Are they starting to get it?

This blog is called A RAY OF HOPE because sometimes that's all we have-that's the bad news.  The good news is that, sometimes, that's all we need.  That's how I felt this morning when I read this short clip in the email from the Organic Consumer's Association (http://www.organicconsumers.org/).  My day yesterday was so fantastic, as I worked with 5 clients in my Bismarck office, that this little bit of good news has pushed me over into WONDERFUL mood!
  If you are concerned at all about the quality of food available for your family in the grocery store, then I highly recommend you become a regular reader of OCA.  You can also get on their email list and learn of events in the organic food world on a regular basis. 
This made my day and I hope that the last comment will encourage all of you.  Many of us feel like we're the Lone Ranger, but we're NOT!  A lot of individuals working together can take back the world for GOD!  I hope that this will pick up your "What can I do about this massive problem?" spirits.

Monsanto Exec Admits that Nature Is Smarter Than Biotech

"You don't need [biotech] for something that nature has already figured out."
- Consuelo Madre, vice president of Monsanto's global vegetable group, explaining why the company was using conventional breeding rather than genetic engineering to produce its vegetable seeds, in "Sprouting a New Line of Produce Seeds," by P.J. Huffstutter, Los Angeles Times, October 20, 2011.

Huffstutter also points out that using traditional techniques allows Monsanto to "avoid the financial and consumer hurdles that would inevitably come with rolling out genetically engineered produce for a grocery store."

Another option to consider is joining the John Birch Society.  You can learn about their good work at: JBS.org.  Jacob and I attended our first meeting last week and already I am encouraged to learn that we are NOT alone here.  Next month our state's leader will be starting a series of 3 monthly meetings on the US Constitution and how we can use it to save our country.  THERE IS HOPE FOR OUR COUNTRY, FOLKS, AND IT COMES IN BUILDING COMMUNITIES ONE STEP AT A TIME AND TOGETHER MAKING OUR ELECTED OFFICIALS STICK TO THE CONSTITUTION!!!!!!!!
Happy Sabbath to all of you out there.  If you've never kept the Sabbath that God began at creation, I urge you to just do no work tomorrow (starting after dark tonight).  Be still and see the miracles that God has in store for you!  Every week, God shows Himself to our family in new and exciting ways when we pause from our labors and focus on His beautiful character on the day that HE rested from His labors of creating the Earth.
My love to you,
Dawn

Theme song

You know how, when you're in school, the whole class votes for a motto; class colors; class hymn; class flowers; and then finally a theme song to represent your thoughts on life?  Well, you may have noticed that I put my theme verse at the top of this blog a while back.  It's the verse that God gave me when I got into doing energy work as I noticed how a simple thought was wrecking a person's life. 

Well, awhile back, Andrew introduced me to the Booth Brothers.  I have all of Andrew's musical favorites on my iPod and I started enjoying the Booth Brothers music.  Now, I'm not into Southern Gospel music because of the typical slurring problems, but I REALLY like the Booth Brothers.

One of the songs on their CD, "Carry on" has just grabbed my heart.  Almost every morning I begin my conscious thinking by listening to this awesome song, "Passing the Faith Along."  This morning I got to wondering if, perhaps, they had put this favorite of mine on You Tube.  When I looked, though, I saw that they did not.

 HOWEVER, I found a version by The Gaither Vocal Band that is so incredible that I decided to share it so that you can start to grasp the message in this awesome song.  I guess this is the group of people who have ever sung in the band as there's a whole bunch of them.  Being my folks watched the Gaithers a lot, I recognize some of the faces. 

Watch how the message in this song unites the group.  Even though this is somewhat repetative, I just LOVE this song and pray that it will start to inspire you every day as it does me.  I especially like the line about giving people hope as that is what this blog is all about. 

I'm sure that, once you grasp the message here, you'll understand why I have decided to claim this song as my theme song for life and for my ministry--Links to Healing!  ENJOY!!!

Dawn

Off to class again

I praise God for Melanie B who is the best instructor that I have ever had--can she ever teach!  Last week on our way to class, my friend who took 1 & 2 with me said, "I can see you as a BodyTalk teacher some day."  WOW--that really blew my mind but in a nice way!  After that, I paid even closer attention to how Melanie handles things in class as I want to learn all that I can while she is in ND.

Now today I'm starting 4/7 again.  I took it last year and was thrilled to learn all the awesome techniques for relieving pain.  These are chiropractic techniques (as Dr. Veltheim is a chiropractor) but we do them energetically on top of the body.  In other words, we focus our intention in the area that needs help and team up with their bodies' intelligence to shift the energy in the area.  I just LOVE doing this work!!!!!

I've been doing tons of sessions since class because I'll be in this class for 4 more days when, obviously, I won't be doing any paid sessions.  This has been a year full of classes, and I love it, but it's been hard on the pocketbook.  Here's a BIG thank you to those who have shown your support of my work and keep all of those wonderful checks coming in the mail.

