Excuse me. As on most of our airplane flights these days, we are going to have a full house. So if there are seats in the middle, in between, you know, single seats or whatever, people could kind of move in so that there will be some seats on the outside for people who are still coming in. I appreciate it. Thank you. We claim Christmas for those for whom the season brings only another series of dreary days. We claim Christmas for those who live beyond the bounds of our love, for those of our own who are no longer here and those who have chosen not to be with us. We claim Christmas for those who try, for all those who have awakened in the morning with the cry, bother and then did. We claim Christmas for those who have wanted to wish Christmas away and then didn't. We claim Christmas for the time that is to come, for the future which we fear and for that for which we hope. We claim Christmas for the child who lives in each of us. We claim Christmas for all here on this mild December evening, whether we come here in health or in illness, in happiness or in sorrow, we claim Christmas for all and for this our community. I invite you to rise in body or in spirit for the lighting of our chalice. And the words that accompany the kindling of the flame are responsive, so if you would join your voices in reading the bolded sections. In this season of colored lights and bright garlands, we come together to celebrate life's gifts amidst the holiday pandemonium, the tumult of getting and spending, coming and going. We pause this hour to refresh our spirits and bring greater balance to the restless and the ragdollars. And now I invite you to turn to our opening carol number 225. The situation, as you know, was pretty darn grim in 1st century Palestine. People were growing restless with the Roman occupation. They were dissatisfied with the policies of King Herod, the puppet ruler of that country. Economic inequality was pronounced, a small elite class basped in luxury, while the vast majority of Jews eked out a subsistence living. Furthermore, Jewish spiritual life had become fragmented, argumentative. Various sects, the Pharisees, Sadducees, Essenes, and the zealots vied for supremacy. Each offered its own version of Jewish identity and each sought in its own way to fulfill Jewish aspirations. In short, Palestine was not a particularly pleasant place to be in the 1st century. And it was into this climate of growing frustration and mounting oppression that new hope in the person of Jesus of Nazareth emerged. The sentiment of hope is central to Christmas. Many of the traditional carols mention it and it figures in more than a few of our favorite holiday stories. But what makes the story of Jesus' birth so memorable is its vivid description of hopes realized in an unlikely and unexpected fashion. People back then yearned for a powerful figure, a dynamic presence before whom the corrupt powers that ruled the country would be forced to flee. A new Moses, military genius like King David, fiery prophet like Elijah. It would take a hero of such stature to midwife the birth of a new Israel. And that's what the people of Palestine were hoping for some 20 centuries ago. But of course, Jesus resembled none of these. And so he did not fulfill the social and political expectations of his countrymen and his countrywomen. And indeed, not long after Jesus' death, the Romans destroyed the city of Jerusalem, forcing hundreds of thousands of Jews into exile and thus puncturing any and all dreams of national restoration. What does that say about Jesus as a symbol of hope? It says that it's probably a mistake to pin our hopes on a particular preconceived outcome because that's probably going to be the recipe for disappointment, if not downright despair. Jesus was born in a stable, not a mansion. He lived off of other people's charity, urged his followers to do the same. He admonished his listeners to have faith in the invisible and the intangible, to set aside their material hopes and invest in the spiritual. Those who had ears to hear, those few, they grasped what he was trying to say. And he did teach people to hope in a new way. And over the centuries that has helped lift the spirits of untold millions of believers. Our own situation today in 21st century America is by no means as dire as it was those 20 centuries ago. And yet ours is also in many ways an anxious age. Despite low unemployment and a record-breaking stock market, economic distress in this country is widespread. Half of Americans live paycheck to paycheck with not enough savings to carry them through a month or two without a steady income. And moreover, to me at least, our society feels divided, as divided as society was in ancient Palestine, divided today on racial and religious lines, perhaps more so than it has been in my lifetime. Entire categories of persons are being classified as undesirables, much as the Samaritans were in ancient Palestine. And with a new untested administration taking the reins of government a month from now, expressions of uneasiness, if not dread, can be heard in many quarters. As First Lady Michelle Obama recently told Oprah Winfrey, she now we are feeling what not having hope feels like, you know? That hope is necessary. It's a necessary concept, she said. What do you give your kids if you can't give them hope? My predecessor Max Gabler shared sentiments similar to these in a Christmas message that he delivered some 40 years ago now. And then he carried that message of hope a step further, an important step. Let me quote from Max. At Christmas, we give voice to extravagant hopes that are beyond the range of any possible fulfillment. But the real question is whether this is so bad. Perhaps the better part of wisdom is to accept this reminder of the gap between the real and the ideal for what it is. A spur, not only to our hopes, but to our energies. It would be foolish to ignore the element of wishful thinking in our Christmas hopes, but how unspeakably more foolish it would be if we were to accept present reality as the last word and to stop dreaming altogether. So there are two counts on which I agree wholeheartedly with my predecessor. First, it would be a crime to accept present reality as the last word. The sentiment of hope helps to free up the imagination and to awaken our visionary capacity. Without hope, the features of a different and better future will never become apparent to us. And in the second place, Max makes the important connection between our hopes and our energies. No attitude is more innervating than despair. No outlook is less action-oriented than cynicism. Hope motivates and it sustains our cells as activists, as change agents. And that being the case, I will continue in the years to come to do my part to help mitigate climate change, to protect endangered species, to close the equity gap, to reform our broken criminal justice system, to promote peaceful coexistence, to advance the cause of mutual understanding. I will do these things. And despite the unprecedented irregularities of the last election, I will continue to cast my ballot in the hope that enough Americans still believe in the need to maintain the integrity of our democratic processes and believe that this too shall pass. So let me conclude these opening comments with a commentary from a woman named Kimberly Hughes, whose story conveys the true possibilities of hope. She says, My Siamese cat died in May. A month later, my friend and mentor passed away. Then my house was struck by lightning, frying both my answering machine and my internet connection. I needed those to keep my job. Didn't matter anyway because I soon lost my job, having unwittingly trained my replacement in Bangalore, India. To cheer myself up, I bought a big orange chrysanthemum, carrying it home. I fell and twisted my ankle. After my ankle healed, I went to the gym where my MP3 player caulked out. I ended up throwing it in the trash. In the parking lot, I discovered that one of my car's tires was flat. When my computer's hard drive crashed, I decided it's a sign. Everything ends. But some doors have to close so that others can open. It's hard all right, this life we lead. But I'm not beaten yet. Today, I bought a new iPod and an ace bandage for my ankle. I potted what was left of the chrysanthemum, made plans for New Year's, restored my hard drive, and then I wrote this essay. And now I'd like to invite our ministerial intern, Eric Severson, to share the first lesson. Good evening. The Gospel, according to Matthew, contains one of two biblical accounts of the Nativity. The other version is found in Luke. However, Matthew's doesn't begin by recounting the events surrounding the Saviour's birth. Most of the first chapter is devoted to a long and rather tedious list of Jesus' forebears. Let me share with you just a few of the opening verses. The Book of the Genealogy of Jesus Christ, the Son of David, the Son of Abraham. Abraham was the father of Isaac, and Isaac the father of Jacob, and Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers, and Judah the father of Peres, and Zarah by Tamar. And Peres, the father of Hezren, and Hezren the father of Ram, and Ram the father of Aminidob, and Aminidob the father of Nation, and Nation the father of Salmon, and Salmon the father of Boaz by Rahab, and Boaz the father of Obed by Ruth, and Obed the father of Jesse, and Jesse the father of David the king. Good stuff. And David the father of Solomon by the wife of Uriah, and Solomon the father of Rehoboan. And Jehoshaphat was the father of Joram, and Joram the father of Uzziah, and Uzziah the father of Jotham, and Jotham the father of Ahaz, and Ahaz the father of Hezekiah. After the deportation to Babylon, Zerubbabel was the father of Abiyud, and Abiyud the father of Eliakum, and Eliakum the father of Azor, and Azor the father of Zadok, and Zadok the father of Akim, and Akim the father of Eliezar, and Eliezar the father of Mathan, and Mathan the father of Jacob, who was the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary, of whom Jesus was born, who was called the Christ. Burton Carly has served the Unitarian Church of Memphis, Tennessee, since 1983. His commentary on these first few verses of Matthew's Gospel are worth considering. Can there be anything in a list of begats? Anything interesting in a list of begats? Matthew seems to think so, especially if one is crafting a theological, rather than a historical genealogy. Think about that for a moment. If you could pick a family tree the way you pick a Christmas tree, who would you include in your lineage? Would you have a prodigal relative or some unsavory character by liberal religious standards, perhaps a founding member of the Ku Klux Klan? Thomas Fuller, a 17th century English cleric, told the truth when he said, he that has no fools, naves, or beggars in his family was begot by a flash of lightning. But what if we could choose our ancestry? This is what Matthew did for Jesus. Among those names in the first chapter of the Gospel are noble and famous folks like Isaac, David, and Solomon. This is what one would expect. But wait a minute, there's a surprise or two. How about those infamous kings, like Ahaz and Amon? Ahaz was the king of Judah in the late 8th century BCE. His leadership was marked by the rapid decline of the kingdom, and he was also known for reviving the primitive custom of child sacrifices. Amon ruled Judah for only two years, indulged in idolatrous practices and was assassinated by officials from his own court. There are even greater surprises to be discovered. Consider the inclusion of five women in that patriarchal genealogy. Mary is mentioned, that we understand. We can also appreciate why Ruth is added to the list. She was a model of virtue and high character. The other three women are not exactly your everyday biblical role models. One is so infamous that Matthew can't even muster the courage to mention her name. She is referred to this way. And David, the father of Solomon, by the wife of Uriah. Do you know her name? Yes, Bathsheba is a distant grandmother of Jesus. And what of the other two? Rahab was a Gentile prostitute, the woman who protected the spies of Joshua at Jericho. Tamar was a Hebrew who played the role of a prostitute in order to trick her father-in-law into providing the social security to her according to biblical social custom. As you can see, Matthew's genealogy is anything but boring. I think that what the author is saying is that God's family includes all kinds of people and that there is a wideness in God's mercy. What counts most for Matthew is not the royal bloodline but the liberating mercy of Jesus. We are, like the Holy Child, to care for the least among us as if they are family. This is how we are judged, not by the law, but by the largeness of our love. Whatever our background, we are worthy and significant persons. Let me put it another way. We should not disown the fools, knaves and beggars in our own family for there is a fool, knave and beggar in each of us.  