The world is incubating in a quiet cocoon, and things feel a bit surreal. A part of me needs to understand what is happening, to connect the dots and see why and what. The other part of me feels a powerful surge of magnificence carrying the world into higher realms that we cannot comprehend. During the days at home, these two parts of me alternate back and forth.
Some messages are coming in clearly, like what I should do each day, so I do that. However regarding what’s actually happening, my intuition comes up strangely blank, and I understand we really have no idea what’s going on. This tells me that perhaps even the higher beings or God haven’t yet figured out how to unravel the puzzle. It’s an extraordinary situation in which our reality can instantly radically shapeshift to a different picture, just like what we are seeing in the media and social networking. In my best moments I see it is far better to surrender myself to the life stream. To let my guides do their jobs without second-guessing them, without pushing, pulling, or even planning. When I let go and allow this joy and happiness to fill me without any effort to control, I trust I will be carried to the highest place, my best destination.
After all, what do we have to fear? More discomfort? More poisoning, more war and racism? Disease, mandatory vaccines, ID chips? Being fried with 5G, more control and disrespect? Stupidity, prejudice, and death? Frankly, I’m quite tired of all these things and I no longer fear them. I’m ready to face it all and change almost everything. Of course, I’d prefer the world to be vastly different. I’m cocked and ready to help create that. I’ve already dedicated my life to helping all sentient beings achieve happiness and freedom.
This is far more than a pandemic. It’s an amazing time for all of us to be alive, to be so intimately connected with others in the world, with animals and nature, to see the radical shifts and changes happening every day, as we fly at top speed into a new future, each one of us in our own way.
Bali beaches are totally quiet and hotels are closed. Fortunately under partial lockdown we can go for walks without disturbance.
Most restaurants are closed, however we found the Organic Earth Kitchen open one day! I tried the Red Rice Thali, and Lama D had a Mexican Pizza!
My friend Des is helping clean our house and showing me how to cook Balinese dishes.
Our two friends, Sila and Des, are helping us learn Balinese traditions.
I Descend into Jabberwalky ESL Videos
Lama D and his family asked me to teach them English idiomatic expressions. This makes more sense than worrying and wondering. I sent these out on WeChat and now they are studying. These three videos use over 100 idioms to help them understand how we really speak English.
This “Cliffhanger” lesson teaches 46 English Idioms. For the lesson link go here.
The “Blessing in Disguise” video teaches 75 English Idioms. For the lesson link go here.
This is the “Easy as Pie” lesson, with 35 English idioms. For the lesson link go here.
Lama D’s daughter, Baby on the right, requested advanced tongue twisters for hard-to-pronounce letters like Th, T, D, R, P, and B. I created five videos to help them refine their pronunciation. Inspired by Lewis Carrol’s Jabberwocky nonsense verse, I challenge student to perfect their English pronunciation. See below.
#1 Advanced Tongue Twisters: TH, English Pronunciation
Thank you for the three thousand thoughts for my thirty-seventh birthday gathering Thursday.
These thrilling things felt like thunder in the earth.
Therefore, thanks to those faithful thoughts, I think that my mother, my father, my brother and I will be healthy, wealthy, and youthful, thriving through thick and thin.
#2 Advanced Tongue Twisters: T and D, English Pronunciation
T
Two tiny tigers took two taxis to town.
Tiny tiger number one got twelve turnips and ate them right away.
Tiny tiger number two was tricky.
He bought twenty-two little teapots, twenty-two teabags, turmeric root, and took nothing to eat.
When they got home, tiny tiger number one was totally tired.
But tiny tiger number two was different.
He boiled water and made turmeric tea for twenty-two friends to make everyone quite content.
D
Monday Devi spent two Dominican dollars for a dinner of Doritos.
Tuesday Devi’s doctor David said: “Don’t buy Doritos. Buy good food instead.”
Wednesday Devi visited Dalton foods.
She decided to buy delicious food including dahl, dark rice, daikon radish, avocado, and salad.
Devi needed to spend four Dominican dollars, and she enjoyed good food for eight days.
What was Devi’s food cost per day?
#3 Advanced Tongue Twisters: P and B, English Pronunciation
P
Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers.
A peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked.
If Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers,
Where’s the peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked?
B
Barefoot Betty Bottom bought a big bag of butter
To bake her best banana bread for breakfast.
Betty’s blind husband barely took a bite, and said:
“Big Trouble. This bread is burned, and the butter is bitter.
Give me a bowl of buckwheat with barley now before I break the table!”
After breakfast Barefoot Betty ran to the store to take back the bad bitter butter.
She bought the best butter and a basket of berries.
Next morning she awoke before the birds to make a new banana bread with berries.
At breakfast Betty waited behind the broken table.
Her blind husband barely took a nibble and said:
“This is the BEST BANANA BREAD!”
So they both enjoyed banana bread with berries till bedtime.
#4 Advanced Tongue Twisters: R, English Pronunciation
Ravenous rabbits run very fast through terrible pouring rain with various umbrellas.
Running rapidly through narrow rocky roads,
They try not to worry as they carry important letters and virtual red roses
In order to marry the rich restaurant waitress Rosanna Ray.
#5 Advanced Tongue Twisters: F and V, English Pronunciation
F
Five famous fleas fix fantastic finger foods for joyful farmers in France.
Carefully they feed faithful families platefuls of perfect food, to forget a lifetime of fastidious fasting.
A farmer’s wife Fanny finishes all the waffles, fruit, French fries, fish and flatbread, feasting fast with fork and knife.
Fifty fanatic females fearful of lymphatic failure, forbid offering more food.
Finally the families defy the famous flea chief, as he falls laughing into a flower.
V
My very favorite vegetarian Victoria invited seven volunteer drivers and seven loving wives for a private view of various active volcanoes on vacation in Venezuela.
Visitors nervously viewed the violence from above as five exploding waves of vibrant lava moved out of several volcanic caves leaving vast virgin forests covered forever.
Alternating between Silence and Doing, one step at a time.
I don’t know what the future holds. My next projects are lined up neatly, but I must wait for the appropriate time to do them. Sometime it’s better to do nothing. I want to learn PhotoShop, finish my book illustrations, create online classes, and record an audio book for Buddha Speaks. The universe tells me to to take one step at a time, no rush. Lama D and I are fine staying home in silence. He is chanting, and I’m meditating a lot, meanwhile working slowly on my projects. Perhaps that is enough.
Thanks for checking in! Best wishes to you all. I send you vast blessings for, health, patience, safety and positive shifts leading us out of this heavy situation. Srijana