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Friday, June 29, 2012

Poem - "A Walk"

"A Walk"

My eyes already touch the sunny hill,
going far ahead of the road I have begun.
So we are grasped by what we cannot grasp;
it has its inner light, even from a distance —

and changes us, even if we do not reach it,
into something else, which, hardly sensing it, we already are;
a gesture waves us on, answering our own wave ...
but what we feel is the wind in our faces.
“”
"The Walk" by Rainer Maria Rilke (1924)
Translated by Robert Bly

Tuesday, June 19, 2012

NJB Numerology Profile

Numerology - What your name means.

Your name: Nathan John Bender is associated with the gematria number 9.
Your birth date: 07151943 corresponds to Life Path number 3.
Number Nine People
You are very intelligent and very clever. Because of your extraordinary nature and magnetic personality, you are always well-liked. Number Nine People, however, must guard against being opportunistic and distrustful of other people. Your number promises success in any field you try. Number Nine People are quick and funny. It is not likely for a Number Nine person to mind his own business. The person associated with the number 9 would be a loving parent. Number Nine People tend to be quick witted, clever, and creative. They learn quickly and are good at solving problems
Number Nine People are erratic geniuses. Clever, skillful, and flexible, they are remarkably inventive and original and can solve the most difficult problems with ease. There are few fields in which Number Nine People wouldn't be successful but they have a disconcerting habit of being too agreeable. They want to do things now, and if they cannot get started immediately, they become discouraged and sometimes leave their projects. Although good at making decisions, they tend to look down on others. Having common sense, Number Nine People have a deep desire for knowledge and have excellent memories. Number Nine People are strong willed but their anger cools quickly. They master most anything. They have extremely charming manners that draw others. Number Nine People solve difficult problems with ease. They are quick-witted, innovative, and they have total and intense belief in themselves. No one delights in their own accomplishments like the Number Nine People. Enjoying themselves immensely, they try anything at least once!
Number Nine People are intellectual and their memory is phenomenal. They recall the smallest details of everything they have seen, read, and heard. They must depend on that memory since they have an otherwise untidy mind. Number Nine People are wizards with money. They are original, shrewd, and when they need to, they can fool anyone. There are a hundred and one fantastic schemes they want to try, and you can bet they make some of them work. Even when they take you in, it is hard to be angry with them, or begrudge them anything. They don't care what opinions others have of them. They know they are lucky, and they also know they have the ability to change things when convenience calls. Number Nine People are virtually unsinkable! When the odds are stacked against them, Number Nine People know when to quit. Their timing is superb, and they will wait to try another time. If you try to trick Number Nine People, they will probably catch you. They never make a move without a plan. They are great strategists. They can spot an opportunity in any form. They never miss a trick!
Number Nine People are hard workers once they have a piece of the action. The bigger the piece, the better they do. Number Nine People like to travel, and they want to do it first class. They need a certain amount of excitement in their lives.
Number Nine People must be careful in romance, although clear-sighted, they are very critical and lose interest in anyone they can't consider their peer. They are vain and egotistical, but even that is to their advantage. Number Nine People are always out in front!
Life Path 3
The Life Path 3 indicates that you entered this plane with a strong sense of creativity and with wonderful communication skills. Achievement for you most likely comes through engaging your ingenious expression. A truly gifted 3 possesses the most exceptional innovative skills, normally in the verbal realm, writing, speaking, acting, or similar endeavors. Here we are apt to find the entertainers of the world, bright, effervescent, sparkling people with very optimistic attitudes. The bright side of this path stresses harmony, beauty and pleasures; of sharing your inventive talents with the world. Capturing your capability in creative self-expression is the highest level of attainment for this life path.
Life is generally lived to the fullest, often without much worry about tomorrow. You are not very good at handling money because of a general lack of concern about it. You spend it when you have it and don't when you don't.
The 3 loves connecting with people. The characteristics of the 3 are warmth and friendliness, a good conversationalist, social and open. A good talker both from the standpoint of being a delight to listen to, but even more importantly, one who has the ability to listen to others. Accordingly, the life path 3 produces individuals who are always a welcome addition to any social situation and know how to make others feel at home. The approach to life tends to be exceedingly positive. Your disposition is almost surely sunny and openhearted. A happy and often inspired person, you are constantly seeking and needing the stimuli of similar people.
There is a remote side to your 3 Life Path, as well. This comes as a surprise to the native and to those who think they are well acquainted. The 3 is actually a very sensitive soul. When hurt, you can easily retreat to a shell of morose silence for extended periods. Nonetheless, the 3 eventually copes with all of the many setbacks that occur in life and readily bounces back for more. It is usually easy for you to deal with problems because you can freely admit the existence of problems without letting them get you down for too long. Because of your own sensitivity to hurt, you have a caring disposition and seem to be very conscious of other people's feelings and emotions.
In romance, the 3 is a very ardent and loyal lover. Affairs that don't go well can leave scares that seem to linger. Emotional experiences of all sorts tend to deeply touch the 3 and the drama may take some time to play out. Regrettably, the giving disposition of the 3 often attracts demanding partners. As with most of life's issues for the 3 Life Path, balance in relationships is illusive.
Your big test with a 3 Life Path is controlling your highs and lows. You won't survive very well in any routine environment or when you are placed under dominating management. Slow thinking and overly contemplative people tend to frustrate you, and you don't function too well with this type whether you are working for, with, or under them. Your exuberant nature can take you far, especially if you are ever able to focus your energies and talents.
For the few living on the negative side of this Life Path, a 3 may be so delighted with the joy of living that the life becomes frivolous and superficial. You may scatter your abilities and express little sense of purpose. The 3 can be an enigma, for no apparent reason you may become moody and tend to retreat. Escapist tendencies are not uncommon with the 3 life path, and you find it very hard to settle into one place or one position. Guard against being critical of others, impatient, intolerant, or overly optimistic.