Please remain seated for our next carol, number 241 in the Bleak Midwinter. Coming us from Kathleen for meditation on this. I am fascinated by the gospel depictions of King Herod, everything he does, he does out of fear. Fear can be a useful defense mechanism, but when a person is always on the defensive, like Herod, it becomes debilitating and self-defeating. To me, Herod symbolizes the terrible destruction that fearful people can leave in their wake if their fear remains unacknowledged, if they have power, but they can only use it in a furtive, pathetic feudal attempt at their own preservation. Herod's fear is like a mighty wind. It can't be seen, but its effects dominate the landscape. Herod, called a king, is a pawn of the imperial Roman authorities and he fears their power. But more significantly, he fears those who would appear to have very little power in the world, especially and most tragically, this infant Jesus. After sages from the east appear in Jerusalem inquiring after the king who had been born in Bethlehem, Herod tries to trick them into revealing the name of the child. Return to me, he says, so that I may go and pay homage to this child. But his plot fails. The wise men are warned in a dream not to return to Herod and they slip out of the country. And this makes Herod so fearful that he orders the massacre of all the male infants in Bethlehem. Herod's fear is the epitome of what Jung called the shadow. Herod demonstrates where such fear can lead when it does not come to light but remains in the dark depths of the unconscious. I once had the opportunity, Norris writes, to preach at a small mission church in one of the impoverished areas of Hawaii. It was epiphany. I decided to talk about light. What happens when we allow new light in? How it changes what we see? And I also talked to that congregation about Herod who, while he had worldly power, is so pitifully weak. Because of his fear, he can only pretend to see the light that the magi have offered him. Now the congregation I spoke to, they have a good deal to fear. They're mostly poor and powerless, scraping by in one of the few areas of Oahu in which the hotel maids and the tour bus drivers and the other service workers in the tourist industry can afford to live. It's an area where the rate of drug addiction and alcoholism and violent crime is relatively high. Tourists are admonished, don't go there. The land values in Hawaii are so high that the people of the church developers will force them out and that they will lose their place to live. They come to church for hope. The sages who traveled far to find Jesus, I told that small audience, they saw in him a sign of hope. And I said, the presence of this, your church, which has become important as a community center, this is another sign of hope. A lessening of fears, shadowy powers and increase in available light. I said that the martyred archbishop of El Salvador, Oscar Romero, he once said that only the truly poor can celebrate Christmas and maybe only the poor and the hopeful can celebrate epiphany. Seeing our lives, our families, our communities as the humble yet glorious blessings that they are, well then we can act as those ancient wise men did. We need not return to Herod. We can find another way. We can leave Herod in his place, surrounded by his flatterers, all alone with his fear. And the second selection, a somewhat similar vein, comes from Charlie Clements' book, Witness to War. Charlie Clements is the former director of the Unitarian Universalist Service Committee. He's also a physician who worked as a physician in peasant communities during the Civil War in El Salvador. It was almost dark on Christmas Eve as I trudged back to Flora from Delisias. And since I had been shot at earlier in the year, I remained paranoid about walking on trails, preferring them only over the open areas where the air attacks made me feel even more vulnerable. Nearing Flora's house, I heard rustling ahead on either side of the trail. I froze. I screamed as they jumped me. It was an ambush. The ambushers, Flora's children, the other kids from the house, screeched with delight at the success of their surprise attack. And they all yelled, Feliz Navidad! In their high pitched voices. They had waded all afternoon by the trail, worried that I would not return until morning. One week earlier, I had sent a few colonis outside the front with a message to purchase a few gifts. It was going to be the family's first Christmas without their father. I wanted to make it as merry as possible, but it's not easy to keep secrets from 14 people who live in a single room. I had wrapped each present a little comb, a barrette, a pencil, a toothbrush, a few pieces of candy, and hidden them away as best I could. On the 24th, not Christmas itself, is the traditional day of celebration in El Salvador. And perhaps because they live in such sorrow all year, or perhaps because they really are genuinely warm people, this was a time of great joy and sharing. And when I got home, Flora had laid out a chicken dinner replete with beans and rice flavored with her small but precious store of spices. Later, the adults drank coffee and the Christmas carols from San Salvador on the FM radio station. The children opened their gifts as we listened. I looked at the little poinsettia plant that the kids had placed on the table, hung with little strips of tin foil from cigarette pack liners. I wondered what my parents in the States were doing at this very moment. But I have never seen the children so elated. The combs and the barrettes were a big hit with the girls and Pedrito, Salvador's 10-year-old son, he had been so withdrawn since his father's disappearance but he lit up with excitement as he opened his toothbrush. He jumped up and down for several minutes waving the brush and yelling, Mom, a toothbrush! Because he had never had one of his own before. Afterward, I said that I was going over to the civilian hospital to see the patients. And shyly, the children asked if they could tag along. It's a bit puzzled about this because the hospital, that's the place where the children go to get their injections. They don't go near it if they don't have to. But with Flora's consent, I let them come along. We reached the hospital and their reason for coming was quickly evident. Each one of them had divided his or her little store of Christmas candy and brought a portion with them for the six patients in the hospital, four elders and two children. And they formed themselves into a small semi-circle and began singing to the patients. Their repertory was quite broad, Christmas carols, religious songs, even some revolutionary songs. And the patients beamed at the chorus and the elderly couple began to cry. And I knew that that elderly couple had two grown children in San Salvador that they had not seen for over three years. I got a little misty-eyed myself.  Mass was celebrated at midnight and certain that the enemy would not be fighting on a holiday. The Campesinos built an open bonfire that on any other occasion would have invited an air attack. Over a thousand people came to hear the priests to sing to applaud Alma who spoke of how special Christmas was for all the children. For all the fear they feel, she said, there is also hope in them. And this year, for the first time, these children all went to school. They all had something to eat. They have a doctor who looks after them. In a difficult year, they can all take pride in what they have accomplished. They can look forward eventually to a day of triumph. I slept very peacefully that night. The first I could recall in which not a single bomb or mortar or even a rifle shot was heard in Guasapá. Floor's old aunt snored blissfully on her palate. The children, they whimpered only once or twice in their sleep. A question comes from John Henry Falk who was born to Methodist parents in 1913. Attended the University of Texas later taught English at the same school. Served in the Marines during World War II, began working in radio in 1951. He was branded a communist and won a libel suit with the help of Edward R. Murrow. He died in 1990 in his hometown of Austin and today the downtown branch of that city's public library bears his name. He recorded the following Christmas story in 1974 and it has been rebroadcast on national public radio a number of times. The day after Christmas a number of years ago I was driving down a back country road in Texas. It was a bitter cold morning and walking ahead of me was a little barefooted boy with rather non-descript ragged overalls and a makeshift sleeved sweater tied around his little ears. I stopped to pick him up. Looked like he was about 12 years old and his little feet were blue with cold. He was holding an orange. As he got in I noticed he had the brightest blue eyes one ever saw.  