Somewhere over the rainbow blue birds fly…
Why then oh why can’t I.
No, Ye Scribe is not day dreaming. He is pondering his personal relationship with the Universe, inspired by Sarah Vaughan’s (Divine Sarah) rendition of a jazz standard, written by Israel Kamakawiwo’ole and made famous by movie star Judy Garland in the classic movie Wizard of Oz. This is an excellent way to practice harmonizing one’s life with Nature’s rhythms. Too tall an order, might one say? Yes, if the level of his/her spiritual dimension is such that wondering thoughts beyond earthly realm are suspect or impossible. So how does one reach a greater level of perception?
First be truthful to one’s self about the desire. Get rid of doubts that breed despair, cause confusion, and inhibit spiritual growth. Despair will diminish one’s capacity to function in a manner conducive to a more purposeful life. Change those life restraining circumstances. Begin opening one’s self to unlimited spiritual growth.
But is this possible in present day America, a nation becoming increasingly scared of itself and mired in internal discord over among others, the moral justification of gun-crazed laws such as stand your ground? This is a sad indictment for a people who laugh heartily at stories of the lawless Wild West days. Obviously something far-reaching in scope is missing. Let’s tune in to a national movement currently addressing this spirituality issue.
Paul Chappell writing in the Sun Magazine states that America spends more on war than the rest of the world combined; we have the most violent culture in the world, and we’re some of the most terrified people on the planet. Chappell, a West Point graduate, Iraq War Veteran and former Captain in the U. S. Army is director of Peace Leadership for the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation. Chappell says a democracy of ignorant citizens can be as dangerous as a dictatorship. He maintains that we need a spiritual transformation, and Ye Scribe agrees.
How can we secure transformation? First, recognize and reject obvious faults or adversaries of spirituality principles—greed, hatred, ignorance, corporate and government corruption lying and stealing. Others equally as devious but not so apparent are gossip or making untrue statements, accepting praise for another’s achievements, taking free food and lodging given in trade from a real estate enterprise for attending a sales seminar, while knowing one has no intention of buying; the list is countless. One word—honesty—a sincere commitment to it and virtuous practices guarantees psychological wellness, and mutual trust with others and all of creation. This, in addition to reading, studying and meditating spirituality is planting seeds of change that will result in a satisfying harvest. Do not worry about being worthy of the level of consciousness or questioning whether it is useful; divine guiding spirit will enter one’s being in direct proportion to the level of sincere participation. Spiritual consciousness will gradually express through one’s expanding intellect in stages.
For Ye Scribe, Somewhere over the rainbow… way up high, is about citizens of the universe (eternity) pursuing the fulfillment of life’s purposes. Its music and lyrics inspire questing for spiritual energy that is infinite. This is indeed opening one’s self for divine perception of extraterrestrial dimensions of life from where spiritual energy is transmitted. Music is after all, a universally transmitting fine arts form, uninhibited by barriers of language, space or time.