Rivers Run Through Us

Rivers are amazing forces. The force behind the river's current over a period of time erode the earth's surface and changes it into something new; consistently changing its path. As I watch this tremendous force of water rush past me in the Sierra Moutains I take notice of the river and the way it effects everything in its path.

Rocks underneath the water are rounded down to soft surfaces. While rocks still standing out of the water have jagged edges; awaiting the fate of being washed away. The fauna around the area whisps back and forth in slow motin as the river flows through it. It is a masterpiece of Mother Natures work.

Observing this force I reflect upon how humans are so closely linked to nature. The river is a consistent flow of water that does not stop. It erodes the earth and changes its form. Humans naturally strive to change and these changes bring about new opportunities.

The rocks underneath the earths surface skip along the bottom of the river like people following a strong leader. They may not know where they are going but they believe in their leader and follow along without asking questions.

Large rocks jet out of the rivers surface making the river flow around them. These rocks represent new leaders that create paths.

The shorelines are askew with large rocks  untouched by the river's force; rocks that are about to fall into the water and be carried away; worn away rocks that are tired of flowing down the river and stopped to take a break; fauna that stands the test of time as rivers ripple through it trying to wear it away but it stands strong.

Everything on earth is interconnected with life forces. However, humans have the chance to change their path. Rocks have to roll along for the ride. Humans can alter the course of Earth's future by making conscious decisions to protect it. http://www.planetarynations.com/

Tenacious Pelican

Nature is amazing. As my husband and I walk along Atlantic Coast's beachline we discover a pelican with a broken wing. Unsure of what to do and sad that we are unable to assist in nurturing back to health; we watch it helplessly. After a while we discover that it is trying its best to learn how to fly again. It strives to fly out over the water only to be washed ashore. Over and over again the pelican continues this motion. It is obvious that it has a will to live and that it will do everything that it can to do so.
http://www.planetarynations.com/

Garbage Coastline

As I sit along the shorelines of the Atlantic Ocean my soul begins to relax. The clouds turn the sky and water various shades of blue. The clouds whisk past me and the rolling waves come crashing one after the other; reminding me of time passing. Nature is at its glory.As I breath in the salty air and feel the tingle of salt water on my skin, I find myself in Mother Nature's heaven. Except for the garbage that is beginning to align our American coast line.


My husband scans the beach with a metal detector looking for buried treasure. We are staying in Florida's Treasure Coast; area known for finding sunken treasures. In the 1600 and 1700's 11 Spanish and English ships sank on their way from Hattie, Cuba to St. Augustine, Florida. Although nothing is found he did succeed in diggging up a lot of garbage. Some of these treasures left due to lazy beach goers included old suntan lotion bottles and pieces of aluminum that were once attached to something. His discoveries were distrubing because not only was he finding garbage beneath the earth's surface but the beaches were also scattered with plastic garbage strewn along the coast of the beaches.


As I begin to walk the beaches I too discover garbage everywhere. Except that the garbage I find is plastic. PLASTIC IS EVERYWHERE! Bottle caps, a bathing suit, left over sandels are just some examples of the thing I find. I am reminded of the beautiful items that I sell (at on my online store - Planetary Nations) in Ghana of recycled flipflops that align the Gold Coast in Africa. Africans are sustainable people and are turning the ugly garbage into something useful. While we, Americans, continue to throw everything on the ground in hopes that someday Mother Nature will consume it.
http://www.planetarynations.com/

99% Opposing View Point from one of the 99%

As I was cleaning my bathroom the other day I looked at the packaging of a product and realized that the package claimed that I didn't have to do anything because it does it for me. I thought what a peculiar thing to post on the side of a package. Later that day I was driving around our town and realized that all of the parking meters are now automated and have a credit card holder on them. Although, I like the convenience of a credit card I thought about how this eliminates the need for me to ensure that I have change so that I can pay the meter and that it eliminates the meter readers job. All around us jobs are being taken over by credit card readers and products that do everything for us. We have become accustomed to the ease of technology but at what cost? How many jobs have been lost due to technology? You may agree and begin to complain about how your job has been taken away and that you too are part of the 99%. However, all of these changes only demonstrate that as society has evolved so must you.