I want to show him my orange that Santa Claus brought me. Now I wasn't going to mention Christmas to him because I figured that he came from the kind of home that doesn't have Christmas but he brought the subject up himself he said did old Santa Claus come to see you mister? And I said yes. We had a real nice Christmas at our house I hope you had the same. He paused for a moment looked at me and then with clarity in the world he said mister we had the wonderfulest Christmas in the United States down at our place. Lordy it was the first one we ever had there. You see we don't have them much down here. Don't notice when Christmas time comes. And we heard about it but never did have one because well you know Papa he says that old Santa Claus is scared to bring his reindeer down in our section of the country because folks is so hard up that each one they're going to butcher him for meat. But then just a few days before Christmas this lady comes from in town and she tells all the families out here our family too that old Santa Claus has come to town is going to leave some stuff for us and if Papa go down to town we could get Christmas time for all of us. So Papa hooked up the mule and the wagon he went into town but he told us children now don't y'all get all worked up and excited there might be nothing to this yarn that the lady told us. But shucks we hadn't got out of sight he hadn't got out of sight up the lane till we was watching for him to come back. We couldn't get our minds on nothing else you know and mama she'd come to the door once in a while and say now y'all quit that looking up the land because Papa told you there might not be anything. But then along about the middle of the afternoon well we hear the team at Janglin it's harness and we ran out into the front yard and Ernie my little brother called out and said yonder comes Papa and here comes them mules just in a big trot you know and Papa stand upright in the bed of that wagon holding two big old chickens all their feathers picked off and he was just a yellin Merry Christmas Merry Christmas the team stopped right in front of the gate and all us children just went a swarming out there just a crawling over that wagon and looking in and mister I wish you could have seen what was in that wagon it's bags of striped candy and apples and oranges sacks of flour some real coffee and you know it's all just tinsily and pretty and we just couldn't say nothing just held our breath and looked at it all you know and Papa he's still standing there waving those chickens Merry Christmas to you Merry Christmas and he's laughing with a big old grin on his face and now mama now she comes hurrying out with a baby on her arms you know when she looks into that wagon she just stopped and then she started telling us the names of all those nuts there wasn't just peanuts there was well she knew the names of all of them now mama she knows a heap of things like that stuff before you know and we was all of us just chattering and going on at the same time I see young ones just a looking in there and all of a sudden we hear Papa call out Merry Christmas to you Sam Jackson and we stopped and looked and here comes Sam Jackson a leading that old cripple-legged mule of his up the lane and Papa said Sam Jackson did you get in town to get some Christmas this year Sam Jackson you know he share crops over across the creek from our place and he shook his head and said well no sir mister I didn't go into town I heard about that but I didn't know it was for black folks too I thought it was just for white folks all of a sudden none of us kids children were saying nothing Papa he looked down at mama looked up at him and they didn't say nothing like they don't a heap of times but they know what the other's thinking and all of a sudden Papa he broke out in a big grin again and he said Dad Blair it Sam Jackson it's sure a good thing you come by here Lord have mercy I'd like to forgot old Santa Claus would have me in court if he heard about this the last thing he asked is if I lived out here near you said he hadn't seen you around said he wanted me to bring part of this out here for y'all well at that Sam Jackson now he breaks out into a big grin and Papa says tell you what we're going to do you get your wife and your children and you come down here tomorrow morning it's going to be Christmas time all day long you come early and you plan to stay late Sam Jackson says you reckon and then mama called out to him and said tell your wife be sure to bring some of her pots and pans because we're going to have a heap of cooking to do I sure ain't got enough to take care of it all next morning it was cold but you didn't notice the cold you know when the sun comes up all rosy red and pretty and us young-uns we're all out of bed before daylight seem like just running in and out of the kitchen smelling and looking it's all still there sure enough and then here comes Sam Jackson we have young-uns we run out and we yell Merry Christmas and Papa says Merry Christmas to you Sam Jackson now you all come in and they come in and mama and sister Jackson they got in the kitchen and they started cooking things up and us young-uns started playing and every now and then we'd run up and smell inside that kitchen door when mama and sister Jackson was cooking and then we'd just die laughing and roll in the dirt and play in some more and Papa and Sam Jackson they put a table up and put some sheets over it some boards up over some saw horses and everybody had a place even the baby and mama and sister Jackson said well now it's ready so come on in and I sat right next to Willy Jackson you know and he just rolled his eyes at me and I'd roll mine at him and just die laughing and there was an apple and an orange and some stripe of the candy at everybody's place but that wasn't the real Christmas dinner mama and them had done cooked up that up and they had spread it up and down the table and so Papa and Sam Jackson they'd been sitting out in the porch this whole time and now they come in too and Papa he sits at one end of the table Sam Jackson he sits at the other end and there's just this beautiful table like you'd never seen I didn't know anything could ever look like that smell that good you know and Papa he says now brother Jackson I believe you're a deacon in the church I'm not much of a church man myself but I do believe you're a deacon so maybe you'd be willing to say grace so Mr. Jackson he stands up and his hands are real big you know he kind of hangs on to the side of the table he doesn't bow his head like a heap of folks do when they say the blessing he just looks up and he smiles and he says Lord I hope you're having a real nice Christmas up there with your angels as good a Christmas as we're having down here because it sure is Christmas time down here and I just want to say Merry Christmas to you Lord like I say Mr. I believe that was the wonderfulest Christmas in the whole United States of America now I would invite you to rise and body and spirit as we sing together number 239 go tell it on the mountain please be seated at this time we will take our offering for the evening please note that the details are on the back of your order of service and we thank you for your generosity the music is sublime thank you so much our fifth lesson this evening is by Becky Bradley one Christmas Eve my mother and I got on a New York City bus outside the Metropolitan Museum of Art it was our first visit to the museum and to the city and my head was spinning from trying to take in thousands of years of artwork in only two hours I was no longer captivated by New York City's speed and energy but drained from the cold, the walking and the endless choices the city seemed like a speeding locomotive chugging along indifferent to those who had in some way or another fallen onto the tracks a bulky disheveled woman hobbled onto the bus and dropped into a seat for the elderly and handicapped her plastic shopping bags took up two seats of their own she was well bundled but none of her coats had buttons she paid no attention to my stairs as she settled down for a nice warm ride when the bus began to move again she pulled out a slightly rusted tin compact and carefully applied some subtle rose colored lipstick her hand was steady her application precise with her fingertip she plotted the corner of her mouth she was around 60 and had a sweet unsuspecting face I thought maybe she was on her way to a church or a shelter for a holiday dinner I was comforted by the fact that she had somewhere to go the woman rode for only a short while before the bus driver stopped and asked her to get out no more free rides lady, he said I'm tired of giving free rides out you go she meekly offered to pay the money she had it here somewhere in one of her pockets but the bus driver ordered her out again and she acquiesced close to tears take a shower lady the driver muttered as she climbed slowly down the steps she smiled and nodded as if she'd known he would say that Merry Christmas she called after him before the doors closed with a wheeze behind her I buried my face in my mother's shoulder and cried all the way to our stop I cried because it was Christmas Eve and everyone deserved a break during holidays I cried because I worried the woman would miss dinner if she didn't get to the shelter on time but mostly I cried out of shame because neither I nor anyone else on that bus had offered to pay for her ride to those who can think only of the color of their eyes when they hear the word red so raw still is the recent loss for them to them I want to say Merry Christmas to those on the street corner holding up cardboard signs and holding out hopeful palms I want to say Merry Christmas to those who rail against the insensitivity of their illness for emerging at this point in the calendar year why they ask could it not wait for just another few weeks to them I want to say Merry Christmas to those who stare out of windows all day remembering years gone by wondering where the time has gone wondering when someone might visit them wondering how they can still be alive when so many who have people their lives are gone from this earth to them also I would say Merry Christmas to those who cover their bruised bodies so that others won't be able to see the battle wounds of their marriages the scars of their families ways who try to cover their battered spirits with a numbing silence I want to say to them also Merry Christmas Merry Christmas I say to all who can believe in these words may we stand by, support and encourage those sisters and brothers who cannot for until we can look them in the eye and say with an honest heart Merry Christmas our work in this world will not be completed blessed be and amen our closing Carol this evening is a Unitarian Carol composed by Edmund Hamilton Sears in the 19th century I invite you to rise once more in body and spirit as you sing together it came upon a midnight clear some people say that Jesus is the light of the world can be the light of the world act in ways that enlarge the realms of love and justice when we share another's pain or another offer a comforting ear to a friend in need we are the light of the world when we give bread to the hungry or support ways to house the homeless we are the light of the world when we fight temptations to wrongdoing within ourselves and treat our neighbors with respect we are the light of the world when we look for the good in others and in ourselves we are the light of the world when we do not stand quiet in the face of prejudice but speak our minds firmly and unflinchingly we are the light of the world when we fight despair within ourselves and side with hope we are the light of the world when we use our powers justly and in the service of love for humanity we are the light of the world we are the light of the world please remain seated as we close our service