SJB's Numerology profile

Numerology - What your name means.

Your name: Sandra Lee Gray-Bender is associated with the gematria number 7.
Your birth date: 10121944 corresponds to Life Path number 4.
Number Seven People
Your capacity for hard work is amazing. You are very independent. While intelligent and friendly, you have a strong streak of selfishness and sharp cunning and should guard against being egotistical. Your number suggests success as an adventurer, scientist, poet, or politician. A person with this number is said to be popular, cheerful and quick-witted. On the other-hand, someone with the number 7 can be stubborn and impulsive. Number Seven People are supposed to be kind to strangers. But he is not good working with relatives. Number Seven People are strong and friendly.

Number Seven People are popular, cheerful, skillful with money, and perceptive, although they sometimes talk too much. The are wise, talented, good with their hands, and sometimes have a weakness for members of the opposite sex. They are impatient and hot-blooded about everything except their daily work. They like entertainment and large crowds. They are very independent and rarely listen to advice. Number Seven People are very appealing people. They are warm and friendly and dearly love social gatherings with plenty of people. They are perceptive and enjoy talking. They have a high spirited nature and are changeable. This makes them hot-tempered, rash, and headstrong. They are always falling in and out of love. Quick to warm to someone, they are just as quick to lose interest. Here today and gone tomorrow - these are the Number Seven People. Then when you decide not to see them again, here they come ready to pick up where they left off!




Number Seven People are adventurers at heart, but they do have sharp minds and good abilities for managing money. They are self-reliant and energetic. They love exercise, both mental and physical. Their movements are rapid, yet graceful; their speech is quick, yet elegant. Number Seven People want things their way and they will become aggressive when all else fails. They value their freedom above all else. They are not possessive or jealous of others. Being moody creatures, Number Seven People depend on the feel of things. They possess the ability to improvise while events are in motion and can handle several things at once. Number Seven People find it difficult to unwind. They keep strange hours and suffer from insomnia. When they stop, it is usually from exhaustion. It is hard for them to follow a schedule for they have no respect for routine. They need to keep busy but do best when given a free hand.

Number Seven People are full of new ideas to solve tricky problems. When they have an idea, they want to get right to it. They work around the clock until they finish. Number Seven People want you to come to the point quickly since they don't have time to spare. They will not care if you are blunt, just don't waste their time.

Number Seven People must be allowed to show their emotions. They are hot-blooded, hot-tempered, and impatient, and they will gladly demonstrate. In love, Number Seven People are quite vulnerable. They give up everything for the object of their affections. This causes them trouble since they are such impulsive creatures! They must learn to use caution. Number Seven People receive most of the attention. Number Seven People like being the hub and have everything revolving about them. In return, they work hard and share with everyone.

Number Seven People don't mind starting over. They maintain their determination and enjoy new successes. They belong in careers where they are surrounded by people. They sway crowds and love being flattered. The willful Number Seven People get into countless predicaments but they bail themselves out. They enjoy fighting their own battles. Colorful and lively, they make many friends. If they could be in several places at once, they would be delighted! Their spirit is restless and searching. Creativity is part of their being. They are talented writers and performers.

Life Path 4
The Life Path 4 suggests that you entered this plane with a natural genius for planning, fixing, building, and somehow, with practical application and cerebral excellence, making things work. You are one of the most trustworthy, practical, and down-to-earth of individuals; the cornerstone members of society. Indeed, as a Life Path 4, you are a builder of society. The cream of the crop in this Life Path can be a master builder in society. if you are among these highly talented people, you have an idealistic nature which is grounded in practical terms, allowing you to conceive grandiose, far-reaching schemes and carry them through to the end. If you desire and are willing to work for it, you can achieve enormous success, prestige, and fame. Obviously, everyone with a 4 Life Path does not become famous.