Recently, I completed my second masters degree in education. After its completion I realized that it was a pointless degree as there are not that many jobs out there for educational leaders and the ones that are posted are taken by people that have been working in that district for years. At first this agitated me but it also made me think about society and how I have to change my habits and way of life in order to evolve into this newly changed world I live in.

The change is my career choice was also made because a friend of mine was discussing this book that talks about the 4 hour work week. He informed me that it is about how instead of trying to become rich you live life and enjoy its journey. My husband and I then began talking about how this philosophy makes so much sense. We don't know if social security will be there for us when we retire,  and our 401 K policies will hopefully sustain but we aren't sure about that either. Therefore, we decided to apply this philosophy into our lives and I began a fair trade e-commerce store called Planetary Nations. Although, I don't know as much about retail as I do about education it is something that I know I can adapt to and even though technology hasn't been my forte I know that it is something that I must learn to become comfortable with. I am adapting to this new world we live in because I have to. Not, because it is an easy thing to do.

America is a country that is founded on people "pulling up their bootstraps." When things become difficult we meet the challenges and work to ensure that we aren't complacent. However, now we are doing just the opposite. We are looking at government to resolve our problems rather then re-inventing ourselves. I know that it isn't easy and that it is a scary thing to become solely independent but it must be done. Instead of complaining how the middle class isn't growing and the top 1% is taking everything away why don't we try to adjust to the situation, meet it and overcome it?

Daily I post notes from the Move On Movement to my FaceBook page as I believe that the statistics regarding the disappearance of the middle class are startling. However, there must be a way to close the gap. If more of us were to meet the challenge of the situation and try to overcome it then together we will rise out of this. We are Americans and we must work on joining together to reinvent ourselves, educate and assist our fellow peers and get our country back on its feet. In my belief it is good to voice our opinions but the protests just give our candidates more key points to add to their debate and add fuel to their fire. I like most of you have begun to lose faith in our government. I don't feel that I am ever represented in the scheme of things because I am not asked to vote on American issues that effect our nation.  But, our government is only as strong as its people. So, let's join together to peaceably make America a leading country once again.

Say "Hello" to a Veteran

A few days ago I was watching the local news and the anchors discussed how men and women were coming home from Iraq. Instead of having a positive tone to their voices they stated something along the lines of "what may look like a regular event to most of us is a special one for these families." Then on the screen you saw Veterans being greeted by family members that they had not seen in a long time. The homecoming pulled on my heartstrings as a few tears began to dampen my cheeks. Meanwhile, the news anchors voices echoed in my head and disturbed me. How has it become a normal event to see Veterans come home from war and be welcomed with only a warm hello from their families?

I have never experienced the parades and celebrations that used to accompany the homecoming of Vets back from the World Wars. But, being a lover of history I have seen the pictures of an enormous flag hanging over the side of the Hudson Building in Detroit (symbolizing their gratefulness to our Vets) and pictures of parades that were held all over the country and attended by everyone. My grandparents used to talk about all of the dances that would occur when Vets came home. Maybe back then we had actual victories to celebrate. The celebrations went deeper then just celebrating the victories they were a tribute and thank you to all of the people that had fought for our country.

Have we as a country forgotten all about the most valuable attribute of American society? Have we forgotten how to be indivisible? As the country gets torn apart due to greed of the upper classes, and political parties trying to conquer their seats; what about the rampant Americans greed that occurs daily by not providing Veterans with the respect they deserve? Next time you see a Veteran make sure that you say "thank you." They all deserve to be respected by every American as our lives are protected by them.

Following My Dreams and Creating Planetary Nations LLC

Planetary Nations is a company that is dedicated to assisting artisans and consumers throughout the world connect with one another through eco-friendly practices. In 2011, I established the company after my husband and I took a rv trip throughout the Sierra Nevada mountains. We had planned a trip to fly into Las Vegas rent an rv and drive it to Lake Tahoe, California to see a good friend. Our trip took us into several beautiful cites and through mountain ranges like we had never seen before. It was an amazing trip and it resulted in a life altering change.