I just opened one from a mother who has a timid child and a rather strong child who is the older one.  I did the session on the timid child and it came up that her brother really was controlling her quite a bit.  Her spirit needed some beefing up, which we did through the session. I'm pretty sure that the mother wouldn't mind my sharing her note here.  It read: 

Dear Dawn,

  Just wanted to let you know that XXXX (daughter's name) has really been standing up to YYYYYY
(son's name).  He has been out of sorts all week. Here's payment. 

Thank you!

Love,

ZZZZZZZZZZZZ

Is that cool or what?  I suppose now we'll need to do another session for the son to be able to shift into, "Less bossy" mode so that he can keep up with the changes that his sister is making in her life.  It's possible, though, that the daughter shifting will help him to shift naturally.  We'll have to see how they work it out.

Well, I'd best get my lunch packed and make out my deposit slip for Cora to take to the bank for me when she goes in to work this afternoon.  Yesterday the children and I picked apples at 2 neighbors places which was just wonderful!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Oh, how I love my children.  Did I tell you how they surprised me for our anniversary?  Well, you'll either have to wait until I have time to write again or go over to Cora's blog and check it out.  IT WAS SO AWESOME!

Off to class--AGAIN!

Dawn

PS.  Please keep the class in your prayers as it is grueling brain work to focus so intently for 4 days straight.  Still, like Melanie says, "It's good physical therapy for the brain."  Can you tell that she used to be a physical therapist?

Facelift and hope

As you can see, I have yielded to the social pressures of my blogging family to change my blog look.  Jacob said, "It's down right boring, Mom, to keep it that way for so long."  Of course, he's been saying that for months and I finally decided to change it on Sabbath just in time for Fall.  How do you like the leaves?

This morning I was greatly encouraged by Dr. Mercola's article on genetically modified foods.  It just goes to show the power of a lot of "Little" people banding together.  Here's the post and I hope that you are as encouraged as I was as you read it.  Please pray about how God would want you to get involved in this battle.  Yes, it DOES involve you if you buy any food from a grocery store and eat it!

Dawn

The Label Even Monsanto Considers a 'Skull and Crossbones'...

Posted By Dr. Mercola | October 03

By: Ronnie Cummins
Organic Consumers Association

"If you put a label on genetically engineered food you might as well put a skull and crossbones on it." - Norman Braksick, president of Asgrow Seed Co., a subsidiary of Monsanto, quoted in the Kansas City Star, March 7, 1994
Monsanto and Food Inc.'s stranglehold over the nation's food and farming system is about to be challenged in a food fight that will largely determine the future of American agriculture.
A growing corps of organic food and health activists in California—supported by consumers and farmers across the nation—are boldly standing up to Monsanto and its minions, taking the first steps to expose the widespread contamination of non-organic grocery store foods with Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs), and moving to implement mandatory GMO labeling through a grassroots-powered Citizens Ballot Initiative process.

Dr. Mercola Recommends...

Every "Like" Helps Support This Cause

This week, lawyers representing a broad and unprecedented health, environmental, and consumer coalition, including the Organic Consumers Association, Dr. Bronner's Magic Soap, Center for Food Safety, Mercola.com, Nature's Path, Natural News.com, LabelGMOs.org, Food Democracy Now, and the Institute for Responsible Technology, filed papers with the California Attorney General's office to place a Citizens Initiative on the Ballot in November, 2012 that would require mandatory labeling of genetically engineered foods and food ingredients.
If California voters pass this ballot initiative in 2012, it will likely be the beginning of the end for Monsanto and genetically engineered food in the U.S. According to Zuri Starr, a Southern California field organizer for the Organic Consumers Association:

"The California Ballot Initiative is perhaps our last chance to stop the Biotech Express, to overthrow Biotechnology's dictatorial regime and build a safe and sustainable food and farming system based upon the ethical principles of consumer choice and BioDemocracy."

Moving the Battleground

After 20 years of biotech bullying and force-feeding unlabeled and hazardous genetically modified (GM) foods to animals and humans—aided and abetted by the Clinton, Bush, and Obama administrations— a critical mass of food and health activists have decided it's time to move beyond small skirmishes and losing battles and go on the offensive.
It's time to move the food fight over labeling GM food from the unfavorable terrain of Washington D.C. and Capitol Hill, where Monsanto and Food Inc. exercise control, to California, the heartland of organic food and farming and anti-GMO sentiment, where 80-85 percent of the body politic, according to recent polls, support mandatory labeling.
The trillion-dollar biotech, supermarket, and food industry are acutely conscious of the fact that North American consumers, like their European counterparts, are wary and suspicious of genetically engineered food.
Consumers understand you don't want your food safety or environmental sustainability decisions to be made by out-of-control chemical and biotech companies like Monsanto, Dow, or DuPont--the same people who brought us toxic pesticides and industrial chemicals, Agent Orange, carcinogenic food additives, and PCBs. Biotech, food, and grocery corporations are alarmed by the fact that every poll over the last 20 years has shown that 85-95 percent of American consumers want mandatory labels on genetically modified foods.

