition&utm_medium=custom_url&recruited_by_id=2a5c5550-a38a-11ea-b3c4-9f2c3ed48ad9

 

Music Helps!
Here is a playlist that might resonate…
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/6mHZ78AHgtZgyc7DcQyTWH?si=m5OQ0ESRT0mLqYBH_MEs3w

It Includes:

• Rehumanize Yourself by The Police https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RTXt93-jD4o
• American Dream Plan B by Tom Petty https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wSWJZzoznaY
• Taking It To the Streets by the Doobie Brothers  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2rxWPEdYCnI
• Living for the City by Stevie Wonder https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=youtube+living+for+the+city+by+stevie+wonder&qs=RI&pq=living+for+the+city+by+stevie+wonder+youtube&sc=1-44&cvid=696D2D2EC3004717B6601F18C96F196D&sp=1&sid=1C808CEFD187640D21918236D0A56534&jsoncbid=0&ru=%2fsearch%3fq%3dyoutube%2bliving%2bfor%2bthe%2bcity%2bby%2bstevie%2bwonder%26qs%3dRI%26pq%3dliving%2bfor%2bthe%2bcity%2bby%2bstevie%2bwonder%2byoutube%26sc%3d1-44%26cvid%3d696D2D2EC3004717B6601F18C96F196D%26FORM%3dQBRE%26sp%3d1&view=detail&mmscn=vwrc&mid=1D9CBC976D2906EFD0181D9CBC976D2906EFD018&FORM=WRVORC
• American Soul by U2 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KQkkgD2p3Ow
• Living on a Thin Line by the Kinks https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vkt7YHG9Fys
• American Idiot by Green Day https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h6Z5N0Z6zH0
• The Good Fight by Timothy B. Schmit https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=the+good+fight+by+timothy+b.+schmit+youtube&docid=608029581996982374&mid=184EBADE1CE2827AA058184EBADE1CE2827AA058&view=detail&FORM=VIRE
• American Storm by Bob Seger https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MKnVvR42aNk
• Rocking in the Free World by Neil Young https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DvxxdZpMFHg
• Throwing Stones by The Grateful Dead https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3biwHnIArMg

 

Thanks this week go to Brad D, Ron M, Mehrad N, Elaine T, and Eric K.
Please pay it forward
Love,
Neville

Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/NevilleB108
Follow me on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nbillimoria

“If you want to go fast, go alone.

If you want to go FAR, go together.”

–African Proverb