This is Think Tech Hawaii, Community Matters here. Okay, we're back, we're live, and here we are, fabulous, talking again to Carlos Juarez. Carlos, he left us a year ago to go to Mexico, Mexico City. And now we find that he's on a trip from Mexico City on a fulbright in Goa, Goa, India. Then he's a fulbright Nehru scholar in BITS. We'll find out what that is in a minute in what, Pilana Goa Campus in India. Carlos Juarez, Global Connections Indeed. Welcome back, Carlos. We'd love to have you on the show. Well, thank you, Jay, and welcome. Welcome to our listeners, and of course to all of you there. I'm really excited to reconnect and share with you some of my latest travels and travails. And here I am in Goa, India, on the other side of the planet. And actually, as we speak now, I'm actually calling you from the future because it's Wednesday morning here. And there's, what, Tuesday evening for you there in Hawaii. You are about as far away from Hawaii as any place on the planet, I must say. You can't get further than this. That's possible, right? And that's why we're doing Skype audio rather than Skype video because the connection's not exactly that good. But we are calling this show, if you don't mind, Carlos, Go, Go, Goa. Wonderful. Well, tell us how it's been. Last time we knew you were in Mexico, Mexico City doing academic things there, living the good life. But now you've moved on, at least for a while, to your fulbright in Goa. Tell us about it. Well, yes, Jay, as you and some of our listeners may know, fulbright is a program sponsored by the U.S. government. And it works closely with most countries of the world, I think, over 170, 180. And it's a program of international educational exchange. And so I'm here for the fall semester for about five, six months, essentially as a visiting professor. And the program known as the fulbright NERU program. Of course, NERU being one of the founders of modern India. And this coming week and a few more days, India will celebrate 70 years from its independence. So it's a big holiday here next week. And I'm delighted to be part of this. It's effectively like a cultural ambassador. I'm here helping to understand about this country, also teach about it. And so I'm affiliated with the university here in the city of Goa. And we'll talk a little bit about Goa, because it's a fascinating place. Actually shares a lot of interesting things with Hawaii, given the Portuguese legacy here, but also the connection there in Hawaii. Well, where is it exactly? Can you give us sort of a geographical positioning on where it is in India? Yes, of course.  And this would be on the west coast, about halfway in the middle, roughly. It is considered South India, because India is a very large country. And a good part of it, you know, goes into the northern part. So it is on the west coast, the Arabian Sea. It's a large port city. And for about 450 years, it was part of the Portuguese Empire, an overseas empire. And this was their main headquarters in the South Asia subcontinent. So today, Goa is a very small state, the smallest state of India, just under 2 million people. And it only joined the country of India in 1961. So after India was independent in 1947, it took over a decade of negotiations for the Portuguese to finally let it go. And so here it is today, a small, popular destination for tourism, famous for its beaches, for a very relaxed lifestyle. It shares a lot of what Hawaii has, that very easygoing lifestyle. You know, Carlos, I was in Portugal in Lisbon not quite a year ago.  They're very proud of Goa. Absolutely.  It's not, you know, one of the heavy players. Even neighboring Spain is a larger country by any measure. But Portugal in the 17th, 16th century was a pretty significant overseas empire in parts of Africa, Asia, you know, and of course here in this place of Goa was their headquarters for this region. And they do have, in fact, a large community of Goans who live back in Portugal today. And the legacy is here. I mean, after 450 years, it's hard to not have it. However, one thing that's interesting is while Portuguese was spoken here during much of that time, today you only find it spoken among the very older generation. Most of it, now it's more than 50 years since they're independent. And so you don't have too much spoken here. However, the legacy is very real in terms of architecture, in terms of the cuisine. And I've had a chance to send some photos just to give a snapshot of... Yeah, why don't you pull some of them out and replace some of the photos? In the region of India, you've got this Portuguese architecture that looks like it's frozen in time. A number of different, you know, buildings and mansions and homes and churches. You know, India is an overwhelmingly Hindu population, but here in the state of Goa, about 30% of the population is, in fact, Christian or Catholic. Interesting. So it's a pretty significant part of the population here locally. Well, let's look at some of those photos. You sent them along. Here's one. It looks like tiles. It looks like a house built of big tiles. What is all that about? You know, in the city of Panjim, which is the main city of Goa, what you have here is a very beautiful impressive.  I mean, you'll see evidence of the Portuguese and this would be one very interesting example. But beyond that, you have, again, a number of mansions that reflect the...  So it's a very exotic look. Yeah. But quite fascinating. When we were in Portugal, we saw houses like this. And we saw tiles like this everywhere. It's an art form in Portugal as a unique art form. You don't find it anywhere else. And so, well, I suppose you find it in various forms in other places. But in Portugal, it's very distinct. And so this is very Portuguese. It's designed as this house. What else have we got in the photos? You know, another aspect is what's fascinating is the syncretism or the blending of, essentially, let's say Catholic architecture or churches together with Hindus. So you'll have Hindu temples and there's one of them in there that is an example where it actually has, again, more of the Catholic look in terms of the style. But it is, in fact, a Hindu temple. And so it is the syncretism that you see throughout. To the extent that people here will celebrate the holidays. The Catholics will celebrate Hindu traditions and vice versa. And even a Muslim community here. So there's just a very interesting laboratory of how these three major religions come together here in celebration. Now, this is a very nice temple. I really like the architecture. It's got a very sturdy look to it. And it doesn't look that old. Can you date it for us? Before me here. This will tend to be from the 17th and 18th century. The Portuguese first arrived in 1510, actually 1498. I'm sorry 1498 Vasco de Gama is the first explorer who comes here. But in 1510 they formally make it part of their empire and in Goa specifically. And so, you know, after 450 years, but much of the construction would begin the 17th century and into the 18th century. But again, the style would remain. So even buildings done in the last 1500 years would all maintain this fascinating architectural style. You mentioned Vasco de Gama. He is the biggest hero in Portugal.  Indeed. And it is the name of the port city here that is kind of like a little more of an industrial, pretty rough part of town. But it's a big port city and a protocol for some cruise ships. And it's the closest town here to me where I am.  It's called the Birla, B-I-R-L-A, the Birla Institute of Technology and Science. Or it's a abbreviation BITS. And this is one of their four campuses. They have the main campuses closer to Delhi. They have another one of Hyderabad and a fourth campus in Dubai. And so this campus in Goa is one of their top engineering schools in India. And I have the opportunity here as a social scientist to teach these future leaders of India. These are engineering and science students. Quite a fascinating experience for me as well. You must be related to Mr. Fulbright. It is. I must say these are very rare and competitive awards. I've been very fortunate to have now my fourth one. Initially, from Hawaii, I was at HPU and I went to Mexico back in the year 2000. And then I had two grants to the Czech Republic, 2003 and 2005. And you'll recall a little over two years ago, two and a half years ago, I was in Austria. And that was another Fulbright grant. So this is yet one more. I can't say I'm related, but maybe I have a good understanding of one of the important roles of Fulbright. It's not just a boondoggle to come and study, but you really do need to try to help connect and build bridges and have sort of long term outcomes. So my goal here aside from teaching is to really develop some collaboration, some links, and to help them understand and make sense of our country. And this is of course an interesting time to do that because Indians are very curious and they have a lot of opinions about what's happening in the world and no doubt what's happening in the U.S. as well. Yeah, well, I think it goes to a point we talked about briefly before the show and that is that travel is education and you can't be fully educated without travel. And maybe Americans don't travel enough because once you get out there, you'll be able to see the way the country looks from the outside in. But that gives you another viewpoint that you really need to have, don't you think? Oh, absolutely. You can learn a lot from reading and even the fact is you don't have to see the world. It'll come to you, right? Anywhere you go, the world is basically staring at you and coming to you. But there is no substitute to going out, living, experiencing, learning the local cultures, eating the food and smelling the flowers because that really immerses you and it forces you to think differently. Again, you put yourself out of your comfort zone, but you also both appreciate how things are done elsewhere and you've come to gain respect and admiration because everywhere you go, people are doing things and sometimes they do it like you, sometimes they do it differently and you can't help but ask questions and be fascinated by that. And I think ultimately we talked a moment about the syncretism, this mixture. That's what you get fascinated by here because it blends the European culture that was brought here with the local indigenous cultures and so today it has created a very unique place here in Goa and there are a lot of other pockets like that, but this one in particular really is quite an interesting mixture of these major cultures. It's the vitality of diversity which we know is the most important thing for good thinking and globalism. Let's take a short break, Carlos. We'll take one minute break and I want to call Congress and tell them that they ought to think in terms of diversity also and that they should do more traveling. We'll be back right after that one minute with Carlos Juarez. He joins us by Skype Audio from Goa, India. We'll be right back. This is Think Tech Hawaii, raising public awareness. We have this crazy thing going on today. I was just walking by and all these DJs and producers are set up all around the city. I just walked by and I said, what's happening, guys? They told me they were making music. They had their musical talent and then sat down and kind of played to make a really nice sound. So we'll do it. We're back. We're live with Carlos Juarez, an old friend who joins us by Skype Audio from Goa, India. He's there on a Fulbright. It's the Fulbright Nehru Scholar Scholarship Program at BITS in Pilani, Goa Campus, India. We are so happy to talk to him. Carlos, one of the things that's really valuable is your way, and you've done this in other places through Fulbright and otherwise, to engage with people and to learn the essence of the place and the people where you are. We've talked to you in some of those places from Europe a year or two ago, and I've always enjoyed our conversations. Now we have a sort of fresh asset here in terms of dealing with the people in Goa. So tell us about them. Tell us about your interaction with them. You mentioned that they were curious in all this. Are they like the Indians in Bangalore? You know, heavily involved in tech? Or is it something else? Well, as I said earlier, this is a technology school, a science and engineering place. And I was a little bit flabbergasted to say that when I have a class right now with about 60, 65 students, and actually it turns out not a single one of them is from Goa. I was a little disappointed to be honest. But what it is, this is a very elite competitive school. You know, the admissions are very rigorous. And so the students come from all parts of India, which I think itself is an interesting laboratory because they come here and they meet people from places that they've never been to. India is a massive country, 1.3 billion, so you can imagine just the diversity itself. But anyways, what these students do share in common as these are gifted, you know, educated young leaders, they have a pretty good understanding of global issues. I'm really impressed and that's part of what I'm here to also research about. What is it that's allowing them to learn so much about the world? Well, of course, they grow up with technology that gives them clear links, but as well the kind of mobility that, frankly, their parents and grandparents simply didn't have. And this is true everywhere today. But, you know, India has a huge diaspora community.  