Europe Shows Labels Drive GMOs off the Market

Why are there basically no genetically engineered foods or crops anywhere in Europe, while 75 percent of U.S. supermarket foods—including many so-called "natural" foods—are GE tainted?
The answer is simple. In Europe genetically modified foods and ingredients have to be labeled. In the U.S. they do not. Up until now, in North America, Monsanto and the Biotechnocrats have enjoyed free reign to secretly lace non-organic foods with gene-spliced viruses, bacteria, antibiotic-resistant marker genes, and foreign DNA—mutant "Frankenfoods" shown to severely damage the health of animals, plants, and other living organisms in numerous scientific studies.
Monsanto and their allies understand the threat that truth-in-labeling poses for GMOs.
As soon as genetically modified foods start to be labeled in the U.S., millions of consumers will start to read these labels and react. They'll complain to grocery store managers and companies, they'll talk to their family and friends. They'll start switching to foods that are organic or at least GMO-free. Once enough consumers start complaining about GM foods and food ingredients; stores will eventually stop selling them; and farmers will stop planting them.
Genetically engineered foods have absolutely no benefit for consumers or the environment, only hazards.
This is why Monsanto and their friends in the Clinton, Bush, and Obama administrations have prevented consumer GMO
Passing mandatory GMO labeling in just one large state, California, where there is tremendous opposition to GM foods as well as a multi-billion dollar organic food industry, will ultimately have the same impact as a national labeling law.
If California food and health activists succeed in putting a GMO labeling initiative on the ballot in 2012 and the voters pass it, the biotech and food industry will face an intractable dilemma. Will they dare put labels on their branded food products in just one state, California, admitting these products contain or may contain genetically engineered ingredients, while withholding this ingredient label information in the other states? Will they allow their organic and non-GMO competitors to drive down their GMO-tainted brand market share? The answer to both of these questions is likely no. What most of them will do is start to shift to organic and non-GMO ingredients, so as to avoid what the Monsanto executive 16 years ago aptly described as the "skull and crossbones" label.

California Label Laws Have National Impact: Proposition 65

A clear indication of the impact of warning labels on consumer products was established in California in 1986 when voters passed, over the strenuous opposition of industry, a ballot initiative called Proposition 65, which required consumer products with potential cancer-causing ingredients to bear warning labels. Rather than label their products sold in California as likely carcinogenic, most companies reformulated their product ingredients so as to avoid warning labels altogether, and they did this on a national scale, not just in California.
This same scenario will likely unfold again in California in 2012. Can you imagine Kellogg's selling its Corn Flakes breakfast cereal in California with a label that admits it contains or may contain genetically engineered corn? How about Kraft Boca Burgers admitting that their soybean ingredients are genetically modified?
How about the entire non-organic food industry (including many so-called "natural" brands) admitting that 75 percent of their products are GE-tainted? Once food manufacturers and supermarkets are forced to come clean and label genetically engineered products, they will likely remove all GM ingredients, to avoid the "skull and crossbones" effect, just like the food industry in the EU has done. In the wake of this development American farmers will convert millions of acres of GM crops to non-GMO or organic varieties.
Finally consumers will be able to tell the difference between organic food (labeled as "organic" and thereby GMO-free); natural food (which will not have a GMO label), and bogus "natural" food (which will be required to display the label "contains or may contain GMOs").

What Now? OCA Needs Volunteers and Money

Since we don't have a couple of million dollars to spare like Monsanto does, we're going to have to rely on an army of volunteers to gather signatures. These volunteers can be trained and coordinated by our small but highly dedicated and experienced paid campaign staff and consultants, but for the most part we must drive this campaign forward with volunteer labor.

Please, Join Us and Take Action NOW!

Among other tasks over the next month, our staff and volunteer coordinators will be organizing several hundred short training sessions in local communities across California. These short and relatively simple training sessions--a couple of hours or less--will train our volunteers on what to do, where to go, and how to be effective in gathering signatures of registered voters to put the GE labeling measure on the ballot.
These training meetings, a number of which have already been successfully organized, will also enable volunteers to meet and get to know other volunteers in their local area.
We need to recruit, train and deploy a grassroots network of 2000+ California volunteers (each gathering 250 or more petition signatures over the 105 day period) and district coordinators in order to gather the 500,000-700,000 signatures of California registered voters over the 15-week period that extends between the first week of November 2011 and mid-March 2012.
These volunteers must be recruited, trained by our campaign staff in a meeting in their local area, and deployed in teams of 2 to 4 people in front of natural food stores and high volume pedestrian locations across California starting early in November.
In order to hit the ground running in early November we need your help now. We not only need petition gathering volunteers, we need money. OCA and our allied lobbying organization, the Organic Consumers Fund, estimate that we need to raise at least $80,000 over the next month in order to effectively pay our staff, consultants, and other campaign expenses.

• If you live in California and are willing to attend a training session and then start collecting petition signatures (you will be part of a team of 2-4 people) in early November, sign up here
• Whether you live in California or not, please make a donation to further this historic effort

The future of our food supply literally depends upon the success of this campaign. Join us now!