Four years ago I had undergone a kidney transplant and the dreams of living my life as a teacher had ended. The medications that I have to take suppress my immune system and due to this I often got sick from being around so many peoples germs. Therefore, I changed career paths into educational leadership but as teachers came under more and more scrutiny and are being forced to teach 30 + students I could not lead them with a true heart any longer. I knew that I had to change my career path. For me the road trip that we went on was partially for me to clear my head and decide what direction my life take as the stress of my current job was quickly running me into the ground. 

After a few days I began to become more open and really started thinking about the possibilities of a new career. Nothing was coming to mind and I struggled with finding my self once again. Then along our trip we came across an artists house in Mammoth Mountain that was abandoned. The cottage was off of the main road and had a rickety artists sign swinging in front of it. Since this was the first time I had seen a artists sign I wanted to stop and look around. Purchasing art from local artisans has always been a hobby mine. However, as we prepared to get out of the rv we realized that the cottage was up for sale and had a foreclosure sign in front of it. Another, American dream ended due to foreclosure. This saddened me because it appeared that someone had built the cottage as their dream home but eventually the dream led to a dead end. After going down a similar path of losing my dream job I related with whomever it was that once lived there. 

Throughout the rest of my trip and after I got home this experience couldn’t leave me. I kept wondering about the family that once lived there, the lost dreams and if there  was some way that I could have helped them. I also began to think about struggling artists throughout America and the world. I really wanted to figure out a way to assist them by getting their items to market. I wondered how I would first find these artisans and then reach out them. Since some of my favorite stores have always been Fair Trade stores I realized that I could reach out by establishing a retail fair trade store. 

Now, two months later I am almost ready to open my doors to my e-commerce store and begin selling the goods that artists from throughout the world have created. I believe that this business will revolutionize my world by bringing immense happiness and positive energy into my heart and the hearts of others. The products that I have collected are beautiful and so many of the wholesale companies that I have purchased them from disclose how they assist the artisans by providing them not only with fair wages but also with health care, electricity,and education. It is amazing how a little cottage in the mountains has taught me so much about life and has allowed me to fulfill my dream and that is assist others throughout the world.

New Beginnings - Self Reflections

Yes, as the saying goes "life is what you make it." But in order to make it what you want you have to know what it is that you want. I believe that like myself, many people struggle with this notion. As life goes on it catches up with you and eventually you lose yourself in the perpetual motion of it. Some continue to stay true to themselves and others can't remember who they once were. I am one of the people that lost myself-identity and am on the way to recovering it.
Out of the depths of our souls, deep beneath the political bull shit, the consistent nagging of the media and the noise that surrounds us there is a stillness. A quietness that if you just allow yourself to listen you may be surprised at what you find. After leading a group of teachers in a professional development session I found myself truly unhappy. Not because they were coming back from vacation and I had worked 40 + hours over the summer developing curriculum, but because I had lost the root cause of why education is so meaningful to me. Throughout the past few years education has become so much about everything and anything but the children. We hear all the time about these teachers lost their pensions; states are having to retain poor teachers due to unionized teacher contracts; charter schools performing better traditional schools and vice versa. On and on it goes. But, when do we as educators really stop the noise and take a look at ourselves and think what is really going on here? Why did I get into this profession in the first place? What I can do to help the children? What do I know works and how can I share this with others?
After the conundrum you feel lost, depleted with nothing left to give. That is why my path began to veer away from education and began to focus upon the people of this world (our planet earth). We are all united. We all have the same bone structure, cell structure and physical attributes. We are all here trying to make this world a better place. A place in which we can live and make it better for future generations. We, people of all nationalities, are here on earth to serve one purpose - to live our lives the way we want and to contribute to making our planet a place that is safe, comfortable and sustainable.
Since I didn't feel as if my deeds were leading me towards my goals in life I decided to reach out to all humanity and begin this life journey with a small store called Planetary Nations. My dream is to unite people so that together we can make a difference in each others lives. I want a positive energy to flow through all of us so that we can create a better place for all humanity. I decided to work with Fair Trade Federation producers and wholesalers so that all of the goods I sell are able to assist people all over the world that are working to improve their lives through equitable and fair working conditions. In return their goods are then sold to people that can embrace the beauty and uniqueness of the item and positive energy can begin to flourish throughout the world.