And interesting that that community is now more and more connected back here. So many of these will have relatives or family who have lived in the US or the UK and now come back. But these students, they have a, even though they're studying, you know, chemical engineering or computer science, I'm impressed that they have a pretty good understanding of what's happening in the world. And, you know, they read voraciously, they ask questions. I think it's fair to say, especially, again, we're talking about these elites. These are not the average Indian, but they really get a very solid education that forces them to think critically about the world. I think from the perspective of the United States, it's a little worrying because these are people who are going to be, at the end of the day, eating our lunch, so to speak. They're going to be making decisions that are going to impact us. But they have a pretty good understanding of it, a different perspective, of course, from where they sit. But a very deep knowledge of what's happening in the world. So at any given day, they're asking me questions about what's happening with the, you know, the Trump investigations or what is happening about North Korea. And these are students of science that, traditionally, you wouldn't expect them to be thinking about global social political issues. Yeah. Well, you know, it's funny, I just came back from a trip in the inner passage on the cruise ship in Alaska. And the Norwegian flag, it was the Norwegian sun in the ship. And the Indians were well represented on the ship. They were well represented among the passengers. There were at least a plurality there. And they were well represented among the crew. And it goes to your point about how they like to travel and learn about, you know, places far away, how they like to be global in their thinking. And it was indeed, they were true. They were, that was true for them. And they were a substantial part of the social structure of the ship. And so, you know, I think that India has a great future going forward. And the question I put to you was, how do they feel about their future? Do you see them traveling more? Do you see them getting involved in enterprises that are global rather than just Indian? Do you see them making, you know, making enterprises that are profitable around the world? Well, I mean, yes and yes. I mean, I want to say that what I'm fascinated is that while they have, I think, this global connection, if you will, through, you know, the communities that are all around the world and just their own education here, what I'm also, I think, impressed with is there is a very strong social conscience, if you will, and maybe put it a different way, there's a deep appreciation of their culture and how important it is for them to maintain that. While they are well, you know, westernized in some level and deeply connected to the world, at their core they have a sense of identity of what culture they come from. And while it is India and there's a sense of that as a national pride, it's even deeper than that. It's more, you know, what part of India or what, you know, what culture within India. So it's these multiple identities that they hold and that they can walk these different circles, whether it's on a cruise boat in Alaska or, you know, a high-tech company in the Silicon Valley. They are able to walk these many circles of, you know, of the world. It really is impressive and, you know, it speaks to the deep links that this part of the world has had for centuries now and now they're doing it on their terms, which is, I think, even more fascinating. Yeah, and Goa was probably part of that, to connect them with Europe. And so I just, I wonder also, you know, how they feel about their own government. You talked about their sort of sense of self-identity. How do they feel about Mr. Modi, Narendra Modi? Are they happy with him? Is that contentious? He's made some good moves and maybe some bad moves. What's the sense of the people? Well, you know, I was speaking precisely about that just the other day and I want to say on one hand I think there is a general sense of pride and I speak to whether it's the taxi driver or the educated college student, they are aware that this leader that they have at the moment, the Prime Minister Narendra Modi, he is moving forward with a lot of dynamism, a lot of strategic thinking. He is trying to put India first in their own way and I think there's a sense of admiration for that because he is a pretty dynamic leader relative to other recent ones. Now, does he have controversy of course? And there will be some who might look at his autocratic tendencies or maybe they're more critical of his pretty strong Hindu nationalism. But I want to say by and large my feeling is that there is a sense of pride about him. You know, and even an understanding that while he may share some authoritarian tendencies with our current president, there's a world of difference in terms of just the sheer competence and maybe level of sophistication. This guy, he's doing it in their own let's say Hindu nationalist way but I see a sense of pride among them and as I said earlier they're about to celebrate Independence Day and there seems to be a resurgence of nationalism and as I teach the students over and over, nationalism can be a very good thing. Of course for unity and pride, of course it can also be a double-edged sword. It can be the kind of thing that pushes violence and often leads us to some uglier aspects. So they need to be aware of that. I think they are. But overall my sense is that Modi is seen with considerable pride and relatively positive that he's really trying to do things to improve the country. Yeah, great. Now what about their neighbors? They have, you know, to the northwest they have Pakistan which is on the border of Jewis Afghanistan and all the trouble in Iran. How do they feel about that? Is that a threat? I mean, after all we had an attack in Mumbai a few years ago. Is there a worrying about terrorism? Is there worrying about a spillover of violence from the Middle East and Central Asia? Well, my short answer would be not quite. Not what you see, let's say in Europe where it's a very real reality if you're traveling in Paris or Belgium or, you know, London. But nevertheless there is an awareness that there are tensions in the neighborhood. Yes, China is the other traditional rival and there are some. As we speak now in the last few weeks, a bit of tension up in the border area with China. And China has most recently bought out some large port facilities in the neighboring Sri Lanka and while the Chinese argue it's all about their commercial interests, of course India sees it as, you know, really they're getting a foothold, just a stone's throw away. And then there's Pakistan, the perennial, you know, tension at the border. And yet I see Pakistan as a very complex issue because, you know, the partition now literally 70 years ago also divided so many families. So there are many here who still have those links, perhaps now several generations old. But no doubt the neighborhood is tense. However, I want to say people's daily lives here and there's not a sense of, you know, fear or insecurity. They're not living as if, you know, this is a place that's going to be attacked. You mentioned the Mumbai attacks. I think it was about some six, seven years ago quite dramatic, no doubt. But by and large that was an aberration, an exception. Where you have violence it tends to be more localized and really between very hard-line Hindu nationalists often taking on some Muslim communities. And the other violence which has also surprised me is because of the Muslim, I'm sorry, not Muslim, the Hindu ban on beef. There's been a bit of violence about those who either manufacture or sell and market beef. And so they've been attacked by some hard-line nationalists. And beyond that, no, I want to say in general the places focus more on just local regional issues and yet aware that the world out there is a pretty dangerous place in parts of the world. Well, you know, Thomas Friedman recently wrote a book or released, published a book called Thanks for Being Late in which he covers his view of various continents and geopolitical issues around the world. And he covers the migrant issue, of course. I mean, it has to be covered these days. And so you have one-third of all the migrants coming to Europe coming from the Middle East. You have two-thirds of them coming from Africa, sub-Saharan Africa. But what's interesting is the migrants are not coming to India. Are people worried about that? Or is there an effort, some kind of initiative to try to prevent them or possibly incentivize them to come to? What is the government's position on that? Well, I haven't looked at it in detail. My quick gut feeling is that it's not so much an issue. This is a place that has abundant labor. There's just, you know, a lot of people and they don't have the knee that you see in many of the parts, let's say, of Europe and even the U.S., where there's an important pool for migrant workers. So it doesn't exist here. There are, of course, migrants, yes. And many of these port cities have had a tradition of that. If anything, what I think is happening is more of a return migration of those Indians who had left and gone a generation ago. If you moved to, you know, to London, you made it a permanent move. Now you can go for studies and come back and have job opportunities here. So there's a growing sort of capital, we would call it like a reverse brain drain, where many who have had experience in the West are now seeing opportunities to live and to maintain your culture and live at home and work here and still be connected to the global economy. I would be remiss if I didn't ask you how you are. The diaspora community itself, not really large numbers. And yet this place has a history of migrants who came, whether it was from the Middle East itself, even parts of Africa, but especially from, you know, Europe through the period of colonial rule. But not an issue of African migrants really. Instead, I think what you have are huge communities of Indians who live in the Middle East, for example. This university has its own campus in Dubai and mainly it's focused to reach out to the Indian community that's there. And so just a good example of the connections that they have with their own communities abroad. Well, let me ask you what they think about, and you alluded to this a minute ago, about Trump and about American politics and the shenanigans in Congress. And for that matter, the relationship of the public and the government in the U.S. because it's in transition, some say even transformation. Are the Indians thinking about that? Are these students aware of the fine points of that? Do they have any views that they've expressed to you? Well, yes. And for the most part, and these are the more outspoken ones in class that are discussing it, what they see, I think, and it comes from popular media from the news, whether it's fake or real. And that is that there's a deep divide in the U.S. and that there are some real, very real social challenges and issues, whether it's the opioid crisis or the plight of, especially issues like the plight for African Americans and how it is a very different world than it might be for others. So they are aware of these kind of social tensions and conflicts. And indeed, I would say they highlight them in a way that kind of is very critical. I've had other experiences coming here in India, and in general, they're very, very political animals.  