All with this Life Path have the ability to take orders and to carry them out with dedication and perseverance and many 4s live and work happily in this context. But so often, the 4 Life Path is the entrepreneur and manager in the community. In either role, you always demand as much from yourself as you do from others, and sometimes a lot more.

You have the kind of will power that is often mistaken for sheer stubbornness. You don't think of yourself as dogged, but your honest beliefs and that ever direct speech makes you come across as completely unremitting. Once a decision is made, it will be followed through to the conclusion, right, wrong, or indifferent. You are very set in your ways and determined to handle things the way you are so certain that they should be handled. Your tenacity of purpose and ability to get the job done borders on obsession. You are a wonderful manager with a great sense of how to get the job done.

You are an excellent organizer and planner because of your innate ability to view things in a very common sense and practical way. This stems from a strong desire to be a perfectionist in your labor. Planning is necessary to avoid errors. It's very likely that a 4 Life Path person invented the to-do list, because it is the rare Life Path 4 who doesn't have one by her side at all times. Your life is programed in an orderly fashion permitting you to catalog and manage the flow of ideas and activities that fill your day. Indeed, you seem to function best when you are under the gun and facing a tough set of problems.

Loyal and devoted, you make the best of your marriage, and you are always the good provider. Friends may be few in number, but you are very close to them and once friendships are made, they often last a lifetime.

The number 4 is solidly associated with the element of earth from which it gains its strength and utter sense of reality. You are one of the most dependable people you know. If patience and determination can ever win, you are sure to achieve great success in life. Often, you are called on to take care of others; to finish what they have started. It may not seem fair and probably isn't, but it may be the key to your accomplishment and reputation.

The negative side of the 4 can prove dogmatic to an excess, narrow-minded, and repressive. A lot of skin-deep people turn you off, and you lack the tact to keep your feelings from being totally clear to all around. Additionally, the negative 4 has a bad tendency to get caught up in the daily routine of affairs, missing the big picture and major opportunities that come along once in a while.

Wednesday, June 13, 2012

SE Asian Trek Recap

Mission accomplished! After three weeks in SE Asia seizing the best of the area’s offerings: Good people and good food, while experiencing a Hindu wedding in Malaysia, amidst 1st encounters with son-inlaw's family and their generosity and thoughtfulness. The wedding rituals were 1st encounters for me, offering quite a contrast to more familiar Christian ones! Love the cultural adherence to ‘tea time,’ found throughout Malaysia, where business pauses for the cause that refreshes and joins people.

My Elder Quest to Thailand profited much from the mindfulness of 'Kitty' (she’s a Thai native we met here in MS, who is the chef and co-owner of a Thai restaurant in Hattiesburg) provided in a journey far beyond my history thereof more than 42 years ago. My soul is filled with love and my spirit is buoyed in the integration process which should extend well into the future.

In Kuala Lumpur, we made multiple trips to city center, visiting the nat’l mosque, museums, and Petronas twin towers of int’l fame. Also did a day trip to historic city of Malacca. Malaysia is a Moslem country, presenting quite a different/moderate view of Moslems from those often depicted in the news, along with a rich mix of Indian and Chinese people, making for quite a diverse landscape. While Malay is the nat’l language, english is well engrained in most people in the cities.

In Thailand, we spent two days in Chiang Mai, one day in Bangkok, a trip to the NE, tracing my military stint in Korat and Sakhon Nakhon. Spent a day @ a resort center, recuperating a bit, and multiple side trips to various places I had not visited previous, including Kanchanaburi and Bridge over the River Kwai. Even rode an elephant in Ayutthaya, the old Capital city of years past, @ one point! Kitty’s family is in the Ratchaburi area, near the Floating market of fame.

A sobering piece of an Elder Quest is encountering history and discovering how everything has changed and become almost unrecognizable. Thailand was a truly 3rd world country 42 years ago, and nowadays coping with enormous grow and development as an emerging modern country. Many, many more paved roads, cars and other motor vehicles, making for far too much congestion for my accustomed ways in MS! One piece did not change.......the spirit of its people, who still touch the depths of my being with their unvarnished ways and generosity. It was in Thailand, those many years ago, I experienced validation of my humanity in special ways. It is also the place I discovered leadership abilities that have been carried forward.

One more piece.......Asians occupy 60% of the world’s population, making caucasians a minority. People of color reign!

Despite travel snafus on the return flight(s), it sure feels good to be home again, in my adopted residence in Mississippi!