How Are We Doing? Measuring Growth

We use measures of Gross National Product, Employment Rate, graduation rate, test scores and a myriad of other parameters to characterize how our country is doing. Political leaders rely on their past history of performance indicators to support their claims of excellent leadership and reasons to be reelected. Recently Prime Minister David Cameron in the UK initiated a program to begin measuring happiness. There has been much debate questioning why should we measure happiness when there are so many practical things to do and complete. Roger Cohen in today's New York TImes article ( here ) discusses the addition of the happiness quotient, 'Happinomics' to go along with the traditional mechanical measurements of economic performance..

As Cohen puts it, the founding fathers of the US guaranteed freedom in the constitution and allowed individuals to embrace 'the pursuit of happiness'.  Polling these harder to measure topics such as happiness and wellbeing can help policy makers awareness of what's going on in people's lives.

Words, Symbols and Language

Today, while driving to present the Sunday talk at Center for Spiritual Living White Plains I listened to 'RadioLab' on WNYC. As a student of symbols, words and communication I was amazed by the story 'Words that Change The World'. In the first 10 minutes Susan Schaller describes her experience working with a deaf 27 year old man as he first experienced language. It's an inspirational and revealing listen. At the end of her section, Schaller asks "What happens when we get symbols and we start trading symbols? It changes our ideas". The total segment is 30 minutes and is described on the site. Schaller's 1995 book is 'A Man WIthout Words' . I've just reserved it from the library. I plan to append this post with a section I am planning on 'The Emergence of Spring'.

Worth Pausing and Noting

This week in San Diego, International and United Centers for Spiritual Living voted to come together into one organization, Centers for Spiritual Living. Fifty seven years ago a human organization divided into two groups. Both groups originated from one history and one belief system. Both had nearly identical classes and studied from one main source book. They both believe in an infinite Universe that is ever present and that unifies all beings. And they both believe that thoughts create things in the world. What was different was the two groups did not agree on how to structure and administer the philosophy in this world.

These two talks describe the memorable event and coming back together. Great change management, or consciousness development, has been done by a common group. It has been a highly inclusive process that has occurred over the past five or more years.
Rev. Dr's Kenn Gordon and Kathy Hearn are the leaders of the two old organizations.
A YouTube Video of celebration after the vote to create Centers for Spiritual Living was announced.
There has been a transformation in thought.