Category Archives: Compassion

Update on my Friend, Robert Crayhon

Many of you know about my friendship with Robert Crayhon, author, nutritionist and all-around good person. Unfortunately, many of you also know of his fight with stage IV colorectal cancer. I’d like to bring you an update on his condition and ask that you help him out if you can with either a donation or with caring words by going to these two websites:

To make a donation to help with Robert’s care please go to this website which is through Pay Pal.

To wish him well go to this site and pass a note showing all the love and care we all have for him.

Why We Are Really in the Mess We Are In

The problem with the American society today is that we forgot that hard work and compassion and not over consumption is what made us a great country. We think that we have to have a bigger house, a better car, fancier clothes and more money than our neighbor that twisted our minds away from what truly makes us happy and that is compassion for others. His Holiness, the Dalai Lama once said, “I truly believe compassion provides the basis of human survival, the real value of life, without that there is a basic piece missing. We cannot be happy ourselves without thinking about the happiness of others.”  Isn’t that the truth?

From my vantage point, this is why the Republican party is in a free fall. They seem to want to retain the greed mentality without offering anything in return to society. Consumption, consumption, consumption. Drill for more gas, the hell with reducing our consumption. Cut taxes for the wealthy so that in some mythical way it will trickle down to the poor (what a monumental con job that was).

Lest the Democrats and liberals rejoice, they have lacked the backbone to make it clear to the American people that the way we’ve been doing things just doesn’t work. They meekly push half baked projects to curtail consumption but in reality, they still like the ability to enrich themselves and their friend. Just ask the thousands of lobbyists that roam the hallways of Congress.

Compassion for others is the only way out of the morass we live in. We don’t need a million man march to do that, we need each and everyone of us to think about it, and do something compassionate whenever we can. It doesn’t need to be everyday, just whenever you can. The ripple effect from one small act, can change the world.

Sometimes, Being Nice Comes Back in a Big Way

Just got one of those feel good emails I felt like sharing with everyone. Thanks to Frank Cook for the big smile I got after reading it.

His name was Fleming, and he was a poor Scottish farmer. One day, while trying to make   a living for his family, he heard a cry for
help coming from a nearby bog.   He dropped his tools and ran to the bog.

There, mired to his waist in black muck, was a terrified boy, screaming and struggling to free himself. Farmer Fleming saved the
lad from what could have been a slow and terrifying death.

The next day, a fancy carriage pulled up to the Scotsman’s sparse surroundings. An elegantly dressed nobleman stepped out and
introduced himself as the father of the boy Farmer Fleming had saved.

‘I want to repay you,’ said the nobleman. ‘You saved my son’s life.’

‘No, I can’t accept payment for what I did,’ the Scottish farmer replied waving off the offer. At that moment, the farmer’s own son
came to the door of the family hovel.

‘Is that your son?’ the nobleman asked.

‘Yes,’ the farmer replied proudly.

‘I’ll make you a deal. Let me provide him with the level of education my own son will enjoy  If the lad is anything like his father, he’ll no doubt grow to be a man we both will be proud of.’ And that he did.
Farmer Fleming’s  son attended the very best schools and in time, graduated from St. Mary’s  Hospital Medical School in London, and
went on to become known throughout  the world as the noted Sir Alexander Fleming, the discoverer of Penicillin.

Years afterward, the same nobleman’s son who was saved from the bog was stricken with pneumonia.
What saved his life this time? Penicillin.

The name of the nobleman? Lord Randolph Churchill .. His son’s name?

Sir Winston Churchill..

Someone once said: What goes around comes around.

Work like you don’t need the money.

Love like you’ve never been hurt.

Dance like nobody’s watching.

Sing like nobody’s listening.

Live like it’s Heaven on Earth.

Today’s Tough Economic Times

Aside from former Senator Lindsey Graham’s opinion that we should stop whining and that things are OK, today’s economic environment is tough, no doubt about it. There are a lot of good things that hopefully will come out of it though. The first is that we, as a society get away from the greed driven mindset that drove us into this economic dilemma in the first place. Secondly, maybe, just maybe we won’t devour our world’s resources in order to one up our neighbors. Maybe this will turn out to be a reprieve for our planet.

So what rational things can we do in these times of trouble?  I stumbled upon this website that seemed to have some rather intelligent suggestions. It comes from wikihow.com, a copy of the idea of Wikipedia but with the idea of being “The How-to Manual That You Can Edit”. The thoughts gathered are commonsense and doable.

Here are the 9 suggestions:

  1. Quit using credit.
  2. Nurture positive relationships with family and friends.
  3. Enjoy the simple pleasures.
  4. Do it yourself.
  5. See frugality as a virtue.
  6. Treat food with respect.
  7. Reuse, reuse, reuse.
  8. Practice good domestic skills.
  9. Be thankful.

The last one is the most important. No matter how bad you think you have it, there are literally millions (maybe billions) of people who have it worse. Also, things will get better if you work at it and change your perspective as to what is important in your life.