They like to push you against the wall, and they don't hesitate about that. And so many of the views I hear tend to be about this perspective, rather critical of U.S. society, that we are not this beacon on the hill. And I think that's where some of the danger lies, that we've seen this erosion of what does the U.S. stand for?  Today, that's probably becoming under more question about, well, wait a minute, look at how migrants are being treated or look at how minorities suffer from discrimination. So I think there's a keen awareness of that here. Well, you mentioned China, and of course China is always trying to expand its influence, including with soft power maneuvers in various countries in and around India. And I wonder how people feel about China vis-à-vis the United States, especially in the time of Trump. Are they still our best buddy? Do they still see the U.S. as their better friend, better friend than China? How do you feel about that? How do they feel about that? My gut feeling is that there's a distinction between what would be called maybe the U.S. government and maybe the current administration. Obviously, there's a public, Bill Wilderman. There's confusion about it. There's a sense that right now it may not be clear what that relationship should be. And maybe different from, you know, those who had opportunities, you know, to travel and study. I mean, the U.S. will always be a place that attracts the best and brightest to come to our universities, et cetera. But in terms of the government-to-government relations, at the moment, a bit mixed. There was a lot of hope. Maybe I wouldn't say hope, but maybe early expectation that the two leaders coming together, Modi and Trump, you know, would be able to foster cooperation. And on some level, it is there. But my sense is that there's a little bit of an awareness that you can't be sure what's going to happen. And what that means, I think, is that India, just like today is happening in a place like Mexico and other parts of the world, they're looking elsewhere. They're looking to realize that maybe the U.S., at the moment, you know, looking inward, is not going to be the place that's going to help solve all our problems. And so I think for India, much like China, it's an opportunity for them to put their energy in other areas. And there is a very mixed love-hate relationship with China because while there are tensions and there are competition, there's also a growing connection of cooperation. And China is taking the lead, but it is developing this very ambitious project to connect much of this world and develop infrastructure specifically, and part of that connects with India as well. So it's a real mixed bag, but I think India sees the troubles and travails in the U.S. as an opportunity to look elsewhere. Well, Carlos, it seems to me that you're more than an academic these days. In the circumstances, you're more than a scholar, more than a Fulbright scholar, more than a teacher, more than a person who exchanges with the local students.  You represent the United States, even though you're spending your time in Mexico. Do you see it that way? Let me add to that that I think what you're doing with these type of shows over the years now is you're helping to really connect us all in a way that brings the world closer and underscores how deeply connected all of us are, where we are in the world. Amen to that.  Thank you so much, Carlos. It's been wonderful to talk to you. I hope we can do it again soon. Yes, of course, Jane.  Aloha. Thanks so much. Aloha.


I want to talk about legacy emotions, what they are and why it's so important to realise what they are and how they show up. So legacy emotions, they're really from the past, they're from difficult experiences we had in the past and they're so kind of overwhelming when they happen to us. It's something that we can't really process from the past. Obviously it's traumas or it's past, failed relationships or disappointments. Pain essentially from the past. Often from childhood really. And the real big ones we're looking at here are any kind of sense of being abandoned, the really big one, the legacy emotion that shows up for a lot of us is guilt. And guilt is a strange one. Really when we're talking about guilt what we're talking about is a kind of sense that there's something wrong with me or unworthiness or inferiority, those types of feelings. Shame is another one. And then of course the last one then is this feeling of anxiety that shows up in our life. Really if you wanted to add another one you could add in anger. Anger is quite often a legacy emotion. Okay, so it's I'm going about my day to day life and these emotions are showing up. Okay, now if we don't understand that a lot of these emotions that we're experiencing are due to the past, they're old and maybe we repressed them and pushed them away because we couldn't deal with them at that point. Well, the problem with that is now in our day to day life these emotions are surfacing and we go into these rationalizations about why do I feel like this? There's nothing obvious I can really point to and if we can't find anything obvious, well, we go into a story or we go into, we kind of formulate some kind of explanation desperately trying to understand why this feeling is here. So I'm not saying that there's nothing that could happen in your day to day life that would make you feel anxious, for instance. Okay, but typically what we'll find is maybe an anxiety provoking event comes up in your day to day life in your current life. Okay, there'll be some anxiety around that. But quite often that anxiety itself is piled up on from this legacy negative anxiety that we carry with us from the past. So really what we're talking about here is noticing often, especially when you feel one of these legacy emotions of maybe being isolated, abandoned, unworthy, guilty, ashamed or anxious or angry, that we don't really need to find an explanation for them. In fact, we don't even quite often need to go into where is this coming from exactly in my past. Really what we're looking at here is the whole trick about this is to just not go into rationalizations about what this emotion means in the here and now. Okay, it's through rationalization that we really avoid just dealing with it when it's here. Okay, these stories and these explanations really are all up here and the experience emotionally for these legacy emotions is in here. It's in our body. So when we just give ourselves full permission to accept, okay, this is probably coming from the past. One question we can ask ourselves when feelings like this come up in our modern current life is, is this the first time I've ever felt this emotion? And you know, typically, if it's a legacy emotion, we will have been carrying it for such a long time that it shows up again and again, and we realize, okay, there's a pattern here with this. This is just a feeling that wants to come up now and be experienced, wants to be given some space to be met without judgment or the need to go into a rationalization, which is really just a way to avoid dealing with it. Now, how do we deal with it? Again, it's just to completely give yourself permission to experience it. Okay, and the tricky one here is any feelings of guilt that we have, okay, because guilt is basically, it's really the most important one of all. Now, it's not the deepest one, the deepest one of these legacy emotions, perhaps the most painful of them all is this feeling of being abandoned. But of course, we go into stories around that and this is where this guilt comes from the shame that there's something wrong with me. And so many of us have this story, this legacy emotion of guilt or unworthiness or shame. If we can start to be with that and come out of the story of there's something wrong with me and actually into your body and realize, if I don't put any labels on this, what is this? Okay, even if you remove in your experience in that this guilt and shame, what if you just remove the word guilt? What if you remove the word shame or embarrassment or unworthiness and just really bring all your focus, attention and awareness into the actual experience of that sensation in your body? Now you're doing something very different. You're certainly not in a rationalization about it anymore. So this is the opportunity now is for us to realize where have I been rationalizing about my anxiety? Where have I been rationalizing about my own worthiness or maybe my inferiority feelings or complexes? Or where have I been rationalizing about being rejected or abandoned? And actually just going to the experience itself, okay, without the labels, without the stories, without embellishing it other than just the experience it is in itself. It's kind of a difficult thing to explain. But it's it's just the awareness to just bring awareness without judgment to that experience in the body. We'll do more than than five therapy sessions talking about it. Okay, so it's really the much more direct approach to dealing with this old stuff from the past. Really, this is what a lot of like things like meditation is all about. Meditation is like, okay, I'm not going to distract myself. I'm not going to be busy. I'm going to take some time to sit and be with myself.  I'm going to go in here and just show up and see what's going on inside myself. And typically when we do that, if there are these legacy emotions, if we do that regularly enough, we will come into contact with these legacy emotions. Okay, they're always with us. So through meditation, we show up not to change it, not to get rid of it, just to show up and without an agenda. Notice it, become aware of it itself, the actual feeling in the body. Of course, meditation is all about kind of, you know, you observe your thoughts and you let the thoughts pass by because you're not going into the thoughts. You're going into the actual experience of what it's like to just be with myself. So this whole, the point of this video, just to recap on this is legacy emotions. When we rationalize them, and we go into a story, we keep them. It's a way that they stay with us. Okay, because really, they're going to come up. It requires a huge amount of energy to keep them repressed and pushed down invariably. We slip, if you like, and then these emotions do start to come up again, and it's through rationalization that we keep recycling them and they go back down. They're not dealt with and they come back down and then they come up again. So it's this kind of a recycling of legacy emotions through rationalization about them. If we come out of the rationalization and into the awareness, into the permission, into just acknowledging the emotion without any labels, there's a huge degree of progress you can make with that. So maybe give that a go in your own practice and just something to think about. Hope it's helpful. And as always, thanks for joining me here. And I'll talk with you again soon. Bye for now.


