And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in bands of cloth, and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn. – Luke 2:7 The Real Christmas Birth is not just some parable from a Christian religious text, but it Read more…
“We set sail on this new sea because there is new knowledge to be gained, and new rights to be won, and they must be won and used for the progress of all people. For space science, like nuclear science and all technology, has no conscience of its own. Whether Read more…
“One is never afraid of the unknown; one is afraid of the known coming to an end.” ― Krishnamurti Our present day national consciousness continues to be heavily influenced by old history and skewed knowledge, racism, white male supremacy, Christian fundamentalist inspired judgements, hatreds and ideologies, patriarchy, misogyny, and xenophobia. Read more…
Relapse, Recovery, And The Portland Water Bureau My relapse from drug and alcohol abstinence is difficult for me to document, as this story represents a particularly disturbing period in my life, a period when I limped away from recovery and its attendant Grace. There is an “old saw” in the recovery Read more…
In prayer it is better to have a heart without words than words without a heart. —Mahatma Gandhi Our minds are goal setting and achieving devices, in addition to serving as our avenues of awareness of self, other, and the environment around us. Prayer is a verb referring to the Read more…
I devote this chapter to my wife, Sharon White. The lessons of love learned while with my wife Sharon could encompass an entire book of its own.. On July 4, 1989 I met Sharon, and her daughter Hayley while attending a Course In Miracles discussion group in the basement of Read more…
Looking back, everything worked out just fine, I think. Pursuing a woman overly concerned with appearances could not have brought long-term happiness to me, and there was little reason to hope that a love relationship with Masha would have worked. Masha was 10 years older than I was, which did Read more…
Evergreen High School Class of 1973 Photograph of Donelle Mae Flick (Paullin) My first wife, Donelle Mae Flick Paullin, suffered from what psychiatric professionals labeled as paranoid schizophrenia. I struggled mightily to help, and to understand her, over the many years that I stayed in relationship with her. I gained Read more…
Bruce Oliver Scott Paullin —- The Early Years What is in a name, anyway? I was given a name that had links to family members through both my mother’s and my father’s lineage, thus the two middle names, Oliver and Scott.. The English language name Bruce arrived in Scotland with the Read more…
The oppression by our culture of our mentally ill continues to distress me. The repression of the basic human spirit by our culture, and by many of those practicing their “mental health” professions, sometimes borders on witchcraft. On that down side, there are those within our culture who misunderstand Read more…
“Being male is a matter of birth Being a man is a matter of aging. Being a gentleman is a matter of choice” —Vin Diesel There has been so much discussion in the last several years about the differences between men and women. Books have been even written claiming that Read more…
Choose wisely, oh mankind, the stories and secrets that we keep For by our choices, we may awaken, or just die alone and asleep —-Bruce Paullin Our lives are like a story that we write to ourselves. Enhanced meaning and joy accompanies us when the sagas of others can be Read more…
It may not be “common knowledge” for all Americans, yet in certain extreme religious circles, as well as within diseased individuals or secular tribes of dysfunctional people, some men just want to watch the world burn. The execution of Kashoughi in the Saudi embassy in Turkey who was an innocent Read more…
“Our lives begin to end, the moment that we become silent about things that matter” Martin Luther King, Jr. When I became sober, I did not have a whole lot to talk about, except while with other “recovering” individuals. And, I had such a change of mind and heart, I Read more…
But you can’t get to any of these truths by sitting in a field smiling beatifically, avoiding your anger and damage and grief. Your anger and damage and grief are the way to the truth. We don’t have much truth to express unless we have gone into those rooms and Read more…
Prologue Chapter 1 – To Find Our Voice Chapter 2 – Beginning The Journey Towards Consciousness Chapter 3 – A New Formation of Words And Flying With The New Flock Chapter 4 . Insight ,Black Holes, And Healing Chapter 5 . Insight and Mindfulness Chapter 6 – Differences Between Read more…
This story is a thumbnail sketch of my friendship with Randy Olson. I first met Randy Olson when I was in fifth grade, after he moved up to Oregon from California. He lived about 3/4 of a mile down Oatfield Road from us, and we rode the same bus to Read more…
Truth, My Friendship With Marty, Seizures, and Death Life Is Better With You What value is a story, if it is never told? What value is love, if it is never shared? What is the value of speaking, if nobody is even willing to listen? According to the introduction Read more…
Previously I attempted to develop the concept of what “God” is, as far as insight and mindfulness is concerned. The historic and religious term “God” can be a major impediment to people’s understanding and willingness to pursue a change in heart, enhanced spirituality, and/or recovery from addiction. “God” sure did Read more…
Powerlessness and silence go together. We … should use our privileged positions not as a shelter from the world’s reality, but as a platform from which to speak. A voice is a gift. It should be cherished and used. —- Margaret Atwood There has been an epidemic of white middle-aged Read more…