A Most Disturbing Piece of Mail – A Lesson About Life

Well, I knew it was bound to happen. My brother-in-law Brooke warned me, my fellow Rotarian’s laughed about it and now it has come. I was sent a membership application from AARP yesterday. Yes, the American Association of Retired Persons found out I’m turning 50 shortly. I swear I just turned 21 yesterday. How did those years pass so quickly.

Do I feel 50, no way. Age is just a state of mind and while I feel I have gained wisdom in the 50 years, life is still as playful as it was 29 years ago (ok, so my body doesn’t recover as quickly but my mind does). To keep a youthful exuberance and a positive outlook on life may not be so easy, especially in today’s turbulent economic world, keeping an optimistic point of view is the only way to stay young in spirit.

Being an Eeyore is a sure way to age faster than you should. Being a realistic optimist is a way to slow down aging and to enjoy each and every minute. Here are a few of my thoughts on life:

  • Don’t hold grudges. It takes a lot of energy to stay being angry at people.
  • Be honest. Lying means you have to remember what you lied about so you don’t get caught.
  • Lead an ethical life. It is so much easier to be fair and ethical. Follow the Rotary 4-Way Test and your life will be easier.
  • Laugh. Do this at least once a day (more if you can) and you’ll extend your life and enjoy it more as well.
  • Cherish friends. Friends make your life better. Join an organization like Rotary, or Lions, or maker a young friend by being a big sister or big brother to a needy kid.
  • Don’t stress the little stuff or for that matter the big stuff. Care about everything in proportion but don’t let it stress you to inaction or to the detriment of your health.
  • Learn something new everyday. My friend and one time business partner Judge Alan Tiras had a saying, every day I learn something is a good day.
  • Finally, Do something good for someone, anyone, everyday of your life. There is no greater gift you can give than a kind thought, a good deed or a lending hand.

 Life is way too short to be miserable and angry. As bad as things may seem, they can and will get better if you want them to and work toward that end.

In Memoriam – Marie Fairchild

The world is a lesser place now with the passing of a dear friend and one of the best people I have ever known in my life, Marie Fairchild. She was an extraordinary human being, a gifted nutritionist, a master in the use of Chinese herbs and one of the people who helped me keep looking for an answer for my daughter Tasya. I have known Marie for over 10 years and my life is far better because of her. Her smile, one you could hear over the phone, was contagious and helped me through my toughest days.

She helped so many people over the years her legacy will live on for a long time.

Marie, may you rest in peace knowing you will never, ever be forgotten.

Bellevue Washington Presentation

Toxicity talk from Bellevue, Washington

Here is the Powerpoint Presentation I did in Bellevue, Washington on June 26th, 2008 to the Puget Soung Functional Medicine group. Many thanks to Dr. David Musnick for inviting me to speak.

Another National Shame – Politics Over Science

In yet another sad loss to science, the Bush Administration has superceeded science in the name of politics. Since 2001 this politically motivated administration have made it almost impossible to denote an animal species as being endangered which has already led to the extinction of a number of creatures that are part of our world. This despite the protestations of numerous scientists within the Department of the Interior.

Furthermore, the present “Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne has not declared a single native species as threatened or endangered since he was appointed nearly two years ago.” George Bush Sr. and Bill Clinton averaged adding around 60 species per year but these people see fit to blame everyone else but not themselves for this global shame.

We have the moral obligation to preserve life but I guess when you have such a low respect for science which this administration has, nothing is off limits and their is no shame. This is not a Republican or Democratic issue. This is not conservatism versus liberalism. This is about the total lack of respect for our people, our land, and the creatures who inhabit our country. It is a true national tragedy. You can read the full story here at MSNBC.com

Wasting Time Being Angry

Ralph Waldo Emerson put it so well when he said, “For every minute you are angry, you lose sixty seconds of happiness.” As a person who sometimes is known for being overly passionate, especially when angry, his saying rings so true. There were two people in particular who, when their names were even mentioned, would get me angry because of the nasty things they tried to do to me and my family.

Today, these same two people still try to say inflammatory things about me but I take a new approach which is best summed up by my little saying (not quite as eloquent as Mr. Emerson) “They are still pissing on me but I no longer get wet.”

Hold back the anger, let things slide off your back and relish in the good moments of life because before you know it, they’re gone.

Get Smarter – Feed The World

FreeRice.com is a site that you can go to and increase your vocabulary and at the same time help world hunger. The organization donates ten grains of rice for each word you take a quiz on. That may not seem much but in the past month and a half, they have managed to donate 1,712,371,750 grains.  Not bad for such a short time.

Here is what they are about (from their website):

FreeRice is a sister site of the world poverty site, Poverty.com.

FreeRice has two goals:

  1. Provide English vocabulary to everyone for free.
  2. Help end world hunger by providing rice to hungry people for free.

This is made possible by the sponsors who advertise on this site.

Whether you are CEO of a large corporation or a street child in a poor country, improving your vocabulary can improve your life. It is a great investment in yourself.

Perhaps even greater is the investment your donated rice makes in hungry human beings, enabling them to function and be productive. Somewhere in the world, a person is eating rice that you helped provide. Thank you.