This is Mike with the 21 report behind the scenes in Orlando, Florida. I'm sitting alongside Joe Navarro. Bill, welcome to the show. It's great to be here. Yeah, it's been great having you here. And before we, you know, get into some questions, I wanted to ask, if you give the audience a quick, you know, overview of your talk without giving too much away and also why you chose to talk about that subject. Yeah, so my talk was primarily about body language and nonverbal communications in part, but it was also about how humans influence each other. So I did talk about the body language that, you know, people at your age and younger should know to be able to communicate effectively, to be able to communicate more dramatically, but also to understand others. But also coupled with that was how do we influence each other? How is it that clothes influence? How is it that the things that we attach to ourselves, a car, a house, a pen, a watch, how do those things communicate? And then how do we use that who learn more about people because it's about reading people and learning about people? This isn't about manipulating people, it's about understanding people. And the more we understand, the quicker we understand, the more effective we will be in social settings or at work. So in your talk, you talked about some of the common misconceptions and I think you list out in your book what everybody is saying.  Sure, so there's a lot of misconceptions out there about body language. And a few of them, I remember being taught when I first came into the FBI that if somebody talks and looks away or they touch their nose or cover their mouth that they're lying. Well, that's just nonsense. That's not accurate at all. And in fact, as you did, the covering of our chest or arms across the belly, this is actually a self comforting behavior. And we often do that when we're sitting at a movie just watching, waiting. And it absolutely does not mean that you're blocking somebody out. Now, you could use it for that if you're upset with someone. But even when you're upset with someone, interestingly enough, it's to comfort yourself while you're upset or angry and so forth. So with the limited amount of time that I had, I wanted to the audience to learn what are some of these myths and to share with them what science teaches us about nonverbals. Cool. So another question I wanna ask was what are the differences body language wise between men and women if there are any? Well, body language itself, getting away from nonverbals, everything that communicates will vary by gender, right? So we men are actually really aggressive with ourselves. You ever noticed guys hitting their own fists as they're waiting for a train or they're really scratching their head vigorously and so forth. A lot of that is, we think testosterone driven and so forth, women for instance will ventilate their hair by pushing the hair away from their neck where men, we tend to pull on our clothes to ventilate and so forth. So there are behavioral differences that are slight based on gender. And then there's behaviors that are different based on culture. So we have to factor in where are we and who are we with as we interpret nonverbal communications. So if someone's never read your book and they're interested in learning more about body language and nonverbal communication, what's the best practical steps that they can take to start improving the way they represent themselves to the world? Well, one of the things I think that had made this book became a success, it's the number one selling body language book in the world was the simplicity of it, which was can you, the first thing that you're taught is can you detect comfort and discomfort? Because in everyday life, that's what we're communicating. We're either comfortable with each other or with ourselves, a baby is born and they're either comfortable or they're uncomfortable.  And this binary way that we communicate whether it's in business or even in courtship behavior and dating is this person that I'm with comfortable because if we're comfortable around each other, one thing's gonna happen and that is that the likelihood of us spending more time together even if it's only minutes will grow. But we know that when people are uncomfortable with each other, there's some sort of discomfort whether it's you've gotta go or the parking meters running out, whatever that is affecting how you think and it will affect in the totality of time that we're together. So the key component I think if you were to look at the book and say, yeah, you can look at the 200 behaviors that are in there but if you had to reduce it to what's most important is are they saying I'm comfortable or uncomfortable? Am I confident or lacking confidence? So this was your first time speaking at the 21 convention. How have you enjoyed the experience so far? Well, it's very interesting way. I didn't know much about the organization when Anthony reached out to me. He approached me saying, look, you're one of the leaders out there in the area of communication. The people attending I think would like to hear about what you teach, the way that you teach and the subject that you teach on. And I'm always for sharing information. I mean, 15, 12 years ago, I was approached by poker players who wanted me to share my knowledge with them and I've said I've never played poker but I shared my knowledge with them because why not? Why shouldn't they know how the brain reacts to stress and to different situations? And in the same way, from talking to the people attending the 21 convention, everyone's here for a different reason. Some people want to improve themselves. Some want to improve the way they communicate with others. Some want to improve their lives. Everybody has a different take but and I think it's helpful if you understand human behavior then it doesn't matter what niche you're in. Once you understand human behavior then you can do whatever you want in your life but do so more effectively. So before we wrap this up Joe, if people wanna find out more about you, where's the best place they can go? Yeah, all of my books, I've written 12 of them whether it's dangerous personalities which came out in 2014 or what everybody is saying. Three minutes to Doomsday came out this year. They can go to my website which is www.jnforensics.com. They can just Google my name on the internet or my books are all available on Amazon. They're at Barnes & Noble. They're at many of the local bookstores and they're also in audiobooks so they're all out there. Excellent, so Joe thanks again for being with us. Really appreciate it. You can now watch Joe's talk for free at 21university.com that's where you'll get first exclusive access to Joe's talk. This has been Mike with Joe Navarro signing off for the 21 Report. Thank you.


