Sew-Breathing Again

I am working on a small beaded embroidery and I feel like I am breathing again after a very long time.

I would love to show you, but I am on my new computer - cost 1/3 what my old one cost and has many more bells and whistles - but those bells and whistles are running on a Vista program and I have to go to the library to update my old scanner, printer, and camera programs in order to be photo capable. Could be a while.

So how do they do that? 1/3 the price. My phone company sold out to another and in the transition they are giving me a free new phone! How can all of this technology be getting cheaper even to the point of becoming free? I went for a prescription the other day and was charged less than $9! It was on "sale" or some such. One of the other options that my NP and I had discussed would have cost $80! (I have a stuffed, O.K. very stuffed, up nose.)

My health insurance is going up by 20% in July. When I first got out of college and started paying for my own insurance I had one of those 80% - 20% plans where they would pay for 80% of any bill until I reached my deductable. A program like that now would cost me a bit over $1700.00 per month. That is more than $20,000.00 per year.

I am thinking that $175.00 phones for free, cut prices on computers, chokingly expensive and/or "sale" drugs, and health insurance that is so high as to be either prohibitive or ironic have something in common. With AIG. With Haliburton. With boxing organic, free range eggs in clear plastic boxes.

What are we thinking?

I heard New Dimensions Radio interview Fr. John Dear. You can find him here. He was encouraging us all to follow in the non-violent teachings of Jesus. He talked about how, sure, war is violent, and so are certain other business and interpersonal practices. (He explained that Constantine was instrumental in changing to a message of justifiable force for The Church in 325 CE.) Fr. John talked a bit about practicing non-violence in our own communities (choose one action or group) and with our selves. Which brought me back to thinking about how we (children, adults, any of us) don't behave in cranky or violent ways when we are well in our worlds. That crabby or greedy behavior is a call for help in my children or my former president. Or me.

And one of the things that makes my world turn a bit more easily is when I am getting my needs met with a needle and thread. So I have been sewing again. With colors that I like. And I am breathing better these days.

A woman I know sang yesterday to benefit our childrens' school. Her gift turned into our gift. I wish us all sufficient venue to practice our gifts and meditate with the Loving Universe that made us. More abundance. More sanity. Less crabby. More peaceful.