Hey Virgo, welcome back to the channel. This is Kelly from House of Virgo If you're new, please smash that like button and do subscribe. If you're a returning subscriber, welcome. Welcome. Welcome. Welcome I am here every Sunday through Thursday and 30 p.m. Eastern time readings generally begin at 10 25 Eastern they go live at 10 30 So you can pop in the chat five minutes prior to the reading beginning to chat with everyone if you want to get a personal reading with me. There's a link in the description box below where you can book a reading You can also join my only fan go ahead and click that link and that will take you to my socials and everywhere else You need to go can also become a member of my channel. So thank you for being here now Let's get on to your reading. Hey you guys welcome back to the channel. This is Kelly from House of Virgo So we're gonna take a look and see how your week is gonna be going forward We're gonna take a look at love take a look at career and then just life of messages in general for the week Okay, so if you're new to my channel as always click the like button and do subscribe If you want to become a member of my channel go ahead and click the join button and you can pop into the live streams and ask a question get a tower reading with me and Everything you need to know there is a link in the description box Below okay, so you're starting with Okay Seven of cups you have the Knight of Swords You have the Ten of Swords. All right, so love basically I Feel like this is straightforward here Okay, and this is probably gonna be kind of a short reading But I feel like it's straightforward love is basically like if you're confused and you don't know what's going on You need to ask direct question. You need to ask Somebody the direct question Don't you need to ask somebody directly and get the answer and if if somebody does not reply with a direct reply If they give you a vague answer then The answer is That's not the answer right you need a yes or no If it's vague, it's that's a maybe and take a maybe as a no That's the message I'm receiving here. Okay So obviously There is a situation here where either there's a ghosting or it's a situation where someone doesn't know or they have too many options Or they're not committing or they're not sure I don't care what male or female masculine or feminine energy You need to get an answer here and not sit and wait because life is passing you by right So you need to ask the direct question to someone in a romantic type of situation here And you just basically need to ask someone do you You need to be direct like ask them There's only really two types of it's either a romantic relationship or just friendships platonic Basically, you know, like you're either being romantic with each other Which you're being affectionate and kissing and all everything that goes along with that Or you're just being friends and holding hands and nothing else. Okay. I need to ask that question and If someone says that they want more than that just friends Then that's the answer and go from there And if someone says they just want to be friends that's the answer and then go from there and then put an end to it and then move forward either with or without and That's it and don't him and ha about the whole situation Okay, if somebody says well, I don't know. I'm just kind of well, let's see. No, let's not see It's not see No, that's not an answer No, maybe maybe it's not an answer. Maybe it's someone who's on the fence Okay, so if something does not give you a direct answer Then they're on the fence and the answer is they don't know and that means if they don't know then you're not gonna know And then you are left confused, right? So you need to approach it someone who is either ghosting or they're Not being direct with you and find out and whatever their answer is You need to put an end to it and move forward either with or without them. That's what I feel like This really is guidance more so than a prediction Because I feel like if someone is just kind of Stringing if you feel like you're being strung along or you just don't know what's going on It's not really for them to take you off this off the hook It's for you to let yourself off the hook and you have every right to do that Okay, and I feel like that's the message here If you feel like you're not getting a straight forward answer from someone you have every right to ask and you're allowed to ask And you're allowed to find out what's going on and sometimes People don't really know that another person wants to know Clear-cut crystal clear communication is always necessary Sometimes somebody won't ask another person because they're fearful of getting rejected or they don't want to know the answer If you don't want to ask and you want to live in limbo go for it If but then you're if you don't want to if you don't want to be rejected and you rather You then you can't complain if you're upset or frustrated with someone who's not giving you a direct answer Because you're really not asking a direct question, right? So what you get into it is what you get out of it What you put into is what you get out of it So if you want to know then you have to face it and if they say no It's still win because then you can like move on and then open yourself up to an opportunity to Have a partner that's willing to go in the direction that you want to go in your love life There's always going to be somebody else that comes along Okay, so I feel like that's more of a guided message for you. There's no sense in just you know beaten a dead horse You you have to figure it out. I Will say that you know, there is two people here Going together so it looks like Putting an end really to the confusion is what's happening here So it looks like it could turn out in a positive direction in a positive outcome So there's always a 50-50 chance to everything and I feel like No matter what however things turn out It's good for you to Take your power back or take control back the situation for yourself because you need that. Okay.  Take the reins I'm going out here with the Christmas euphemism ones already because it's coming. It's coming. All right. So Yeah, it's time to make that transition, but you got to face it. It looks like you got to face The I got to ask the tough questions This week or start thinking about it Okay So let's take a look at your career. What's going on With Virgo's career this week. What does Virgo need to know for Virgo's career this week? Okay, you've got the chariot Hmm You've got the tower Oh, there's your card queen of pentacles All right, it looks like it's time to make a move and also there was the aid of swords It's time to blow the roof off this place You are stressing You are stressing you're under a lot of pressure When it comes to your career Virgo's sun, moon rising or Venus wherever your placement is you are stressing um about your Your career your industry the job you have going to work Maybe you travel for work.  Um Some of you know that your place of employment is you know going to collapse It's it's like it's a lot of pressure. It looks like you've got two tens this I feel Seriously this reading overall collectively for this week is about you making huge chess moves in your life this I feel like This is you kind of taking the reins in your life Well, we'll see how life goes but overall in your love life and in your career And just kind of like saying I'm doing this my way now I'm not waiting for everyone else to dictate to me how my life is going to go in my love life I'm making the decisions now in my career. I'm taking the reins here I feel like you're overwhelmed. You might be under pressure this week You feel like maybe you're going to collapse.  Maybe you left your job and you're under pressure right now It's really time for you to this week, especially Start placing Your ducks in a row To get serious this week like serious you got to start Oh, it's all about asking the tough questions To not only other people to yourself Where do you see yourself in five years? Where do you where do you want to go? What do you want to do? What risks are you are you willing to take here? That's what that Aetosaurus energy is Am I a victim? By my own decisions my own thoughts my own words my choices or can I actually get myself? I'm not a tree. I can move Am I here because of my choices? Can I get myself out of this? Am I Can I be responsible? Can I be accountable? Can I make my can I get in my car and am I really stuck here? Is there a way out? I feel like this week you're kind of looking at that and saying, you know what Maybe I can do better. Maybe there is another way out and some like tower moment happens and like Kind of like knocks you in the head like boom Like a lightning bolt like wow like an idea You know and I kind of feel like It's like a spark. You know like a light bulb moment Yeah, it just kind of feels to me like you you take up some kind of staying like I don't know. You're just kind of like Taking inventory now of your love life your career So far this week and just saying I'm not waiting for anything or anyone. I'm making my own.  I make my own decisions Because maybe I don't know Virgo.  So no, you don't own anyone anything Yeah, yeah, that's what I feel like this week's all about like in a collective sense It just it just kind of feels like you're simplifying like I was saying last week I remember I was asking the question. What is the word?  Because I need the answer because I'm packing my bags and I'm going So if you're coming with me, you're coming and if you're not Later, I'm leaving I'm moving forward And the same with the job Is this job secure or not because if it's not I'm finding another job or I'm starting my own career Or I'm going to go and be self-employed. I'm going to do my own thing. You know what I mean? It's kind of like that Yeah, wow pretty profound stuff and and it all comes from Honestly, these two major arcanas the chariot and the tower These are it's like an emotional decision that's causing chaos You know, it's like a with the chariot being the cancer What's what's all about how you feel about things that you're causing a big boom? You know in your life here, you know Honoring yourself and your feelings how you feel about things and it may not even be logical But it's all about kind of like I want to live in this world and be happy I want to be happy with myself You know And the chariot is about change. It's about lifestyle change. It's about weighing things out and setting a path and going in the direction of your joy Going after what you want and the tower is Pretty much about major shifts and changes in your life So let's take a look here and see overall life Which I feel like We're just basically getting into look at that The hierophant another major arcana. There you go Judgment another major arcana. There you go the fool another major arcana. There you go The empress another major arcana And of course The queen wants masculine or feminine bold Trailblazing Yes The hierophant This is pretty much about doing You it's it's even coupled with judgment. It feels like you're having this like spiritual awakening In a lot of ways, you know, I don't feel like you're rebelling You're not I don't feel like you're like smacking against the wall and going in the opposite direction Because you're not getting what you want. I feel like this is well thought out You're having like this awakening, you know, so you're not like Having a temper tantrum and you're not being like, well, nobody's making me happy. So I'm running away To never never land. It's not that it's like, you know what I could do better I can do better with myself. I can make I can make myself better I can make myself happier. I can do better And that's what that's what the hierophant is like reaching that You know, like the heart like the hierophant and reverse would be all about like rebelliousness and Anti this and anti that but I don't see you doing that You're not you're not going against you're going with the green you May have been going against yourself prior You were rebellious prior you weren't honoring your truth and now you're honoring yourself here By doing what's right for you or at least you you start doing that Or seeing that this week and you set yourself free to be your best The fool and the empress you know And it takes courage and that's that courage that comes and I just see it this week You know the empress she nurtures self She embodies births new beginnings And the queen of wands she comes with her charm and her vivacious personality She's positive. She's bold. She's a mover and a shaker. She's fearless You know and she she takes the risk here Just sets a course for destiny.  I guess Or to do what's right for you at this time, you know to honor yourself So, I mean I like it. I feel like this week is all about taking a look at you know Kind of turn it inward a little bit and and saying, you know, it's time for me now um To not be the one who is Being a slave for everybody else Until everybody else figures out what they want, you know, it's not necessary for you to ask someone In a sense like Two people get to make a decision, you know, um You get to have a say Sure, another person gets to have to say two in a partnership, whether that's in the job, whether that's in the relationship And you should ask what somebody else wants But it doesn't mean you have to want what they want And if somebody else just wants casual type of relationship, and that's not what you want Then you don't have to go along with that But some people will tell you that they just well, let's see how it goes. That's not an answer That's just I'm one foot in one foot out You know, and it depends. What are you looking for? If you Don't want a casual relationship and somebody gives you a vague answer That means that they do if you want a casual relationship And they want something serious Then that's not going to fit with you. So it really depends on what you want But you got a note like you got to ask Yeah, so I feel like even the same with the job It's the same thing got to ask questions You can't be afraid to ask questions and a lot of times people don't ask questions because they're fearful of the answer And if you're fearful of the answer, you're never going to know You can't be afraid of the outcome You just can't You just can't Sometimes no is a blessing. You could be missing your blessing Yeah, that's all I'm saying and I'm keeping that right there because that's a very short Simple message. I'm going to leave that there for you guys to just kind of chew on So you have for the rest of the week. I don't know if something's going to come up or not for you But it's something to meditate on for this week and just in case something comes up. You'll have it Ready to go. All right, you guys so enjoy. I will see you all back here tomorrow. Have a good night. Take care